To everyone who lives in Palermo...

[Alzinho]

What´s interesting is that Palermo is not the only bubble but San Telmo was Alzinho´s bubble, that´s to say, any neighbourhood can be our bubble and in fact, everybody builds one. This forum has been an usual arena for bubbles crashings.

Nail-on-head I reckon.
And a small confession: I don't really live in San Telmo - my postal address is actually Monserrat! But I'm right on the border and I was under the impression (before I got here) that San Telmo was considered one of the better barrios, so I tell everyone that's where I live.

And San Telmo/Monserrat is 'OK' - it's a bit like The City in London. ie. it's busy, busy, busy during the day, but after 7pm and at the weekends it's like a ghost town. Except for the really touristy bits, like Defensa on Sundays, which are pretty good, but not something to 'enjoy' week-in week-out.

 

[laureltp]

Palermo is lovely and convenient but certainly pricey. That said, it's not the island of wealth and foreigners that many people think (myself included, a few months ago).

While the boutiques and restaurants primarily cater to tourists and expats earning dollars, there are clearly tons of people who live and work in the area that aren't. There are loads of small fruit & veggie stores, grocery stores, etc that are affordable.

The tree-lined streets are lovely and while safe, maybe not as safe as they may appear. Probably safer than many parts of San Telmo, where I never felt that comfortable anywhere after dark, but not safe either.

My point is simply that while it's in many ways nicer than other areas and I'm glad you've discovered it... it's not any more or less a part of Buenos Aires than other neighbourhoods. It's not some bubble - there's plenty of grit under the surface, and lots to love too. There's this constant battle to deem certain areas or experiences as more or less authentic than others on the board...

I agree with this comment. When my boyfriend and I started out here we were living in a hostel in La Boca, then an overpriced apartment in dollars near the facultad de medicina, and finally after meeting some incredibly helpful real estate ladies we landed in Palermo. (with a rent in pesos not dollars, horray!)

We aren't here on US dollars, we've had to work our way up here on pesos. Luckily though we are smart with our money and my boyfriend managed to get a decent job, although he works long hours..(I am just an English teacher, probably just like everyone else here!).

Anyway,I think from the whole experience I would say that Palermo, while much prettier and high class-ish, we don't feel much different than we did about Buenos Aires than when we lived in La Boca. We certainly don't go shopping in Palermo, everything here is so over priced, it's all for the tourists not for the people who live here.

It's still the same city, same country. We still face the same problems that everyone else does, we aren't exempt just because there's not as much garbage on our streets here.

Personally, I have really enjoyed the experience of the places I have lived here, all the neighbourhood have something different to offer.

 

[mariposa]

nade que ver con buenos aires. and speaking of bubbles!!

 

[Napoleon]

I agree with this comment. When my boyfriend and I started out here we were living in a hostel in La Boca, then an overpriced apartment in dollars near the facultad de medicina, and finally after meeting some incredibly helpful real estate ladies we landed in Palermo...

Personally, I have really enjoyed the experience of the places I have lived here, all the neighbourhood have something different to offer.

You're not a yanqui!!! Well, people are going to take your post with a grain of salt. (Of course I didn't say "grain of pepper" because that's nearly impossible to find around here...)

There are a lot of people who live in Palermo on US dollars, UK pounds, EU euros who shop where they live and LOVE it. (Some fall into the category of Facu de Meds & dollars/pesos.)

 

[Mano Negra]

Nail-on-head I reckon.
And a small confession: I don't really live in San Telmo - my postal address is actually Monserrat! But I'm right on the border and I was under the impression (before I got here) that San Telmo was considered one of the better barrios, so I tell everyone that's where I live.

And San Telmo/Monserrat is 'OK' - it's a bit like The City in London. ie. it's busy, busy, busy during the day, but after 7pm and at the weekends it's like a ghost town. Except for the really touristy bits, like Defensa on Sundays, which are pretty good, but not something to 'enjoy' week-in week-out.

