What To Bring When Moving From Europe To Argy

[Marive]

This is a girly comment, but if you are picky with your cosmetics and personal care products or if you are very specific about the brands that you like, bring as many as you can. You will find the major brands here (chanel, givenchy, clinique, vichy, biotherm, etc), but the prices will likely be higher than what you are used to pay. Other than the major brands, there is limited availability here, and you definitely won't find any organic skincare products if you're into that.

 

[French jurist]

I wouldn't bring the Bosch dishwasher & washing machine because you'll have a hard time finding parts if they break (and here, they break more easily since there are transient overvoltages). A basic washing machine costs about 280 euros, a nice one costs about 600 euros.


I wouldn't bring the Ikea furniture (in fact I wouldn't even buy some) since you can find similar things here for quite cheap (using the informal Euro rate). You can find furniture for cheap & easily on Mercadolibre (local eBay).

Like it has been said:
- Bring as many clothes as you can. Here they are expensive and low quality.
- Bring good quality sheets like said TomAtAlki

 

[Girino]

Thank you to you all for your advices and comments. I don't speak Spanish and I was never interested into it - I guess I gotta take as much advantage from the mudanza as I can, so.... I have been working on my English for ages, and - strangely - I find Spanish harder than English... mostly because there are many false friends with Italian, and I am never sure if I can play it by ear. Second thing I am gonna do when there will be enrolling into a Spanish course, but only because it's the second language spoken in the US.

I am not particularly fond of Ikea furnitures, but it seems I cannot turn them into cash here in Italy, and I don't want to go furniture hunting. I believe house hunting will be stressful enough. What are the chances of finding a furnished place for the first month(s)?

We have a place to crash at my FIL, but we will be bringing our cat and his place is already crowded as it is. On the other side, I don't want to unpack everything just to move after a month or two when we find a better place. We are starting to house hunt from the Web, but the most important thing - safety - should be assessed locally and preferably by a local.
For example, I'd love to live in GBA Norte (San Isidro) but rent in Recoleta is cheaper and the places are nicer.

Someone please fix the title of this post and my silly mistakes in pseudo-Spanish. -_-

 

[John.St]

I am not particularly fond of Ikea furnitures, but it seems I cannot turn them into cash here in Italy, and I don't want to go furniture hunting.

How much will it cost to move your furniture from Italy to BsAs? subtract that from the price of furniture in Argentina (I would have had to pay app 11,500 US$ six years ago, bought a net set of furniture in excellent quality at app US$ 8,000 at the official exchange rate, that was before dolarblue existed .)

What are the chances of finding a furnished place for the first month(s)?

Excellent - lots of departamentos mueblados, only stay away from web sites frequented by US-Americans, who are easily cheated and thus job the prices up. Try e.g. http://www.todoar.com.ar/r/Capital/Departamentos-en-alquiler/ or http://www.soloduenos.com/ (direct owner-tennant).

 

[ghost]

find a new boy friend........"Sometimes I am under the impression that moving to BsAs is like going into the mouth of Pinocchio's whale: once you're in, you cannot get out"

 

[Aleina Dee]

Pippi, most importantly bring a deep breath. You sound overwhelmed. If you have never been to BA decide to keep an open mind. I read between the lines that you want to bring another country here. it won't work. You will be starting afresh that is a good thing. Sell the Ikea furniture and enjoy shopping here. Furniture can be had for very little. Bring things that give you comfort for the first few months because you will miss home as you are trying to get settled. Only you know what that is. If it is Chinotto don't feel afraid to bring it or cans of San Remo tomatoes. Your boyfriend will not understand it as the tomatoes are just as good in Argentina but it is for your wellbeing. The tomatoes are a simile of course . I have not been in italy in nigh on 30 years so do not know what an Italian would miss. What I am trying to say is think small. Also think back, Samsung printer ink you will finds but not online . However you will find Pc accesory places that sell refills. Rethinking your needs wil be the order of the day. Do you really need a cartridge or will a refill do? Things like that. Good luck and if I can help with any info send me a pm.

 

[Big Al]

 

[Crema Americana]

Like it has been said:
- Bring as many clothes as you can. Here they are expensive and low quality.
- Bring good quality sheets like said TomAtAlki

Yes, this is good advice.

Good chocolate and coffee, too, for when you're feeling a little down.

I was never a very materialistic person, but it does get frustrating when you can't find what you're looking for (or everything you find is either garbage or too expensive.) It has forced me to have a bit more of a Spartan life - but that's okay too, simplicity is sometimes better. Also trips back 'home' are life savers and a welcome breath of fresh air. Know that you can find all of life's basic necessities and any caprichos can be had when you visit. During the first year you will form "the list" of personal essentials you're missing.

 

[Ries]

The basic rule is- anything imported costs double what you pay in Italy.
So bring the things you cant live without, but more importantly, learn to live with what is made in Argentina.
Eat local, wear local, live local, and its actually cheap, compared to Italy.
Insist on imported "brand names", and expect limited selction, and double the price.

 

[Girino]

How much will it cost to move your furniture from Italy to BsAs?

We are still inquiring for quotes. First, it appeared that with 3 pallets we would spend as much as with a 20 ft. container, so we thought to bring everything in a container. Then it turned out that if adding the cost to take the container outside the port, that figure would double. We are talking about €8000 door-to-door, and €4000-4500 to ship and clear custom only - we can arrange the delivery in BsAs on our own.
So we are back to pallets, and we think 3 pallets should suffice (we have packed almost the whole house this week, just to get an idea of how many pallets we would need).
That should bring us around €2000-2500 to ship and clear our stuff (cookware, clothes, small appliances).
Of course, with pallets we can't bring furnitures, unless we disassembly everything, and someone pointed out, with Ikea furnitures it is not worth it.

I don't understand why you suggest to bring food since at the consulate they were extremely clear on this point: no food, no beverages and no detergents of any kind.
I will be entering as a tourist and I can fit something in my luggage, but I also have to bring some basic stuff since the pallets/container will take a month to deliver. And I'll be able to carry with me just one suitcase with a 23 kg/50 lbs limit.
My boyfriend, entering as a returning citizen, will be under strict scrutiny (again, that's what we were told at the Consulate), so that we think I will be the one taking in electronics and food, and he will be taking the basic clothes.

About the price of electronics, I found them similar as in Italy (not as cheap as in the US, and slightly more expensive than in the UK).
What had me really worried are the followings:
1) This Index of Economic Freedom a friend posted on FB that ranks Argentina 166th. Oddly enough, I met him at the university in Italy and now is living in Santa Fe with his Argentinian wife. FYI, Argentina is in the same pot as Cuba, North Korea, Congo and Zimbabwe.
2) Some posts I read on this forum about poisoning shampoo and killing appliances due to lack of controls/standards
3) The economic isolation of Argentina, incl. embargoed products, overpriced imported goods, and in general a blindfolding politics (I wonder if I will be ever able to get away, one day)

We actually just came back from BsAs, it was my first time in Argentina, and we stayed 23 days. I liked it, but his grandpa (who is Italian but never lived in Italy in his adult life) warned me that what I saw as a tourist is not what you experience on your skin if you live there. His mum lives in Italy and deeply hates Argentina, and she is going banana on our move there (due to high safety risk). On another account, the rest of his family never left Argentina, so they don't even know what's outside there (what they are missing). This forum is the only benchmark I have, so thank you again for your support!