<p class="ingestion featured-caption">I grew up in New England, but now I live in LA. blvdone/Shutterstock</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>After <a target="_blank" href="https://www.insider.com/local-reveals-best-things-to-see-nyc-2018-2">growing up on the East Coast</a> and living in New York City for years, I moved to Los Angeles.</li><li>Some things were easy to adjust to, like the climate and the differences in public transportation.</li></ul><p>I grew up in New Britain, Connecticut, and when I was 18, I fulfilled my dream of moving to New York City for college. I ended up staying for three more years after school, and I still think it's the most incredible place in the world.</p><p>However, I felt like I needed a change. Things were growing a bit stagnant in my life, so I packed up and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-california-photos-2019-4">moved to Los Angeles</a> in hopes of finding work in the film industry.</p><p>Moving across the country is expensive — it costs <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/moving-services/cost-to-move-across-the-country/">thousands of dollars</a> for professional movers alone — and I knew I was taking a risk. But I was also excited about the new adventure. </p><p>As a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-york-city-biggest-misconceptions-2019-8">lifelong East Coaster</a>, here are the things that surprised me the most about moving to California.</p>