[Mekorig]

Guys, as some of you are aware of, i am one of the resident Argentinians in the forum. Lately, I noticed a lot of themes related to my country, but there is no active thread about Argentina (or Buenos Aires, my city), so if the Mods are OK, I pretend to create this thread as a kind of blog about the country and city, talking about the current social/political situation, and also giving some tips about the country/city, and its nightlife.

First, me presentation:
I am Mekorig, 31 years old, kind of newbie in the game, but I have some notches in my resume. Buenos Aires can be a hard place to game, but we like to play in hard mode.

So, lets roll. Right now, in December 2013, the situation is really shitty. After a health problem, the lady president made some changes in the cabinet, at least creating the appearance of openness to dialog with the opposition, but they still fail to publicly recognize the current inflation level. This combined to their centralist trend is creating some serious shit in the provinces. A week ago Cordoba city police began a protest with a total leave of their posting, thing that created the perfect storm for looting on some zones of the city (some said they were created by the police itself), and it only solved when the Governor gave them what they wanted, and higher salary (something about 12.000 pesos. This is creating a contagion effect, with the police forces of other states, and also public workers demanding higher salaries to cope with the growing inflation. This also put in evidence the economic chokehold the national goberment have over the provincial economies. There are some serious leads that most of these lootings were set up to cause a destabilization, and the common working people are getting really feed up.

My next letter: A review of a couple of bars I found around Palermo.

[Vendetta]

What about the Paco problem? Is it true that crime is up on the streets?

[Mekorig]

(12-10-2013 10:52 AM)Vendetta Wrote:  

What about the Paco problem? Is it true that crime is up on the streets?

Well, pace is a problem, but is mostly (not all, sadly) reduced to the poorer section of society, the ghettos (villas miseria) and the street kids. The paco is the residue of the residue of the coke process, nasty poison. Th only sad part is that is not quick enough on killing the users.

About the crime, lets say thing in Buenos Aires are rougher than last years, but if you have some comon sense (not flasing expensive electronics/jewelry, not going to a fricking villa, etc) you will be fine.

[Edmund Dantes]

Time to rise like Hitler, OP.

[phoenix101]

Have you been robbed?

[Vendetta]

"not going to a fricking villa"

What does this mean, dude?

[Mekorig]

A villa, as in "villa miseria", a real poor neighboorhood, a ghetto, but not so nice. XD



Our version of the brazilian "favela". I heard that some hippy tourist tought there were tours like in the Rio favelas, and got robbed. Also from time to time you soo someone going for drugs there, and also got robbed.

[MidWest]

^^^^ 2 years ago when I was in Buenos Aires, I was so tempted to go there, just to see what all the fuss was about, and maybe get me some villa poosy. Something about the place just seemed intriguing to me. But I never did go because a friend of mying was begging me not to go. I'm glad I didn't go, judging from what you are saying, I would have most likely have gotten robbed.

Is "El Caminito" similar? I heard that Caminito can also be dangerous but when I went I felt very safe walking around. There are many tourists there.

I loved Argentina, but I only stayed there a week. I was a major beta during that time as well, and had absolutely no game. I hope in going in about a year or so to game some portenas. I also enjoyed talking about futbol with many of the people there, which struck very nice and sometimes heated conversations (Im Mexican). But overall it was great.

[Mekorig]

Caminito is part of the tourist zone, so if "safeish", watch out for the pickpocketers, and do not stray much from the touristic zone.

[Mekorig]

So, lets share some interesting places in Buenos Aires. We will began with Mundo Bizarro, a cocktail bar, with a strange rockabilly/freakshow style in Palermo neighborhood.



The place is in Serrano 1222, a few blocks from the famed Plaza Serrano, heart of the Palermo Hollywood/SoHo zone (I hate those stupid names the PR agents of the real states agencies gave to the neighborhood just to squeeze a few more thousands dollars in the prices).



As I said, the bar has a strong rockabilly/freakshow style, full of 50´s rock style decorations, weird vintage softcore movies in one big screen in the back of the bar, and decorations like skull and such.



The place is usually not full (thing I like, I hate crowded places), and had a US bar-style bar counter, and also have a number of more private tables and a couple of sofas. The place is perfect for the second stop of an ongoing date, after a coffee, but before the bang; it is nice, with a low red light, and the music not too loud, perfect for intimacy.




The drinks are good, not the best in town, but acceptable, and the price rage are from 40 to 60 pesos per drink.
If you are staying around Palermo, and you want a nice intimate place to seal a deal, or just doing some “previa” (drinking something before hitting the discos), this is a very good place.

