Opening For English-Speaking Expatriate in Buenos Aires

GeoDesign is seeking a diligent and bilingual (English / Spanish) female for a receptionist/administrative assistant position.

Principle responsibilities include answering phones and e-mails, record keeping, coordinating meetings with clients, and general office duties. On occasion duties will include errand running to the bank, to pay bills or meet with a client.

Must be fluent in English, have a minimum of 3 years working experience, have knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel), and currently reside in the City of Buenos Aires. Knowledge of Macintosh is a plus.

Regular office hours are from 11AM to 7PM Monday through Friday.

Please send a CV (including references) and your expected salary to gabe@geo-design.com

More on Currencies

After a recent trip to China, the topic of currencies and exchange remains present in my mind. I thought I was living in the country where you get the best bang for your buck (Argentina). But it turns out that your dollars and euros will go MUCH farther in China than in Argentina. There are of course lifestyle tradeoffs (like no good Argentine wine) but that is another topic... The peso to dollar rate has dropped to 3.02 to 1 today according to yahoo finance. Accordingly, the Yuan (or Riminbi) to the dollar is at about 6.8 to 1. So what can you buy in each place? In China: Chinese food for 4 people at a neighborhood restaurant for 10 dollars TOTAL, knock-off brand name clothing and accessories for 10% of what they cost in the US, subway rides for 60 US cents. In Argentina: Great steak dinner with wine at a neighborhood restaurant for 12-15 dollars per person, leather goods for 50% of what they cost in the US, subway rides for 30 US cents. There are other tradeoffs of course like ridiculous pollution, information censorship and the hardest language in the world to learn. But things in China have changed immensely from when I was there the last time in 1994. Back then it was a 3rd world country with very few stop lights, animals in streets and extreme disorganization. Now it rivals the US in its modernity. And compared to Argentina, its like night and day. Suffice it to say, I would have a very hard time living in China even if I spoke the language. A wonderful place to shop and see history, though.

The Almighty Argentine Peso

Some of you may find the title to this blog amusing, but every currency has its importance, especially the currencies where you keep your money and spend your money. My company, Anuva Vinos, charges its clients in US dollars and our counterparts in Argentina have to do a lot of spending in Pesos. One would think that this would be a very favorable situation. Since I have been living in Argentina (November of 2004), the dollar has gone from being worth about 2.9 to about 3.2 pesos. But in the last month alone that rate dropped to 3.07. Why? Typical cultural practices in Argentine. I was both surprised and not at all surprised when my fiancée came home one night and said, "I have news for you." Imagining various horrific scenarios, too graphic and personal to describe here, when she said that there might be a run on the banks and that her Mom had heard this from a very trustworthy source, I was actually a bit relieved. But then I had to sit there and analyze what I was going to do about the situation. Do we take all of our money out of the bank, in cash, and sit on it at home? Do I not believe the hype and do nothing? Is there an in between solution? More on this to come...

Race(ism) in Argentina

Che, Negro

One of the first people to come visit me in Argentina was my friend Paul. Paul is about 6 foot 4 (193cm), 240 pounds (110kg), has Nigerian black skin and at that time sported an afro. Now I am the one who is used to getting all the attention when I walk around because I am 197cm with curly blond hair and I too sport an afro at times. But when I took Paul to calle Florida to people watch, they ended up watching him. I have never seen so many heads turn and stare. Thankfully, Paul is very easy going and has a great sense of humor. We discussed it afterward.

The conclusion we arrived at, was that there was not the slightest hint of racism or prejudice conveyed by the Argentines. What we witnessed, was novelty. Paul said, “It’s like the first time you go to the zoo and see a giraffe—you stare—not because you hate the giraffe, not because you wish it ill will or think it’s going to steal from you but because it’s very different than any other animal you have ever seen before.” And Paul is right, with less than 4% of the population of African ancestry, and most of those living toward the north of the country, it is not surprising that this country of mostly Italian and Spanish immigrants is surprised when they see an African face.

I took Paul to several parties where mainly locals were gathered at people’s homes, drinking, playing cards, etc. He was welcomed and kissed just like any other person and nobody gave it much thought. There were some comments made, like “Che, ese negro es un negro de verdad, “ and the like, but these were simply observations/ jokes/comments that meant nothing more than calling the guy with the big nose “pipa” (like pipe) or calling me “grandote” (giant). It is a real assessment of the physical nature of the person and says nothing about stereotype, prejudice or bigotry. This tends to be the way of things in Argentina in general. Here, they call a spade a spade.

