White GUY non Hispanic moving to Little Havana!! (fit in, buy)

[mtdersch]

I will be living right where Little havana and West Flagler meet, just about 13 blocks south of the airport. I'm white, do not look hispanic at all, but speak very fluent spanih, Theres not much I cant say or understand anymore. Will people generally ignore me in little havana since they are just going to assume I dont know Spanish, or if I go out of my way to speak Spanish will that help and even make them give me more credibility?

[♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥]

Originally Posted by mtdersch

I will be living right where Little havana and West Flagler meet, just about 13 blocks south of the airport. I'm white, do not look hispanic at all, but speak very fluent spanih, Theres not much I cant say or understand anymore. Will people generally ignore me in little havana since they are just going to assume I dont know Spanish, or if I go out of my way to speak Spanish will that help and even make them give me more credibility?

I would speak English to anybody that is under 40 and Spanish to the older people, unless of course they don't speak English at all, but many of the younger people will.

About being ignored, they ignore everybody regardless of race, ethnicity or Spanish fluency.

[Coconut1]

I would speak English to everyone unless they didn't understand English. Now, if they started talking about you in Spanish, I would certainly let them know I understood. Think of some zippy one liners en espanol.

[Edu983]

If you look like brad pitt (blonde and welsh blooded) they'll assume you dont know spanish.

now,if you look like al pacino, Adam sandler, colín farrell, Eric bana, they will assume you are an average white "hispanic" who knows spanish.

[mtdersch]

ha ha..I definitely have more of a Brad Pitt look, in fact ive been compared to him more than once. ( though Im half his age) I do ned to find some zippy cuban expressions though as you said...any suggestions? maybe : Que? nunca has conocido un gringo que habla tu propia idioma? said in a nice way

[Chelito23]

Originally Posted by ♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥

I would speak English to anybody that is under 40 and Spanish to the older people, unless of course they don't speak English at all, but many of the younger people will.

About being ignored, they ignore everybody regardless of race, ethnicity or Spanish fluency.

Why oh why City Data won't you let me give Princess points for this??? You claim I have to spread them around and I have!!

This post is so accurate. Print it out and read it like a mantra everyday. You will save yourself heart ache and confusion as to why you are being "ignored".

Basically, a Caucasion person living in Little Havana is no big deal. If you speak Spanish you will be in the know and will be able to participate and understand what is going on. You will be able to involve yourself in what you sedire and ignore what you dislike.

You will probably get a lot of people answering you in English when you speak Spanish and Spanish when you speak English, be prepared for that. Also, the Spanglish from this area is almost like another language so your "proper", school Spanish will not necessarily be what people here speak or understand. It will be a learning experience for sure and you will have some awesome, cheap restaurants to choose from nearby if you like Cuban food...

Oh PS, you will be under the MIA flight track. Buy ear plugs.

One liners? I would sayyou will fit in with Qué "vueta"!! Qúe bolá!! but I think the timeless Buenos Días/Tardes or whatever will serve you much better since you would be making the first move and putting it out there that you speak Spanish.

[♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥]

Originally Posted by Chelito23

One liners? I would sayyou will fit in with Qué "vueta"!! Qúe bolá!! but I think the timeless Buenos Días/Tardes or whatever will serve you much better since you would be making the first move and putting it out there that you speak Spanish.

I think he is better off saying "buenos dias" good morning. But he will definitely hear those words especially within young people in very informal settings. I would say it's like saying "what's crackin" or "what's poppin" Yes it is THAT informal. Like other nationalities, Cubans have a lot of slang words. I'm familiar with most of them but I would say you would learn them with time.

[intelfan11315]

I'm a white guy too, I go in streaks.. sometimes I'll start a conversation in English unless someone responds in really bad English or says they can't speak it and other times I don't bother and I just start my conversations in Spanish. Honestly, its more normal to find someone that doesnt speak English lol.

Basically you'll get brownie points for speaking spanish at first, then they wont care and itll be just an everyday conversation.

[Nativechief]

Yo .You need to speak english..The others need to learn english..

[giz2000]

Originally Posted by ♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥

I think he is better off saying "buenos dias" good morning. But he will definitely hear those words especially within young people in very informal settings. I would say it's like saying "what's crackin" or "what's poppin" Yes it is THAT informal. Like other nationalities, Cubans have a lot of slang words. I'm familiar with most of them but I would say you would learn them with time.

agree...a "buenos dias/tardes/noches" will work in your favor. You'd be surprised at the reaction that people will have to your speaking Spanish. I had a friend who was just like you...moved to Little Havana from Vermont, a true "gringo"...and spoke better Spanish that most native speakers. He loved living in Little Havana..he was really into the Hispanic culture...and especially loved the ladies...