Miami is not what it seems (WARNING) (Miami Beach, Kendall: insurance, condominium)

[BQ12345]

I am writing this to bring to people's attention that Miami is not what it seems. Anyone who is considering moving there should read this and should at least heed my warning, because I would not want them to make the same 3 year long mistake that I did.

I lived in Miami from 2005 to 2008. To be specific, I lived in Kendall, not too far from the Town & Country Mall. The reason was that the company I worked for decided to relocate their offices from Boca Raton to a location close to MIA (obviously not commutable). As a relatively senior member of the company, I opted to relocate with them (big, big mistake). I had not spent much time in Miami-Dade prior to moving there, aside from a couple of jaunts to Miami Beach. I am actually from Los Angeles originally, but I've spent the last 10 years in FL.

Living in Miami rapidly became sheer hell for me. The culture shock really didn't sink in until a few weeks. I gradually began to notice that the majority of people in Miami displayed the following (bad) traits:

- Excess superficiality (worse than even LA)
- Flakiness
- Unreliability (especially at work)
- Awful attitudes and a general sense of entitlement
Moderator cut: Language
- People having a major tendency to take advantage, if you so much as gave them an inch
- Narcissism (guys with their Moderator cut: Language on the table, girls who think they're princesses)
- Pretentiousness (again, worse than anywhere I've been to)
- A COMPLETE lack of manners and respect for others, far worse than in New York (and NY is a big city, so at least New Yorkers have an excuse)

What I also noticed and didn't expect was the complete and utter lack of diversity. Miami is predominantly Hispanic. No Chinatown here, no Italian or Russian or sizable Greek community. The so-called Gringos live in isolated pockets, Cubans hate Puerto Ricans and other Latin Americans and other Latin American groups hate Cubans back. The white Cubans there are as racist as any KKK member too (I experienced this first hand).

What also shocked me about Miami were the drivers. To say that people are crazy there would be a gross understatement. No one could have ever prepared me for the horrors I experienced every single day in driving from Kendall to my job. I would rather drive in LA than Miami because at least in LA, the cops will f**k you over for doing even 1% of the stupid s**t they do in Miami every single day. During the 3 years of living there, I had a gun flashed at me, was subject to verbal abuse and had someone crash into the back of my car, then drive off (no insurance, no license at a guess). As an experiment, I even put a "Baby On Board" sticker on the back of my car, but still people messed with me on the roads (SCARY!!).

So you're led to believe that Miami is a paradise and you'll never be bored there, which is a lie. I will tell you that there are virtually NO PARKS in that city! There's no culture, no history, no scenery in South Florida at all, unless you're just a beach, beach, beach person. Nowhere to go when you just want to get away and unwind. Miami is basically a concrete jungle, or a giant retail/condominium park, even more so than Los Angeles, which at least has far more to offer. Trust me that once you get bored of the stupid clubs and the overcrowded beaches, you'll be bored out of your mind in a city that offers virtually nothing.

Depending on your personality and ethnicity, you may also find making friends in Miami extremely tough. What I found is that Miamians are very clique-oriented and it's often hard to break into one of those cliques, when you're up against 1) people of the same ethnicity and 2) people who have often known one another since birth. Jobs in Miami are often rewarded to those who know someone who works at that job, rather than someone who actually knows how to do the job.

I'm not here to necessarily put anyone off moving to Miami. The place is perfectly suitable if you're young, single, carefree and can be blissfully oblivious to the problems of the place, many of which are much worse than in other cities. If you're older though and if you have children, you might want to think twice, unless you're wealthy enough to buy yourself isolation from the toxic people and toxic lifestyle and can live in a bubble, enjoying the near-tropical climate, sending your children to private schools. You will either enjoy Miami and accept it for what it is, or the place will potentially swallow you whole and make you miserable, bitter and angry, just like so many people are there (most choose not to admit how miserable they are).

Common sense dictates that you know Miami gets hot, you know it gets humid. You know that it is predominantly Latin, but by the same token, do not expect any other form of diversity other than different groups of Latin Americans (mostly Cuban). What you may not be prepared for are the problems I've discussed in my post. So I hope you'll heed my warnings and take them into account when you consider your move, because palm trees and beaches do not make a paradise and Miami is certainly NOT what it seems.

