I went to Los Angeles last week to meet some of the 181 who are taking a trip throughout California and to meet my best friend from college, Maíra, who now lives in Westwood. I stayed there for five days, but I could tell the huge differences between LA and New York on the first day. The original title to this was "Los Angeles vs. New York," but I didn't want to get into the trap of "which city is better." That's not what this is about. I am writing about the fun things I was able to analyze and learn about the city and compare them to what I experience on a daily basis. All the conclusions will be purely yours.

1. The Winter

This sounds obvious: LA is warmer than NYC. But it's funny to think what the frames of reference are for what people call "cold" in different places. When my plane landed I texted my friend saying I was glad it wasn't raining as the weather forecast said it would be. And she replied "Yeah, I know! It's just cold." And I might have agreed with her, if it wasn't for the fact that I was still dressed for the cold in New York of 23 degrees F (-5 degrees C) and now was sweating under my layers in the cold of LA 53 degrees F (12 degrees C). When you have to go out in the streets in New York, you dress for war. In LA, at least for me, using a hoodie was enough.

2. The Escalator

That's the funniest thing I noticed, and what made it funny for me was that it seemed like I was the only one to do so. When you live in New York, when in you step on an escalator the first thing you is stay on the right side, unless you're climbing the steps in a hurry. In LA, it was nearly agonizing for me to see my friend and other people there staying right in the middle of the step, not noticing, not caring. But again, I concluded the only people who would be in a hurry to run up the stairs in a shopping mall, totally obsessed with moving faster in a theme park or parking lot would be, exactly, New Yorkers.

3. The Food

In New York you're always looking for that place to eat in which you will be served promptly, as you think of all the food trucks and 24-hour places we have. In Los Angeles you're looking for the place that combines the words "almond milk latte," "quinoa," "gluten-free" and "Himalayan salt" the best. If you order those things to the unamused guy behind the counter in your local New York coffee shop, there is a good chance you get slapped before you can finish you order.

4. Transportation

Would you rather be stuck in the Freeway traffic, moving an inch every 10 minutes at the end of a work day or be stuck between hundreds of people trying to get out of the subway at the end of a work day? In LA your car keys are your best friends. In New York, it's your MTA card.

5. Being Local

When you're from New York, you complain about having to go to Times Square, where there are tourists everywhere, moving slowly and stopping suddenly. In LA, the cheesy tourist program is the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Interestingly enough, these are the two locations where those guys dressed like Elmo, Elsa, and one of the Minions are waiting to take pictures and a few bucks from your wallet.

6. $2.95 Sushi vs. $1 Pizza

In New York, you can easily find a pizza place that serves a huge slice for one dollar. In Los Angeles, I ate at a place that served Japanese food, with everything in the menu -- in different portion sizes, of course -- for $2.95. The point being that you can either be full with $2-3 dollars with a somewhat decent pizza, or have a fairly decent meal for $9 total. You choose.

7. The Secret

Because of the Prohibition, New York is full of "secret bars." Or at least bars with secret entrances that you can find out all about if you Google them. In LA, there are few regular bars to begin with, so the thing for the Angelenos is the "secret menus." The most popular not-so-secret menu is the In-N-Out menu, that you can find more about here.

8. The Ride

In New York the bus ride or a ride in the subway costs $2.75, but it takes you everywhere you need to go fast. In LA, the bus ride is $1.75, and I even took one that cost me $1. However, it took my friends and me over one hour to travel 9.5 miles (15 km).

9. Making a Good Impression

If I wanted to impress someone who is coming to New York for the first time, I would take them to a rooftop bar where you can see the Manhattan skyline. If Angelenos want to impress people, all they have to do is take them to see a sunset at the Santa Monica Pier.

10. Beauty Standards

In LA it is all about looking healthy, refreshed, and athletic. Meanwhile, New Yorkers want to look like you're not someone people would be messing with. The bolder, the better.

11. Attitude

In NYC, you're not a true hipster unless you live in Brooklyn. In LA, you're not a true hipster unless you are in Silver Lake or Echo Park.