Puerto Rico

can you speak spanish, they do speak english in a lot of the businesses but still, spanish would be helpful to know. i hear they drive crazy too

I've lived in Puerto Rico for several years. It is nothing like living in the USVI. Comparing the two side by side would be like comparing a small town in Louisiana with a large city in Florida.

Pros versus USVI -- easier access to consumer goods, more job opportunities, cheaper cost of living, easier and cheaper to get back to the states

About the same -- weather (depending on the area), schools (similar spectrum of options, from abysmal to okay, but more choices)

Cons -- more traffic, more crime (although not per capita), overpopulation, most beaches not as pretty as VI, pollution, litter, and definitely a big language barrier if you aren't bilingual in Spanish

Hope this is helpful! Good luck with your move.

I lived in PR for a long while... Sorry for the rambling, but here it goes...

Language could be an issue because English isn't practiced even when it is taught from Pre-Kinder... But most people do put an effort in trying to speak it.
The Metro Area (San Juan, Bayamon, Guaynabo, Carolina, & Caguas) do have some areas that are crowded, but the island itself is not considered overpopulated...
Traffic is rough in the Metro Area, hence, public transportation, except for the train, suffers badly...
Public schooling is mostly bad, private schooling ranges from good to excellent...
Driving is a challenge, specifically in the Metro Area, everybody is in a hurry...
Roadways... most are in bad shape.. Road signs are super confusing... Even a GPS gets confused...
There are a lot more places to go and things to do...
Shopping? Not a problem... Getting things shipped when buying from the internet is OK... Most will ship..
Traveling to and from is good due to a major airport, satellite airports, and more airlines...
Beaches? I beg to differ from above... since there are more of them, the good ones are kind of hidden... The Culebra and Vieques beaches are excellent...
If you like to party, it goes on 24/7...
Crime? Just like many other places, know where to go and where not to go... Exposed valuables in a car will lead to a broken glass and stolen goods...
Most government offices and services suck big time... There are some transactions that you can do online though...
The population is just over 4 million, but it is also a bigger island ( Approximately, 100 x 35 miles) with 2 island municipalities, Vieques and Culebra... So, as the post above, it is impossible to compare PR against the VIs... However, there are municipalities, mostly in the central mountain range, south, and south-west that can be as laid back as STX... But the Metro Areas can be just plain crazy...
Taxes, are about average... They do have a 7% sales tax, still, the cost of goods is about 15 to 25% lower than the VIs..

I enjoyed both PR and STX, and I wouldn't mind going back to either one of them... STT, well, I didn't like as much... I've never been in STJ...

My reasons for leaving in both cases were job related... I have a property in PR, and I am hoping to get eventually something in STX... I do travel to both islands several times during the year...

Wait a second..There's a TRAIN in Puerto Rico???

Wait a second..There's a TRAIN in Puerto Rico???

Surprised me too - but a google confirms it!

Wait a second..There's a TRAIN in Puerto Rico???

Surprised me too - but a google confirms it!

Me too! I lived in PR for a couple years during highschool and do not recall any train.
Live n learn.

Thanks for the responses and messages guys. This only adds to my interest. Time will tell.

Tren Urbano de Puerto Rico... (PR Urban Train)...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tren_Urbano

I forgot to mention the train has limited service and the stations favor the banking district of Hato Rey and the Universities in the Metro Area... And as with anything where the government is involved in, there is always issues.. So, its reach is limited... I used it twice and it worked well... They are considering eventually expanding its service to other areas...