Newcomer Is dog poop on sidewalks as bad as I read online in forums and blogs? Do people not pick up after their dogs?

[StatusNomadicus]

you're worried about stepping in doggie doo doo then I'm not sure BA is the place for you. I wish it was better but it's all over.

disagree, Villa Crespo was 5/10 bad, Monserrat was 10/10 bad, but Palermo Chico has been 1/10 poop-filled. it's actually really rare for me to see a full turd on the sidewalk...people just clean it more, and there are huge parks nearby, so no reason to walk dogs on sidewalks. i've found @Jenn there is a commensurate level of poop to the distance of the nearest place for a dog to poop. fairly self-explanatory and common sense. i can take a video for you if you want to see a specific area. i haven't stepped in poop once in the 3 weeks i've been in Palermo Chico, but i actively had to avoid turds in all the areas without big parks.

I haven't found one neighborhood that I haven't almost stepped in it.

by Las Heras park this is not true.

They don't care and don't even walk around with bags.

this is true with locals. every person i see actively leaving dog poop has been a local. i have bags on my leash and haven't had to offer any to people around Palermo Chico so far

I don't think BA is for me!

if it's stressing you out already, sure. just know that any big city with concrete-jungle layout, and no parks, will have dog poop all over. maybe not Zurich because Swiss people are just so organized, but almost every big city in the world will have something dirty on the ground in the urban areas. at least there aren't drug needles and fentanyl foil on the ground, like in the USA

it was very cheap there

not to fly in! and not for some things. but overall, sure.

CABA has about 3 million people

and the metro area has 13 million people, so double the population of Phoenix (the 6th-largest US city)

like i said @Jenn i can film a walking tour for you, but the Expat life certainly isn't comfy 100% of the time. i've lived in many cities around the world in my almost 40 years and BsAs has all the variables of any big city.

 

[LongIslander]

disagree, Villa Crespo was 5/10 bad, Monserrat was 10/10 bad, but Palermo Chico has been 1/10 poop-filled. it's actually really rare for me to see a full turd on the sidewalk...people just clean it more, and there are huge parks nearby, so no reason to walk dogs on sidewalks. i've found @Jenn there is a commensurate level of poop to the distance of the nearest place for a dog to poop. fairly self-explanatory and common sense. i can take a video for you if you want to see a specific area. i haven't stepped in poop once in the 3 weeks i've been in Palermo Chico, but i actively had to avoid turds in all the areas without big parks.

by Las Heras park this is not true.

this is true with locals. every person i see actively leaving dog poop has been a local. i have bags on my leash and haven't had to offer any to people around Palermo Chico so far

if it's stressing you out already, sure. just know that any big city with concrete-jungle layout, and no parks, will have dog poop all over. maybe not Zurich because Swiss people are just so organized, but almost every big city in the world will have something dirty on the ground in the urban areas. at least there aren't drug needles and fentanyl foil on the ground, like in the USA

not to fly in! and not for some things. but overall, sure.

and the metro area has 13 million people, so double the population of Phoenix (the 6th-largest US city)

like i said @Jenn i can film a walking tour for you, but the Expat life certainly isn't comfy 100% of the time. i've lived in many cities around the world in my almost 40 years and BsAs has all the variables of any big city.

Yikes Monserrat. What were you doing there? That area can be a bit sketchy, especially at night. Surprised to see that on your list.

 

[Jenn]

Since I knew it was there was always aware of it, but not at the forefront of my mind. Hard to put a number on it, maybe a 3 or 4 for me and I didn't smell it at all. Summer might be different as I was there in the fall. CABA has about 3 million people so plenty of people are living just fine with it.

Thank you for rating it! 4 out of 10. Ok. That isn't too bad and if you couldn't smell it. That's my main concern.

disagree, Villa Crespo was 5/10 bad, Monserrat was 10/10 bad, but Palermo Chico has been 1/10 poop-filled. it's actually really rare for me to see a full turd on the sidewalk...people just clean it more, and there are huge parks nearby, so no reason to walk dogs on sidewalks. i've found @Jenn there is a commensurate level of poop to the distance of the nearest place for a dog to poop. fairly self-explanatory and common sense. i can take a video for you if you want to see a specific area. i haven't stepped in poop once in the 3 weeks i've been in Palermo Chico, but i actively had to avoid turds in all the areas without big parks.

by Las Heras park this is not true.

this is true with locals. every person i see actively leaving dog poop has been a local. i have bags on my leash and haven't had to offer any to people around Palermo Chico so far

if it's stressing you out already, sure. just know that any big city with concrete-jungle layout, and no parks, will have dog poop all over. maybe not Zurich because Swiss people are just so organized, but almost every big city in the world will have something dirty on the ground in the urban areas. at least there aren't drug needles and fentanyl foil on the ground, like in the USA

not to fly in! and not for some things. but overall, sure.

and the metro area has 13 million people, so double the population of Phoenix (the 6th-largest US city)

like i said @Jenn i can film a walking tour for you, but the Expat life certainly isn't comfy 100% of the time. i've lived in many cities around the world in my almost 40 years and BsAs has all the variables of any big city.

