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The Spanish in Ecuador is no more "castilian" than any other variety of Spanish in Latin America. Where did you get that??? Also, you don't want to recommend Guayaquil of all places. I lived there for two years and travel there periodically. It's fairly dangerous now. Quito is a good place to study Spanish. Cuenca more so if you're concerned with safety.
Everybody thinks they speak the best Spanish. Even Spanish from Spain has one of the strongest accents I do agree some Spanish speakers are easier to understand than others.
But ecuatorians speaking like Spaniards? Maybe those who emigrated to Madrid.
7035683216 : Hi, i live in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and feel bad that you had that experience of people staring at you and thinking you were a refugee ! Its kind of rude and racist too, and i didt think BA was a particullary racist city (just as much as any huge city, i thought). Maybe the stares were cause there are no black people in argentina, so when people see one they stare, but just as they would stay as foreigneres. Something that is different here than in USA (i dont know how it is in other countries) is that people stare a lot. I mean I go on the subway and people stare at me and stare at eachother for no particular reason. It can make people that arent used to it a little uncomfortable. For example, i had a friend from USA came to visit me when we were both 19: we went walking around the city and people would stare at her, and she was all "why is everyone staring at me?" and i answer "people stare here, you should get used to it, its not offensive or anything". Also, men are used to, not only stare, but to whistle and say things to a woman when they walk by. Its a popular practice here, and its call "piropo", they would say things like "are you an angel that fall from heaven?" and some dirtier stuff,too - But its common and it doesnt mean they are threataning you or something. Just different cultures.
I hope you come back to BA and have a better time in this city! Im telling you, overall people its very nice and we are always happy to meet foreingers!
That is very true. They do that in Colombia too. It's cultural but still quite annoying. They dont realize its ude in some cultures. If you were Asian in Cali or scandinavian looking(very tall) they would have stared too, but since Cali has a lot of black people, the op didnt stand out.
That is NOT neutral Spanish, that's "paisa" Spanish. Same with the poster who said bogota is more neutral. Nope, they still have a strong intonation. Same for other countries.
Everybody has an accent people, get over it.
Exactly. There'm no such a thing as neutral Spanish. I can confirm though that the paisa accent is really nice sounding.
Please do not say that! Spanish castillian spoken in Valladolid , for example, will never be found in any other part of the World. I am spaniard and I do not underestand sometimes what some south americas speak about when amongst themselves.
True... probably the best preserved spanish is located in Valladolid, Spain, and then, in zones of Colombia and i dare say Perú too. My favourite accent for a woman is the colombian one, and for man, i would say cuban (sounds more potent)
I'm American, and live in S. America. Right now, we're in Colombia. If you want a really good, pure, easy to understand Spanish, try Bogota, Colombia. Or Medellin. And no, Colombia is not the dangerous place that everyone makes it out to be. In the days of Pablo Escobar, back in the late 80s, yes, but now, no. It's not different than being in any other city in the US.
Coastal Colombia, the Caribbean - have a TERRIBLE spanish. It's very slurred, chopped off words, fast.....Argentina has a specific dialect, and not as pure. Bolivia and Ecuador, like Venezuela, are becoming rapidly anti-US, and are now considered (by the US embassy) more dangerous for Americans to live in than Colombia. Chile would be a good option too.
Interestingly, in Spain the spanish is actually less good than in Latin America. And a large part of Spain speaks Catalan, which is a totally different language in and of itself. Yes, you might learn the "vosotros" if you're in Spain, but the reality is, if you are American, you won't need that, b/c you will, in large part, be dealing with Latin Americans, that don't use the vosotros form.
We don´t speak just catalan, Catalan-speaking areas are bilingual in Spain (i´m catalan speaker too), and in spain, the spanish is not less good than in L.A, that´s your opinion lol, but you are right, colombian spanish, is one of the purest, best spoken variant of this language.
I'd think the best place to learn Spanish is where you'd learn a dialect close to what you will be hearing or speaking for the long run. Is Spanish close to what they speak in Spain "better"? Is it practical? Back when I was in high school (centuries ago), Spanish classes were just moving from the Old World Spanish to New World Spanish dialects and grammar. If someone who didn't speak English wanted to learn the language, would they be better off learning in the UK or the US? There are debates over this. I'm in Brazil right now. When I was in the Foreign Service and learned Portuguese, there were classes in "continental" Portuguese for those going to Portugal and Africa (e.g., Angola, Mozambique) and classes in Brazilian Portuguese. Which is more practical depends, ofcourse, on where onewill be.
You can always just come down to Arizona! There are a lot of communities down here that speak mainly spanish. That way you could also work in a mexican restaurant and earn some while you learn some. lol
There are towns bordering Mexico that you would think were in it. Also Texas, California. No need to go down to Mexico for submersion.
actually, the Spanish spoken in Latin America is somehow purer than that spoken in Spain, in the sense it's closer to the classical form of the XVI century.
I believe that varies by country. And, to answer a question posed above, Brazilians do indeed speak Portuguese. I'm there. Some similarities to Spanish but I've heard others say it's closer to Italian. Less phonetic than Spanish, even though one does pronounce "j"s.
Everybody thinks they speak the best Spanish. Even Spanish from Spain has one of the strongest accents I do agree some Spanish speakers are easier to understand than others.
But ecuatorians speaking like Spaniards? Maybe those who emigrated to Madrid.
As a person who spent time in both Madrid and Quito, I would 1000 times prefer ecuadorian Spanish.
I think this question entirely depends what continent a person is from.
Ecuadorian Spanish is ideal as it's phonetic and pronounces every syllable. Plus it's in the Americas which is what Americans will hear often in the united states.
An American will probably never hear Madrid Spanish in the united states.
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! Its kind of rude and racist too, and i didt think BA was a particullary racist city (just as much as any huge city, i thought). Maybe the stares were cause there are no black people in argentina, so when people see one they stare, but just as they would stay as foreigneres. Something that is different here than in USA (i dont know how it is in other countries) is that people stare a lot. I mean I go on the subway and people stare at me and stare at eachother for no particular reason. It can make people that arent used to it a little uncomfortable. For example, i had a friend from USA came to visit me when we were both 19: we went walking around the city and people would stare at her, and she was all "why is everyone staring at me?" and i answer "people stare here, you should get used to it, its not offensive or anything". Also, men are used to, not only stare, but to whistle and say things to a woman when they walk by. Its a popular practice here, and its call "piropo", they would say things like "are you an angel that fall from heaven?" and some dirtier stuff,too 
- But its common and it doesnt mean they are threataning you or something. Just different cultures.
Im telling you, overall people its very nice and we are always happy to meet foreingers! 
