Coming without Preparations?

[kayma]

Hi,
Is it feasible to not know anyone in BA, go down there for about a year with no job, no contacts, no knowledge of Spanish, no place to live with a suitcase and book a hostel while trying to find a more permanent place?

The thing is, I have enough saved up so that I can live for a month or two without working while I find a job (I understand that it may take more than two months! and I don't expect much - maybe hospitality/tourism jobs or teaching English) and a more semi-permanent place to live than a hostel. Of course I will start Spanish classes a little before I get there or when I do get there.

Keep in mind that I'm very open to different culture and don't mind being alone for stretches of time.

So, back to the question, would you recommend me doing this or am I crazy? If I am crazy, what would you recommend I do before coming?

Thanks,
Kay

 

[HowardinBA]

Hi,
Is it feasible to not know anyone in BA, go down there for about a year with no job, no contacts, no knowledge of Spanish, no place to live with a suitcase and book a hostel while trying to find a more permanent place?

The thing is, I have enough saved up so that I can live for a month or two without working while I find a job (I understand that it may take more than two months! and I don't expect much - maybe hospitality/tourism jobs or teaching English) and a more semi-permanent place to live than a hostel. Of course I will start Spanish classes a little before I get there or when I do get there.

Keep in mind that I'm very open to different culture and don't mind being alone for stretches of time.

So, back to the question, would you recommend me doing this or am I crazy? If I am crazy, what would you recommend I do before coming?

Thanks,
Kay

Hi Kay.well you know us at least you will be able to get digs ok over here.so no worries on that score.Meeting other folk is a doddle over here so no worries there.You only live once,go for it.We,ll help you along the way.Good luck,Howard

 

[Vagrant Violet]

Hello, Kay,

In my opinion, though you may be "open to different cultures," based on what you described (not knowing anyone, no knowledge of the language, etc.), I think that you might be in for an unpleasant surprise when you get here...

A great concern is that you don´t know Spanish... This is NOT a skill that you can passively acquire just by being immersed in the environment. Argentine Spanish is very distinct from the "regular" variety. Moreover, I personally have a great dislike for the tourists who don´t even bother to pick up a few useful words or phrases beforehand and come here and expect everything to be handed to them in English. If you don´t know the language, you are far more susceptible to being cheated or conned (anything from the taxis to buying things and getting the special "gringo" prices on everything, and so on). Or worse... what happens if you get lost or are in an emergency situation?

Finding a job- Argentina already has such a ridiculous rate of unemployment as it is, finding work is challenging and you generally don´t make ends meet. The most common "gig" for English speakers is teaching English. There is a lot of competition. As someone who has a master´s degree for this specific field and years of training (not a "certificate" from some unknown, rinky-dink organization), I can assure you that this is NOT easy work on any level. It´s not just the stress of traveling throughout the city (not easy when you can´t take public transportation because you don´t know the language or the quirks of the system), student cancellations, and the like, but also because if you´re going to really take this job seriously, you have to know what you´re talking about. This is not a "summer job" like working in an ice cream parlor.

I´m sorry to be a "Debbie Downer," but if I were you, I would have slightly more realistic expectations, and if you are still set on coming here, do your homework and learn about the city and the language (please!). Buenos Aires, though it has its good points, is a complicated city that will eat you alive if given the chance.

Suerte.

 

[French jurist]

If you can't work in linguistics (i.e. translations), can't telecommute (with a job already settled), don't come with your own online business ready, and so on .... Then 6 weeks after you arrive, you'll post on this forum saying "help ! I'm running low on cash, I'm looking for any job".

 

[PhilipDT]

A great concern is that you don´t know Spanish... This is NOT a skill that you can passively acquire just by being immersed in the environment. Argentine Spanish is very distinct from the "regular" variety. Moreover, I personally have a great dislike for the tourists who don´t even bother to pick up a few useful words or phrases beforehand and come here and expect everything to be handed to them in English. If you don´t know the language, you are far more susceptible to being cheated or conned (anything from the taxis to buying things and getting the special "gringo" prices on everything, and so on). Or worse... what happens if you get lost or are in an emergency situation?

I came down here with just a few phrasebook phrases but immediately began learning spanish. It was tough when I first got here, not knowing how to communicate, but I think the swim or die situation helped me pick it up very quickly.

 

[gouchobob]

Not to discourage you but your chances of success are very slim. Getting a job that pays real money is very difficult and the cost of living is no longer cheap.

 

[tkm]

Hi Kay,
I came here personally unprepared in terms of contact and language and cultural awareness ( not absolute zero but close to). Even I have a job and a place already set up for me, I have struggled so much for the first month.
So IMO, it's not that easy to come totally unprepared. If you can stretch your time, save up some more money to support yourself financially for the first few rocky months and take Spanish lessons (seriously!) in the mean time, it would help.
Make sure to do some research on housing, cost of living, etc on this forum, some real Baires expats' blog, etc to grab some ideas about real life here. Of course, you won't know until you live it but pretty sure you would figure out something more or less.

And of course you won't have to be alone the whole time. If you wanna hang out with expats and even some nice English speaking Argentine, lots of events, meet ups and gatherings happening every week are announced here. If you want to immerse yourself with local culture and people, it would be possible with decent Spanish.

Good luck!!

 

[Johnno]

I get the feeling that setting up 'working online options' before you come is a possible answer - or partial answer - and I am certainly exploring various options where I know I will be paid in Oz/US dollars into my bank account (here or there) and I think the 'mix and match' type of approach is what I will need - its a new place and things work differently down there so I guess its up to me to adapt - and quick lol

 

[fifs2]

I guess I`m somewhere in the middle of Howard and Debbie Downer. If you realise that being a foreigner is by no means "exotic" in Buenos Aires and that speaking English and coming from the developed world has little or even less added value in the job place than the excellent bilingual education of most middle class Argentineans then you will have your feel firmly on the ground and the attitude to succeed. If you want the kudos of exotic travel I suggest you head somewhere less travelled as the guys who came here unprepaerd like you flourished due to the timing of their arrival 2001 or before wheeras you are coming in at the tail end of the "discovery" of Argentina.
As Howard says you only live once, so travel and be happy wheerever you may go.

 

[AkBill]

I've done this in about 5 different cities and it all depends on luck and who you meet, in my opinion. In buenos aires I had a lot of luck and met some great people the first week and everything turned out perfect from there. When I tried this in Berlin it was like i was cursed, i didn't meet a single nice or even interesting person and I ended up leaving after 1 month feeling like a total failure.. like the ghost of Hitler was haunting me or something.

As far as one recommendation, learn spanish!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Nothing good that's happened to me here would have happened if I didn't speak even a little spanish. Even the friends / business contacts I have now from the USA I only met through spanish speaking friends.