moving to Orlando

[CiscoDel]

Hi, I just got accepted to Universal Studios as part of their Creatives (the Imagineer equivalent) and I've never been to Florida before. I've lived in the Philippines all my life and recently NYC for 3 years so I just to prepare myself on how life is down there.

So i have some questions.
- What are some good neighborhoods with good places nearby, nice nightlife, and just good people?
- How is the traffic during work days?
- Are there animal things i have to commonly worry about (Alligators for ect)?
- How is the diversity? I heard Florida as a state is a bit racist.. so that stuff kinda scares me.
- Can you recommend me good Libraries.
- Other things to do other than theme parks?

Thanks

 

[Gr8t Fan]

Traffic is awful so you want to try to live as close to work as possible. My daughter lives in the Citra apartment complex (just behind Magic Kingdom) with 3 roommates and likes it there, but her commute to work is a bit of a pain and she's anticipating it will get worse as the holidays approach. You definitely have to keep an eye out for wildlife, but I would imagine it's similar in the Philippines. My daughter has commented some about racist people she's encountered (she's half white, half Mexican and her boyfriend is Dominican), and we've seen it firsthand in our visits to the parks being a bi-racial family, but the good experiences far outweigh the bad. Good luck on your new adventure.

 

[Sanchez]

I would mostly worry about alligators. They get you while you are sleeping.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

Congrats on the job, and an early welcome to Orlando.

If you're working on UO property, the closest nice area is Dr. Phillips, which is just across the street from Universal. It's an affluent community that's known for its restaurants and family-friendly subdivisions.

If you don't mind a short commute I would recommend looking at downtown Orlando and the neighborhoods around it: Thornton Park, Delaney Park, Audubon Park, College Park... more young professionals in these neighborhoods and way more nightlife in downtown (esp. along Orange Avenue).

Unless you're swimming a lake (which is dangerous) you don't really need to worry about gators. Snakes can be more of a nuisance but very few kinds are actually venomous.

Orlando is a pretty progressive city so I don't think you should worry too much about racism.

The downtown Orlando library is the largest around, but there's typically a lot of homeless hanging around. In Dr. Phillips the Southwest branch of the library is pretty solid.

I would check out Orlando Weekly to get an idea of things to do in Orlando. There is plenty to do outside of the tourist corridor: festivals, concerts, farmer's markets, breweries, food halls, art galleries, etc.

 

[CiscoDel]

Thanks. The biggest challenge that i foresee is commuting from A to Z. Here in NYC, it's so easy to get around any place in the boroughs; you don't need a car here so i'm hoping buses are not as hard to get in Orlando. I don't plan to buy a car until I reach 4-6 months at UO.

How is the diversity btw? One of the things that makes me not want to leave NYC is that I get to hang out with people of different colors/ethnicities, religions, and orientation while at the same time have an easy way venue to have a cultural fix during the time I get homesic bit home sick

 

[Metro West]

Welcome to Orlando!

 

[BrianL]

Congrats on the job. It sounds super-cool! Come up with some good attractions for us.

 

[nursejackie]

I'm not jealous at all, no siree, not me

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

Thanks. The biggest challenge that i foresee is commuting from A to Z. Here in NYC, it's so easy to get around any place in the boroughs; you don't need a car here so i'm hoping buses are not as hard to get in Orlando. I don't plan to buy a car until I reach 4-6 months at UO.

How is the diversity btw? One of the things that makes me not want to leave NYC is that I get to hang out with people of different colors/ethnicities, religions, and orientation while at the same time have an easy way venue to have a cultural fix during the time I get homesic bit home sick

You will absolutely need a car in Orlando. Public transportation here is unfortunately a joke. I have lived in both NYC and Orlando and would never, ever consider living in Orlando without a car.

I think Orlando is quite diverse; we have a large Hispanic population here as well as a surprisingly large Asian community; there's even a "Little Vietnam" in the Mills 50 District (which is also home to a lot of hip restaurants and bars.. like an Orlando version of Williamsburg). There's various cultural festivals in the area- two weekends ago I went to Japan Fest in nearby Kissimmee.

 

[Feralpeg]

Hi, I just got accepted to Universal Studios as part of their Creatives (the Imagineer equivalent) and I've never been to Florida before. I've lived in the Philippines all my life and recently NYC for 3 years so I just to prepare myself on how life is down there.

