[TheMetetron]

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Hi Met,

Thanks again for the info. If you don't mind, I have another set of near daily questions for you

Just looking at the ByT Argentina site, it seems as if the Palermo district is a little more "suburby" than downtown. Is it possible I could find a house with a yard in this area to rent? Are you aware of other places in Argentina that are low in crime but more like suburbs or rural? Do you know a good leasing agent I could take to to discuss various housing options? I think I would like the big city but having a dog may make it difficult.

Also, any advice on the best way to learn Spanish quickly? I took a couiple of years in high school so I probably remember some of the basics.

If I make it down to BA I'd definately like to buy you some beers for all your help

Thanks

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First of all, you don't want to live downtown (Recoleta is not downtown). Ideally you probably want to live in Recoleta, Palermo, Belgrano, or Barrio Norte. I'd stick with Recoleta and maybe Palermo when you first move here and the consider relocating later.

Palermo isn't suburby and Recoleta has more open park spaces, but it IS possible to find some places in Palermo with a small yard which is impossible to do in Recoleta. Recoleta is more 6 story and higher apartments with restricted entry and a doorman. Palermo is more 2-3 stories and don't have such things and things are definitely a lot more spread out there than in Recoleta. I can't give you exact information but I did go to a party last weekend at a nice 2 story, 2-bedroom condo with a decent sized backyard (by city standards) in Palermo and they are paying about what I am for a 1 bedroom in Recoleta. Not sure where they found it or I'd try to point you in the right direction.

As for other cities in Argentina, the farthest out you probably want to go is some of the nicer actual suburbs of Buenos Aires. I wouldn't move to other parts of the country. Unfortunately, it's city life for me so I don't know anything about the suburbs.

There aren't really leasing agents for foreigners. You can't get an actual lease because you need a guarantor, therefore you can of stick with getting fleeced by the furnished rentals (though if you shop around it's not so bad).

As for learning Spanish, I sort of answered the question above. I'd recommend 10 hours a week of private instruction. I took three years in high school as well and after one week I'm already back to stuff I was learning in the middle to end of my second year. It comes back pretty quickly, but the biggest hurdle is speaking and understanding people, as well as building a large vocabulary to allow you to get around.

Beers are always appreciated, though at $2.50 for a 3L pitcher, I think you could part with more than a few [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]