The interviewee has requested that their story not be shared on social media.

Hi, can you say your first and last name, please?

Yes, the first name is Farzad, the last name is Jalali.

And are you able to tell me what your departure city and country is?

I came from Iran, the city of Tehran.

And what was your arrival city and state?

Came to Pennsylvania and city of Erie.

And what year did you arrive in the US and how old were you?

It was 2007. And I was in my 20s. Early 20s.

Do you have a favorite memory from your home country?

Yeah, soccer is very popular there. Before I left, it was one of the final games between two popular teams and I was invited with my uncle. So we went there and watched this game. It was the last memory, the last fond memories I have from Iran.

And what do you remember from your first day of coming to America? And how did you feel?

Oh, yeah, the first thing, I tried to learn English quickly. So I was in airport and I asked five people “What time is it?”. They didn't understand me. [Laughter] But I'm asking and then when finally one of them understood and answered me, I didn't understand what she said. So that was very interesting. I said “Okay, I have a lot to work on.”

What were some of the biggest cultural differences and similarities that you saw?

The cultural differences, I would say like in America, schools are pretty much, like boys and girls are mixed. In Iran are separated. I can tell you from elementary, middle school and high school, girls, they go to girls' schools and guys go to guys' schools. They are separated. They are not in the same school or even same buildings. And similarities, I would say … people are people at the end of the day. Everybody likes to have fun, everybody likes to participate into art or party or concert. That stays pretty similar.

What was the first thing that you ate that was brand new and did you like it?

Well, not very brand new but the first thing I ate was Burger King. [Laughter] The brand new part of that was, basically soda machine was there and you could fill up as much as you want, come back and refill free. That was different. Like in Iran for instance, what you order, that's what they give you, so there is no refill on that.

And did you enjoy America or did you wish to go back home?

No, I really enjoy it. There was a little bit, a lot of work needs to be done for any immigrants entering the United States as you said, as you asked earlier. The cultural differences: you need to adjust, you need to learn English. The language is the most, the biggest barrier. And by the time you adapt that then pretty much everything else is fine here. I like to go back and visit but I'm an American now.

And is there anything extra that you would like to share about your first days?

The first days? Yeah, it was a little bit confusing because when we landed, of course Erie was a small city. We came to New York, we landed there and then we came to visit Pennsylvania. For New York, all the high rises. I was expecting like entire America is like that. But when we came to Pennsylvania, it was greener of course but more like flat, rather than high rises, especially like Erie which is a small city. That was not what I expected at all. [Laughter] The biggest change, I’m like “Where I am? What part of the world is here? This is not America, they took me different city. What part of world is this?” So that was a little bit shocking for my part.

And what were your reasons to migrate?

What was the question?

What were your reasons to migrate to America?

Oh, of course. Embrace more opportunity in America. Of course America is a land of opportunity. There is no doubt about it.

Thank you very much for this interview.

Sure. My pleasure.