<p>coming from California, you're going to hate the weather in Boston. they get a lot of snow in the winter.</p>
<p>not if you're open to new weather.</p>
<p>I am from California but went to college in Boston (many years ago). The weather made for a difficult adjustment, but college is college, students are young, and adjust you will. I was surprised that there was not as much interaction between the schools as I had thought, but if you have friends in other area schools, then it is easy to visit them and intermingle. Both my husband and I went to (different) schools in New England, and were happy to see a different part of the country. It is a wonderful experience to be able to have. I could not wait to return to California for grad school where I continue to live, but I would not trade my East Coast Experience for the more comfortable life here. College is all about experiencing new things, and a different part of the country is just one more positive experience for you.</p>
<p>New-york-city: that's new york hyperbole...no more snow than you get...the two metro areas are only 150 miles apart and virtually one big, connected metro area, with people in the middle commuting to each!!! (That's the northeast for ya folks, varsity commutes...) Think of Boston as a suburb of NYC and you're on target.</p>
<p>being from nyc i can say that being in boston was almost culture-shock for me... yes- not kidding. here, public transportation closing down @ any time in the day or night is completely unheard because well, people need to get places all the time! however, the T was definitely much cheaper than any public transportation here in the city. the buildings are not that much smaller, but if one perceives them to be so, be happy: the sun shines through more! i would not call boston a suburb of nyc because i've seen suburbs of nyc and they are definitely nothing like boston :) . oh and if you're a new yorker don't try show it (even if you really don't give a flying hoot about baseball). didnt work for me though: everyone could tell. hope this helps?</p>
<p>The people are not really "cold". I was there this summer and they are generally friendly just not up in all you stuff. If you want to be alone they will leave you alone but generally people are nice. I know this because I was there for 8 weeks this summer. Unfortunately most things do shut down early. CVS and 7-11 are open 24 hours a day and Pinocchio's is open till 2AM. You will get to love these places and huge slurpees at 3 AM will most definietly keep you up for hours.</p>
<p>I'm from Long Island, so the city I've grown up comparing all other cities to is NY. Though I love NYC now, I used to hate it- so huge, so crowded, so filthy... So when I stepped foot in Boston, it was like the city from Heaven. It's smaller than NY, so not nearly as overwhelming, it's unbelieveably clean, has an overall warm and friendly feeling, and is just a fun place to be since there is always something to do. The one thing that bothers me is the early closing time of the T and the stores...NYC is always open, so that was really a shock to me, but I guess it's nothing you couldn't adjust to.</p>
<p>As for the weather, it probably will be a shock since you're coming from CA, but if you bring a warm coat and learn to love the snow, you'll be just fine. :)</p>