Pink Elephant Musings: A Whole New World

Having only been here for a day, I'm already starting to notice the differences between the Valley here in California and the East Coast (specifically New Jersey). I think having a car makes you aware of these things right away.

One of the first things I noticed (I think I might have mentioned this before) is that, everything is very laid out and spread out. Everything's flat--one story houses, no hills. And the roads are very, very wide, with each side no less than 3 lanes (that's like a highway in Jersey). I'm sure there are narrower roads, but I have yet to come across one. Ok before I go any further, let me make the terminology clear. So in New Jersey, "highway" refers to roads like the Turnpike, Garden State Parkway, any Interstates and any major roads with (in my opinion) three or more lanes on each side. But in the Valley, they call this the "freeway" (which generally have 4 or more lanes on each side). And "highways" are generally smaller, usually with 3 lanes on each side.

So when you drive down a typical road, you'll feel very free and spacious because the roads are so wide. You'll have a sense of vastness. And you notice that you are, indeed, in the "valley" because in the distance, you can always see huge mountains surrounding you no matter which direction you turn. (See the picture above)

Because of the wideness of the roads, the traffic laws here are quite different. First of all, whenever there's an intersection with a traffic light, lanes are let go one at a time (the lights turn green in one side only, then the next, then the next...). In Jersey, this is true for major

intersections. But here, this applies for all intersections. The most weird yet interesting thing I found is the fact that it's legal to make a u-turn at a traffic light. That is, instead of making a left turn, I see cars making a u-turn onto the other side. The first couple of times this happened while I was in a car (not driving), I just thought the drivers were a little crazy. But then it occurred to me that it just might be legal to. There are two reasons why this can happen: 1) The roads are so wide, there's definitely enough space to do it and 2)When the light turns green, it's only for one side, while all other sides stay put. If I attempted this in Jersey, I would surely 1) get pulled over, 2) cause a major traffic jam by crashing into cars going from the other side. Also, in Jersey, you turn off to the right and make a big circle when making u-turns. I guess in California this is the equivalent (since there are no turn-offs to the side).

A close-up of the sign that indicates that you're allowed to do this. When there is no sign, it's allowed, too. It's only not allowed when you see a sign that has a red circle with a line across it.

Cars in the middle of making such a turn. (Click to enlarge)

One more thing about the roads: they're very nicely paved, unlike the bumpy old ones in Jersey and Ithaca.

The other major difference is the cost of living. A lot of things are more expensive here, but not everything. One of the things that is definitely more expensive is gas prices (see below). Food on the other hand, varies. I was at Safeway, a chain grocery store, yesterday. And I found that, in general, vegetables and meat are about the same as they are on the East Coast. But things like cereal (a 20 oz box of Lucky Charms cost $6.74) and non-edible items are more expensive.

I haven't met many people here yet, but my housemates are all very nice. I get along with them very well. Yesterday I went with them to a Korean barbeque buffet where I stuffed myself with about 5 lbs of meat. It was so good though. Later I went with them to Valley Fair mall. It's very similiar to the ones on the East Coast. Here are some shops that I haven't been to on the East Coast though--Louis Vuitton, M.A.C. (yes an actual MAC store), Tiffany's, Lancome, Sony Style. There's also an Urban Outfitters near by that I haven't gotten the chance to go to just yet.