AT 28, I LEFT LONDON FOR CORNWALL – THIS IS WHY I’LL NEVER GO BACK TO THE CITY

After nearly a decade of fast-paced London life and rising up the corporate marketing ladder, Malvika, 28, traded it all in for the small harbour town of Falmouth, Cornwall. She’d grown resentful of the day-to-day rat race, and realised everything she thought would make her happy was, in fact, doing the opposite.

In 2024, she left her friends and career to start afresh in the countryside, pivoting to an industry more aligned with her values. Interview by Kelly Washington

Most people who make significant life changes often talk about having a lightbulb moment first – like an epiphany, or a sudden flash of clarity. Last year, mine came via Monzo Wrapped, an end-of-year feature in the banking app that recaps your spending habits (similar to Spotify Wrapped). When the app revealed that my top three spending spots were two pubs in Hackney and a McDonald’s, I found myself in crisis.

Living in London and working a corporate job, I suddenly realised I was out five times a week but wasn’t having any fun. I was doing the same things with the same people, spending loads of money, and had nothing to show for it but pints and dinners. Something had to change.

I’d done everything “right”, I grew up on the outskirts of London, graduated from university in Birmingham and got a job in marketing straight away – but my life wasn’t how I imagined it should be. Like many graduates in the city, I moved to Hackney to work a job I wasn’t passionate about. It was just something I fell into because I wanted to live in London with all my friends.

For the first four years, I was having a good time. I was living with my friends, doing well at work, and became senior in an SEO manager role pretty fast. But it was stressful and I soon became burnt out, so I took a sabbatical for a month and went to visit a friend who was travelling in Sri Lanka. It was there that I met so many people who weren’t following the traditional corporate path, something I hadn’t been exposed to before.

The trip was more than just a break. Taking a step back from constantly rushing around led me to realise I had curated a life that was bad for for me, that wasn’t making me happy – just because everyone I knew in London was doing the same. 

When I arrived back in London, I knew I didn’t care about my job and, crucially, my lifestyle was far from good. I found myself drinking in the same five places in Hackney, and there was no evidence of what I valued in my life. I’ve always cared deeply about the environment, but this wasn’t manifesting in my life beyond keeping up with the news and recycling – things felt meaningless, and I was craving a purpose.

I’d say yes to every plan, double-book myself constantly, desperately trying to please everyone but myself. I was always leaving early or arriving late to things, feeling like a bad friend. No one was happy with me, and I felt like I was on a hamster wheel of meetings and commitments (mostly, the pub). I knew I needed to find a way to leave. What followed was a year of saving, before quitting my job in September 2024 and eventually travelling around Latin America.

While I was away, I was convinced I would return to London, but then I discovered a masters course in environment and human health in Cornwall. The thought of throwing away the life I’d spent five years building felt unnatural, like going backwards. It wasn’t something many people around me were doing, which was scary, but I knew I needed to do something that was more aligned to my values or I’d just burn out again as soon as I returned to my old life.

I applied while I was abroad and got a spot. At first, the thought of starting over in a new place, making new friends and building a new lifestyle was nerve-racking. But after spending three months in a jungle in Costa Rica with absolutely nothing, I realised I was surprisingly content in the middle of nowhere. A lot of things I thought were super important to me, like being within distance from people, the hustle and bustle of city life, and having instant access to everything, just weren’t important at all.

Now I live a 10-minute walk from the beach. Falmouth is a town, yes, but the surroundings are very rural and it’s wildly different from London life. During lunch breaks in London, I’d mostly grab a Pret and eat at my desk in the office – now, a friend and I take a proper break and walk along the coast or swim in the sea. I find I’m more interested in outdoor activities centred around nature, like sailing and surfing (which I got into while I was travelling), so I love doing that too. It’s crazy to think I used to waste two hours of my day commuting packed on a Tube with sweaty strangers, when now I do activities like this. 

My rent is £675 per month (it was £925 in Hackney) and while I am a student and far less financially stable, it’s cheaper, in a way, because we do a lot more with less and life is slower. In London I lived in a spacious house with three others, we had a big garden and a living room… but also a rat problem. Now I live with one other housemate in a fully furnished house with lovely decor, a large living room, garden, and my room is huge too. I spend about £1,200 per month generally living here, compared to £2,500 in London – with a better quality of life.

My mental health has definitely improved since I left the city, though of course it’s not a quick fix. It makes such a difference to be able to go down to the beach first thing in the morning to clear my head, and I feel like I’m way more appreciative and grateful for the day-to-day things in my life now.

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Socially, Falmouth has the atmosphere of a small town. There’s one venue in particular that does live folk music every Monday for free, as well as plenty of cute cafes and a few bars. It’s strange because I always thought having only a few places to choose from would be boring, but it’s actually great because everyone you know is already there. In Hackney, I always visited the same places anyway. I think there’s a misconception that a big city is for young people and that there’s nothing to do in the countryside – but that’s completely wrong.

There are some downsides though: I really miss my friends. I put in a lot of effort to keep in touch, as do they, but I don’t think you can move somewhere else without losing a little bit of closeness. Obviously, we’re not only in a different place, we’re also in different circumstances, so naturally your priorities shift. It’s definitely something I worry about, but I know I’m just getting to an age where paths start to move in different directions, too.

I haven’t got my Monzo wrapped back yet, this year, but I’m certain it won’t trigger me as much. I won’t go back to London anytime soon – hopefully never. It’s too expensive, and it just isn’t the lifestyle I want for myself. Sure, the job market is better and I know a lot of people there, but if I manage to make proper roots in Cornwall I would stay. If not, I’ll move abroad. I don’t think I could go back from the fresh air and being by the sea everyday now. There’s a whole world outside the city; I’m no longer hesitant to try something else.

2025-12-12T10:51:55Z