Interestingly, the word “negro” in Argentina can often be used like we use the word “dude” in English. Often, the person in a group who has the darkest features will be called “El Negro.” But the interesting thing is that I find that Americans in particular, myself included, will be ultra sensitive to race issues as we have been conditioned to think this way. Many Americans, even though we are not racist or bigoted in the slightest, will look at a Black person or Hispanic (in the U.S.) and think (within a split second) “Oh, there is a (person of color) and I shouldn’t stare. But I also shouldn’t look like I’m trying not to stare so I won’t look away too quickly. And I’m not supposed to assume that they are going to rob me, because they aren’t, they are just normal people. Why would I assume something about a person (of color) I don’t know? Oh, shit I’ve thought about this too long, maybe I am a racist. I’m such a horrible person for even thinking that it would be ok to not stare at a person of color. I’m still thinking about it….” An Argentine would never over-think, let alone even think about this type of situation in that fashion. When it comes to physical appearance, they are direct: a fat guy they call “el gordo” and that is how he is designated in place of his name, a skinny guy is “el flaco”, a redhead “el Colorado”, a bald guy, “el pelado,” etc. This is not out of malice, this is the way things are. Es así.

2008 Update to 'Blacks in Buenos Aires' Post

We wanted to let everyone know about a great discussion that is going on in the comments of a 2005 blog post about Blacks in Buenos Aires. Initially the comments were focused on Black History in Argentina, but lately the comments have been a discussion on how receptive Argentina is to a Black person today.

People from all over the world, including several African Americans, have added great comments lately and I wanted to share some of those with the group. After that I want to ask some questions to the readers of this blog, especially the Argentine nationals. Let's keep the discussion going, this topic is important for some people who are thinking about either visiting or relocating in Argentina.

An Anonymous Reader contributed the following which seems to sum up many of the comments on the Black experience in Argentina.

"...I'm a black woman from London. I have desires to visit lots of countries in the world where it is perceived black people aren't welcomed. This didn't stop me because I have a right to travel, educate myself to people's customs, and let them see a very proud black woman. Even better if they get to speak to me and find out that their stereotypes don't exist in me. Anyway, the fact is since being here two days, I am the walking attraction and haven't had anyone say anything to me negative or positive."

Blacks in Argentina seem to notice that they are being noticed quite a bit more than normal. But most report that they feel they are curious glances, and not loaded with bad intent.

Another reader cited this National Geographic article, Skin Deep, by Elliot Neal Hester in the comments. I read this article and think it's great, and exactly on point with the issues raised in our blog post and comments so worth sharing with anyone interested in the topic. Hester's experience in BA included lots of being noticed. But when he had a rare interaction with one of the Argentines staring at him, it turned out sweet and innocent.

Argentina is such a great place to see that I hope no one feels so unwelcome that they cannot experience it for themselves. I think the comments in our earlier blog post and Hester's article generally support the notion that Argentina is a welcome place for Black skinned people, but also very inexperienced with seeing Black people which explains why many Argentines will stare.

For those of you who are expats in Argentina, or those who are Argentine nationals, what do you think about this? Do you think Argentina welcomes Black tourists, Students, and Expats? Do you agree the stares that many Blacks report getting in Argentina are based in curiosity of something rare, and not based on negative stereotypes?

Smoke on the Horizon in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires Ahumado

As I’m sure many of you faithful readers already know, Buenos Aires has been enshrouded in smoke for the last week making breathing easy over the weekend all but a fantasy. Visibility just yesterday was about 200 meters from my balcony and we did everything we could do to keep the smoke out and avoid going outside. We even avoided doing laundry as long as possible as we knew that hanging the clothes out to dry would only make them absorb more smoke—great if you want some salmon ahumado or panceta ahumada (smoked salmon and smoked bacon), but not if you want to breathe. Yesterday, I was even suffering preliminary respiratory symptoms caused by smoke inhalation and exposure like burning eyes, nose and throat, congestion and coughing.

I had heard a lot on the news about how the farmers to the north of Buenos Aires had decided to burn their fields all at the same time (as opposed to their normal sequential burnings) as a sign of protest to the government’s proposed hike on beef exports. Then I heard the fires were out of control and that the firefighting teams had been prevented from doing their jobs by some sort of government bureaucracy. Then I heard that the government was simply outlawing field burning and that the farmers wanted to get in under the wire so that they could avoid buying expensive (cough, cough) land tillers to keep their soil healthy. Then I heard that the government may turn to criminal prosecution of these farmers. Then I heard some fellow expats talking about their disgust with the BBC’s Argentine correspondent for having gotten the story wrong….

So who knows the reality of the why… All I know is that I have never actually been in a city where I could imagine a scenario for massive rioting in the street. Today looks clear, and I don’t imagine we will get to that point. But only last night, a few blocks from my house, I could see massive explosions and fireworks being launched in protest. I have never looked out the window of my home to see what I had only before ever seen as footage of the abominable pollution of Beijing or some sort of post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie. It was disgusting, appalling, stomach-churning. Even INSIDE my own apartment, looking at my fiancée, sitting there at her desk, only about 5 meters from where I was standing, the haze was apparent.

