No place like home: biggest differences in Orange for out-of-state students

Students new to California reflected on the biggest culture shocks of moving from their hometowns. WikiCommons

The wise words of Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” remain true even today: “There’s no place like home.” Though nothing quite compares to my hometown of San Jose, California, Orange immediately made a positive first impression on me. With restaurants lined up on every block, frequent farmers markets, seasonal fairs and the grand display of fireworks from Disneyland viewable from my street every night, I can happily say Orange is my adopted home. 

Vivian Nice, a junior communication studies major at Chapman, thought nothing could be weirder than the annual UFO festival in her hometown of McMinnville, Oregon. But no amount of weirdness could have prepared her for the culture shock of moving down to Southern California — feeling like she was abducted by an alien and dropped off on a foreign planet.

The magnitude of the distance truly hit when her two friends were able to take a quick drive home for the weekend. For Nice, getting home would mean over a day's worth of travel by automobile or extensive planning to book a flight. 

“Two of my friends had gone for the weekend.” Nice said. “I can’t just go home for the weekend; I’m here until Thanksgiving. One of the biggest shocks was the realization that I’m on my own. It’s on me to figure things out for the most part.” 

Like Nice, many out-of-state students have experienced culture shock in a variety of different ways. Whether it's the discovery of In-N-Out Burger or finding out the beach is minutes away, many Chapman students notice distinct differences from home during their first few days in the California environment.

For Micaela Fornaro, a first year graduate screenwriting major from North Providence, Rhode Island, the shock set in the moment she merged on the freeway, seeing six wide lanes of classic Southern California. “I try not to drive on the freeway, because that just seems like a whole other beast that I’m not ready for quite yet,” Fornaro said. “My roommate is from Orange, and she was telling me there’s different lanes for different kinds of travel. There’s the carpool lane, which we don’t have where I’m from. There’s a toll lane, where you can pay to go in a different lane and bypass some traffic, which we also don’t have.”

For others, the sheer number of drivers is an anomaly. Maddie Mullany, a junior strategic and corporate communications major, said she learned quickly that Orange County isn’t built for the same amount of walking as her hometown of Pelham, New York. 

“This is much more of a driving place, and that makes it seem slower to me,” Mullany said. “You can walk places, but it's mainly built for driving. I think it makes it seem faster in New York, because you walk a lot more.” 

The lack of walking and the slower pace of pedestrians all have left a surprising impression on Mullany, who told The Panther she is used to the hustle and bustle of urban cities, while California settles for more of a relaxed style of living. 

“When I came to school, I thought maybe I would want to stay here, but I probably won’t,” Mullany said. “Whenever I’m here, I’m excited to be back, but also I miss being in New York. I miss being with my friends and having such easy access to the city. You could just take the train from our town. There was always something to do.” 

Nice noted the obscure layout of the city. While in Portland, Oregon you’d have to make a trek for your groceries, coffee and other essentials, Southern California clumps the three into one shopping center. 

“I remember going places with my friends and being like ‘Wow, there’s Trader Joes, Starbucks and Target (all together),’” Nice said. “It was fun to be a part of a new place. There’s all these places in one vicinity. I was not used to that, so it was fun exploring things and realizing it was really different from home.” 

While Orange is not everyone’s official home, it is a lot of Chapman students’ adopted home from near or far. For some, including Nice, the experience of moving to Orange represented independence as well as newfound appreciation. 

“I think going so far away allowed me to grow a lot and learn things I wouldn’t (have) if I stayed at home,” Nice said. “I can go home and visit my family and have a nice rainy day. I know I’m going to come back to Orange. It makes me appreciate it a lot more in a way that I don’t think I would have if I had stayed.”