My Dorm Before and After Moving In
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Hello, Iowa City! Boy, never in a million years did I think I would be living in the middle of Iowa. I remember when I was in fifth grade learning the states and their capitals and thinking, “It’d be nice to go to college in Florida or New York. Maybe even Washington.” It never crossed my mind to move to Iowa or anywhere near the midwest. I have nothing against the midwest, I simply love living on the coast. After all, it is what I am used to. All my life I’ve lived by the sea in places such as Colombia, Brazil and California. I am used to warm weather and being by the ocean. Therefore moving to Iowa City is way out of my comfort zone.
Whenever I told anyone in California that I would be going to Iowa for college they would all give me a very blank look and immediately say, “Why Iowa?” If I had a dollar for every time someone has asked me that question I would have a lot of money saved up for my tuition payments. So, Mariana, why Iowa? Why would a girl living near San Francisco want to go to the middle of nowhere? Well, dear reader, first of all, they have a remarkable writing program, a beautiful campus with a great downtown area and most importantly, the people in the midwest are so, so, so kind! Wow. Seriously. I am in shock. Let me explain.
Prior to coming to Iowa I was influenced by everyone from the west coast that told me that Mid-westerns are rude, close-minded conservatives. Boy was I wrong. People in Iowa are ridiculously nice. It’s insane. Learn from your parents: Don’t pay attention to stereotypes. My first time ever coming to Iowa was for orientation back in June. I went by myself, how terrifying. Vulnerable, little me catching three plane rides to get to Iowa. (My flights were all delayed and cancelled so I had to do a very pointless route. It was a mess. I had to go from California, to North Carolina, to Illinois, back to Iowa.) Anyways, I contacted the orientation staff telling them I might be late and they were very kind and understanding. Next, my roommate picked me up in the airport. She drove from Des Moines to Cedar Rapids and waited for me in Cedar Rapids for around seven hours due to my delayed flight. It was my first time meeting her and she waited for me for seven hours! Seven. Hours. After that we went to check into the hotel that my dad had reserved, but apparently in Iowa you have to be over 21 to check into a hotel. It was 3 AM and my roommate and I were exhausted, but the lady in the lobby let us in even though we were under age. The next day, during orientation, I was lugging around a heavy duffel bag filled with my clothing and some random girl told me that I could keep my bag in her car. Lastly, the day after orientation I had another hotel reservation and I was panicking because I did not know how I would check-in and I kept thinking I would have to be homeless for the night since I was not 21. But then an upcoming freshman I met at orientation turned out to be 21 and he said he would check me into my hotel room. My whole orientation trip was a mess, I was lonely and vulnerable but it was all okay thanks to the kindness of all the Iowans I met along the way. All of those people that helped me out during my orientation trip I have kept contact with and we hung out during my first week in Iowa. To sum it all up, during the three days I spent in Iowa for orientation I felt incredibly welcomed and loved.
Anyways, moving away from home was not as bad as I thought it would be. Maybe because I already had experience living away due to my year abroad, but it wasn’t as bad as I made it out to be in my head. (It’s only been like five days since I left my family, so maybe I shouldn’t speak so soon. But so far, so good. Kind of. I had like a minute of homesickness like two hours ago, but now I’m all good.) The bad part was packing, I hate packing. I took two checked bags and two carry-ons. I only took the most basic stuff since I had to fly in, that’s why my room isn’t as luxurious and fashionable as others.
Some of the things that took me by surprise were the weather and the dressing style of people here. It is so humid here. You know when you’re walking outside and you walk by an open door and the air conditioner from the building hits you and it feels like heaven. Yeah, that’s what it feels like walking in Iowa during August. I really miss the dry, hot California weather. I hate humidity. Absolutely hate it. But on the bright side, it is not as humid as Florida. The humidity is bearable, thank goodness.
As for the fashion side, apparently Iowans love staying active or so it seems by how they dress. The majority of girls wear minimal make up, sneakers, sports shorts and a t-shirt during the day. It is so different from California where the majority of the girls wear a full-face of make up, crop tops, skinny jeans or short shorts, and Vans. Therefore, whenever I dress like I’m in California here I get a couple stares. Either way, I like the fashion culture here, I like being comfortable so I’m excited to start chilling in my sports shorts and sneakers.
That’s all for now. I love it here in Iowa City. I’ve only been here for five days and I have already made so many friends and done so many things. I love it here. I did not expect my transition to be so easy-going.
My first day of class is in three days. Wish me luck!