So what are we supposed to make of all this? With no clear sign as to who is taking what action for what reason me pongo nervioso (I get uneasy). And I do not get uneasy very easily. I have been imagining airports overrun with people trying to flee the country. Am I crazy? Quite possibly. In my defense, however, all the bus terminals and most of the major roads in and out of Buenos Aires were shut down because people were dying in traffic accidents due to the low visibility. What is next if this is to continue?

Gifts for Weddings in Argentina

Cash is King

It seemed odd to me, that for the several weddings I have been to in Argentina people asked for cash as their wedding gift. I have always been taught that cash—while extremely useful and certainly an appropriate gift from an uncle or grandparent—constitutes a quite tacky gift between peers. Yet every couple whose wedding I have attended in Argentina has asked for money. So this led to several heated discussions between my girlfriend and I over whether money is an appropriate wedding gift to ASK FOR.…

Times are changing, Lourdes (my girlfriend) would argue. People don’t get married then go to live together, they go to live together and then they get married. Thus the old adage of newlyweds “building a house” together doesn’t really apply, because most newlyweds will have already done most of that. So blenders and dishes and furniture are no longer gifts of preference because many couples already have that. This I understand.

What I have trouble wrapping my brain around, though, is the idea that the wedding costs a lot of money and that therefore I should, in essence, make a donation to the cause. This has been an argument used to justify cash gifts. The problem, though, is that I didn’t decide to put on the wedding in the first place. Many couples elope and decide to do things on their own or with small groups of more intimate friends and family at a very low cost. Cost, therefore, is all up to the people putting on the wedding and if they cannot afford it, they shouldn’t do it (although many a politician might disagree with that). Also, I didn’t decide what to spend the money on for the wedding. I don’t even know if I’m going to like the food (which I didn’t at any of them save one) let alone the ceremony. So what I feel basically is that I’m being asked to attend a ceremony by a friend (or acquaintance) of mine, that will be catered to their tastes and that I should give them money to use for their honeymoon or bill paying or for the wedding and reception itself.

I have thrown many a party in my life and I have never asked for people to pay to come in the door. There might have been a couple of parties I attended in college where some drunken guy with a baseball hat on backwards was asking for 5 bucks for a plastic cup at the keg but besides that I have not heard of asking for cash as a wedding gift. But maybe I’m in the dark. Maybe this phenomenon is all too common and I just haven’t paid enough attention. I wonder, though, is it common in both the US and Argentina? What about other countries in the world?

I await your feedback…

Fashion Emergency! What is the Dress Code for Women in Argentina?

A fellow reader needs your help! Post your reply in the comments of this post to help her out. Local Argentines and expats are both encouraged to reply, here is her comment.

Hi all,

I've been looking through this site because I will be in Rosario, Argentina for a few months. I'm in my 20's.

My question is what is considered appropriate or the norms for women's clothing:

1. In beaches or pools
2. length of skirt
3. business clothing
4. to wear outside on the street
5. for "going out" [at night with friends/a date]

I don't want to look sloppy but at the same time I dont want unwanted attention either or want to stand out too much.

The Irony of the Argentinean Job Market

Employees in Argentina

It has been remarked to me by many a businessman/entrepreneur/executive, that employing good workers is both one of the biggest keys to the success of a business and one of the hardest things to achieve. Obviously, some unique conditions exist in Argentina that make employing people here different than in the U.S. and in general, harder. The difficulties in having employees come from costly benefits and retirement, disloyalty, and greater degree of mis/distrust in Argentina as compared to the U.S.

Two basic types of employment exist in Argentina: “en blanco” or “in the white (legal)” and “en negro” or “in the black (not so legal)”. The difference between these two lies in the benefits paid to the employee which can break the bank of even a well backed business. To be in full compliance with the law, employers must pay around 45% above and beyond an employee’s salary for benefits, retirement and tax. This means that if you want to pay an employee 2000 pesos per month (a decent but not high salary here), then you must add 900 additional pesos to this that will be put into this employee’s retirement and benefits. Of course, this is an outrageous number. So outrageous, that somewhere between 30% and 60% of all persons employed in Argentina are employed en negro. This means that the employer pays no benefits whatsoever to the employee. The reason that so much “trabajo en negro” exists is that unemployment is high, jobs are scarce, and the government does not enforce labor law (until after the fact), so companies can get away with not paying benefits. But at the same time, whoever creates these policies should seriously take a look at the incentive that employers have to pay their employees so far above and beyond their actual salaries. Economics tells us that we must find the balance between lowering the cost to the employer and the number of employers who would be willing to pay this extra cost of having employees to find the greatest number of employers willing to pay a certain level of benefits. As the percentage paid toward benefits goes down, the incentive for employers to pay those benefits should go up, driving up the number of employees enjoying benefits. But this type of thinking seems to fall outside of the realm of what is possible here…

The irony of all of this, is that most Argentine employees, because they have worked en negro, will sue their former employers for having employed them as such… and win! Nearly all former employees employed en negro either win their lawsuit against their former employer or settle out of court before going to trial (the statistics are quite meaningless because of the latter number). So be warned all foreigners who wish to pay their employees this way: it may cost you in the long run.

