So What is California REALLY Like?

Alicja Banasiak, University of California Santa Cruz, US

Considering my limited knowledge on the lands across the Atlantic, I learned a lot from living here. First of all, California is nearly double the size of the UK which is crazy to me. I studied in Santa Cruz a small town below San Jose, quiet high up north located in a red wood forest near the coast.

Weatherwise it was a lot less sunny than I anticipated and a lot colder than I packed for! Certainly regretted not bringing a thicker winter coat during my first quarter. Because my university was located in a forest at quiet high altitude the coastal winds and the Monterey bay in general really affected the local weather. With large storms, flooding, heavy rain for days on end, falling trees and crazy ocean waves being frequent over winter. Luckily campus does not get flooded but falling trees typically lead to power outages and the rain was typically constant and heavy leading to quiet gloomy weather. However, we most certainly still had our hot summer days fully of sunshine so you will certainly get your fill of vitamin D!

Food is just as big as people say and the portion sizes are huge compared to the UK so you will certainly not go hungry after a large portion! There are tons of cuisine options even in small towns although, curry places are a lot harder to find than in Manchester there is a ton of other Asian food waiting to be tried! The tipping culture when eating out is what it is, a tip is very much appreciated by the waiters and a lack of a tip can lead to you being chased as you leave a restaurant by a waiter demanding a tip in the worst case scenario( -_(o_o)_-).

The people are as nice as in the movies, so so friendly, understanding and considerate, it is truly a happy environment to be in. People smile a lot more and they feel more inviting to conversation than the common mancunian (from my experience) but maybe the weather has something to do with that!

Travelling across different states is quite expensive and hard to do if you lack a car or driver to move around in the desired location, likely due to the size of the country everything is a lot further apart than in the Uk! Wildlife and nature is incredible, if you’re a nature lover you would be amazed by the amount of wildlife you can find on the campus alone never mind the Monterey Bay!

In terms of workload and education I found I had quiet a lot of free time on my hands (but that certainly varies from subject to subject!) I did more biology/ earth science classes and I aimed to have 15-17 credits per quarter, limiting one module to being lower division if I was taking two upper division classes especially if they also had a lab. The workload appears to be high, but the assignments are fortunately quite simple and easy. Even for the exams you get so much support it feels like the professors are holding your hand every step of the way to make sure you get top grade. Having a little more free time was desirable for me as I used that time to travel and sightsee to make the most of my time there. Although, my grades did count towards my final degree so I couldn’t neglect the work completely. After, training from the workload at the university of Manchester I have confidence most students will likely have no issue handling the workload at a University of California.

And that sums up the bits and bobs about California that I noticed while I was on my year abroad 🙂