Alzinho,

I have to say the bias and ignorance of some of the people on this post is really pretty irritating. Why don't they try and give you some useful advice rather than simply suggest you move.

First, we go to San Telmo nearly every day for our food shopping. If you go down the main drag from the square, a few hundred yards on your left is one of the best covered markets (in terms of variety and quality of produce) in Buenos Aires. There you will find a number of large fruit and veg stalls (much better than supermarket quality), several butchers and granjas (chicken providers), bakers and the star of the show, a really great stall selling fiambres, hams, cheeses, pancetta etc...definitely up there with the best cheese providers in Buenos Aires. I would suggest becoming a regular and asking what is good value on the day. Just opposite one of the exits is an excellent pasta shop - who needs supermarkets?

And before you write off Puerto Madero on the advice of some of the idiots on this forum, why do you think 100's of portenos descend on the green spaces here to exercise and thousands on the weekend to stroll down the Costanera or attend one of the frequent free events. Puerto Madero is actually one of the cheapest places in the city to eat as well. At lunch time the restaurants away from the front offer 2 course menus with drink for between 25 and 30 pesos. I would recommend La Percanta. For really cheap and generally good food, there are numerous chorimobiles that line the costanera. A good bondiola (roast pork) sandwhich with all the trimmings is about 12 pesos, excellent choripans for less. My personal favourite (a little silver mettle shack at the end of Azucena Villaflor and slightly to the left), is an establishment (run by an oldish couple Jorge and Haydee), where they make plate sized wheat tortillas cooked over the coals, cut them open and stuff them with a creamy cheese, chicken, salami, marinated peppers and aubergines, onions and chilli, before putting it back on the grill. Absolutely delicious, one tortilla feeds two and costs about 12 pesos. I'm off there now! If you go, say Emilio sent you and you will get a first class product!

Drink wise, white wine is one of the most undervalued commodities in argentina. While the red is pretty expensive relative to its quality (or lack of it) as they don't drink much white with steak, there is a decent variety of simple unoaked Chardonnays and Sauvignons for around 15 pesos.

So good luck from "sterile", "disgusting" Puerto Madero. It looks pretty good from the 43rd floor in todays glorious sunshine. I can live without gritty realism if it means I can wander around with no risk of incident to grab a bondiola at 4.00 in the morning!

 

[Alzinho]

If you go down the main drag from the square, a few hundred yards on your left is one of the best covered markets (in terms of variety and quality of produce) in Buenos Aires. There you will find a number of large fruit and veg stalls (much better than supermarket quality), several butchers and granjas (chicken providers), bakers and the star of the show, a really great stall selling fiambres, hams, cheeses, pancetta etc...definitely up there with the best cheese providers in Buenos Aires.

You know what, I've been there once before but had 2 small kids in tow who were giving me grief and I didn't really get a good look at it. And I don't know why, but I assumed it was a Sunday-only market! I meant to go back and check it out properly, but just forgot.

I'll wander down there this week and see if it really is as good as you're painting it - I might have to take back all I've said about San Telmo!

 

[laureltp]

You're not a yanqui!!! Well, people are going to take your post with a grain of salt. (Of course I didn't say "grain of pepper" because that's nearly impossible to find around here...)

There are a lot of people who live in Palermo on US dollars, UK pounds, EU euros who shop where they live and LOVE it. (Some fall into the category of Facu de Meds & dollars/pesos.)

hmm, not really sure what you mean by not a yanqui, I was born and raised in NY. My boyfriend though is Venezuelan, him speaking the language natively and thus getting a better job than what many of us English speakers can get here truly helped.

Getting to Palermo was one of the biggest feats in my entire life. I love this city but man, getting a decent apartment here was a pain of the butt and almost impossible. I feel for the other expats out there that have housings issues. Unless they have US dollars or smart Venezuelan boyfriends probably they are going to have a hard time.