Culture Shocks From Living in Argentina? (Buenos Aires)

We explore the culture shock that foreigners experience while living in Argentina. We talk to expats from countries like Germany, Jamaica, the UK, US, Russia etc. to figure out what have been the biggest struggles, what they like and dislike the most and how has living in Argentina changed them.

Dating Beyond Borders is a Youtube channel that focuses on highlighting the cultural differences that come into play while dating people from other countries.

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CREW:

CAST:

0:00 Intro
1:14 How are the people different here than in your country?
3:53 Biggest culture shock?
4:40 What stereotype did you have & how true was it?
5:57 What do you love about Argentina?
6:15 What is something you don't like about Argentina?
10:40 How did living in Argentina change you as a person?

Filmed in:
Buenos Aires, Argentina

[clausjunker]

I'm from Germany and I lived 5 years in Argentina. I learned accent free Castellano y Lunfardo. I became un Asador de puta madre y un re matero. There is so much variety of delicious food and not just pizza, empanadas y milanesas, but honestly that comfort food is the best. The veggies are absolutely delicious and wherever you go in the country they have special menus. Yes it's very Italian no wonder if 60% of the population has Italian roots. I made my best friends of life and soccer is the best in the world. One thing that really sucks is how Argentina was robbed by the elite and has 60% of the population living in poverty. I hope they will become a phenomenal country again.

[skeptic]

A German friend visited Buenos Aires for the first time in 2022 during the Qatar World Cup. We went out to get pizza at Guerrin on the day after Argentina had beaten the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, so naturally, everyone was very happy, and the entire restaurant would break out chanting "Argentina! Argentina!" every few minutes. I will never forget the combination of amazement and fear my German friend experienced. He told me that such displays of nationalism are implicitly forbidden in Germany because of what happened there in WW2. Seeing how passionate we are about our culture, specially during world cups, was a huge culture shock for him.

[cecyliamaiden]

I’m currently learning Riopkatense Spanish, hoping to one day move to Buenos Aires. For now, I’m still learning and going on holiday there soon. Such a beautiful country.

Speaking over each other? Oh, I’ve got training in that. My family is Polish but they’re like you’re stereotypical Italian family. So loud, always talking over each other. They may be joking or saying the most loving things, but to an outsider, it may sound like they’re fighting.

Eating at 10pm sounds perfect for a night owl like me.

[facundosoler]

"Vamos a ir yendo" .. "I'm going to go going ?? " jajajaj entendio todo 😂😂

[artemisa]

La chica de Jamaica es divina, pobre pensando que nos ibamos a enojar por su crítica a las pocas opciones que hay en Argentina psra acceder a mercadería de otros lugares, nosotros los argentinos pensamos lo mismo. Yo vivo frustrada porque me encanta la comida pucante y es re difícil acá conseguir una buena salsa o ajíes picantes, u hongos que no sean champiñones o portobello

[Alele]

I'm an argentinian who emigrated to the UK 16 years ago. I lived with my now British husband in Buenos Aires for about 18 months and it was very interesting to re-discover our culture through his eyes.
He was popular in our neighbourhood, a bit like "el gringo del barrio". He didn't want to move back to the UK, to be honest. The weather, the food, the people, the landscapes!

Being an ex-pat myself I find some of the same issues in London that the people who were interviewed find in Buenos Aires. Don't get me started with food... takeaways are either pizza (american style with a million toppings), chinese or indian. In Buenos Aires you can get a full cooked chicken delivered to your door, or pasta, asado, empanadas, even freaking ice cream!
Making friendships when you're older and an outsider is also hard. My husband made a few friends for life in Buenos Aires, I haven't been so lucky in here.
Also, in Buenos Aires, we do activities. People take language lessons, art, drama, join a sports team, etc. In the UK is sooo expensive to do any of it that you have to be super picky. The want to drink to socialise, so what's the point doing the rest?
Having said this, I really enjoy living in the UK. All I mean is that you will always look at a new place through your own eyes and compare it to what it's the norm to you. That poor Jamaican girl, our food must seem so bland to her! My husband laughs that our sandwiches are either jamon, queso o jamon y queso. 😂

Very interesting video!

[SLMarcosSL]

I tink Argentina is a great country. I love how people are, the culture…

Greetings from Argentina

[bellainbuenosaires]

❤❤❤ It was so nice to be a part of this!

[wnd]

The German guy nailed it about most Argentinians. As a foreigner living in Germany, I had a similar experience; making friends in a different culture becomes harder as you get older, and you just get on with your life. The sense of superficiality in relationships in Buenos Aires is common in many big cities worldwide, especially among the middle and upper-middle classes. Questions like 'Where did you go to school?' and 'Where do you belong?' often establish social boundaries and determine who may or may not be accepted. The same happens to Argentinians moving to Buenos Aires, so don't take it personally. Palermo is tailor-made for tourists (18% of the population in Palermo and Recoleta are foreigners), so if you're looking for diversity (in food, for instance), just look elsewhere.

[Swissarg]

Sooo happy to live in Argentina coming from Switzerland (Swissarg🇨🇭🇦🇷) since 1984...
From Mar del Plata with love!
Argentina.

[synthopia]

7:43 it's not "fakeness", it's just how we greet each other here. When we meet friends or relatives the "cómo estás/qué tal/cómo andás?" is clearly a different one. Not the same you tell the shoppkeeper or bus driver. But saying just "Hola" or "Buenas tardes" seems cold to us and probably many other latin americans as well. I just came from Europe and had to get used to only greet people that way lol.

[moscatelo]

What the german guy likes about Argentina is that he can appreciate his own country more...
The english guy comes to Argentina to eat chinese food...
Hanif the american guy is very handsome

[mharg]

Welcome to Argentina and thanks for the video. God bless you all !!

[romernueve]

The problem with Food is that here whe eat our food... why eating chinesse food if you got Milanesas with huevos fritos and puré right??..

[jon]

The man who said argentines shut you down if you don’t have mutual acquaintances or go to the same schools has clearly only ever dealt with rich argentines. And I don’t mean upper middle class, I mean businessmen that come from several generations of wealth or politician rich. But then again rich people are the same anywhere in the world, I don’t know why does he act surprised. Maybe he got a better job here than he did back in Germany

[DaftRebel]

You can't generalize about the people of an entire country just for knowing the culture of the people that lives in the capital city... You'll find soooo much more types of persons and food that you could imagine traveling in any direction through the country! <3

[FdelAzul]

Si alguien habla mal de los argentinos, seguramente son mejicanos. Lo demuestra el americano. Igual acá los queremos mucho pese a que se ponen pesados y lo toman personal.

[amado]

10:45
- How has Argentina changed you as a person?
- Now I appreciate more the things I have at home (in Germany). How things work, how people are…

That sounds to me like telling your new gf that she has changed you in that now you appreciate you ex-gf more.

[EamonnMurphy-ccdt]

I spent 6 months in Buenos Aires back in 2016. I really liked it there for all the reasons mentioned here. I hope to go back there to retire in a few years time. I like that the people are proud of Argentina their traditions, their food and their culture. I really admire that, even through so much poverty and struggle, these people remember who they are and still have hope. So much about the west these days is about disconnecting from our past, so sad really 😢

[marcoscuatro]

5:17 ahhh mexicanos
*pretends to be shocked