Study abroad confessions: What I wish I'd known before coming to Buenos Aires

Send Love BA is proud to announce our new series: Buenos Aires Study Abroad Confessions

Native Marylander and 2010 Buenos Aires study abroad student Rachel tells it like it is.

Entry 1: The Truth about Home Stays in Buenos Aires

Most programs offer a “home-stay” with an Argentine “family” to experience the culture. Often a residencia (dorm) is available for an additional cost. The “home-stay” is a great experience—for about one month, and then it gets old. Some get lucky and live with a great family with host-siblings, and other students have less luck. Many of the home-stay “families” consist of a single old lady or a married old lady who needs the income. You probably won’t be permitted to invite guests or use the kitchen (though you are expected to provide your own lunch, which get’s expensive when you have to go out nearly every day). But the residencia has its drawbacks as well; there are many rules (no guests after 10pm, for example), the food is not great, it’s expensive, most residents are Americans, and you won’t have as many opportunities to practice your Spanish.

This is what I wholeheartedly recommend: If your program offers an intensive month, DO IT. Only pay your program for the home-stay for that one month (they will refund your housing money if you declare independent housing before the payment deadline), and use that month to find an apartment. That way, you will still get the “home-stay experience,” but won’t have to sacrifice your independence while living abroad. You can practice your Spanish with roommates your age rather than with an old couple. There are plenty of ways to become “immersed” in the culture here—It doesn’t have to be with a family. Obviously you can still end up in an American-culture bubble if you live with other students from your program, but if you look, you can also find some cool Argentine of South American kids your age to share an apartment with.

There are websites to help you find the right living arrangement; the one I used was www.spareroomsba.com . Unlike in the US where most apartment leases are year long, apartments in Buenos Aires are frequently rented on a month-to-month basis. I had 3 roommates from Spain and one from France, and my Spanish improved so much just from living with them (and I obtained more of a ‘hip’ vocabulary). I was also able to invite my friends over to have dinner, or to crash after a night of going out, but I hadn’t been able to do any of that while living in my home-stay (I moved out of after three months).