Moving from New York to Florida for college was definitely a huge adjustment. Not only was I moving over 1,000 miles from home, but I was also about to submerge myself into a completely new culture. Everything in the South is so different from up North, and I was not ready for everything I was about to experience.
1. Weather Change
Say goodbye to having four seasons because in Florida there is only one: summer. No need to have brought jackets or boots with me to school, because they barely got any use. While all of your friends who are back up North for school are having snow days and wearing cute winter clothes, you are still in 80 degrees and sunny weather. As much as you love the heat and always getting to wear summer clothes, you do end up missing the experience of the leaves changing, the first snowfall, as well as when it starts to warm up again in preparation for summer. While you're suck in high humidity everyone back home is freezing, so I guess it's not that bad.
2. That's Definitely Not a NY Slice of Pizza
Southerners think they have the best options for food. However, I have a personal opinion that is very different. One of the things you miss most about being in the South, is being able to get a good bagel and pizza. Southerners don't really understand that the bagels here are a disgrace and the pizza is gross. It sounds dramatic, but if you're from the North, these are some essential foods that you are really lacking when you move to the South.
3. The Water is Different
All water definitely does not taste the same. I'm sorry, but the water in the North is so much better than in the South. You don't know true struggle until Poland Spring water is unheard of in the South, and you're forced to drink mediocre water that doesn't even compare to what you're used to. Even tap water is different, and really has you missing the "normal" water that you're used to.
4. Everyone is Too Nice
It's not that Northerners are necessarily mean, but Southerners are just overly nice. I was definitely not used to how friendly and nice random people are, at first it's awkward and you don't know how to react to it. Sometimes people are so nice, that it even seems fake.
5. I Don't Have an Accent, You Do
Everyone in the South can immediately tell where you're from as soon as you start speaking. Everyone is always asking for you to say "dog, coffee, water", but I'm saying it normally, you guys are the ones saying it weird. If you pronounce Reese's as ReesEE's, and say "y'all" on a regular basis, just know that it is very strange to a Northerner. When you move to the South, you will 100% miss the familiar sounds of a Northerner talking.
6. People In the South Are Terrible Drivers
Driving in the South is actually terrifying. Everyone is either going 20mph over or under the speed limit, and no one ever uses their signal. Excuse me, but where did "'y'all" learn to drive?
7. Everything in the South Moves So Slow
Say goodbye to the quick-paced, go-go-go attitude that we have in the North, and expect to wait 10+ minutes at a drive thru for your simple order. Workers in the South take their time and that's normal for them, however, I've never been so frustrated when trying to wait in line for over 10 minutes for something that would take 2 minutes to get done in the North.