Another costly part of employees in Argentina is the disloyalty, and general lack of motivation coupled with a high degree of mis/distrust. One would think that because of the scarcity of jobs here that people would be quite loyal to their employer and show a lot of incentive to do right by their company so that they do not get fired. In reality, most employers are afraid to fire their employees because of the aforementioned law suits that can come from termination. The incentive for employees to work hard to keep their jobs is very low because they know that their employer is afraid to fire them. Moreover, owners and employers, being afraid to fire their employees and thus knowing that they will probably be stuck with poor workplace relationships and unmotivated workers, will not be inclined to give bonuses, raises, commissions, or other types of compensation based on incentive. I have been called “completamente loco” for having suggested the idea of very high commissions for sales based employees. It only seems logical to me that if an employee can be motivated through cash incentives tied to work done that a win-win situation will be created. The lack, however, of such incentives in the workplace in Argentina create many disloyal employees. If they don’t see a way to gain from working hard for their company, and they see no long term benefits being paid toward their retirement, what incentive do they have to stay with a particular job?

In addition to these problems and as discussed in the previous blog, a very common practice, especially for family run businesses (which make up the vast majority here), is to put only family members in positions of management and money handling to prevent theft, fraud, and laziness. This quite often takes the form of a single person who manages the cash register at an ice cream shop or bar or clothing shop where that person will be responsible for all the money handling and all other employees take care of operations. This in and of itself does not represent a direct problem with employment but it does limit the choices as to who business owners select to run their tills. The limit that they place on who they trust (the famed “gente de confianza”) will by default limit the number of choices that they have to run a key aspect of their business.

Trust in Argentina

Business and Trust in the Argentinean Community

One of the things I have learned about running a business in Argentina is the necessity of community involvement and building trust. For myself, an expat entrepreneur who exports wine from Argentina, I must involve myself with local media and businesses, tourism, and the expat community on a regular basis to build relationships. Unfortunately, Argentina is an extremely distrustful society and because of this, more attention must has to be paid to forming relationships.

My company, Anuva Vinos, makes continuous contact with wine shops, wineries, customs brokers and publicity agencies in order to outreach directly to the local business community. We obviously buy wine from the wineries, help the wine shops send wine to foreigners, use customs brokers to get those wines out of the country, and do interviews, attend events and generally promote the wine club and tastings that we do here in Buenos Aires with publicity and the media. It struck me about a month ago, that ramping up the frequency of these activities can only help. But one must know how to speak about one’s product to these different entities. For wineries I am a customer. For wine shops, I am a partner. For the media, I am a source of information and news, and they are a source of publicity for me.

It almost always comes down to hand-shakes and smiles. These two things build trust. Trust, in Argentina is hard to come by. I was first exposed to “gente de confianza” (trustworthy people) when I started my first business here in student exchange. Argentineans were and are obsessed with this phrase, mostly because no one here trusts one another. Ice cream shops make you pay first, hold your receipt, turn in your receipt to the ice cream server and get it stamped to prove the sale was made and the ice cream served. Bars routinely have one line where people pay for drinks and receive a ticket which they then turn in for their beverage. This is because no one trusts one another with money. Thus meeting people in person is very important here.

I practice this belief with the tourism industry. I routinely visit, in person, 15-20 hotels per week where I speak with the concierges and managers about the wine tastings that Anuva Vinos offers. They would never have thought to call me if I had just sent and email or made a phone call. On the contrary, in the U.S., our dealings have been virtually 100% phone and email based. I only met my logistics and website people for the first time 9 months after we set up. There was an unspoken trust between us that does not exist in Argentina. This type of trust is quite evident among the expat community here in Argentina.

Going to events sponsored by Expat-Connection and other expat groups is really good for networking. Many Europeans, Americans, Canadians and Australians come to these gatherings to socialize, learn about procedures in Argentina (like buying property and bringing in money), and experience Argentine culture with other foreigners living here (like polo). Many of these people have a wide range of experiences in business, living abroad and language which makes them great resources and many of them have great connections that they willingly will share because of the trust among this group. This trust comes from an almost instantaneous bond between one another because they are all English speaking foreigners who decided to leave their home countries for a new country where they find themselves in the minority. I have found great connections by going to these types of events and doing these types of activities and I will continue to do so with more frequency as the power of an abundance of trustworthy relationships cannot be underestimated.