Thank you for your ratings. That is bad. 5/10 probably is too much for me. Anyone know in Recoleta how bad it is? I heard that was the poshest neighborhood. Monseratt sounds like a living hell hole. 10/10?! Chico sounds good if it's only 1/10.

I would love to see a video! Maybe if you do a video tell me if you can smell it? Thanks!

 

[Darksider415]

It’s fairly rare for me to see it in my daily errands, living in Recoleta, but I’d seriously reconsider if you’re coming just to be cheap. Buenos Aires prices are going up in dollars under Milei, and it’s not the super cheap $5 steak destination it was even a year ago.

Come because you love the city and the culture, not because you want to save a buck.

 

[earlyretirement]

It’s fairly rare for me to see it in my daily errands, living in Recoleta, but I’d seriously reconsider if you’re coming just to be cheap. Buenos Aires prices are going up in dollars under Milei, and it’s not the super cheap $5 steak destination it was even a year ago.

Come because you love the city and the culture, not because you want to save a buck.

I totally agree. It's 100 X better than when I first moved here 20 years ago. NO ONE then carried bags around but I actually see people picking up after now. But of course there are a lot that don't but not nearly like it was before. I don't think it's that bad. I agree most of Soho, Hollywood and Recoleta not too bad. In Recoleta many places have the doorman cleaning the sidewalks every night.

I would totally agree with @Darksider415. Stay because you like it not because it's a "cheap" destination. Prices already I feel going up. Restaurants I definitely clearly see the inflation going on. Places I came just 2 months ago have gone up ordering the same exact thing. Ubers feel about the same to me but they can add up if you take them a few times per day. I come in town for work and don't have time to walk around on work trips as my days are so busy so I'm in and out of Ubers a few times a day and that could add up living here. But when I'm not here for work I walk quite a bit.

Like @Darksider415 mentioned, the super bargain destination is probably over and prices should continue to go up. Healthcare premiums are going up at an insane rate. I will see how much my utility bills go up. But even my HOA bill in % wise jumped up 20% from last month to this month. I went to El Preferido de Palermo for lunch today and paid $40 USD for a Milenesa. 2 months ago that same thing was $29 USD. Same exact dish. I posted some photos of the same restaurant, Chori that I go to every trip and prices went from January 2023 of like 1,750 pesos to 5,400 pesos today for the same exact thing.

 

[Jenn]

Even if I can get over the dog poop issue I am a bit concerned. I just read @Larry posts and saw the prices on some of the restaurants. That is NOT cheap for some of the stuff I am seeing. Looks like USA prices to me. Maybe BA isn't a good choice after all. Most important thing to me is safety and NO smells (poop all over street) and very very cheap.

 

[StatusNomadicus]

Yikes Monserrat. What were you doing there? That area can be a bit sketchy, especially at night. Surprised to see that on your list.

i booked a cheap Airbnb for $350 for 14 nights using a credit card, so i could see Milei in-person for the Inauguration. i walked 7 blocks to Plaza del Congreso; it was amazing to be there, so close to it all. and i got to hear the pot-banging one night when CheVos was walking by, so it was worth it to see how stupid some people can be about their tribe losing an election after 70 years of destroying a country

all of downtown is more sketchy late at night, but there are also bums wandering the street in Palermo SoHo and Villa Crespo. 99% of people using common sense won't have issues 99% of the time. when you hear of people having problems, those people have problems in their hometown...because they're stupid. remember what Joe Rogan said...if 5% of the population of the world is legally retarded, there are like 400 million idiots that will swear Buenos Aires is expensive and it's unsafe

Recoleta

plenty of walking tours on the 'tube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=recoleta+4K

video

uploaded and posted on the other thread, and tagged ya in it. i never smell dog poop. there's usually a breeze...one might call it a "Buen Aire" if they were feelin' froggy! and the city is so huge, and the sidewalks get hosed-off every morning in front of shops, so no i've never smelled dog poop anywhere. you can smell human piss around Monserrat and Centro and areas with lots of transients...like any big city. Buenos Aires has no public bathrooms that i've ever seen, other than the Retiro train station, so guess where the low-life folks pee? yep!

prices went from January 2023 of like 1,750 pesos to 5,400 pesos today for the same exact thing

332 MEP on 19Jan2023 https://www.ambito.com/contenidos/dolar-mep.html

and 1099 MEP (real-world) 17Jan2024 if you check x.com/ArgentinaMEP

...so Chori was $5.27 USD in Jan2023 and $4.92 USD today Jan2024! congrats, @earlyretirement your Chori got cheaper via credit card!

