Going to college and moving to a new city is daunting. There’s a high likelihood that you don’t know anyone and go into it rather blind. It’s a fun and new experience going through college for the first time. I remembered that before I went to college, people would tell me all the time how college would teach me so much about myself that nowhere else could unlock this new, profound knowledge. While they are right, I feel like a lot of people tend to overlook the experience of living in a new city as well when it comes to the college experience. I feel as though moving to a new city is the main learning curve when navigating college, and with that, Los Angeles itself has taught me so much more about myself compared to anything that UCLA could dream of.
Moving to Los Angeles wasn’t as much of a culture shock to me compared to other people, thanks to the fact that I was born and raised in Southern California (San Diego, to be specific). So, I pretty much knew in a way what to expect since home is only a two to four-hour drive away. However, this was the first time that I would ever be living away from my family for a long period of time.
While people try to say that LA and San Diego are basically the same city, I would argue that the culture that the two cities have could not be more different. While they do have the similarities of having the same weather, infrastructure and sharing the Southern California region, I found that when I first moved here to LA I was rather overwhelmed due to how fast-paced this city was.
LA is a significantly more compact city compared to San Diego, and I thought I was prepared for just how fast-paced LA was since I grew up in Downtown San Diego, but no part of San Diego can match LA. Becoming aware of this fast-paced nature of things made me realize how quickly I had to adapt, so I don’t end up overwhelmed and ready to drop out of UCLA and move back home. While being a part of the quarter system is a different beast, going from a slower-moving life to a fast-paced one is not similar to the academic lifestyle.
Coming to Westwood in particular, I truly had to learn how to fend for myself. There was no one here to help me in a way that truly no one else can experience, besides when they come to a new city. Being used to knowing every spot back home, to suddenly knowing nothing around me was daunting and scary. It forced me outside of my comfort zone in a different manner, with having to be comfortable exploring Westwood and other parts of LA by myself, and learn the culture here.
Living in a new city when you do the move relatively alone forces you to become independent, however, LA in particular forced that independence differently. Westwood is not a place where I’d call a college town, which creates a unique experience, given the chance to be surrounded by both college students and people who are just going through the motions of life. You get the privilege of meeting people from all different types of walks of life, who can either help your own journey of self-discovery or hurt it. There’s a deep importance when it comes to getting outside of UCLA to understand the true growth you can gain. It’s easy to stay stuck on the UCLA campus and in Westwood, but you won’t be able to see the difference between home and LA until you get out of there.