She Doesn't Speak English? The Truth About Dating in the Dominican Republic

My Spanish is broken. Her English is zero. But with a little patience (and a lot of Google Translate), we built a life most people only dream of.

The Number One Fear

When I tell people I live in Santo Domingo, most assume dating in the Dominican Republic requires perfect Spanish. But my wife is Dominican, and the first question is always... "Man, your Spanish must be perfect." The brutal truth? It’s not. Actually, Sheila doesn't speak English. I speak broken "street" Spanish. And yet, we are happily married, running a business, and raising a family.

The "Fluent" Myth Most American men think they need to sound like a native speaker before they can date seriously in the DR. That is an excuse to stay in your comfort zone. Communication isn't just vocabulary. It's intent. It's effort. In the beginning, we used Google Translate for everything. We laughed at the bad translations. We used hand signals. We learned to read each other's tone instead of just syntax.

The Strategic Advantage Here is the part no one tells you: The language barrier can actually save your relationship. In the US, we argue over semantics—the specific words someone used. Here, we can't do that. We have to focus on the big picture. If we are arguing, it takes too much effort to translate the petty stuff, so we usually just drop it and focus on what actually matters.

How We Actually Do It (The Tactics)

1. Technology is King: We use translation apps for the heavy lifting.

2. Spanglish is Valid: Our house is a mix of languages.

3. Patience: You have to be willing to look stupid sometimes.

If you are waiting to be fluent before you move or date, you’ll be waiting forever. Just get on the plane.

START HERE