Andrea Ratti
[Ed. note— The following piece, written by Signal Tribune intern Andrea Ratti, was only lightly edited in an effort to preserve his “voice” and writing style as he makes his transition into learning English. Ratti is a native of Piacenza, Italy.]
The first thing I’ve been impressed with by California’s citizens is that they can be positive and easy-going even if they’re living a fast and stressful life. I guess the main reason is the weather, which is always sunny and warm for all the year.
In the unconscious, this is deep-seated, even if they cannot realize it.
I have met a lot of people that now are living here, but they’re originally from the East Coast, or they come from different countries.
The first thing they told me was that they were very happy to live in Southern California because people are more friendly and easy-going compared to the Eastern ones.
Another reason I’m impressed is because of the healthy outdoor lifestyle that gives a lot of importance to the body workout.
People spend a lot of time outside doing different activities like jogging, surfing, windsurfing, yoga, meditation, riding a bike or simply going for a walk with the dog.
Last Sunday I was on the beach, and everybody was playing sports like kite surfing, windsurfing and beach volleyball. I was surprised some guys were playing soccer on the beach like in Italy, which reminds me of my vacations to the Mediterranean Sea. Everybody is playing soccer over there, and I was glad to see that soccer is becoming popular here.
Daily body activities help you keep in shape so the mind releases endorphins which are responsible for the good humor in everyone.
California is the one corner of North America where being obese is not accepted as the norm. Some will find that the Californian lifestyle requires you to eat healthy and keep fit and trim. So fish, chicken and even steaks are in abundance, but expect it with a salad rather than fries.
Unless you’re drinking at home, neighborhood bars may be relatively few and far between and you could be forgiven for thinking that drinking coffee is the new alcohol with so many coffee shops everywhere you look.
So finally, if you’re not committed to an outdoor lifestyle, then you really ought to reconsider coming here.
In fact, if you’re moving to California and don’t participate in some sort of physical activity, preferably outdoors, then you might never really feel you quite fit in with the locals.That means you will always feel like a stranger in a beautiful country; so stand up, go out and do something.
