A Glimpse of Home

Home. It's where the heart is. (So they say.) It's Mom's cooking and childhood memories and high school sweethearts -- the place that shaped you, the place you return to on Thanksgiving to find family, friends and a flood of nostalgia. Or, alas, maybe it's a place you fled, gleefully. A spot marked by overbearing parents, teenage acne and schoolyard bullies. Whatever. Point is, you can't really escape it, can you? There's always something that triggers thoughts of home, especially in transient Washington, where almost everyone seems to be from somewhere else.

It has a lot to do with the memories, says Shigehiro Oishi, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. "You naturally develop a sense of belonging and connection to the place where you grew up," he says. "So when you move to a new place, familiarity helps reduce the anxiety and uncertainty. Maybe it's just the front porch steps where people hang out and neighbors start chatting -- those are the things that make them think, 'Oh, this is just like my home town.' "

We asked Washingtonians hailing from all across the nation to weigh in on what reminds them of their home states -- and what they miss most about where they were born and bred. Take, for instance, Andrea Hall, who heads to Eastern Market whenever she gets homesick for North Carolina. The barbecue sandwiches, she says, "bring a little bit of the feeling of home to D.C."

Of course, "home" is all relative. "I would probably look for something that reminded me of D.C. if I moved elsewhere," Hall says.

Washington becomes a home away from home for residents who move here from across the country. We asked readers what about the area reminds them of their home states. Here are their responses:

Alaska

Christine Peters, 26, District

Home town: Anchorage

Years in Washington: Three

What reminds her of Alaska: The salmon burgers they sell at the Wellness Cafe (325 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, 202-543-2266, http://www.wellnesscafedc.com) on Capitol Hill. They're amazing and very much like the salmon burgers you get back home. I have a friend who is originally from Ketchikan, and every time she's on the Hill she has to stop at Wellness Cafe for a salmon burger!

What she misses: Real winters, the Northern Lights and Carhartt.

California

Lindsey Berman, 27, District

Home town: Los Angeles