[Vendetta]

Argentina is still very much on my list of places I want to live. It was my original plan to go there but after reading endless stories on baexpats I decided to wait until the drug / crime / hate for England / economic situation goes away again.

BA looks so awesome - but so does the countryside... the country is huge! I'd like to get a big motorbike and drive South down Ruta 40.

[Mekorig]

The thing about Argentina is that you have a lot of climates in the country. You like semi-tropical jungle? You go up north-east to Misiones or Formosa. You like high and dry mountains? Almost all the andinian provincies since the middle of the country up to Salta and jujuy. You like Alps-like glacial lakes and valleys, and cold forests? Look no further, try the patagonian provincies along the Andes. If only we had a nice tropical seacoast...

[Vendetta]

(12-11-2013 03:46 PM)Mekorig Wrote:  

The thing about Argentina is that you have a lot of climates in the country. You like semi-tropical jungle? You go up north-east to Misiones or Formosa. You like high and dry mountains? Almost all the andinian provincies since the middle of the country up to Salta and jujuy. You like Alps-like glacial lakes and valleys, and cold forests? Look no further, try the patagonian provincies along the Andes. If only we had a nice tropical seacoast...

Yeah, it's still very high on my list.

Are you from there or just living there? I'd have loved to have been there several years back in the "golden era" when steaks and wine were cheap!

Maybe it'll go back there soon enough...

[Target Acquisition]

(12-11-2013 03:35 PM)Vendetta Wrote:  

Argentina is still very much on my list of places I want to live in. It was my original plan to go there, but after reading endless stories on baexpats I decided to wait until the / crime / hate for England / economic situation goes away again.

BA looks so awesome - but so does the countryside...

"Hate" for the English government maybe, but, there is no hate towards the English tourists. Don't worry.

[Mekorig]

Vendetta: Born and raised. I traveled around the country, but there still a lot more places to visit yet.


Target Acquisition: Yeah, people (outside the tipical, and very minimal fanatical far left) do not have bad feeling with english people, outside some amicable jokes about the 86 World Cup (XD), most of the bad blood is with the government and revolves around the Malvinas/Falklands issue.

[MidWest]

@Mekorig: Any thoughts on which region in Argentina has the most easiest going girls? Most people on the forum say portenas are very snobbish and are hard to game, so are the ones in Cordoba. What do you think? Maybe Mendoza, Rosario, or Jujuy?

I remember our trip was in BA then we took a flight to Iguazu in Misiones at the border. It was a HUGE!!!! contrast when comparing girls bitch-shields. The girls in Iguazu were very easy to talk to and more down to earth.

[Merenguero]

(12-11-2013 03:21 PM)Mekorig Wrote:  

So, lets share some interesting places in Buenos Aires. We will began with Mundo Bizarro, a cocktail bar, with a strange rockabilly/freakshow style in Palermo neighborhood.



The place is in Serrano 1222, a few blocks from the famed Plaza Serrano, heart of the Palermo Hollywood/SoHo zone (I hate those stupid names the PR agents of the real states agencies gave to the neighborhood just to squeeze a few more thousands dollars in the prices).



As I said, the bar has a strong rockabilly/freakshow style, full of 50´s rock style decorations, weird vintage softcore movies in one big screen in the back of the bar, and decorations like skull and such.



The place is usually not full (thing I like, I hate crowded places), and had a US bar-style bar counter, and also have a number of more private tables and a couple of sofas. The place is perfect for the second stop of an ongoing date, after a coffee, but before the bang; it is nice, with a low red light, and the music not too loud, perfect for intimacy.




The drinks are good, not the best in town, but acceptable, and the price rage are from 40 to 60 pesos per drink.
If you are staying around Palermo, and you want a nice intimate place to seal a deal, or just doing some “previa” (drinking something before hitting the discos), this is a very good place.

These pictures bring back some memories. For some reason, every time I walked into that place it was dead. I heard the owner is from the United States. There was a similar place in or around Palermo Viejo about three blocks from where I used to live called ''70.'' It was a really low-key place which only seemed to open on Friday and Saturday, but it was popular.

[Mekorig]

(12-11-2013 08:29 PM)MidWest Wrote:  

@Mekorig: Any thoughts on which region in Argentina has the most easiest going girls? Most people on the forum say portenas are very snobbish and are hard to game, so are the ones in Cordoba. What do you think? Maybe Mendoza, Rosario, or Jujuy?

I remember our trip was in BA then we took a flight to Iguazu in Misiones at the border. It was a HUGE!!!! contrast when comparing girls bitch-shields. The girls in Iguazu were very easy to talk to and more down to earth.

