Might Move To Buenos Aires! Need Some Info.

[thesomebody]

So, I have the option to either move to Buenos Aires or Barcelona. I've never even visited either city (or country) before, and would like to know the opinions about life in Argentina to help me decide where to go. If you've also lived in Barcelona, would love to hear your opinions about that place too, of course.


Some questions I'd like to know, are:

How is the cost of living? And dooes the economic future for the country still look grim?

Coming from a more developed country, how big is the difference actually? What sacrifices should I be prepared to make?

How concerned should I be about my safety?

How "latino" is the country? I've never been to Latin America, and while I'm aware that Argentina has lots of European influences, I'd like to know how "latino" it actually is, to experience that culture as well.

How (socially) liberal are the people? I woudln't mind living in a more conservative area, but would like to know beforehand.

What are the locals like? While it'd be nice to have expat friends as well, I plan to integrate with the local population as much as possible to really experience the culture firsthand.

Dating prospects. What are Argentine women, in general, like? Yes, I'm aware that every country has all kinds of people, but from my own experience you can still easily make thsese kind of generalizations to some extent, but just have to remember that they are only generalizations.


I'd ofc also appreaciate any other tips and information you find useful.
Thanks!

 

[mikic007]

For girls Argentina, of course, for everything else Barcelona. You made me homesick...

 

[Joe]

You might want to PM Fred Mertz as he has lived as an expat in both cities. I believe Fred was an expat in Barcelona for ~5 years before moving to his current home in BA.

Another expat, Steve in Bahia Blanca has sworn off Argentinian women and is considering an Ecuadorian lass at this time.

But I believe I am safe to say that there is more DRAMA in relationships in Argentina than back in North America or Europe.

Restaurants are probably about half the price of Barcelona.

 

[Rich One]

a nobrainer Barcelona

Are you the guy who asked if can ship the Ferrari.

 

[Somewhereinba]

Barcelona... It's hard to compete with the access you get to the rest of Europe. Argentina is very isolated.

 

[mikic007]

I have to disagree about restaurants, if you live there, you know where to eat cheap and good. If you like seafood, there is nothing to think. Prices of course depend on your income, if it's in dollars, Argentinian might be cheaper, if you are earning in pesos, it's at least the same...

 

[Rich One]

Barcelona... It's hard to compete with the access you get to the rest of Europe. Argentina is very isolated.

Why ? Can go to Montevideo La Paz, Asuncion and Machu Pichu.

 

[thorsten]

I found Barcelona regarding restaurants pretty cheap too - and with way higher quality compared to here.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

Why ? Can go to Montevideo La Paz, Asuncion and Machu Pichu.

And Santiago, Valparaíso, San Pedro de Atacama, Puerto Varas, Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales and Torres del Paine.

 

[ElQueso]

Argentina is quite Latino, even with the European influence. Still quite a distinct culture with the mix.

Economically we don't really know what the future holds. I'd say the next year is going to see how things go, but I at least am expecting some turbulence.

If you are going to earn in pesos, you need to think about residency - do you qualify? You can't work legally unless you have some form of residency. Non-legal jobs pay quite a bit less than legal jobs and they are probably harder to find, unless you want to work in a vegetable stand, or wash dishes for a couple hundred bucks a month.

If you live here, you should be aware of rentals - without going into a long story, you have to have someone with property guarantee your rental contract unless you rent temporary apartments. you can find furnished temporary apartments but if you are going to be here awhile, you may want to end up in a non-furnished long-term rental and it's not easy. Ways around it, and I don't know how that compares with Barcelona.

Getting money here is not easy if you are depending on bringing it in from outside. You don't want to use debit or credit cards because of the government keeping the peso over-valued you lose about 30-35% of your money. You have to depend on things like Xoom or going to Uruguay to get USD out of cash machines, or use a black market transfer (all of which cost a bit too, but not nearly as much as using ATMs or paying with cards).

Depending on how much money you have, how long it takes you to make contacts and such depends on how much you have to get used to things.here as opposed to there. But right off the bat, you won't have a good selection of decent restaurants (although there are some and many, many mediocre). Things like Glad sandwich bags come in packs of 5 or 10 for a ridiculous price. Electronics are expensive, etc. Read the forum for more information on what we complain about