Allow myself to introduce....myself!

[GoGreenGoWhite]

Hey Everyone!!

My name is Scott, I am a 29 year old from Chicago moving down to BA after the first of year to spend a few months working on my spanish and learn as much about BA and Argentina as I can.

Can any of you provide any recommendations as far as neighborhoods or language schools? From what I have been told by people who have been to BA before, Palermo seems to be the spot that keeps on being brought up. Do you agree?

Also, can anyone provide some advice to increase my chances of not getting ripped off when I finally book my apartment. I have been looking at a couple of different apartment management companies online and they all seem to call for a cash deposit. I just wanted to know if you had experienced the same thing and if there was anything I should be aware of to help make sure I get my deposit back before I leave.

A few details about myself, I love to travel, experience new things, meet new people, etc. I enjoy going out (i am not opposed to partying until the sun comes up), being social, I love sports (i played basketball during undergrad), and being active.

I hope to meet a few of you!

Scott

 

[rainman]

Hey Scott,

Just got down here myself. I looked at all the online booking firms too and eventually used waytobaway.com (not specifically because the site seemed better than the others, but because they had an apartment where I wanted that was immediately available).

I believe it was a 20% deposit that I had to make online with paypal, and they required a cash payment for the rest of the duration of my stay due upon my arrival. This was a little annoying, because I was forced to stay in BA for a few days maxing out my atm daily withdrawl limits to get the money together, so if you go with one of these companies I would recommend bringing cash from the states.

Other than that, everything went very smooth. The place looks exactly as it did in the photos (quite nice) and is in a better location (palermo soho) than I could have hoped for.

Hope to see you around town soon, good luck with your move!

 

[mini]

Love the title! Just droppin' by to say "Welcome".

 

[starlucia]

Hi, Scott, welcome. I'm also 29 and a sports-lover, so let me know if you ever need a running or tennis buddy

I do think that Palermo is by far the most popular neighborhood, but keep in mind, Palermo is kind of huge (there's Palermo Soho, Viejo, Hollywood, etc...) My absolute favorite apartment location was on Guise and Charcas (2 blocks from Alto Palermo shopping mall.) It was pretty, within walking distance of EVERYTHING, and I always felt safe. My second favorite was on Paraguay and Borges (in the "hipper" part of Palermo.) That location was closer to the trendy bars and restaurants, but offered fewer residential amenities, so it kind of depends on what you're looking for. My third apartment was in Recoleta, which is a lovely neighborhood, but for people our age, yes, I definitely recommend Palermo.

In terms of rental agencies, I used ByT Argentina on my first 3 visits to BA (before I moved in with a local.) Honestly, I probably could have saved a couple hundred bucks if I'd gone through Craigslist, but ByT has a TON of listings, and I was willing to pay for the peace of mind of going through a legitimate agency (and after reading a couple of the horror stories on this forum, I think it was a wise investment!) Everything was very professional and by-the-book: check-in and check-out occurred when scheduled, contracts were honored, agents were helpful. The big positive is that you will absolutely get your deposit back; the big downside is that rent + deposit are required in cash upon check-in. SO, if you want to avoid carrying a giant wad of cash from Chicago to BA, best solution is to bring a traveler's cheque, and then cash it at Banco de la Nacion in Ezeiza (open 24 hours) when you land.

I don't have any experience with language schools, but I do have a private tutor that I'm happy to recommend. Her name is Gabriela Ferrante (www.gabrielaferrante.com.ar), and her email is [email protected]. Very professional, very experienced, reasonable rates. I think the benefit of private tutors is that, for the same price as a group class, you get a lot more speaking practice, totally individualized instruction, and the teacher comes to you, whenever it's most convenient. However, if group classes is what you're after, I've heard good things about OneonOne.

Good luck!