Friendliness of Minnesotans (St. Paul: home, safe area, school)

[SciFiNerd1]

My wife and I are looking at Minnesota as one of our choices for relocation. We happen to be southerners so the friendliness of residents are important to us.

How friendly are Minnesotans in the Twin Cities in general? We dislike it when people are very kept to themselves without saying hello or having small conversations.

[CarverKris]

Do you have kids?? It will honestly be a lot easier to get to know folks in the twin cities if you have kids and they are in school activities or sports, then I would say folks can be very friendly. Otherwise, folks are a bit reserved to be very honest, but if you make an effort they are friendly for the most part, just not as outspoken or out going as folks from the south in my opinion. If you do come to the cities, look for groups to join with folks that share your interests, such as civic groups like the Lions or sports leagues, car groups, etc.. these folks are often looking to make new acquaintances and friends and your effort will be rewarded.

[Ghengis]

hiya...how 'bout this weather, eh?

[Minntoaz]

We are the nicest, friendliest, most cordial, most outgoing, extroverted, party loving, sing-songey group you will ever meet. However you probably won't like me because I don't say Hi to everyone I meet nor do I make small conversation with everyone. I think I'm a pretty "normal" person so I usually judge the person and if someone is having a bad day I'm not going to bother them with a boring conversation. I'd say most people here are like me and there's no unwritten social formalities like in some regions of the country. Just normal people with normal social skills.

[Glenfield]

Most of us are big on chit chat, but please let's not be sharing our emotions with every Tom, Dick, and Harry.

In other words, we tend to be polite, friendly, and helpful but many newcomers don't seem to be able to make deep friendships as easily as they expected.

[drishmael]

Originally Posted by Glenfield

"In other words, we tend to be polite, friendly, and helpful but many newcomers don't seem to be able to make deep friendships as easily as they expected."

That's because deep friendships aren't easily made, and anyone who thinks otherwise doesn't comprehend the concept.

[drishmael]

Originally Posted by SciFiNerd1

"My wife and I are looking at Minnesota as one of our choices for relocation. We happen to be southerners so the friendliness of residents are important to us.

How friendly are Minnesotans in the Twin Cities in general? We dislike it when people are very kept to themselves without saying hello or having small conversations."

It depends. Are you wanting to invite random strangers to your church or a Tupperware party? 'Cause that won't fly 'round yonder. Basically, most of us are unfailingly polite, but truth be told, we aren't interested in extended bouts of small talk. The one exception would be if alcohol is present, in which case we'll give you the number to our bank account. And we'll help you if your car is stuck in a ditch, but we're allergic to televangelists and door-to-door salesmen.

[Hoosier]

My wife and moved here 12 years ago from Oregon. I've lived in 13 states including the south and I would never live anywhere but Minnesota. The people are friendly and as others said, polite etc. I like that for the most part you know where you stand with someone versus in the south I encountered fake niceness and when they said "aww, bless your heart", my wife has to explain to me that wasn't always a friendly term. I loved living in the south nonetheless. I just learned who to avoid.

There are lots of outstanding churches to get involved in here. Regarding the peopleit does depend on where you live. St. Paul is more blue collar area which I find blue collar people are almost always friendlier. West side of the cities is higher income and some seriously snooty people. Nw suburbs and south suburbs are generally a mix. I'm not trying to be judgmental of anyone, just my observations.

[The Search Continues...]

As long as you take the initiative to strike up a conversation and ask people a question about themselves you should be fine. Minnesotans like to make small talk. The cold weather does make people a little bit colder but it's nothing insurmountable.

[SciFiNerd1]

My wife and I do not have children; however, we do go to church (Catholic). Maybe finding a new church home will be a great place to start out socially. I see that inviting others to our church would not be appropriate in MN, according to one post. That is new to me but I'm from the South, which is entirely in the Bible Belt.


I also noticed that Minnesota is perhaps the most liberal state in the Midwest after Illinois. It definitely will be a big change from the conservative South. It doesn't really matter to us because we are moderates.

Talking about weather would help too.

Of course, we do not expect Minnesotans to accept newcomers with open arms quickly. It always take time to develop friendship after getting to know each other better. That is normal for everywhere.

My wife and I would like to join a club where we could learn how to do snowmobiling and other winter activities.

Based on my research, St. Paul is more blue collar with Catholic roots. Can anyone suggest affordable safe areas in St. Paul/surrounding suburbs?