need advice - been thinking about moving to Colorado for years! (Denver: ski resort, condo)

[skiaddict]

I am a single middle aged mom with a kid in college and another one in middle school. I live in Florida and I despise it, I hate the heat, the humidity, the crime, drugs and I am really sick and tired of this place.

I have been thinking of moving to Colorado for years now, we used to go skiing / snowboarding there every year. I also grew up in the mountains of South America and have been skiing almost my entire life.

I am afraid to move to Colorado because I don't know anyone there, I don't have family and I hear there is a lot of racism towards Latin Americans. Although I am an educated woman with a prosperous online business...I still have my reservations.

I think my biggest scare is if there are a lot of middle aged, single women in Colorado who like skiing (I assume when my kids finish school, I will be an empty-nester)...or will I be making a BIG MISTAKE by moving there with no family, no friends and my kids about to move on their own...and not being Anglo to top it off.

...any suggestions, ideas, comments would be greatly appreciated. What place would be my best option? Since I still have a child in middle-school, good schools is a must.

[Crematia]

Lots of Latinos here in Pueblo and everywhere else I go too. I don't think there's racism against Latinos here, but I am a white, so what do I know really. I do know everyone's polite pretty much. I'm sure if you do a search for school systems here you'll have a wealth on information about the different areas. Good luck and don't be afraid to take the plunge and move out here

[breaksraver13]

I would have to say NO on the racism, I wouldn't worry about it in the least.....I live in Summit County and there are a ton of Latino's here

[skiaddict]

Thank you for your prompt replies. Any suggestions about the best places that would fit me best? Middle aged woman (late 40's) , I like to surround myself with highly educated people (I have a PhD from a top U.S. University), skiing is a must, and good middle / high schools as well (my youngest still has four more years left of school).

[Count David]

Originally Posted by skiaddict

I am afraid to move to Colorado because I don't know anyone there, I don't have family and I hear there is a lot of racism towards Latin Americans. Although I am an educated woman with a prosperous online business...I still have my reservations.

I wouldn't say that there is a lot of ethnic prejudice against Latin Americans here, (or anybody for that matter), but that's not to say it doesn't happen. There are worse places for that, better ones too.

Ignorant people exist here, and everywhere. IMO, if someone is ignorant enough to pre-judge somebody on outward appearances, accents, etc, then they are the one with the problem, and probably aren't content in their own lives. What keeps me going, is I can say to myself something shallow like "If you only knew how much better than you I'm doing," etc.

Kinda sucks though, when you are at Ross standing in line to pay, and the cashier decides to help the person behind you first (for no obvious reason), then she makes sure your signature matches the signature on your license, when you spent the whole time watching the customer she helped instead of you pay with a credit card as well, and their signature wasn't checked against their license (like I'm not doing well enough to have a credit card). Or the time at Fatburger when the manager didn't believe you ordered bacon on your burger and has to methodically examine your receipt before giving you your bacon (like my goal for the day was to rip Fatburger off for 89 cents). That's just this week though.

Now those instances I described could have been just in my head, but my girlfriend (white) noticed the Ross one for sure, (she wasn't at Fatburger).

Just remember, you are the one with the PhD, and anybody ignorant enough to treat you or your kids differently isn't worth your time, hassle, or pain.

As far as where you want to move to, how much can you afford?

[skiaddict]

See, that's just it. That would freak me out. I live in an upper class neighborhood, my kids go to private schools, my house here is worth quite a bit, I drive a BMW and just to think of going to a place that I will be treated like a migrant worker (not that I have anything against them, but I am just not used to that kind of atmosphere) would put an unnecessary stress on me and my kids.

Ironically my oldest got accepted at U.C. Bolder and at the last minute I decided not to send him because the Governor of Colorado had made some very strong comments about Hispanics. I don't even have an accent, I have lived in this country almost my entire life but...it scares the heck out of me to move to a place that I absolutely love (I ski in Colorado every year) and find out that I am not welcome.

[sunsprit]

If you've skiied Colorado every year and haven't noticed the substantial numbers of Hispanic people on the slopes and in town spending their money in expensive places, then you haven't seen Vail or Aspen, or a whole host of ski towns in Summit county. Many of the the ski instructors in all those places are bi-lingual ... and I know of several where English is their second language to Spanish.

Without the South American money spent in Vail, there'd be a substantial drop in the foreign ownership of condo's and houses, and a substantial cut in the number of skiiers.

That's why I'm kind of baffled about your comments about being affluent and well educated with a South American background ... Colorado has been a ski resort playground for the affluent class of folks from there and Mexico for many years.

There are a significant number of Hispanics working the service business in the ski towns, but there's an awareness that there's a lot of affluent and educated Hispanics in the area, too. In fact, a lot of those Hispanic workers have been around for generations, and are somewhat "land rich" as the value of their homes in areas nearby the ski towns have become very valuable.

In my Colorado mountain experience (since 1964), I've not seen any Hispanic in the mountain towns treated like a "migrant worker".

Perhaps your fears, skiaddict, are founded upon stereotypes of your current location and not your Colorado experience?

Anyway, the Vail Valley would have some good opportunities for you and your son if you can afford to live there. And there's certainly affluent Hispanics there, too, although they're generally more seasonal in their presence.

Sorry you decided against CU Boulder for your other son. Of all the most open minded liberal university towns I know of, Boulder ranks right up there at the top with any you can name. That's why most Coloradoan's refer to it as the "free republic of Boulder", it simply is in zone totally unlike the rest of the state, and Hispanic students there are treated like everybody else. Last time I checked, the Govenor isn't the voice of all the people, either ....

[suzco]

Not to mention our senator Ken Salazar, of a many generations old family.

[skiaddict]

Suzco, thank you so much for enlightening me. My only experience with Colorado has been as a tourist during the ski season; and you are right I have seen many people from different nations. I noticed a great number of New Zelander ski instructors though. I appreciate your feedback greatly, I was not aware South Americans owned property in Vail. That is a very good observation...do they live there? or do they just visit in the winter? You mention Boulder, is that the same as Vail? meaning lots of South Americans owning property there? If yes, do they mainly live there or do they just visit during the ski season?

[Count David]

Yeah, Sunspirit is right, (on all counts), I met a few Argentineans and even a Brazilian in Aspen last winter. I guess by coming up here for winter, they can have winter all year round, which would be great.

Just a note, Boulder isn't a ski town, it is a college town, more in the flatlands near Denver. I don't think many people in Boulder live full time out of town. Boulder isn't known as being particularly diverse, but I believe CU is reasonably so, and I don't think of Boulder as a place where people are ignorant towards minorities.

Another note, the experiences I described were in Denver metro, not the mountains, where I believe you are focusing your search.

If there is anywhere in Colorado you want to see wealthy people from all around the world, the mountains are it for sure. If I were you, I'd take a close look at Vail. I'm not a big fan of the ski towns, but if I were forced to live in one that would probably be the one I'd pick. Aspen, for instance, is far too isolated for me.

Was it Governor Bill Ritter that made those comments? I find that hard to believe. Are you sure you aren't thinking of Douglas Bruce, state representative from Colorado Springs? He's the only I can remember publicly making comments like that.

I'm sorry to say, but I guarantee you will find ignorant people everywhere, they cannot be escaped. So, it makes no sense to try and avoid them.