Native Here... Does Miami Get Old After A while?

[Neng.]

Yes Marbella/Costa del Sol/Estepona is more what I meant to say. Even drivers there don't respect the left lane rule...

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They do that because they love Spanish wines and amontillados.



Maroccans speak good Spanish, also French depending from the area they are from. Most of them also speak an Arab dialect and Berberisc if they are from the Rif. They watch Spanish TV in Northern Marocco and most of them come from the old Spanish protectorate. Maroccans are capable of learning any language in weeks.

Africans are "francophones" or "anglophones", but they pick up Spanish in weeks. Romanians/Slavics also pick Spanish in weeks, quite amazing. Russians speak Spanish without any accent in a matter of months.

Most people in the area speaks English or pidgin English. Language is no problem in those areas except when confronted with some Andalusian dialects. Marbella is a city with many permanent residents and has a bustling activity all year round, either rich tourists or IMSERSO (Spanish senior tourists subsidised by government). English are not important in Marbella.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by Tiger Beer

I'm a white american who lives in Japan.

Perhaps for another thread...but Japan gets a really bad rap for being 'hostile to immigrants. It really is status quo for ALL of Asia, the Middle East, and many other parts of the world. Just because western countries have immigration policies, it doesn't mean that every country in the world must also quickly and forever change the ethnic and cultural landscape of their country within this current generation as well. Most countries do not (outside of colonial european ones and their previous colonies - OZ, NZ, Can, US)

I lived in South Korea for years prior to Japan, the the 'xenophobia' was significantly worse. ALSO, no one asks South Korea or Vietnam or Iran to open up their borders to tons of immigrants...so they don't get the reputation for saying 'no' to it, because no one asks. But, well having lived in Korea and been to Vietnam several times (not Iran), you'll quickly feel much more xenophobia than I've ever felt in Japan.

I've actually lived in 8 different countries and spent time in close to 50 different countries. I live in Japan now, because compared to all of the other places I've lived and been...it's one of the most comfortable places on every level. I only hear about xenophobic Japan when I read western newspapers, or talk to other foreigners who read those newspapers. Day to day living here, well, I've encountered MUCH MUCH worse attitudes, thuggishness, racial/xenophobic garbage in pure observation whenever I visit back to the U.S. - which is one of the reasons I keep putting off going back 'home'

I guess what I should say, xenophobia is the NORM everywhere, and whatever exists in Japan, despite its reputation as the worse, seems pretty non-existant to me in relation to what I've observed nearly everywhere else.

OK - if you're saying that Japan is not unique in being xenophobic - I can accept that. It's curious that many people tend of think of Asia as "one big happy family" - but a lot of people from one country in Asia can really hate people from another country in Asia. FWIW - the Japanese seem to be especially hostile to people with dark skin - like African Americans. Still - economics can trump a lot of things - including the Japanese dislike for the Chinese. Japan is now a major tourist destination for people from China - and the Japanese are responding in a welcoming way (like hiring department store employees who speak fluent Mandarin).

I agree with you that Japan is the "firstest" world country I've ever seen. And the level of service is extraordinary. There are some things I was told to avoid and did (like the subways in Tokyo at rush hour) - but I thought it was a wonderful country (at least from a visitor's point of view).

I am glad that we are able to meet some Japanese tourists where I live (they come here to play golf) - and return the hospitality we encountered in their country (although my husband has forgotten a lot of the Japanese he spent a year learning before our trip). Robyn

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by TheCroatian

[SIZE=2]I would never get sick of Miami...if anybody is sick of it please leave there is plenty of people who want to get a job in Miami.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]I would never get sick of Spanish either..it's a beautiful language spoken by SEXY people.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]I get sick of English though. "Foreigners" doesn't exist to me. I don't care what nationality somebody is as long as they[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]are HOT and not so slutty that they have STD's... that's all that matters to me. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2][/SIZE]

About 1 in 4 people in the US has genital herpes - and I'm sure you're talking about 1 in 3 or more if you add in other STDs. STDs aren't sexy - period. But you're likely to get them if you have unprotected sex with even a few people. FWIW - I was amazed to read the other day that the single largest cause of oral cancer these days isn't smoking cigarettes - it's engaging in oral sex (seems that the HPV that causes cancer is transmitted by oral sex). I'm glad I'm not young today (only thing we had to worry about when I was young was getting pregnant - or getting a disease you could cure with a dose of penicillin). Robyn

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by R66

Princess, (or whatever you are in your own mind) -

Your are in error. I lived in Malaga Spain last year for 6 months. Lived on Avenida de Las Palmeras in Benalmadena, right across for the Beach, south side of street, the long white Condos. And Fyi Malaga has zero Americans! ZERO! And nobody likes to speak english and very few like Americans. Espanolos in general are a closed minded bunch. Spain sucks. Argentina has very few Americans -- and before I even start with you, don't waste my time. You obviously have no idea what you're talking about.

My husband and I were only in Spain once - a long time ago - for about 2 weeks. Mostly in the north. Part of the time in Basque country. Our impression was that Spanish people didn't like "America" ("OTAN NO" [NATO NO]) painted on buildings everywhere - we ran across a couple of anti-American "manifestaciones" [street disturbances]). But the people were curious about Americans - and friendly on a personal level (the people we met in Basque country even spoke Spanish to us - they didn't insist that we learn Basque ). But - like I said - that was a long time ago - and Spain was probably a very different country then than it is today. Robyn

[R66]

Originally Posted by Robyn55

The people were curious about Americans and friendly on a personal level.

Espanolos were *friendly* to you almost always because they were seeing you as a walking green dollar. The moment you let off vibes that your green dollars stay in your pocket and not theirs, their friendly smiles occur much less often. Visiting Spain and Latin America and living there are to very different deals.

And Portuguese is the sexiset language spoken, not spanish.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by R66

Espanolos were *friendly* to you almost always because they were seeing you as a walking green dollar. The moment you let off vibes that your green dollars stay in your pocket and not theirs, their friendly smiles occur much less often. Visiting Spain and Latin America and living there are to very different deals.

And Portuguese is the sexiset language spoken, not spanish.

We were in some large towns - small cities. Places where people had never actually met any people from the US before. Hanging out at local bars - restaurants. Apart from buying a couple of rounds of drinks for people (which cost peanuts) - I don't think it had anything to do with money. FWIW - I am talking about a trip more than 25 years ago. I am sure the world has changed a lot since then.

As for Latin America - I have only been to Mexico once (as a kid). And my husband and I spent about 10 days in Costa Rica about 20 years ago. Good trip (but the country is less safe now than it was then). We travel a fair amount - speak Spanish - and I wish I had more of a desire to visit Spanish speaking countries these days. But I don't. Would rather explore more of Asia. Robyn

[Loggerhead Shrike]

And Portuguese is the sexiset language spoken, not spanish.[/quote]




No way! Portuguese sounds like a drunk slurring in Spanish. Spanish is hotter but maybe Italian sounds best.