Almost any girl from the provinces is less stock up than porteñas (excep from the local rich princess).

Cordoba is a good stard, as Rosario/Santa Fe. Mendoza is home to some very pretty girls, and in Jujuy you will began to see more brown skin, look for the high society girls for whiter skin.

[jimmypa]

(12-11-2013 08:29 PM)MidWest Wrote:  

@Mekorig: Any thoughts on which region in Argentina has the most easiest going girls? Most people on the forum say portenas are very snobbish and are hard to game, so are the ones in Cordoba. What do you think? Maybe Mendoza, Rosario, or Jujuy?

I remember our trip was in BA then we took a flight to Iguazu in Misiones at the border. It was a HUGE!!!! contrast when comparing girls bitch-shields. The girls in Iguazu were very easy to talk to and more down to earth.

I agree with this to an extent. I went to Iguazu (Just the Argentine side) and found the women to be maybe a bit friendlier, but there was not much in the way of nightlife and didn't see many local girls that were very cute at all. The falls kicked ass, though. Really worth it just to see those.

[Mekorig]

All Quiet on the Western Front....but not in Argentina. We are suffering our second heat wave (first of the current year) with some days of 40º C in Buenos Aires. Today we got some rain, but it only got the temperature just a few degress less and added humidity.

In other things,the peso/dollar exchange rate keep getting higher, with the blue (illegal) dollar, the one you can get from the "arbolitos" (sellers) in Florida street getting at 11.85 pesos per dollar. The downsize? Prices are also getting higher, but i think foreigns with the green currency still get the better deal.

The political situation is "interesting", like in the chinese cursing, with the president active but not appearing in public for almost a month, and all the rats in her political party scranbling to get better deal in other places. This next and a half year will be a "lame duck" goverment for Kirchnner.

The women are still hot, even hotter with all the skimpy dresses, the only good thing the heat wave bringed.

[JJ Roberts]

Latest economic crackpot news - Argentina restricts online shopping from amazon.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-25836208

[G Trooper]

I used to live in Cordoba in 2009. I still remember how beautiful the women were, women who looked like models were everywhere. Unfortanetly, I believe they are not worth the ridiculous effort that it takes to get most of them in bed.

Maybe things might be different now that I have a little bit of game.

It's sad to hear how messed up the economy is, a lot of poverty down there and a lack of opportunity for the majority of the Argies. Still I remember it was a beatiful country, with some of the most warm hearted people in the world, and the best food/steak/wine culture.

[Mekorig]

(01-21-2014 11:26 PM)JJ Roberts Wrote:  

Latest economic crackpot news - Argentina restricts online shopping from amazon.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-25836208

And today they announced that you have a limit of 2 items/year, you register as an importer.

I think it is still worth for foreigns to visit argentina, for the view, and the women.

[Merenguero]

(01-22-2014 06:07 AM)G Trooper Wrote:  

I used to live in Cordoba in 2009. I still remember how beautiful the women were, women who looked like models were everywhere. Unfortanetly, I believe they are not worth the ridiculous effort that it takes to get most of them in bed.

Maybe things might be different now that I have a little bit of game.

It's sad to hear how messed up the economy is, a lot of poverty down there and a lack of opportunity for the majority of the Argies. Still I remember it was a beatiful country, with some of the most warm hearted people in the world, and the best food/steak/wine culture.

Buenos Aires is even more difficult than Cordoba. If Cordoba is Miami, Buenos Aires is Los Angeles.

[Hencredible Casanova]

(01-22-2014 06:07 AM)G Trooper Wrote:  

I used to live in Cordoba in 2009. I still remember how beautiful the women were, women who looked like models were everywhere. Unfortanetly, I believe they are not worth the ridiculous effort that it takes to get most of them in bed.

Maybe things might be different now that I have a little bit of game.

It's sad to hear how messed up the economy is, a lot of poverty down there and a lack of opportunity for the majority of the Argies. Still I remember it was a beatiful country, with some of the most warm hearted people in the world, and the best food/steak/wine culture.

Agreed. I was all around the country in 2009/2010. Cordoba is hands down in my top three cities of high-level talent. I never caught myself saying "damn" so many times anywhere else. Constant headturners everywhere. The steaks and wine on the cheap were excellent. Nightlife in Rosario also had plenty of talent. I partied at one club on X-mas eve and the party was still going strong at 7am when I left on X-mas day.

As nice as it was I don't think I'll ever go back. Putting in crazy work to get laid is just not on the cards anymore. Plus with the economic situation, I don't think dining out and the like is cheap like it once was.