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Hey Hey Hey~~~

I'm going to Buenos Aires this July to study abroad, and let me tell you, I CANNOT WAIT.

But I know little about Argentina, other than Evita & Messi, and you say "vos" instead of tu.

Any advise? I've never been outside of the country, and I know Buenos Aires is a big city, so this will be so exciting!!

Additionally, I speak native English, decent Italian, and my Spanish is not the greatest, but I understand a lot of it. xD; So I hope I either learn spanish or there are people there who speak English and Italian who can help me the first few weeks. xD;

Anyways, I'd just love to here from people who know the city!

¡Gracias¡

((Let's try this in spanish...)

Voy a buenos aires este julio para estudiar en extrajero, y dejame decirles, ¡NO PUEDO ESPERAR!

Pero yo sé poco de Argentina, otro que lo de Evíta y Messi, y en vez de usar tu, se usan vos.

¿Algo consejo? Nunca he estado afuera de los estados unidos, y sé que Buenos Aires es una ciudad ciudad, y estará muy emocionada!

Además, hablo el ingles nativamente, italiano bastante bueno, pero mi español no es el mejor, pero entiendo la mayoría del idioma. xD Pues, espero que yo aprende español o hay personas allá que ya saben el ingles o italiano que me pueden ayudar por las primeras semanas.

Bueno, me gustaría oir desde las personas que conocen bien a la ciudad!

High-functioning Junker

Hello, argentinian and porteña here! biggrin
There are some things you have to know about Buenos Aires:
1. Do not expect a neutralish english. Argentinians, and especially people from Bs As, speak with LOTS of slang. Some are took from italian ("laburo" "manjar" "Grosso" wink So you will be fine with those, but be carefull with some others. For example "coger" means have sex instead of pick up, so try not using it unless you want to be mocked for a while xD
2. Depending the area you are staying in, there will be more or less insecurity. It's recommended to don't wander off at night after 9-10 pm (unless you are staying in a place like palermo or the center) and be wary of motorcicle thiefs! Also, there are a lot of pickpocketeers, people who walk into you and ask you the hour to steal your phone, and people who break into your house, so be wary who do you talk to!
3. We are as multicultural as we say ethnic jokes, so don't worry about people jocking about jews and shaking hands whit jews or peruvians at the same time, we usually say them because they're fun! No one considered normal will complain about a bolivian doctor with a thick accent or a jew/evangelic/atheistic/etc teacher.
4. We are BAD drivers and TERRIBLE pedestrians, one of the main causes of death is car accidents, so take a deep breath and be patient, because driving in this city may be hard.
5. There are a lot of protest, and don't get scared if you find yourself in front of one or you loose your bus/metro because the company is on a short strike. It's a normal thing here.
6. Go to parque rivadavia for books. It's a huge park where they sell used book at low prices (and in good conditions too!) and also pirate games and movies. If you're moving for study (or you like to read) it's a great place to go.
7.I hope you arrive to se the night of the museums! It's a great night, where many museums of the city are free! And of not, most of the culture is really abundant and cheap! For example, in Costanera Sur you'll find the Humor's museum and the Inmigrant's museum, Both great and cheap!
8.Even when i just admired the cheap culture, also try to go to Calle Cordoba. It's a sight to see, full of teatres and El Paseo la Plaza features many independent acts that are worth to see! Our chinatown is also very neat.
9. Food here is diifferent than most: We eat a lot of meat (like, A LOT), and have some delicious desserts. Make sure to taste our ice-cream, Facturas, and DULCE DE LECHE.

That's all that comes to my mind right now, but feel fre to ask me if you have any question! n_n

