[maineguy8888]

Originally Posted by doom1001

Excellent points,yes this area does have some who have yet to ingrain themselves into the US but for the most part many have,just went to a dentist in the area and the main dentist of the office is Venezuelan as well as many of the workers in the office,it wouldn't surprise me to see them speak Spanish whie out at a store but they are fully bilingual,like I said earlier even if they've yet to learn the language if they plan to stay they have to learn it,this is not Hialeah.

They most certainly DON'T have to learn it.

[germanoricua]

Originally Posted by FlStorm

Luckily I also speak three other languages fluently so I tried to use those skills to pick out roots of words I was overhearing and have been successful in having "conversations" with the use of a crazy amount of hand motions I was able to find out that many of the parents are so unconfident in their minimal English and out of nervousness, don't "try".... I was also able to find out that MOST parents I now encounter are incredibly sweet and share the best of the values we care about most. (…) For ease, yes I wish English was more dominant here but the total truth is that I wish the mean, unwelcoming people would just leave - language barriers are surpassable, being unkind is a deal breaker. People are usually quite nice once the walls come down, so being the kind of person that leads with a smile usually solves a lot! *** except for jerk-heads ***I do wish after-school English lessons were required so school time was better used

Kudoz to you! You are very open-minded and have made a big effort to overcome language barriers and obstacles! It takes courage to try and integrate into a group of people who all speak the same foreign language that one does not understand. One feels like an intruder but you have not given up. I know because I also speak several languages and like to mingle with people of other nationalities.

I have no experience with Brazilians, only with Hispanics (Spanish native speakers from Latin America). But I believe they share similar values. I feel that Hispanics share more of my values, i. e. importance of family, family traditions, hospitality, friendliness, cheerfulness, fiestas, positive outlook on life etc. I thrive in that environment. That is why we moved to Orlando and we love it here!

One also should consider that historically Anglo-Americans have looked down on especially Hispanics (because of their great numbers here in the US) and many still do. They consider them second-class citizens. That is why many people who are not fluent in English might be too shy to walk up to native Americans and try to "connect". They do not want to "intrude".

It is not true anymore that most Hispanics in this country are uneducated workers. There are Hispanics of every walk of life. Many Hispanics have moved up the ladder in this country. Especially in places like Orlando you find a lot of Hispanic professionals, e. g. doctors, dentists etc. Our family care provider and my dentist are Hispanic. And not only that. Many Hispanics who now come from South America, have money and had good professions in their countries but had to leave because of the political situation, e. g. Venezuelans or Cubans.

With an open mind, you can enrich your life being around many of these people.

Originally Posted by maineguy8888

They most certainly DON'T have to learn it.

And that is a good thing! Since I came to this country I have heard "This is a free country" a zillion times and I have learned the real meaning behind it. We all should be free to pursuit our happiness and nobody should be forced by the government to learn the language. People who want to join the workforce will see the need to learn the language anyway. Without speaking English you cannot make it far when you have to find a job and make money to survive.

[germanoricua]

Originally Posted by Scottamemnon

ST Augustine and Jacksonville will be a good bet.

Possibly. You should thoroughly check it out first. We lived there for over 10 years before deciding to finally move to Orlando.

The area supposedly has around 55,000 Hispanics (according to the census) but in all this time we only knew a few of them and did not see many of them around when going out (we associate more with the Hispanic community). We were looking for Latin entertainment but there is very little in Jax and the Hispanic community does not support Hispanic events. That is why we gave up going out a long time ago and eventually moved to Orlando. That being said, you should be pretty safe up there from Hispanic influence.

Jax has a large African American community and three Navy bases, i. e. lots of tatooed people. Also, Jax has been the murder capital of FL for many years, don't know if it still is because I do not pay attention to it anymore. I think, however, that these factors will not concern you too much if you live in St. John's county.

I did not like Jax in general but did like the weather a lot because it is not as humid as in most of FL. Due to the city being on the coast, there is always a nice breeze.

[kmarc]

Originally Posted by germanoricua

Possibly. You should thoroughly check it out first. We lived there for over 10 years before deciding to finally move to Orlando.

The area supposedly has around 55,000 Hispanics (according to the census) but in all this time we only knew a few of them and did not see many of them around when going out (we associate more with the Hispanic community). We were looking for Latin entertainment but there is very little in Jax and the Hispanic community does not support Hispanic events. That is why we gave up going out a long time ago and eventually moved to Orlando. That being said, you should be pretty safe up there from Hispanic influence.

Jax has a large African American community and three Navy bases, i. e. lots of tatooed people. Also, Jax has been the murder capital of FL for many years, don't know if it still is because I do not pay attention to it anymore. I think, however, that these factors will not concern you too much if you live in St. John's county.

I did not like Jax in general but did like the weather a lot because it is not as humid as in most of FL. Due to the city being on the coast, there is always a nice breeze.

I know this is a bit off-topic, but are there any good places to tango in the Orlando area? I don't mean competitively, but just to enjoy a nice dance.