Starved For Beauty

[HelaineT]

BAExpat friends, please help me find the right place to live!

Last March and April I stayed in Barrio Norte, a block from Santa Fe, and I found the neighborhood chaotic with traffic noise so bad I literally had to sleep with earplugs. There were some nice buildings in the neighborhood, but I didn't experience much beauty there, nor much "soul".

On my next stay, for 3-months, I moved to Balvanera and found plenty of soul. I had said, "Barrio Norte is like the Upper East Side (of Manhattan) and Balvanera is like the East Village." One neighbor responded, "Barrio Norte es Europa. Balvanera es Argentina." I loved many things about my charming apartment and about the neighborhood: the relative quiet of the street and the absolute quiet of my apartment, with its high ceilings, delightful courtyard, and small dance salon at the other end. I enjoyed the sense of neighborhood, the warm people who were so easy to get to know, and the proximity of many of my favorite milongas. The list of all I appreciated could go on.

But I feel starved for beauty when I'm there. I also got tired of having a materially much lower standard of living, such as no washing machine, and mostly cheap pots and pans with scratched teflon - all choices of the apartment owner. I'm going back there for 6 weeks very soon, because it works for me in many ways, and I'll bring a few pieces of good cookware to leave with my things for next time.

But I'm ready to change for my future stays, which will usually be 2-3 months or more.

So here's my question:
Where are the most beautiful neighborhoods with some quieter streets?
It can't be too remote from the center, because I need to be near certain milongas.

And the next step for later this year: Does anyone know of an apartment in a beautiful neighborhood that has a washing machine, a dishwasher, and other comfort features, as well as a courtyard or garden, AND a room with a wood floor that can serve as a dance salon? A tall order, I know, but maybe I'll be lucky here! When I find the right place, I could keep coming back to it! (Please send private message.)

Thanks for your thoughts on this!

 

[nlaruccia]

This apartment is definitely "beauty" and has all that you asked for: washing machine, a dishwasher, and other comfort features, as well
as a courtyard or garden, AND a room with a wood floor. But it's $2,060 US per month according to the website. That's what beauty costs here. However the neighborhood is close to microcentro, no traffic, very quiet and secure. All the comforts of the first world. The rest of us have to live in the more bohemian neighborhoods that tourists like to think of as authentic and having more soul. I think they're just plain rundown and noisy, but they're affordable. There is no quiet, comfortable place in pesos near the milongas. You'd have to move all the way out to Savedra or Villa Devoto.

http://www.homesba.com/depto.php?dep=230&l=0

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[Davidglen77]

I would take a look at Boedo. It's relatively close to the center and since the neighborhood has an underlying Tango theme that goes way back to the early 1900s, you will have plenty of dancing to do right in the neighborhood. It's about 6-7 subway stops out of the center on the 'E' subway line. There are many older buildings there, it's a lot more quiet than Barrio Norte and on the side streets (Castro, Castro Barros, Colombres) it's actually pretty nice. I would avoid the part of the neighborhood south of Av. La Plata - it turns into the neighborhood called "Nueva Pompeya" which is not a great place to be. Good luck.

 

[lucha54]

A dishwasher?! Ok, now you're being picky.
I love Almagro, certain parts are very beautiful and also close to milongas but maybe not the ones you want.
Also La Cresta is there, best food in BA!!

 

[PhilipDT]

I moved from balvanera to Nuñez and the difference is night and day. It is so calm and peaceful, instead of screaming drunks and colectivos with un muffled airbrakes here you hear the crackling of the neighbor's parilla or the sounds of people splashing in their pools. The streets are so much cleaner it's unbelievable, trash isn't thrown all over the place. The sidewalks are 2-3x wider which makes the entire neighborhood feel more open and less closed in.

It's most certainly not the only beautiful neighborhood nor the only one with these characteristics but it's been my home for over a year now and I love it.

 

[PhilipDT]

Also, post up your budget and I'll see if I can find anything.

Re: Dishwasher, washing machines and the like. Washing machines are common, dryers are very rare as are dishwashers. When I moved in to my new place I saw a space to put a dishwasher if I could relocate the fridge. So I made a deal with my landlady that she would extend the marble countertop and put in a little space for storing cutting boards and hook up the dishwasher and in exchange I'd buy the dishwasher and leave it when I left. Some owners are more open to things like this than others and it'd be a good idea to negotiate such modifications before signing the lease.

Re: pots and pans and other implements of destruction, I would say it's nearly impossible to find things of the quality you're used to in the US. Resign your self to that and when you arrive place all of the supplied crap in a box and buy your own stuff, quality items will have a good residual value if you need to sell them. Cooking is a passion of mine and after some trial and error I've finally gotten to the place where I am very happy with the quality of my kitchen. If you want to, send me a PM and I can let you know where you can buy quality items for cheap here (i've souced things from every corner of the country not to mention the city) and what you should bring with you from abroad.

 

[syngirl]

For the last bit it sounds like you're not looking for an apartment but a house. You'd have better luck looking in neighbourhoods like Nunez, Saavedra, Urquiza, and Devoto (though transport difficult there without a car). Sorry but to me being close to the centro and beauty do not go hand in hand unless you are willing to pay really big bucks in rentals.

 

[nlaruccia]

For the last bit it sounds like you're not looking for an apartment but a house. You'd have better luck looking in neighbourhoods like Nunez, Saavedra, Urquiza, and Devoto (though transport difficult there without a car). Sorry but to me being close to the centro and beauty do not go hand in hand unless you are willing to pay really big bucks in rentals.

Exactly. You took the words out of my mouth. For beauty, convenience, location, and the perfect apartment with garden, patio, dance floor, etc. you must pay in dollars. That's why I suggested the apartment earlier in this thread. You can't have it all in BsAs. Beauty is expensive.

 

[nikad]

There are some gorgeous green places close to everything buuuuuuuuut very pricey! Barrio Parque in Palermo for example, or La Isla in Recoleta, or apartments on Alvear ave. These are all upscale locations with some gorgeous apartments and architecture. You have Puerto Madero, very modern and clean but boring imho. If you don´t mind being 20 -30 blocks from the action, Belgrano R has some gorgeous apartments and houses as well. We are talking about rentals ranging 3500 - 9000 usd monthly though ( furnished )

 

[PhilipDT]

Exactly. You took the words out of my mouth. For beauty, convenience, location, and the perfect apartment with garden, patio, dance floor, etc. you must pay in dollars. That's why I suggested the apartment earlier in this thread. You can't have it all in BsAs. Beauty is expensive.

What? That's crazy. You most certainly can have all of that in pesos. Probably lot's of pesos but still.

There are some gorgeous green places close to everything buuuuuuuuut very pricey! Barrio Parque in Palermo for example, or La Isla in Recoleta, or apartments on Alvear ave. These are all upscale locations with some gorgeous apartments and architecture. You have Puerto Madero, very modern and clean but boring imho. If you don´t mind being 20 -30 blocks from the action, Belgrano R has some gorgeous apartments and houses as well. We are talking about rentals ranging 3500 - 9000 usd monthly though ( furnished )

I think 3500 - 9000 is a lot even in those locations for a 1 bed room. I'm sure you can find things in that price range (and above) but that sounds more like 2-3 bedroom prices.