Comparing BA to NYC

Things BA does better than the US

Quality of the meat: Argentine does meat. High quality. Unfortunatley, although I speak spanish, they know we’re tourists, and keep conversation to a minimum. The first couple of places we went for meat, we forgot to ask for it cooke “A punto,” which means “medium rare.” The first couple were well done, and although the flavor was good, it killed the meat. I finally asked the waiter at “Happening” in Puerto Madero if you have to specifically have to ask for the meat cooked the way you like it, because where we’re from you’re always asked, he apologized and said he was sorry it was not done “a punto,” which is how it is supposed to be done. Perhaps they think americans like it this way?

Customer service in the stores: You have to be buzzed into almost every store. The stores have one of every style on display. You have to ask for your size. In some stores, I tried on 20 pairs of shoes. When I was done, and I didn’t buy anything,, I would say “thank you” and the response was always the same: No, por FAVOR! With that emphasis. It was like they were calling you ridiculous for thanking them for their help. It’s really nice.

Taxi drivers: You get into the taxt, they ask you where you’re going. You give the direction. If you simply say anything else to them, they talk, and talk, and talk. One guy, on the way back from Boca, gave us a whole tour of everything we passed by. He told us about the volunteer fire department, the house that was completely settled by the Polish, the one across the street that was settled by Italians. He pointed out where Peron was brought down, and the marble pilars that were left destroyed from the protests. They’re educated, proud of their city, and want to tell you all about it while asking about your experience. This has happened a number of times.

Coffee: the coffee is delicious. Everywhere. It’s served in coffee shops, cafes, bars. How nice to walk into a bar, in the cold, and order a nice cup of hot coffee. And it’s almost always served with a couple of little cookies and a chaser of water (sometimes sparkling!) Of course, at an average of 5 pesos a cup, it’s relatively quite pricey.

Tipping: 10% tip is recommended at restaurants. Taxi drivers don’t expect to be tipped. I tipped one and he laughed at me.

Lack of strollers in the streets: People carry their kids IN THEIR ARMS! No strap-on device, very very few wide strollers taking up space in the narrow streets. I really don’t know how these thin women carry their 3-year olds around in their arms all day long, but that seems to be the way it’s done.


Things BA is lacking

Toilet can’t handle paper: One would expect in a modern city like this, you’d be able to flush the toilet paper. But alas. You have to place your used toilet paper in the receptacle beside the toilet, stinking up the place until you throw out the garbage. My friend Mark is particularly distressed by this. I was smart enough to not tell him until he arrived.

Change: There is a big problem with change. The bank machines dispense mostly $100 bills, but everyday items don’t cost nearly that much. You have to hoard your change. If something costs $11, and you give them a $20 bill, they ask you if you have anything smaller. In fact, at the train station today, there was an advertisement begging people to stop hoarding their change and that they have to pay with it. Why can’t the government take some $100 out of circulation and replace them?

Complete disregard for vegetables: The “salads” here are disgusting. Canned vegetables. Iceberg lettuce. Vegetables cooked beyond all recognition. Poor, poor vegetarians here.

Sidewalks and dog poo: Sidewalks are COVERED in poo. There are lots of stray dogs. There are lots of owned dogs. I really don’t know which are to blame.

People digging through garbage: At night, people young and old, slash open the garbage bags that line the street and dig through them. With panache… they sit amongst the bags and make themselves at home. I assume they’re homeless, but a lot of them look pretty clean to be homeless. It’s more gross than sad, especially knowing that a lot of those bags have to be filled with used toilet paper.

Intersections with no stop signs in palermo: Palermo is a relatively new neighborhood, and not “very touristy,” claimed our taxi driver last night. So they have not yet insalled traffic lights. Or stop signs. At almost every crosswalk. The drivers just have to know to slow down.
Crazy bus system: There are 140 bus lines that service BA. The Guia T is a thick booklet that you need a PhD to decipher. It’s some crazy three-part system where you have to look up where you are, then look up what bus lines pass through that 5 block square, then where you’re going. It’s total insanity.