When I decided I wanted to study abroad I knew right away that it would be South America, and either Chile or Argentina would have to be my destination. So once I settled on Chile and got comfortable in Santiago, I knew I wanted to take an opportunity to visit Argentina if I could. So when a good deal came up on a flight, me and three friends decided to just go for it. We stayed in an Airbnb and made a vague itinerary with any much packed into 3 days as possible.
I had been told that Argentina was very unique from other countries in Latin America and I wanted to test that for myself, so I made some observations to compare with my experiences in Chile!
- The Spanish - Chilean's have notoriously bad Spanish with a lot of slang words and a strong accent. Argentines also speak with a unique accent where they make the "ll" or "Y" sounds into almost a J. But generally I found it pretty easy to understand them.
- The cities - Buenos Aires is by far more modern and European than Santiago. The streets are very wide, there are many monuments and statues and theres a lot of free wifi!
- Food - Neither country is very well known for their cuisine. But Chile boasts good seafood and wine while Argentina has pizza and Italian food (from its Italian immigrants) as well as great meat. Great might be an understatement since I had the best steak in the universe.
- Argentines tend to be taller and more European/Italian looking, take that as you will.
- Mood - Chileans are very down to earth, and welcoming of foreigners (since they are a very isolated country). On the other hand Argentines consider themselves to be better than the rest of Latin America and are not impressed by US citizens since they get so many tourists.
- Natural beauty - Santiago has is surrounded by the Andes mountain and have Buenos Aires beat no question - but I have been told the rest of Argentina is very naturally beautiful.
- Overall - In general both cities are super interesting, with rich histories and struggles. We were able to see amazing art and culture and eat some great food.
Chile and Argentina are very different, and they have animosity between them. But for me both are pretty great great! I love Santiago and I wouldn't chance my decision, but I will for sure be coming back to Argentina in the future!! And I will not be crying about it!