Security Check: Having lived in China, Sweden, the US and England, Laurie Wang is a Digital Media Planner at Neo@Ogilvy in London, Blogger on Food and Travel (New Yorker in London), and Founder of Ladies in Digital – W Kollective.

What’s your historical London and New York connection?
Born in China, my family moved to New York City when I was 10 years old with a stop in Sweden along the way. I converted to a true New Yorker in the process! The accent, love of cities and shopping is testament to this. In my penultimate year of university, I jumped at the chance to study abroad in London. I chose LSE as the place to do my year abroad and it was here that I met a London-based boy who convinced me to move across the pond. The great thing about being a New Yorker living in London, is that you’re only ever a seven-hour flight away and so it’s easy to stay in touch with friends in both cities!

Describe your experience in London as a New Yorker:
I now drink more tea than ever before! Also, living in London has given me opportunity to see more of Europe and the rest of the world. In London, you can be in a continental European city in under two hours and for a couple more hours than it takes to fly to New York, you can be landing in the middle of South East Asia! I have become more used to life in London over the years (yes, even the rain!), but there are – of course – things that I do miss about New York. The raw energy every morning when I leave my apartment in the Upper West Side, the beautiful cityscape of Manhattan when I’m seeing it from the Staten Island ferry at night, the 24 hour subway service and the July 4th fireworks.

How can New York and London better engage with each other?
The Big Apple and London can benefit from the sharing of skills and knowledge, something that Mike Bloomberg experienced when being inspired by our iconic “Boris Bikes” – an idea championed by London’s mayor Boris Johnson – to launch the “Mike Bikes.” The two cities, similar in many ways, can learn a lot and be inspired by each other. 3460 Miles has been exploring this and I am very excited to see how this all develops!

Favorite NYC secret spot: A nice pizza fix by Birreria Roma, a cosy little Italian place with a reservation-only beer garden. If you’re a fan of Roman-styled pizza like me, you’ll really enjoy this place.

Favorite London secret spot: Not on a street and not easy to find, Corner Room is a gem of an eatery that’s tucked away inside the Town Hall hotel close to Bethnal Green tube station. After 19.00 there is no booking policy. Why? To give everyone the chance to try the experimental plates of food served up by chef Nuno Mendes and his team. And get this, the priciest main course dish is currently £12! Great value.

In flight entertainment:
What’s playing in your headphones right now? Death Cab for Cutie*
And what are you currently reading? The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin (I’m a huge Godin fan!)

From the 3460 Miles newsletter: connecting NEW YORK CITY + LONDON