Price of cafes in BA & Europe

[perry]

While I can certainly understand most longtermers frustations in the cost of living Buenos Aires still offers incredible value for a city of this class.
Im sure most of us who lived through the crash of 2001 and remembered 1.80 pesos coffee and three medialunas and 29 dollars a night accomodation at the Marriot plaza Hotel 5 star hotel at Retiro pine for those days when US 50 dollars a day offered you the best lifestyle on the planet.

There is absolutely no reason that Buenos Aires should be considered any less than Europe as it puts most cities to shame there that are much more expensive. In this amazing cities history it was the most expensive city in the world for real estate as well as having one of the most strongest currencies of the planet. This was the golden age from 1900 to 1940 with a few crashes between.

Considering how bad Europe is looking right now Argentina seems stable.

 

[bigbadwolf]

There is absolutely no reason that Buenos Aires should be considered any less than Europe as it puts most cities to shame there that are much more expensive.

Pericles, you've got to be pulling our leg. What you're writing just isn't so. Buenos Aires has its own charm but to compare it with old European cities is risible. If we ever refer to BsAs as the Paris of Latin America, it's with a certain condescension. There is just no comparison. In its golden age, from roughly 1880 to 1914, such a comparison would not have been so ludicrous. But not in modern times.

 

[Stanexpat]

Pericles, you've got to be pulling our leg. What you're writing just isn't so. Buenos Aires has its own charm but to compare it with old European cities is risible. If we ever refer to BsAs as the Paris of Latin America, it's with a certain condescension. There is just no comparison. In its golden age, from roughly 1880 to 1914, such a comparison would not have been so ludicrous. But not in modern times.

I would agree. The only comparison with Europe is superficial, mainly 100 year old buildings from a long gone era. However, the steaks are better in Argentina in my opinion. I have found one thing that by objective measures that in which Argentina is numero uno(Take a quick look below).

http://seekingalpha.com/article/116235-country-default-risk-continues-to-rise

 

[perry]

I completely disagree with those Europhiles here . Has anyone been to Bucharest, Sofia, Belfast,Belgrade and hundreds of other cities that do not have the cultural offerings and the architecture of Buenos Aires.

Big Bad Wolf the best architecture here was built in the 1920s and like most cities in the world there have been ups and downs. We had until recently a 7 year boom that was real and changed many peoples lives for the better .

There is no perfect city but surely Buenos Aires is one of the Worlds Best

 

[bigbadwolf]

I completely disagree with those Euophiles here . Has anyone been to Bucharest, Sofia, Belfast,Belgrade and hundreds of other cities that do not have the cultural offerings and the architecture of Buenos Aires.

My misapprehension. I thought you were comparing BsAs to London, Paris, Rome, Berlin, and Vienna. In fact, come to think of it, even second-string European cities like Riga, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, and Prague have a fair bit going for them ....

 

[tangobob]

I would agree. The only comparison with Europe is superficial, mainly 100 year old buildings from a long gone era. However, the steaks are better in Argentina in my opinion. I have found one thing that by objective measures that in which Argentina is numero uno(Take a quick look below).

http://seekingalpha.com/article/116235-country-default-risk-continues-to-rise

Now I must appologise, I thought everyone was saying the prices are the same in Europe, or are we now agreeing they are not.

 

[mini]

My misapprehension. I thought you were comparing BsAs to London, Paris, Rome, Berlin, and Vienna. In fact, come to think of it, even second-string European cities like Riga, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, and Prague have a fair bit going for them ....

And Dublin, Lisbon, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Geneva, Zurich, Bern, Venice, Florence, Amsterdam, Brussels, (oh, I'm tired now...)

I repeat what I said before: BA can not be compared to Europe. It's a American city pure & simple. Why don't we start making more relevant comparisons: What about BA vs Medellin? I've heard really good things.

 

[RWS]

. . . . In . . . [the] history [of Buenos Aires,] it was the most expensive city in the world for real estate as well as having one of the most strongest currencies of the planet. This was the golden age from 1900 to 1940 with a few crashes between. . . .

I'm more than fond of both Buenos Aires and Argentina as a whole, but, as a lawyer who's worked internationally and as a former historian, I must say that the country has never had a particularly strong currency. The strongest in Latin America? From about 1880 to about 1930, yes. But never one of the strongest in the world: that's part of the problem, caused largely by the factors that we're all well acquainted with.

 

[sergio]

Yes I have been to Bucharest and Sofia. I remember a visit to Sofia during the Communist days. The city was in the midst of a music festival and I attended a performance of the Berlin Philharmonic. I thought it a very nice city. Anyway it is really absurd to compare Buenos Aires with the cities of Europe. I like Buenos Aires and take advantage of its cultural offerings but it does not have centuries of history or the remarkable architecture and culture of Europe. I think it is a mistake to fall into the Porteño trap of thinking that BA is Europe. It isn't and accepting that makes life easier and more realistic. BA is a Latin American city with a few European touches but is is a part of the Americas, not Europe. It is more honest to compare it with other cities in Latin America.

 

[perry]

Yes I have been to Bucharest and Sofia. I remember a visit to Sofia during the Communist days. The city was in the midst of a music festival and I attended a performance of the Berlin Philharmonic. I thought it a very nice city. Anyway it is really absurd to compare Buenos Aires with the cities of Europe. I like Buenos Aires and take advantage of its cultural offerings but it does not have centuries of history or the remarkable architecture and culture of Europe. I think it is a mistake to fall into the Porteño trap of thinking that BA is Europe. It isn't and accepting that makes life easier and more realistic. BA is a Latin American city with a few European touches but is is a part of the Americas, not Europe. It is more honest to compare it with other cities in Latin America.

This is ironic Sergio because you have been comparing Buenos Aires to Europe for the last week regaling us with stories of coffee prices in comparison to Buenos Aires.

Maybe you should accept that Buenos Aires is just another city and stop always comparing it too other( more cultured cities!!!!!!!! ) Life can then become a lot easier for you.