4 Questions about Latinos in Tampa Area (Miami, Key West: homes, vacation, deal)

[parrotspins]

I would like to reach out to bilingual choirs to get together in concert with choirs from other denominations. Can you provide me with contact information??

Gladys

[tinytrump]

That would be so cool- if you get any feed back let me know. I finally moved back to Tampa (from Pinellas cty) and plan to visit Citylife Church on waters- music and multicultural groups seem to be a big there.

[Mouldy Old Schmo]

Have the descendants of the Spaniards, Cubans, and Sicilians who migrated to Ybor City in the late 19th and early 20th centuries assimilated into the larger white community?

[tinytrump]

Originally Posted by Mouldy Old Schmo

Have the descendants of the Spaniards, Cubans, and Sicilians who migrated to Ybor City in the late 19th and early 20th centuries assimilated into the larger white community?

yea -this is not an area who has celebrated the cultures too much... its VERY downplayed and almost non-existent. Maybe the Cubans/ and other hispanics here weren't your high money earners and stayed low profile VS Miami/ Dade where money talks and BS walks.

[floridaguy954]

Originally Posted by Sunscape

The latino community according to the last census :
553,237 Population which is 13.73% of the total pop of the Tampa Bay area.
Distributed this way:
Mexican 169,531
Puerto Rican 157,406
Cuban 71,388
All other Hispanics 154,913

There is a larger concentration of hispanics in West Tampa, Town and Country and Armenia Ave.
Yes, there are bilingual churches of all denominations. They have services in spanish in Catholic,Methodist,Lutheran,Unity and there's even a Synagogue in Lutz whose Rabbi is from a latin american country.

That 13.73% figure is very misleading because the census designated MSA for tampa bay includes pasco and hernando counties north of tampa and hillsborough county, and those 2 counties are VERY white and nothing like Hillsborough either demographically or culturally

Hillsborough county was 25% latino at the time of the 2010 census and that number is likely much higher today as the hispanic population there has been exploding

[floridaguy954]

Originally Posted by tinytrump

The truth is the hispanic populaton here is very withdrawn or hidden and runs in small circles. Hardly anyone talks Spanish openly and they are not as open and friendly as in other cities. It's a very quiet boring place, no real social life and churches too are clicki. I did not expect Miami, but the Latino culture is def NOT here. There are some small parts of the city, where latinos may hang out- but not the friendly atmosphere like Miami where you make a friend over a cortadito--- AND the CUBAN sandwich is not the best compared to Miami's- for sure.

I grew up there. Based off what you said I seriously doubt you spent much time there, go to west tampa and you will see spanish is the first language spoken there, its very cuban and puerto rican as well as many colombians, dominicans, and others. In addition the southeastern part of the city extending into riverview is very puerto rican and becoming very latino nowadays, it will soon be majority latino. And the rural parts of the county east of tampa as well as the south county are heavily mexican with lots of spanish spoken there. And I disagree with your take on miami too, I live in ft lauderdale now and am in miami often. Unless you know the people they tend to be pretty unfriendly

And Ive had good and bad cubanos in both tampa and miami, I personally like tampa's better since I grew up with it and its also the true original

[floridaguy954]

Originally Posted by tinytrump

def not a CUBAN sandwich,, I call them PR sandwiches- close but NO cigar baby... The secret is the the bread!

The cuban sandwich originated in key west from cuban immigrant cigar factory workers but was soon after brought to tampa when Vicente Ybor moved his cigar industry to tampa where it was popularized and proliferated. It was a tampa culinary staple long before miami even existed. The cuban sandwich is a product of tampa not miami, whatever you say cannot change that FACT

[floridaguy954]

Originally Posted by tinytrump

yea -this is not an area who has celebrated the cultures too much... its VERY downplayed and almost non-existent. Maybe the Cubans/ and other hispanics here weren't your high money earners and stayed low profile VS Miami/ Dade where money talks and BS walks.

Tbh you seem to just have it in for TB for some reason. Did you get jumped by some latinos in tampa or something?

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by floridaguy954

The cuban sandwich originated in key west from cuban immigrant cigar factory workers

No... No, it did not. The Cuban Sandwich wasn't invented until the Italians introduced the Cubans to a piece of meat I like to call... Salami. The Cuban sandwich was invented in Tampa. HOWEVER, I will agree with you: There is NO evidence that it was invented in Miami, and if you were to claim that Tampa isn't the birthplace, you'd have a much stronger argument saying Key West.

[tinytrump]

Originally Posted by floridaguy954

Tbh you seem to just have it in for TB for some reason. Did you get jumped by some latinos in tampa or something?

nah-- just they are more closed knit than the rest of S-FL and say so-- I asked why not more open and they shrugged- anyhow I was transferred to Orlando - much better lost of friends but the Cuban sandwiches-- still Puerto Rican