What Neighborhood Should I Move To?

[mmoon]

I've had very similar experiences as MizzMar in Palermo. Yes, it's a great neighborhood, but it seems like EVERY foreigner I meet lives there! I hear so much native English spoken on the street in every sub-neighborhood of Palermo...so what's the point of leaving home? I think there are many reasons to live in Palermo (parks, restaurants, generally low-rise buildings, walkable streets), but I didn't move across the world to be surrounded constantly by tourists and expats. Still, if you're only here for a couple of months, it's probably the easiest place to live.

 

[steveinbsas]

I hear so much native English spoken on the street in every sub-neighborhood of Palermo...so what's the point of leaving home?

If you had to call Chicago home in January you wouldn't have to ask this question.

I didn't move across the world to be surrounded constantly by tourists and expats.

Neither did I. That's why I live here:

http://www.remax.com.ar/PublicListingFull.aspx?lKey=91babcc3-4c00-4ba0-a557-2c1e4c15f884&Index=3

Now I only leave home to buy groceries, go to the beach, or meet friends at the airport.

 

[steveinbsas]

Yet no more (English) than is spoken in the areas around the 'D' line. At least here there are no pretenses about it.

What are you talking about? Who is speaking English pretentiously in Palermo?

If portenos are speaking English with an English accent, that would be pretentious, otherwise???

 

[tangobob]

I have seen many post here about, where should I live in Buenos Aires.
Nobody can answer that question for you. Give as much detail as you can about what you want and we can all make suggestions, but the guy who loves Puerto Madero would hate my place in Almagro, if you loved San Telmo you would not want to live in Puerto Madero.
But I agree with Mizzmar about Almagro, you are living in "real Buenos Aires" everything has a local feel the prices are set for the locals and you can get just about anything within a couple of blocks.
If you like the feel of Palermo, the markets, restaurants, bars, discos etc, then it is just a five minute walk away. El Centro is a short hop on the subte and you are at the epicentre of the collectivo route to get just about anywhere.
In short, you pays your money and you takes your choice

 

[tangobob]

Neither did I. That's why I live here:

http://www.remax.com.ar/PublicListingFull.aspx?lKey=91babcc3-4c00-4ba0-a557-2c1e4c15f884&Index=3

Now I only leave home to buy groceries, go to the beach, or meet friends at the airport.

Nice house Steve, it rather proves my point though as beautiful as it is I would not want to live there. We all want different things and that is what makes giving advice on where to live so hit and miss.

 

[steveinbsas]

We all want different things and that is what makes giving advice on where to live so hit and miss.

I agree but also I believe it's our "responsibility" as veterans here to help the newcomer from innocently renting in a dangerous area like Bajo Flores...or even Boedo.

Nice house Steve, it rather proves my point though as beautiful as it is I would not want to live there.

Thank God I'm a country boy.

Good luck keeping that song out of your head today!

 

[Napoleon]

I agree but also I believe it's our "responsibility" as veterans here to help the newcomer from innocently renting in a dangerous area like Bajo Flores...or even Boedo.

I actually have a friend (yanqui... girl) who lives in Boedo a door off of the corner of Calle Boedo & Carlos Calvo. And an English guy I know used to live there in other 2nd floor apartment.

I would NEVER live there, but they were just off the main street with sidewalk restaurants/cafes and they were in high ceiling old-style buildings and they have/had a shared rooftop terrace that is great for parties in god weather.

So even in Boedo, there are pockets of buena onda, but I couldn't do it. I'm in the process of "Movin' on up", I'm over the whole "grit" thing.

 

[LJ2]

As an Alternative....

....Since April, I've been living in what locals refer to as Barrio Norte, though official Maps call Recoleta, (Av Callao y Paraguay) two blocks from Santa Fe. The D Line is on my block and I have an incredible view of Plaza Rodriguez Peña park and the Ministry of Education. Cabs to almost anywhere fun are less than 20 pesos, and I've got more Restaurants on Santa Fe than I've had time to try. I thank my Porteño friend, who found the place, every time I think about how fortunate I am to live there.

The one thing I can attest to is that I hear a lot more about crime happening in the Palermo's, than I do in Barrio Norte / Recoleta. My theory....the local thieves expect the foreigners (newbies) to be located in Palermo, so that's where they go. I've yet to see an actual crime in my neighborhood....though I'm sure it happens.

Having lived in some major US cities...I take precautions....but truthfully, I feel much safer in my neighborhood than I did in the US cities I've lived in.

So don't just think Palermo.

 

[theglow]

We are currently living in rented an apartment in Palermo Hollywood and absolutely love it. It is five blocks from the Palermo Subte station, and a short walk to Palermo SoHo. We are in our early thirties, and moved here from Greenwich Village - the cafe scene here in Palermo is comparable. There are also tons of hip bars, lounges, and incredible restaurants! Most of the cafes, and even some restaurants have free wi-fi. Also, we got our apartment (with reliable high-speed internet) from a craigslist listing and used an American agent living here. I'm happy to give you a referral if you're interested.

 

[LAtoBA]

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.

Welcome fellow Angelino. I grew up in Silverlake about 10 mins from downtown so I know the area you're talking about well. As far as the grittiness factor you're right...San Telmo and where you lived in downtown LA is about the same. I'm not as familiar with Almagro but I would compare parts of Palermo to Silverlake, especially the trendier parts where all the stores are. Perhaps slightly less "bohemian" than Silverlake but definitely not pretentious like Beverly Hills or West Hollywood....or the west side in general.

If you live in the area immediately adjacent to Plaza Serrano in Palermo Soho then yes you will find a lot of foreigners. However, there are many, many parts where foreigners do not dominate the landscape. I lived about a 15 min walk from Plaza Serrano and in my building I have never encountered one foreigner, only Argentines. And prices in verdulerias, tintorerias, etc were local prices. I'd say the major difference is rent prices and that's about it, unless again you're in ground zero of tourist heaven in Palermo.

And again what's going to make you feel like you're in the real Argentina is not necessarily just living smack in the middle of a whole bunch of Argentines--that's pretty useless if you can't communicate with them. Even if you live in a touristy area your ability to speak Castellano will make you feel a part of the real Buenos Aires far more quickly than if you do not. So good luck with the learning! For US$600 you'll probably be able to find a studio....not sure in Palermo. US$700 you could get a 1 bedroom but again I'm not sure if that's possible in Palermo.