[AtlantaGal]

Hello All!

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!!

I have been living in Atlanta for the past 3 years, and I am planning to move by late 2013. Since 2005, I have moved 3 times, and I intend for my next move to be 'long term'...

About me:
-28 y/o
- Black Female
- College Educated
- I work in Corporate Finance
- Single w/ no children (I've been very career focused while in Atlanta, I'm starting to date more now - but since I plan to be out of Atlanta soon I'm not looking for anything serious here... would eventually want something serious when I relocate.)

My wants/needs:
- FRIENDLY DOWN-TO-EARTH people... Atlanta is too pretentious, too "Black Hollywood".
- I like the idea of living a short distance from a beach. "Short" is relative... I can do 1 hour, but prefer as close as possible!
- Diversity & Integration... I visit Miami often and LOVE that there are Cubans, Colombians, Jamaicans, Nicaraguans, etc. I'm in Atlanta where people assume anything brown skin = "Black", light skin = "White", and anything 'other' = "Mexican". I need more diversity...
- Fun/Entertainment/Restaurants/Shopping/etc... I want to be in an area where there's lots shopping, lots of different restaurants (not just chains), etc... Great nightlife - not just clubs/bars, but lounges or low key spots.
- Clean city... I love the big city feel, but really dislike seeing abandoned buildings on every block... or factories with busted out windows off the highway.. etc. Yes, I like a 'pretty' city.
- A city that is not too spread out - the Atlanta area is VERY spread out, with the downtown/midtown section being very small. I'd prefer a city that is more dense.
- Big cities close to other big cities - if I can hop in the car and drive a couple of hours to another big city for a random day trip or weekend trip, I'm happy.

What I'm looking to know:
- Interracial dating... I tend to prefer Hispanic men, but I'm absolutely open to dating all races... My best friend (a black Cuban that lives in Miami) has stated on numerous occasions that he struggles dating white Cuban ladies b/c white Cubans and black Cubans don't 'mix'... or 'x' race doesn't date 'y' race. What's the point of diversity if the different races/ethnicities/etc. don't intermingle?
- If Florida sounds like a possibility - which cities in particular should I look into?

Sorry for the long post but tried to include details. TIA!

[SimplyOblivious]

Miami is very diverse. Most of Florida, for the most part, is. If anyone is saying that Cubans/hispanics or any other races are not open to dating blacks are speaking falsely. Yes, there are a part of ANY race that will want to date their own. But, you will be hard pressed to go anywhere in Florida and NOT find an interracial relationship. Especially in the South Florida. You have many races of puerto ricans, italians, cubans, dominicans, mexicans, columbians, asians, jews and europeans from abroad as well as american born who absolutely adore blacks (mostly black americans). Most Floridians now are transplants from other countries, western usa (mainly California) and eastern usa (mainly New York/New Jersey).
Now, South Florida is very materialistic and a lot of the emphasis is on the physical and material beauty. A lot of beautiful women/men are in South Florida and you will see a LOT of diversity and interracial couples.

[FlyMIA]

From what you want I really think Miami is the place but you need to get a job before you move. Only problem I can see with Miami is the down to earth people. Miami is dense, clean,lots of things to do of course, and very diverse with people from all over then world. Miami hAs the highest foreign n
Born population in the US. As for big cities near by given its location it is not the best for that But Orlando is 3.5 hours away, Tampa a little more than 4, Key West is 3 hours but the first few Keys are about a hour away. You can get to Bimni by a friends boat, take a short cheap flight to Nassau Bahamas or take a cheap 3-5 day cruise whenever you like.

[Novadhd5150]

Are you sure you want to move down there? Other than Ft Lauderdale/Miami and maybe Tampa I would not venture anywhere else if you want "diversity" as it is nothing like Altanta (where I lived too)

[FlyMIA]

Originally Posted by Novadhd5150

Are you sure you want to move down there? Other than Ft Lauderdale/Miami and maybe Tampa I would not venture anywhere else if you want "diversity" as it is nothing like Altanta (where I lived too)

Agreed, I think you can throw Orlando in there too but at the same time Atlanta is much better than Orlando. If she can find a job and visits Miami during the summer and spends a week not doing "tourist" stuff and enjoys it, I would say Miami is the best place for what the OP wants.

[MiamiRob]

^ you could throw in Orlando but it wouldn't meet many of her criteria & as a ex-Miamian who currently lives in Orlando I could tell she would be bored to tears here. Outside of downtown Orlando it's nothing but a suburban wasteland full of strip malls & cookie cutter housing that seems to sprawl forever. There is no "big city feel" here.
As for restuarants? Orlando is the "king" of chains! Perkins, Waffle House, etc. At least when you go to South Beach you won't find chains like this! Orlando is not for those looking for adventourous cuisine.
Sorry but I don't mean to rag on Orlando but moving here from Miami (warts and all) is a step down unless you are looking for a house in the 'burbs" trying to raise kids. By the way Orlando has just as bad crime as Miami without the amenities unless you consider "theme" parks as such.

[gypsychic]

I agree with most that Miami is probably the best bet, followed by possibly the Tampa area.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by AtlantaGal

My wants/needs:
- FRIENDLY DOWN-TO-EARTH people... Atlanta is too pretentious, too "Black Hollywood".

My best friend (a black Cuban that lives in Miami) has stated on numerous occasions that he struggles dating white Cuban ladies b/c white Cubans and black Cubans don't 'mix'... or 'x' race doesn't date 'y' race. What's the point of diversity if the different races/ethnicities/etc. don't intermingle?

Based on these two points alone I would give serious pause to considering Miami. As a South Florida native I can reaffirm the overall pretentiousness of Miami and the non-intermingling of race/ethnicity. I don't think either element will make for a pleasant experience for you.

You might consider NYC...specifically neighborhoods like Jackson Heights/Queens, Journal Square/Jersey City or Washington Heights/Morningside Heights in Manhattan. I think all in all it will tick all of the boxes of your criteria. Good luck!

[Mr.Kurtz]

I love women of color. If you have a nice figure, hit me up via PM. I'd like to know ya!

PM me darlin .........

[OrlFlaUsa]

Originally Posted by MiamiRob

^ you could throw in Orlando but it wouldn't meet many of her criteria & as a ex-Miamian who currently lives in Orlando I could tell she would be bored to tears here. Outside of downtown Orlando it's nothing but a suburban wasteland full of strip malls & cookie cutter housing that seems to sprawl forever. There is no "big city feel" here.
As for restuarants? Orlando is the "king" of chains! Perkins, Waffle House, etc. At least when you go to South Beach you won't find chains like this! Orlando is not for those looking for adventourous cuisine.
Sorry but I don't mean to rag on Orlando but moving here from Miami (warts and all) is a step down unless you are looking for a house in the 'burbs" trying to raise kids. By the way Orlando has just as bad crime as Miami without the amenities unless you consider "theme" parks as such.

OP, take an opinion like this with a grain of salt. Orlando and it's suburbs are wonderful place that's just disguised as a sprawling wasteland. Real people and real culture exist in its own way that's unique to O-town. Sure I'll admit that we lack a big city feel but in reality so does Miami and Atlanta (even though they are ahead of Orlando). On the other hand, we have a mid-sized city with a laid back Florida vibe so why try to be something we'll never be...the way many other "big" cities in the southeast are trying and falling short as well.