Maybe BA isn't a good choice after all

@Jenn, you just need to travel 1 month to each of these cities and get some perspective...your mindset will be totally changed from seeing new places: https://travelness.com/most-visited-cities-in-the-world

i've been to 49 countries and i haven't lived in the same area for more than 2 years since 2005, and i promise dog poop is not a big concern.

 

[Che Vos]

Even if I can get over the dog poop issue I am a bit concerned. I just read @Larry posts and saw the prices on some of the restaurants. That is NOT cheap for some of the stuff I am seeing. Looks like USA prices to me. Maybe BA isn't a good choice after all. Most important thing to me is safety and NO smells (poop all over street) and very very cheap.

Yes the things getting expensive here. More and more each day.

 

[Vince]

Hi Jenn.

No offense intended, but after reading your posts, it seems like you might be considering a move to Buenos Aires or somewhere in Argentina for reasons that might not be the best fit. I could be mistaken, but it seems like you're looking for a place similar to where you currently live (quiet, clean, odorless, safe for solo females), just more affordable? I suggest choosing Buenos Aires because you genuinely love the place, its culture, language, people, and the vibrant atmosphere it offers. The cost-effectiveness should be a bonus. Just my thoughts—best of luck!

Come down and check it out for a few weeks and then you can see.

You can always bring these. Ha, ha.

Amazon.com

 

[StatusNomadicus]

the things getting expensive here. More and more each day.

no sh*t, Sherlock, like they have been for years. let me guess, it's Milei's cabinet's fault that Nov/Dec were skyrocketing Peso prices? https://www.statista.com/statistics/1320016/monthly-inflation-rate-argentina/

 

[Dazed & Confused]

Oh my. We had no idea this was such an issue there in Buenos Aires. We always hear BA is the "Paris of South America". We go to Paris often and don't see this issue there.

 

[Jenn]

Oh my. We had no idea this was such an issue there in Buenos Aires. We always hear BA is the "Paris of South America". We go to Paris often and don't see this issue there.

Exactly!! I have been all over Paris and I have not seen this issue. Honestly, I have traveled around to many major cities and I haven't heard of such an issue with dog poop. I am glad to read others are surprised!

 

[Jenn]

My friend sent me this photo. This can't be too sanitary can it with all the dog poop in the streets? Is this typical there? Crazy they would cook food and sell it so low to the ground. Doesn't look too appealing to me.

 

[Vince]

My friend sent me this photo. This can't be too sanitary can it with all the dog poop in the streets? Is this typical there? Crazy they would cook food and sell it so low to the ground. Doesn't look too appealing to me.

Not too normal to be cooking that low to the ground. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

 

[Wally]

To be fair they have some metal barrier on the ground but no I'm not buying food that low to the street. I don't even like buying choripan from the vendors. Last time I did in Puerto Madero I got violently ill with food poisoning.

 

[Spend Thrift]

No. Hardpass.

 

[James Bond]

OMG Jenn! Where the heck does your friend hang out? That’s a shady area! Seriously, no wonder she always sends you those disgusting photos.

The spot where that meat is being cooked is part of the actual street, no one is allowed to sell anything there, let alone cook food.

Does your friend live outside of CABA?

Definitely not the norm. You won't see this in nicer areas. I've lived in BA several years and never saw people grilling choripan in the street like that. That is actually a bike lane. They aren't supposed to be blocking it.

 

[Jenn]

OMG Jenn! Where the heck does your friend hang out? That’s a shady area! Seriously, no wonder she always sends you those disgusting photos.

The spot where that meat is being cooked is part of the actual street, no one is allowed to sell anything there, let alone cook food.

Does your friend live outside of CABA?

Ok good to know that isn't the norm. She is always joking with me. She said this will be our first meal. She is always sending me strange stuff but she claims it's all real stuff going on there. She is in Villla Crespo.

I am wondering though if people are setting up shop it must mean that people are actually buying it or they wouldn't be selling it right? @Spend Thrift are those street food places you mentioned where you got sick clean? Does Buenos Aires have much street food?

 

[FuturoBA]

There's always a risk w getting street food(and one I usually take), but maybe they don't know the term "street food" doesn't mean cooking it on the actual street

 

[import export]

There's always a risk w getting street food(and one I usually take), but maybe they don't know the term "street food" doesn't mean cooking it on the actual street

Ha! I've been to BA many times over the years but I have to admit I never saw anyone cooking in the street. Now I'm really curious about that photo. Hard to believe anyone would pay for that.