What do American expats miss the most about living in America?

[Fiscal]

Besides family and friends? For me, good ethnic food, high quality fish, cheap consumer products, the weather and ocean in California, garbage disposals, dryers, reliable power and internet, ease of traveling by plane domestically, ease of buying/leasing a car, ease of renting an apartment/picking up and moving, uber-friendliness and desire to help by random, trusting strangers. That said, living in Buenos Aires seems in most other ways far superior to the U.S.

 

[cafeamericano]

For me it’s variety of products in the supermarket. Although I’ve gotten much better at finding the ingredients I need over time. Also from the US work culture, I miss people taking responsibility for their mistakes. Here with my coworkers it seems like a team effort to make sure no one is ever held responsible for their mistakes. I don’t mean punishment wise, but like people never learn to do better because it’s never their fault. I try to talk to junior employees and it’s just “ok”. No “sorry it won’t happen again”. It’s like people shut down and put this weird look on their face and kind of mumble and hope it goes away.

 

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

T

 

[gonzalob54]

Customer service in the US is second to none, they strive to assure their customers will come back. Argentina's has to be second to last.

 

[on the brink]

Neighborhood public libraries, and a reliable Post Office system.

I've learned to live without the many other things I miss.

 

[Alby]

Besides family and friends? For me, good ethnic food, high quality fish, cheap consumer products, the weather and ocean in California, garbage disposals, dryers, reliable power and internet, ease of traveling by plane domestically, ease of buying/leasing a car, ease of renting an apartment/picking up and moving, uber-friendliness and desire to help by random, trusting strangers. That said, living in Buenos Aires seems in most other ways far superior to the U.S.

 

[ventanilla]

Not American but there is a lack of good Asian restaurants here. Some are decent sure but there is a big lack of immigrants familiar with the cuisine to get things going, rather Argentines trying to imitate it. Lots of Chinese immigrants sure but their restaurants are mostly fast food style Asian food marketed as a cheap way to feed a family.

 

[Quilombo]

Obviously by living here I don't think Argentina is some "third world shithole" but there are a few things I miss:

- Customer service as a concept; Argentines think a business is good provided they simply don't spit in your face
- Banking/finance, somehow Argentina found a way to make a hated industry worse
- Things generally just working, even if imperfectly, it's night and day compared to here: internet, the post office, banks,
interactions with the city/government in general, etc.
- Variety of products
- Security; the city is more or less safe, but Provincia, especially Zona Sur is a basket case, from petty theft to corrupt mayors,
to murdering teenagers for bicycles and a bottle of beer. I don't trust the police in the US either, they kill civilians too just like here,
but it's the lack of trust in the police/corruption/murders + all the crime. I mean, the balls on Berni to try a launch a presidential or
gubernatorial run off of being the head of the Bonaerense, that would be a political death sentence in a normal country, these guys
can't catch a cold, but they can disappear kids for looking at them the wrong way.
- Everything having to do with renting an apartment or buying property
- The legal system is the definition of Kafkaesque, it has legalized and incentivized institutional corruption amongst politicians while
holding itself above the law, and the fact too that as much as I don't care for the British, I do think Common Law is a better system of
jurisprudence
- This is different than customer service, but quasi related: businesses don't want people's money it seems. They act like they don't
care if they sell anything, and I have no idea how you can take the attitude in a country with 40% poverty and 51% inflation. Everything
is a hassle, forget being treated politely or respectfully, it's just a pain in the ass to buy things, in person, online, doesn't matter
- Chronic understaffing. Argentines LOVE waiting in lines. I'm convinced they dream of going to Disney just to wait for the attractions

 

[sts7049]

both quality and variety of sushi

 

[Fiscal]

Yeah, the sushi here is terrible, and in Los Angeles, the sushi is truly amazing.