I have to admit something rather embarrassing: I grew up in a fairly secluded Latinx household. I was just eight years old when my family moved to the U.S. straight to Miami, where I met Cubans, Cubans and more Cubans — just like my family and I. Although eventually, we moved to another part of Florida and I met different kinds of people, it wasn’t until I moved to New York City for college that I actually met different kids of Latinxs.

Since then, my worldview has grown exponentially. I never realized how secluded I was — or how truly diverse the Latinx community is — until I began to meet and make friends with other Latinas. From learning that not all of us love cooking (say what?!) to sharing dating horror stories, here are 21 lessons that I learned about Latinas (and myself) after I moved to New York City.