So i have some questions.
- What are some good neighborhoods with good places nearby, nice nightlife, and just good people?
- How is the traffic during work days?
- Are there animal things i have to commonly worry about (Alligators for ect)?
- How is the diversity? I heard Florida as a state is a bit racist.. so that stuff kinda scares me.
- Can you recommend me good Libraries.
- Other things to do other than theme parks?

Thanks

Near Universal, look into Dr. Phillips, Windermere, Winter Garden, Gotha and Ocoee. All are descent areas. Dr. Phillips is the closest to Universal. If you are looking at apartments, there are several right next to Universal.

Traffic on I-4 is terrible. Look for a place to live that does not involve using I-4. If you look in the areas above, you won't need to get on the highway.

You don't need to worry about the animals. Just don't jump in a lake or river. There are things much worse than alligators in those waters (bacteria)! I've lived in Windermere for almost 14 years and have not had any bad animal encounters.

Florida is a huge melting pot. I've met people from all over the world. For the most part, people here are very open and welcoming. There are bad apples everywhere.

There is a library on Della Drive in Dr. Phillips (about a five minute drive from Universal property).

Orlando has so many things to do. You are an hour drive from either coast. There are museums, art gallerias, theaters, concerts...you name it. If you get bored in Orlando, you aren't trying hard enough

I love living here. Hope you do also!

 

[palmtreegirl]

For Universal I agree with the others, Dr Phillips would be ideal. Ocoee is also a good choice because you can take back roads to Universal too. Parts of Windermere are near that area as well.

Congratulations!! Orlando is an awesome area, lots of diversity and a great nightlife as well. We absolutely love it down here.

 

[bellebud]

Congratulations on the job!!! What an amazing experience!

 

[CiscoDel]

Congrats on the job. It sounds super-cool! Come up with some good attractions for us.

I do have some stuff that i would love to pitch to the team in the future not really a ride but something educational with Augmented Reality. I'm actually making concepts of it just for fun.

 

[CiscoDel]

I love living here. Hope you do also!

Orlando has been my plan ever since the beginning of college. I don't want to brag but when i was about to leave the Philippines for NYC, my goal was to stay here for 1-5 years and hopefully get launched to Orlando to work as a Disney Imagineer. If you look at my history you can see the countless threads and posts of me getting depressed for not getting any luck. Not just here but even the facebook page (some people here recognized me through my posts).

I was even considering the DCP as a move of desperation, which i was all set for this Jan - i was so worried about having to do this DCP that I was really getting depressed because it was such a huge gamble.

Luckily UO liked my resume/portfolio and gave me a chance so now I don't need to go to the DCP in hopes to build a network. Because of this I feel very good to let go of my obsession of being an Imagineer because, now I am doing what they do just for UO and I don't feel like this is second place.

There is a lot of the plans that Universal Studios has for the next 5 years, it is very exciting and it doesn't just involve Orlando and California. I am part of the team on of their future projects - which i will not talk about after this

 

[Pacolovestacos]

Awesome job, congrats!

 

[adelaster]

Hi, I just got accepted to Universal Studios as part of their Creatives (the Imagineer equivalent) and I've never been to Florida before. I've lived in the Philippines all my life and recently NYC for 3 years so I just to prepare myself on how life is down there.

So i have some questions.
- What are some good neighborhoods with good places nearby, nice nightlife, and just good people?
- How is the traffic during work days?
- Are there animal things i have to commonly worry about (Alligators for ect)?
- How is the diversity? I heard Florida as a state is a bit racist.. so that stuff kinda scares me.
- Can you recommend me good Libraries.
- Other things to do other than theme parks?

Thanks

Congratulations! Hopefully you get some good feedback on here, but I would also recommend the city-data.com forums for in depth information.

I also want to warn you that there is likely going to be culture shock for you- Orlando is very different from New York. As others have mentioned, public transit will be a huge adjustment. You should explore the city with Google Maps as there really is no way to describe "urban sprawl" until you experience it yourself. New York is organized on a grid system, and is very unique in that way. It also has one of the top transit systems. No other American city truly compares in that way. New York is also the most populated and most diverse city in the nation. Orlando will not begin to compare-recent studies have it ranked 73 for population and 69 for diversity. It's going to be better than a lot of places, and the tourism will help. In your industry you are bound to work alongside of and be around other transplants.

Good luck - that will be quite the life change! Hope it's everything you have worked for.