[matchpoint]

This is a boring post. Superficiality, narcissism, pretentiousness, sense of entitlement, "wearing genitalia on sleeves" whatever that actually means probably means the same as all the other things you've mentioned.

Leave Miami to the people who want to be there. You don't. Move along.

[compelled to reply]

How did you like living in Boca Raton for those previous 10 years? Tell us about your experience up there, and if you can, draw comparisons to Miami.

[flyers29]

Originally Posted by compelled to reply

How did you like living in Boca Raton for those previous 10 years? Tell us about your experience up there, and if you can, draw comparisons to Miami.

Speaking of people who are cliquish and can't drive well...

[BQ12345]

If you 2 would rather choose to shoot the messenger rather than read the actual message, that's not my problem. I've said my piece. If you don't like it or agree with it, no one is forcing you to. In terms of personal experience, nothing I've said is a lie, unlike the illusion that is Miami.

[FlyMIA]

Sorry to here you had a problem living here. Obviously you moved and thats good if you dont like something and can get out of it good for you. Obviously people still do like Miami it is not for everyone but the metro is still over 5.5 million and growing.

I agree the drivers here are the worse.

But to say there is no Diversity is COMPLETELY WRONG. You lived in kendall of course it is just Cubans. Miami has a large Russian community in Sunny isles you can even see signs in Russian, There is a large Italian community in Miami, Miami has the decent sized South African Community, French, French-Canadian etc.. Also of course Miami has a large Hispanic community which no Hispanic country is the same. Also many Brazillians and a HUGE Haitian Community. There is little Hait, Little Buenos Aire, Little Russia, Little Havana most cities dont have anything but a Chinatown for example look at Washington DC's fake Chinatown. There is also a huge Jewish Population in Miami 2nd largest in the US and in the world.

The people in Miami are not all like that. It sucks that you met rude people but to say everyone in Miami is like that is ridiculous. Miami does have a lot of cliques but it is very possible to break into different ones. I have.

The "Gringos" dont live in Isolated Pockets. If you call Miami, Miami Beach and all the barrie islands, Coral Gables, Aventura, North Miami, Miami Shores isolated well then sure.

Miami is not for everyone and it is a very different place then most cities. But it is not as bad as people say. you didnt like that but to think that Miami is exactly what you said that every person was like that etc.. Well thats just not true. People always say Miami is not diverse but if people think A Cuban is that Same as a Colombian or someone from Argentina they are just not cultured. Thats like saying American, Canadians and British are the same culture because they all speak english. Miami does have a large amount of Cubans but Miami is no longer completly dominated by Cubans. Many more immigrants groups are growing much much faster. Miami is about as a diverse place there is.

Also yes there are no Mountains but Miami has plenty of landscape, oceans, bays, beaches, the Everglades, Tropical Coral Reefs, The Florida Keys right there. It is a flat state what else could there be. And being bored. Unless your living in DC, Boston, NYC, Chicago, LA or San Fran no other cities will have the things Miami has. Yes it does not have world famous museums but it has plenty to do. And of course a city that was founded in 1896 is not going to have much history. What did you expect PHL?

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by BQ12345

If you 2 would rather choose to shoot the messenger rather than read the actual message, that's not my problem. I've said my piece. If you don't like it or agree with it, no one is forcing you to. In terms of personal experience, nothing I've said is a lie, unlike the illusion that is Miami.

I'm not out to the shoot the messenger at all, and don't necessarily disagree or agree with your post. I was just curious how your experience in Boca compared to Miami, and your opinion on that part of South Florida.

[ring95]

I agree with some of this post. The white Cubans are worse than KKK! I live Downtown and some of the folks are rude...but I have to say that Miami is diverse. The younger Cubans are not like their grandparents who are racist. There is a lot to do here! If you can get past the white Cubans (which are, in my eyes just light skin Latin people but dont tell them that, lol) than you will have fun.

[Marina1686]

Totally agree with your post!! I feel the same way, even though I'm Hispanic! I'm leaving this August, can't wait anymore!!

[StilltheSame]

The definition of diversity varies - if diversity is a large amount of different people from different areas living in the same area - Miami is one of the most diverse places.

However if diversity means being accepting of someone's background, culture and history without casting judgments and living in a peaceful, respectful manner - then no Miami is not diverse because those people from all the different backgrounds - cant get along and have no respect or acceptance of each other.