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I'm an Indian immigrant and recently I got option to work from home. I traveled quite a bit in the US as a tourist. I want to use my work from home option just not to travel but actually live in small towns/rural areas for a month or two at a stretch and experience the American "non-city" life.
I would like to know if in small towns would I encounter any kind of hostility because I don't look like American and I speak with an accent. I never encountered any kind of ill-will all these years that I lived in the US. But once again I only lived in big cities. So not sure about what to expect in rural areas. I will be grateful if you could help me understand what to expect from folks there and how different it would be compared to city life? (Though hard, I can live without Indian food )
Also would you please recommend some places that I should definitely go to?
It really depends on where in the U.S..
For example, a small / rural college town in western Massachusetts would be a good option.
(Actually, a good "rule of thumb" ... any small liberal arts college in any part of the country would be a place to consider.)
Massachusetts is traditionally a liberal state and liberal often / usually = tolerant and open. Conversely and very generally the opposite is often true. Conservative = not so tolerant and not so open minded. I'm generalizing but it's a useful generalization.
Generally speaking, any rural college town in the northeast where the population is relatively educated and where, because there are at least some students at the college who are other than white, local people are used to some degree of diversity and so there would be more tolerance in such communities. Educated and liberal = .
A nice town in Vermont comes to mind. Norwich, VT. Just across the river from Hanover, New Hampshire where Dartmouth College is would be a great option.
There are many communities in the west, ie; west of the rockies that may suit you. And there are many that probably wouldn't.
Taos, New Mexico might be a place to consider. It's quite rural and it's a beautiful area in northern New Mexico. There are many artists and writers and alternative people so that's always good if your other than white.
There are many rural communities in both California and Oregon that you might want to explore. Re; Oregon ... research rural communities that are somewhat near to Portland.
Re; rural communities in California. Much of CA is very expensive.
Do avoid the central valley as the air quality can be horrible and after years of drought .... just avoid the central valley.
Research communities north of San Francisco in Sonoma and Mendocino counties.
Here's another generalization ... probably best to avoid rural communities in the mid-west and south-east. I know that there must be exceptions however. I just don't know where they are.
So these are just thoughts that came to mind. It's a big and diverse country. Lots of options. Have fun exploring and good luck.
I'm an Indian immigrant and recently I got option to work from home. I traveled quite a bit in the US as a tourist. I want to use my work from home option just not to travel but actually live in small towns/rural areas for a month or two at a stretch and experience the American "non-city" life.
I would like to know if in small towns would I encounter any kind of hostility because I don't look like American and I speak with an accent. I never encountered any kind of ill-will all these years that I lived in the US. But once again I only lived in big cities. So not sure about what to expect in rural areas. I will be grateful if you could help me understand what to expect from folks there and how different it would be compared to city life? (Though hard, I can live without Indian food )
Also would you please recommend some places that I should definitely go to?
i think Aiken SC might be one to consider. The Department of Energy has a nuclear weapons related site near Aiken, and it brings in a lot of foreign people including people from India , so there should be a good number of Indian places. I worked with an Eyptian , Indians, Vietnamese and Chinese people and they all liked Aiken.
Aiken has a quaint downtown area with tree lined medians in the streets.
Fairfield, Iowa has a community called Maharishi Vedic City. It has a college, Maharishi University of Management, it may be the most Indian city in the United States demographically. There is so much to the town that I couldn't list it.
Fairfield is a very nice community of about 10,000 people and it is one of the few small towns in south-eastern Iowa that has a lot of stuff going for it. So this would probably be one of the best communities for you to look towards. Now I also don't know what your preferences are demographically though.
Fairfield, Iowa has a community called Maharishi Vedic City. It has a college, Maharishi University of Management, it may be the most Indian city in the United States demographically. There is so much to the town that I couldn't list it.
Fairfield is a very nice community of about 10,000 people and it is one of the few small towns in south-eastern Iowa that has a lot of stuff going for it. So this would probably be one of the best communities for you to look towards. Now I also don't know what your preferences are demographically though.
Thanks. Never visited Iowa. All I know about Iowa is that it produces some of the best Running backs for NFL
It really depends on where in the U.S..
For example, a small / rural college town in western Massachusetts would be a good option.
(Actually, a good "rule of thumb" ... any small liberal arts college in any part of the country would be a place to consider.)
Massachusetts is traditionally a liberal state and liberal often / usually = tolerant and open. Conversely and very generally the opposite is often true. Conservative = not so tolerant and not so open minded. I'm generalizing but it's a useful generalization.
Generally speaking, any rural college town in the northeast where the population is relatively educated and where, because there are at least some students at the college who are other than white, local people are used to some degree of diversity and so there would be more tolerance in such communities. Educated and liberal = .
A nice town in Vermont comes to mind. Norwich, VT. Just across the river from Hanover, New Hampshire where Dartmouth College is would be a great option.
There are many communities in the west, ie; west of the rockies that may suit you. And there are many that probably wouldn't.
Taos, New Mexico might be a place to consider. It's quite rural and it's a beautiful area in northern New Mexico. There are many artists and writers and alternative people so that's always good if your other than white.
There are many rural communities in both California and Oregon that you might want to explore. Re; Oregon ... research rural communities that are somewhat near to Portland.
Re; rural communities in California. Much of CA is very expensive.
Do avoid the central valley as the air quality can be horrible and after years of drought .... just avoid the central valley.
Research communities north of San Francisco in Sonoma and Mendocino counties.
Here's another generalization ... probably best to avoid rural communities in the mid-west and south-east. I know that there must be exceptions however. I just don't know where they are.
So these are just thoughts that came to mind. It's a big and diverse country. Lots of options. Have fun exploring and good luck.
Really appreciate your thoughts. I lived in North East for couple of years. So visited VT, NH and Miane as tourist. I actually visited Taos Pubelo last summer. It's beautiful out there. I will definitely keep your pointers in my mind. Will start my research with counties in CA, Colorado. Thanks again
If you're going to Iowa to spend some time in Fairfield, spend MORE time in the lovely town of Decorah - which is in the most beautiful natural area in the Midwest, known as the "Driftless Region". Since Fairfield isn't in a pretty location, I'd suggest living in Decorah and just visiting Fairfield once or twice. Another beautiful small town in the Driftless Region is Lanesboro, Minnesota.
You might also enjoy living on the North Shore of Minnesota - that term refers to the western shore of Lake Superior. Live in Grand Marais; it is SO beautiful!
Please also come out to South Dakota. Most people would think of the Black Hills as a beautiful place to live - pick a town like Deadwood or Custer in that area - but Eastern SD is pretty too. Pick a town like Vermillion or Del Rapids on the eastern side of the state; both are very cute towns.
In Nebraska, interesting, thriving towns in beautiful areas that few tourists ever visit are Valentine and Chadron.
I haven't observed any prejudice towards Asian Indians in the Midwest. You do know that almost every motel in much of America is managed by Indian families, don't you? I've noticed it in my travels, and the great travel writer Paul Theroux has written about it. The most common surnames of the motel families are Patel and Desai.
The only problem I've heard about for Indians in some places is towards turban wearing Sikhs, who some dumb creepy horrible rotten ignorant vile Trump supporters incorrectly think are Muslims and then harass them.
Perhaps look into Gang Mills NY just outside of Corning. It is a suburban community where Indians make up about 9% of the communities population and it is likely due to the presence of Corning Incorporated, a Fortune 500 company.
Lansing NY just north of Ithaca is another place that could work, as the village portion is about 6-7% Indian. Again, this is likely due to the presence of Cornell University.
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