I must admit, I am a true northerner at heart. I have grown up in the city of Boston for my whole life, so I am quite used to a fast paced, busy northern lifestyle. When I decided to go to college in the south, I did not realize how different the culture would actually be. But after spending the past year in North Carolina, here is what I have noticed moving back to the north after living down south:
Everything moves so much more quickly
While living down south, I felt like myself and the people around me moved at a much slower pace. I felt I could take double the time to complete one task down there as opposed to trying to cram in a million tasks in the shortest amount of time up here. Meals are much quicker in the north, as well as getting work and errands done.
People will look at you like an alien if you say the word "y'all"
When I said the common southern phrase "y'all" to some of my friends instead of "you guys" or "you all", they immediately started replying "Y'all? Who says y'all? Oh are you a southern belle now or something?" and I immediately remembered that I had never even heard of the word "y'all" until I went to North Carolina.
60 degrees in Massachusetts is not the same as 60 degrees in North Carolina
Because of the humidity down south, I would consider 60 degrees to be a nice and comfortable spring day. When I came back to Boston and the weather was 60 degrees one day, I walked outside in short sleeves and I immediately had to go back inside to grab a jacket. It does not seem "hot" out until it is at least 75 degrees or higher.
The concept of "southern hospitality" is nonexistent in "masshole" country
Going back to the idea that everyone is busy or in a rush in the north, people are not necessarily as open and friendly up north as they are in the south. When I would go into restaurants or stores in the south or even the dining hall on campus, the staff have much friendlier first impressions because they actually want to take the time to talk instead of the northerners who usually have something else they need to be doing.
No one really cares about "greek life" in the north
When I told many family members and friends that I had rushed a sorority, many of them responded with "why would you do that?" or "Is that a big deal down south or something?" or even the occasional "What is a sorority?" Many northern colleges do not have as big of a greek life scene as southern schools do, so there is no reason for people to really ask if you are in a fraternity/sorority or not.
Wearing a nice Lilly Pulitzer dress or Vineyard Vines outfit is seen as an everyday outfit in the south, while it is seen as "dressing up" in the north
If I even thought about wearing a Lilly Pulitzer dress on a normal day, my parents and friends would most likely ask "where are you going? Do you have an interview or nice dinner to go to?" Whereas in the south girls can causally wear nice Lilly Pulitzer dresses to the dining hall and boys wear nice preppy clothes on a daily basis.
