First we asked five NYC college students what they expected of the city—now we’re catching up with them after their first month in Gotham. Are they natural New Yorkers, or are they homesick already?

Check out their updates below, or read their initial interviews here: Nathan, Cody, Hiran, Elisabeth and Kristen.

Question: What are your first impressions of New York?

Cody, 18, Wagner College: My impression of the city and everything about it is amazing. I have gotten to try so many new things, from places to eat (I have had some great sushi and was introduced to tapas), to going to one of the last games in Yankee Stadium and seeing Broadway shows.

I honestly feel like I am at home in New York and feel like I have picked up the way of life extremely well. The culture and diversity amazes me, and is something that I feel I couldn’t find anywhere else on the planet. Moving to New York to go to college has to be, by far, one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life.

Elisabeth, 18, New York University: I absolutely love this city. It’s thriving, busy, diverse and accessible. From the moment my mom dropped my off in my suite, I’ve been out and about, exploring my new neighborhood.

One Sunday afternoon, I took the subway up to Central Park and laid in the hot sunshine. The juxtaposition of the massive skyline and green trees was unnerving in a good way.

Hiran, 20, Queens College–CUNY: From the first interview, Time Out forgot to mention that I went to school in Kansas City for a little over two years! Recently, I was having a conversation with a group of people where I was hired as a college assistant at CUNY Queens. Somebody said, "I think Kansas is much more foreign to us that Sri Lanka," and I thought that was hilarious—although it’s very true.

During my first few weeks it was clear to me New York is a cosmopolitan city, where people of many ethnicities, religions and cultures meet and live close together. I didn’t want to judge how diverse New York is when I heard about it first. But now that I am seeing it, sometimes I feel like I am passing by so many different countries close to each other.

Kristen, 18, College of Mount Saint Vincent: I love that, after a month of living here, I’m still lost. I continuously forget which way the avenues and streets go, or what train goes where. The first week I got free bus rides everywhere because, at first, I didn’t know a MetroCard had to become attached to my right hand. The simple answer of "Oh, I didn’t know; I’m from Vermont!" and a bat of the eyelashes made the bus drivers sympathize.

I love that subway rides never get boring. I love that no matter where you go you see fashion blooming. NYC and Vermont have basically become two separate worlds for me, and it’s going to be pretty hard to get me out of the city now!