We asked international students what their first impressions of Leeds were

By now we all know the common stereotypes about Leeds: green puffa, Beckett sucks etc etc. But what do people who have never been here before really think about the city? We asked international students to tell us their brutally honest first impressions of Leeds, its students and everything they just don't get. Apparently, uni students in Leeds are all constantly drunk and cold but at least we're “super friendly”.

On the uni

“The atmosphere at uni is a lot more relaxed.” – Josh, Canada

“Walking around campus and seeing the squirrels and how beautiful the campus was really helped settle my anxiety a little. I felt and still feel like I'm in a movie. Cue the montage.” – Rachael, Australia

“People make you feel like you are at home and there are plenty of opportunities to get involved at uni. Definitely the place to be if you want to spend a good Erasmus.” – Davide, Italy

“First time I got here I really like the city and the campus. Everything was well organised.” – Sena, Turkey

On the weather

“The weather is shit.” – Josh, Canada

“Why do British people don't wear jackets when going out even though it might be freezing outside?” – Nora, Germany

“The worst thing is the cold weather, it's very cold. We have cold winters in Ankara but Leeds is cold even in autumn. That was a shock for me.”- Sena, Turkey

“It's so cold outside at night but the girls just don't wear coats, not even tights!? I feel like an outsider when I show up to Fruity in a warm jacket and a long-sleeve top.” – Julie, Germany

On the drinking culture

“Wow. It seems socially acceptable here to be drunk 90% of the time. I could get used to this!” – Ewan, Australia

“The alcohol consumption in Leeds is a lot higher than back home.” – Josh, Canada

“I've seen another level of drunk here. Girls falling out of bathroom stalls butt-naked.” – Julie, Germany

“How can Brits drink so so so much every single day of the week and get completely wasted and at the same time still manage to do their work for university and succeed in life in general?” – Nora, Germany

On the people

“The people everywhere are really nice but they speak so fast it is difficult to understand them. And I think I'm the only Ingrid here!” – Ingrid, Spain

“The Yorkshire dialect sounds like a Stradivari violin to my sensitive German hearing apparatus! Well, not really…” Toni, Germany

“Everyone is super friendly!” – Josh, Canada

“Everyone in shops here is so nice and helpful. But what's this ''love'' thing about?” – Lisa, The Netherlands

On the city

“Leeds is an intercultural city but super crowded.” – Ingrid, Spain

“My first impression of the city was that it was so gorgeous in terms of architecture, I like how it's like a mix of modern and older buildings. The Starbucks here sucks lol.” – Iris, Canada

“How do British people survive on toast and crumpets instead of real bread? Where are the bakeries? Do they even know what they're missing out on?” Meike, Germany

“Who designed those crosswalks? They're ridiculous.” – Rachael, Australia

“Since I came from a big city, Leeds looked small to me.” – Sena, Turkey

"Why the fuck doesn't H&M have a men's section?" – Ewan, Australia

“I was arriving at the train station like: where are the f***ing bins?” – Anna, Germany

“All I can say is that when I got here the city intimidated me a bit. I remember trying to get directions from people near the Parkinson building, and just being very overwhelmed. It took me a while to find my way through the city, even though it isn't too difficult to navigate here, just because it's so huge.” – Lisa, The Netherlands

Pics from Kat Williams and the NoCurfew Events Facebook page