The first place I looked at was a place shared by 4 people, ranging in age from 22 to 54, in the neighborhood of the Congreso (still pretty close to the centro, and full of noise and buses). The room I would have had (for US$350 a month) would have been in the attic, a small room with no window and a twin bed, along with a private bathroom also in the attic. The other rooms were on the main floor, along with a tiny living room and tiny kitchen. It was quaint, and the people were nice, but it wasn't right.
On Thursday, after parting with Alexis and Brennan, I checked out place #2, a beautiful--I mean beautiful--apartment right in the middle of Palermo, the best neighborhood, owned by a middle-aged woman and her active dog. The dog practically attacked me when I came in, and the place smelled a bit of dog. The woman herself was stern (at best) and made it very clear that there would be no fun permitted anywhere near her apartment. No friends, not even for lunch. That being said, she would have left food for me for breakfast and the room had a huge window and closet, still for only $500. Owing partially to having seen Michael's frustration with his landlady in Sunnyvale, as well as my own confidence that this would be a bad idea, I left, and called place number 3.
This apartment was closer to the edge of Palermo, actually on the road that divides Palermo from neighboring residential area of Colegiales. It was a small two bedroom with a shared bathroom, the sole resident of which is a 25-year old Chilean guy, Nicolas, and his 6-month old kitten, Ramona. He moved to Argentina three years ago to go to culinary school, and having finished a few months ago is now working full time at a local Italian restaurant. He's friendly, and we talked for about half an hour about the apartment, and about his life, and about our mutual preferences in terms of living, and although nothing is ever perfect, I decided that this was the right place. So the next day I came back, paid Nicolas the first month's rent of AR$1100, and started getting to know the area.
The neighborhood, being on the outskirts of Palermo, has some evidence of chic-ness but is still largely residential. Most of the buildings are less than three stories (which is rare in BA), and the streets are mostly residential. Each block has 2 or 3 businesses, which for the most part are cute cafes and furniture stores. There are two cafes on the corner right next to the apartment, both of which are great. There aren't really any supermarkets within a stone's throw, but we have a mini-supermarket a block and half away and a dry-cleaners even closer. (Side note: it is totally normal for everyone to pay for wash and fold, which costs about $3 a load, and weekly maid service, which costs about $10 for a small apartment)
I didn't really do much to move into my room besides put away my clothes, so the walls are still bare and probably will stay that way for the 10 weeks I'm here. I bought new pillows and sheets, and pretty much just took everything as it is. My main concern with the apartment, which has slowly been going away, is the presence of the cat. I've never lived with a cat before (and had a cat allergy as a kid), but this cat seems harmless, if not friendly. She's very curious and likes to walk around checking everything out, and my newness caught her a bit off guard. But Nicolas keeps her in his room when he sleeps, and I've learned how to pick her up and take her out when I need to, so, everything should be fine.
I feel like this post is getting a bit long-winded so I'll cut to the chase...here are photos of the apartment:
2 comments:
It didn't feel long winded to me. And yeah avoid those old ladies! I am still waiting for my security deposit from Marilyn, lol.
Your grandmother, the quintessential cat lady, will be so happy. Despite your youthful allergies, there must be some cat friendly genes in your gene pool.
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