I have a test for myself. If I walk down Florida, how many men creepily say “cambio cambio cambio” as I pass by? You can test out your new look this way.
Your #1 Asset: CARA DE CULO. When I got back here last week, I realized I was WAY too happy to be reunited with my boyfriend. The one time we were assaulted and robbed we were paseando smiling and laughing on a sunny day. Porteños do not smile and giggle and point up at buildings while walking down the street. They may be teasing and fake arguing with each other and having a good time, but not walking around with a big ole smile. They are in a hurry, but not TOO much of a hurry.
2. Listen first. If almost no one is talking on the subte and you want to blend in, you probably shouldn’t either. I also follow the rule of trying to avoid speaking loudly even in Spanish (can’t hide an accent) on the sidewalk.
3. Look at shoes and pants. While young argentines might wear Bermuda shorts, you have to be age and gender appropriate. A 55 year old argentino probably won’t wear Bermudas. I find yanquis wear athletic type tennis shoes and jeans (and sometimes together!) wayyy more than the average porteño. Get some Converse All Stars; those seem to blend in ok. Though, the athletic wear thing is also a class and race thing. Women wear jeans, but not the same kind. You don’t have to be excessively girly to fit in. Just think rockanrolera or “rolinga,” i.e. rock style.
4. My long hair. I grew my hair out, long and straight. It helps me blend in. If your haircut is too nice, you may look like you have something of value.
5. I never carry any of my US debit or credit cards with me, unless I need to make a purchase with them or go to the ATM (harder to replace them), no more than 100-200 pesos cash and an Argentina bank card. I really carry almost nothing at all, even non-valuable stuff because I don’t necessarily want to lose my class notes even if they have no monetary value. Don’t forget the motochorros that grab bags.
Definitely do not leave stuff behind your physical self…or under your chair or on the back of a chair or in a backpack. I just lost two cell phones in a jacket on the back of a chair last week at Subway on Santa Fe in microcentro. Looking back, an EMPLOYEE working there definitely was the one who distracted us while some bozo robbed us. I was coming off the airplane and we were walking home from Manuel Tienda Leon because of all the cortes del tránsito, so I had forgotten to remember that life out and about in BA is jodido just yet.
The two times I was involved in a robbery or pick pocketing is when I strayed from these rules. Though, to be fair, it is human to err, so it is not my fault or anyone’s fault or responsibility who has been assaulted by BA delinquents. The pungas feed on folks who are momentarily distracted or comfortable.
