Moving to and living in...Argentina

Banks and the cash market in Argentina

When we moved to Argentina in 2005 we rented a house for a year. The owner requested cash in U.S. dollars - all of it. I'll never forget sitting in the realtor's office while each and every bill was laid on paper to be photocopied so they would have all the serial numbers. What she did with all that cash, I really don't know. Maybe it went under the mattress or in a safe deposit box or some other special other hiding place. All I know is she wanted cash and nothing else.

This is the underground banking system so to speak. Argentines are reluctant to use banks since the economic crash and who can blame them when they saw their bank accounts devalue or disappear altogether during the crash. Add to this the high taxes and government "problems" and no one really wants anyone to know how much money they have or how much money they make. The major problem with doing everything in cash is the danger of carrying money around or keeping it in your home which increases the chance of being robbed or being the victim of a home invasion. 

The IrishTimes.com ran an article called Living without Banking which I think gives really great insight into the dangers of keeping large amounts of cash on your or in your home (except of course unless you're the lucky one to find $300,000 but read the article to get that :))article.  

If you're going to have to carry cash you'll always need to remember to take every precaution. Those precautions can include being wary of who knows what you're doing including people even related to a transaction because you never know who will talk about it and to whom.

Be safe everyone! 

Gynocologist OB in Buenos Aires

Although it's been four years since our daughter was born in Buenos Aires, it seems like only yesterday. Four years ago when our life was changed forever and a beautiful baby girl was delivered into our arms by an incredibly caring and warm Dr. Federico del Giudice from the Grupo Medico Lomas de San Isidro in the northern suburbs of Buenos Aires. I have never met such a caring OB/GYN and would highly recommend him if you're thinking about having a baby. He was recommended to me by another expat and I'm so grateful for her recommendation. 

Dr. del Giudice speaks mostly Spanish but does speak a bit of English which led to some pretty funny visits sometimes as me and my French husband would understand things differently. I would understand most of what he was telling me in Spanish but would sometimes mix up the structure and get it backwards but the husband would understand the linguistic structure but not the words so sometimes it took a couple of tries to make sure we were all on the same page :)  

"Federico" as we were told to call  him, worked with our Medicus insurance and a very nice private hospital Sanatorio Mater Dei. Medicus was amazing to work with and covered everything that he requested during, before, and after the birth. And, I can't say enough about the care I received at the hospital. Two very important requests were also not a problem - I was allowed to "room-in" with our new daughter which meant she stayed with me the entire time I was in the hospital and I requested she receive absolutely no formula.  

So, if you're looking for a fabulous OB/Gyn in Buenos Aires then don't hesitate to contact Dr. del Giudice. 

Oh and if you are looking for an English speaking doula then I would also highly recommend Maria Nogues. She is Argentine born, but an American educated doula who now practices in Buenos Aires. If you contact her be sure to tell her I sent you!

Not recommending Delta for pet travel to Argentina

I'm really sad for today's post because it involves loss of beloved family pets. 

I've always recommended Delta as an airline to fly with when flying with pets to Argentina, however recently Delta has been far from the best when taking care of our loved ones on their flights. They have had too many mishaps of recent to make me comfortable using them any longer not just for my pets but in a stand for Delta to wake up and pay attention, I won't choose them either but that is a personal choice. however I would definitely reconsider when traveling with them with your pets. 

Take a look at this Dogster post about not one but two families that have recently lost their pets when flying with Delta - one of them actually had the dog turn up dead on a highway near the airport.

It's always been known that pets die while flying on airlines but until now Delta had been doing a much better job, or so it seemed.