I came here as a 22-year-old six months out of school and so could happily put up with a lower quality of life, but after two years, living like a college student (worse than I did in college!) has gotten old. I can't afford to do the things that made me fall in love with the city in the first place. Here are a few:
1. Going out to eat/for a coffee-- I miss being able to sit at a table and people watch. I was walking around San Telmo yesterday and wound up at the parque Lezama. I wanted nothing more than to stroll down Caseros and eat lunch at the restaurant of the same name at one of the outside tables, but had to go back to my apartment and eat leftover homemade empanadas instead. Even just a coffee wasn't an option. Next time I'll take the empanadas with me and eat at the park.
2. Going out at night-- Other than a few bars like Puerta Roja that have good happy hours and decently priced food, I've pretty much stopped going out this year. Since January I've been to a boliche twice, which I actually really miss. I've never been a crazy partier and don't care much for the bars in Palermo (the pretentious crowd, ugh) but dancing the night away in BA is a blast. I love going to the movies, but it's just too expensive.
3. Shopping-- I don't for clothing or shoes here. Ever. I actually really need to, and don't just want to, but there's no way in hell I'm doing it here. I walked around Cuesta Blanca the other day and tortured myself a bit, but I know those cute tops will just fall apart, and I could get similar styles with much better quality for like 10 bucks at Target back home.
4. Food shopping-- No soda, no bottled water, no chips or other snack foods, not even instant coffee anymore. Of course I make allowances for wine, but if I'm buying something on a Benjamin Nieto level, that's fancy for me. Chino, verdulería, carnicería, granja, that´s is. Every now and then, barrio chino. Haven't set foot in a Disco or anything like that in months and months.
5. Laundry-- Used to love having lavanderías here, even though your clothes never come back completely clean. But several in San Telmo have gone up to 22 (!!) pesos, and 16 pesos by my boyfriend's place in Palermo. So I have to do a lot of tedious hand washing. Last year in Montserrat I had same-day laundry service for 12 pesos. Speed Queen at México y Lima, I miss you.
6. Apartments-- I used to think BA apartments were so cool. A few months ago, I decided it would be neat to live in Almagro. I looked at four rooms, all in the 370-400 dollar range (I would have liked cheaper, but, well, there isn't). Horrible. Decrepit PHs with no windows, maybe a terrace or something, but if the front door closes and there are two inches of space between the bottom of the door and the ground, you can just imagine the cockroaches there will be in the summer. Dirty, teeny kitchens, four people sharing one bathroom, you get the idea. Note: If you're willing to pay this and have a room the size of a box with a twin bed, the quality goes up a little. But I'd already lived in that type of room, and really didn't want to go back.
I´m out of here at the end of the year and to be honest I can´t wait. I know deep down that even if I did have money here, I still wouldn't like it. I just don't feel a connection to this place, but that's for another thread. If I did, I'd try to get an en blanco job, but even then, I'd be making what, 6000 pesos? I want to save money so I don't have to worry when I'm old. I want to travel, travel with my kids one day. I don't want to have to convert my earnings into dollars and keep my savings in a bank in the U.S. if I don't live there. I want to be able to go out at night and enjoy the city I'm living in without having to scour the internet for free stuff.
I think BA is great if you work remotely and make a foreign currency. But I don't, so I'm out of here.
