What Neighborhood Should I Move To?

[steveinbsas]

I'll need to be near the US embassy for work, so it'll probably be Palermo. I'm 34, male, comfortably Spanish-speaking, and kind of artsy-fartsy. I really liked San Telmo the last time I was there, but it's probably too far from Palermo.

It sounds like Las Canitas would be perfect for you.

Look around Av Chenault and other streets between Av Luis Maria Campos and Av Del Libertador.

 

[erocifeller]

I am heading to La Matanza and Ciudad Evita tomorow. I will inquire about prices. I think it is affordable.

 

[Napoleon]

dima-

... An alternate barrio (my preferred barrio to live) is Almagro because it is fun, close to everything, young with lots going on (live music, bars, plays), but it's also a "real" barrio populated with mostly locals barrio unlike Palermo where the vast majority are foreigners...

MizzMarr is right on all accounts. Almagro is all of these things, but sometimes it's a bit much for someone here only 2 months. But because of this it might be slightly lacking in WiFi inundation. But maybe not. It doesn't have quite as many green spaces as Palermo, but it has trees & some parks, and more of a feel that you are no long in an area of LA or NYC that you don't usually go, but feels very familiar... which is the case with Palermo.


gatoandaluz- San Telmo will piss you off if you have to commute from there every morning. Stay in La Canitas and buy a bike. You'll be glad you did. (But you'll need to get a Kryptonite lock so that they don't just twist the bike to break a link like they do with chain locks.)

PS- San Telmo is lacking in the tree department and although you might not know why you are a bit depressed in the summer heat & humidity as you walk around the neighborhood, the lack of wide sidewalks with living green things growing in the barrio could be the reason why.

 

[gatoandaluz]

Tell me more about Las Canitas. Business sense tells me I shouldn't be living in the kind of barrio I'd prefer. Socially, I'll have to be around Argentines who need and can afford an immigration attorney from the States, and Palermo seems the obvious choice.

 

[steveinbsas]

An alternate barrio (my preferred barrio to live) is Almagro because it is fun, close to everything, young with lots going on (live music, bars, plays), but it's also a "real" barrio populated with mostly locals barrio unlike Palermo where the vast majority are foreigners.

Palermo is huge and the vast majority of residents there are Argentine. The only section of Palermo which has a noticeable foreign population is Palermo Soho. Las Canitas is likely to have more potential clients for an immigration attorney from the States (who may also find potential clients in Belgrano).

 

[MizzMarr]

Palermo is huge and the vast majority of residents there are Argentine. The only section of Palermo which has a noticeable foreign population is Palermo Soho.

Palermo is indeed huge, but any time that a person is going to be renting a short-term, furnished apartment is more likely going to be in the foreigner heavy parts of Palermo. I disagree that only Palermo Soho has a noticeable foreign population (Hollywood definitely does, too) but it may have been an overstatement to say *vast* majority of foreigners inhabit the neighorhood. Palermo Viejo is the only part of Palermo that doens't feel tourist-centric to me. I would bet, however, that Palermo has the highest concentration of foreign residents than any other barrio in the city. In my experience I'm always much more aware of the foreigners around me when I'm in Palermo than in any other barrio (besides San Telmo on a Sunday, or any time in Puerto Madero). I've lived in a few barrios around the city, and the ones that I always hear English being spoken on the street or in cafes are the aforementioned three. I know I'm guilty of bringing English to my neighborhood. At any rate, I just wanted to offer up possible alternatives to the mainstays on the tourist map.

 

[steveinbsas]

I know I'm guilty of bringing English to my neighborhood.

Me too, but I don't think anyone in my neighborhood is ever going to speak English with me as I am the only English speaking foreigner. In fact, I'm the only foreigner...and none of the natives speak English.

 

[dima]

thanks so much for the replies, all!

as for where I lived in LA - in one of the old textile buildings in Downtown LA in a loft - few blocks from skid row. it was my favorite out of the many places i lived in LA. so i don't mind some grittiness

i stayed at a hostel in San Telmo when i was in BsAs in 2007 and that was lots of fun, but i do remember the narrow trees and not much vegetation - something with more nature/open space would be nice.

i'll do more resarch on Palermo and Almagro. doing some preliminary online searching, i found a few furnished places in the $600-700/mo range (i don't remember what neighborhoods though). ideally it'd be lower, but i can swing this. do prices go up during the South Hemisphere summer? how far in advance do you think i should try contacting people?

my spanish is elementary (i went to high shool in East LA and took a couple of years), but i'll be SpanishPod-ing it for the next 2 months to catch up to speed.

 

[MizzMarr]

Me too, but I don't think anyone in my neighborhood is ever going to speak English with me as I am the only English speaking foreigner. In fact, I'm the only foreigner...and none of the natives speak English.

Me either. The only person I speak English with (or even have heard speaking English in the barrio) is my partner. But I like it that way!

Dima, unfortunately you'll be hard pressed to get any kind of a decent furnished apartment for under $600 a month (even for a studio) in a good neighborhood. In Almagro the prices might be a bit lower (more grit), but the selection will likely be a bit more sparse (it's not as well known as Palermo). Prices do tend to go up in the summer, but it should be fairly consistent if you make reservations now (definitely solidify your reservation before mid-October or the best deals will surely be gone). Make sure to check out www.segundamano.com.ar and www.soloduenos.com.ar.

Gatoandluz, Las Cañitas is an affluent neighborhood with great park access, fancy restaurants, shopping and bars. One major bonus from my perspective, other than parks, is its proximity to Barrio Chino, the wonderland of imported food items. The Mitre train line also picks up and goes out to Tigre, San Isidro, and Retiro from there. Very handy.