Feral Datemate

my, my!
I live in Buenos aires! Surprised to see a thread like this around.
Well, first off: yeah, we use alot of slang, so you may be really confused when talking with an argentine at the start since you didn't mastered spanish as you told us. You don't really have to learn/memorize all of it though, you will just get used to it in a matter of days. (Miscelaneous fact: we use a different metric system!)
Second, you don't really have to be that scared for pickpocketers or robbers. Insecurity's everywhere. You should keep an eye for them though. Usually, most pickpocketings occur on the subway.
Argentina counts with public (free!) colleges, cultural activities/attractions, and healthcare services in hospitals in general. Be sure to take your ID with you mostly always, you might need it sometime.
Try sweets! ranging from dulce de leche, dulce de membrillo, pastafrola, and alfajores. You could also buy some of them to bring back to your loved ones whenever you get back to your country!
Now, politics. Argentina has lots of politically-instructed people from adolescents to adults (I'm afraid to tell you I'm not one of them though, lol.). Most of the time that leads to a huge discussion inbetween the parties. It gets kind of heated whenever that happens, so i wouldn't really reccomend you to share an opinion of it if you don't know nothing about it. Ask if you're intrested! But remember that the views of each person may be really different!
Not everyone likes football/soccer. As an example, I dislike sports alot, and football's one of it. Try to be careful when there's a match in a stadium of certain zone: In fact, try to avoid those whenever that happens (Including buses that lead to that way), it may be really dangerous.
Well, that's pretty much it! Hope that I helped, and whenever you come, I'm hoping for you to have a nice time! Where are you going to study, by the way?

Wheezing Fatcat

US native here. I stayed there for half a year a few years ago for a study/internship abroad. Although I was decently fluent in Spanish, I feel like surviving on English alone would be possible. There are lots of expats there, and practically all the natives have a decent mastery of conversational English.

Some general trends I noticed from a foreigner's perspective (a lot of these would be advice directed at Americans specifically, so if you're not from the US, the following may not apply):


If you're from the US or perceived as being from the US, you'll hear "Yankee" a lot. It's as much a term of endearment as it is a slur, so don't worry too much about it.

The only song that got played in public areas and buses when I was there was "Tche Tche Rere Tche" or whatever. It's not even in Spanish. Get ready to hear that masterpiece and then hate it and then have it stuck in your head every day for the rest of your life.

Malvinas. Not Falklands. Malvinas.

If you're going to be near barrio Belgrano or Chinatown at all, I can name a few good places that my friends and I found to eat.

Bar Jobs has indoor archery.

The cab drivers, understandably, do not like to make change from large bills. This can be difficult when travelling since the ATMs tend to spit out large bills, so try to break your cash at a kiosk before you take a cab.

Kiosks, which are just convenience stores, are a great place to get... well, everything. Phone cards, alfajores, whatever you want. Chances are there will be one on your block.

Another note on cab drivers - if you come across as a lost foreigner, some of them will try to take advantage of you and will drive you all around the city to run up the meter. It's a good idea before taking a ride of any length to make sure that you know the general route.

Get a Guia T if you're planning on taking the buses. The BsAs bus route system is MASSIVE. You'll be able to memorize the one that takes you to and from your university and home, but you'll need a guide for everything else.

When I was there, the garbage collectors went on strike. The garbage didn't get picked up for a week or more. The Subte also shut down more than once for strikes. Expect inconvenience.

For this reason, if you're going to need a student visa when you're there, it's best to get the process started ASAP. The Immigrations Office was closed down a few times which almost ran a few of us out of time.

There are all kinds of open air markets where handicrafts are sold. These really are the best places to get souvenirs.

Uruguay is a very short and inexpensive ferry trip away. If you get a vacation while you're there, it's a great spot for a weekend trip. My friend and I stayed at El Galope horse ranch/hostel. We enjoyed getting away from the noise and smell of the inner city.

I went there when it was midwinter, as well, and found that fresh fruits and veggies were not as easy to come by as they are in the US that season, so you might have to prepare to adjust your eating habits a little. In general, I found there to be a lot of meat and a lot of breads. Fruits and veggies were kind of secondary.

It's not as common to smile at strangers in BsAs as it is in the US. You get used to having a resting bitchface.

Don't expect people to try to fill every single moment of their time to the extent that it's done in the US. I found that the pace of life was much more relaxed, and people were generally totally fine with having fairly long stretches of time with nothing to do. This was probably the most frustrating part for me in doing my internship. I spent a lot of time just sitting there staring at the wall drinking mate.

A lot of people, finding out that English is your native language, will start talking to you in English to try and practice.

When you speak Spanish, expect to be corrected if you make mistakes. Argentines do not hold back on criticism. It's to be helpful, not to be mean.

As a general study abroad note, make at least one copy of the photo page of your passport and tuck it somewhere safe - in the lining of your suitcase or something. I had my parents keep a scanned copy at home. If you lose your passport, having a copy to send to the embassy can help a lot.


It's a good experience, I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

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