Exchanging Currency

[QUOTE=Yujin; 429953]If you travel and unfamiliar with the local currency, you might eventually find yourself in possession of counterfeit currency. Here's an interesting article from the New York Times, but re-posted and linked to the Seattle Times (unlike the NYT, no pay-per-view registration needed). The article reminded me of my first trip to Argentina about 15 years ago when I was given counterfeit pesos by a cab driver. I complained to everyone about being given the counterfeit money, but all I got was the 'you're a dumb-ass' look.

[url]http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2019793428_fakemoney30xml.html[/url]

According to the article, the London-based global foreign exchange company Travelex says that the counterfeit currencies it sees most often are the euro, British pound, Mexican peso, Argentine peso, Peruvian sol and Chinese yuan. Since everything else in China is counterfeited, I shouldn't have been surprised about the Chinese yuan being widely counterfeited but I was. I was also surprised that the US dollar wasn't high on the list.[/QUOTE]Hopefully the new 100 Peso Evita note should help, if has better security features. The hardest to counterfiet is the Australian Dollar ans now CAD, with the plastic polymer see thru notes, very cool stuff.

That's a good point and the USD used to be a lot easier to counterfeit and would have been higher up on the list say 10 years ago. Because 60% of USD circulates outside the country, we only sort of 40% gave a shit so the counterfeiting problem got pretty bad before we decided to deal with it. That was kind of selfish but of course the new paper and so forth is costly. We did have an opportunity at the same time to go to a longer lived and cheaper paper but we decided controlling the manufacturers more closely was more important, which is probably true. By the way, historically, when counterfeiting goes up revolutions can follow. Whether you are a Dem or a Rep or a Lib or a Com you want trustworthy money that everyone will accept or it will get real ugly. Don't forget that in 2001/2002 individual Argie provinces issued their own bullshit currencies such as the "Patacón" to feign solvency as far as payroll and so forth was concerned. If I went down there to monger right now I would bring $9999 US, fill out no forms, and party til the money ran out. I would not be relying on ATMs at this point, as a visitor.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;429968]That's a good point and the USD used to be a lot easier to counterfeit and would have been higher up on the list say 10 years ago. Because 60% of USD circulates outside the country, we only sort of 40% gave a shit so the counterfeiting problem got pretty bad before we decided to deal with it. That was kind of selfish but of course the new paper and so forth is costly. We did have an opportunity at the same time to go to a longer lived and cheaper paper but we decided controlling the manufacturers more closely was more important, which is probably true. By the way, historically, when counterfeiting goes up revolutions can follow. Whether you are a Dem or a Rep or a Lib or a Com you want trustworthy money that everyone will accept or it will get real ugly. Don't forget that in 2001/2002 individual Argie provinces issued their own bullshit currencies such as the "Patacón" to feign solvency as far as payroll and so forth was concerned. If I went down there to monger right now I would bring $9999 US, fill out no forms, and party til the money ran out. I would not be relying on ATMs at this point, as a visitor.[/QUOTE]I think the new USD 100 is getting ready to come out next year, more security features, but plastic polymer seems like the way to go, money lasts 2x longer too.

[QUOTE=Yujin; 429953]If you travel and unfamiliar with the local currency, you might eventually find yourself in possession of counterfeit currency. Here's an interesting article from the New York Times, but re-posted and linked to the Seattle Times (unlike the NYT, no pay-per-view registration needed). The article reminded me of my first trip to Argentina about 15 years ago when I was given counterfeit pesos by a cab driver. I complained to everyone about being given the counterfeit money, but all I got was the 'you're a dumb-ass' look.

[url]http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2019793428_fakemoney30xml.html[/url]

According to the article, the London-based global foreign exchange company Travelex says that the counterfeit currencies it sees most often are the euro, British pound, Mexican peso, Argentine peso, Peruvian sol and Chinese yuan. Since everything else in China is counterfeited, I shouldn't have been surprised about the Chinese yuan being widely counterfeited but I was. I was also surprised that the US dollar wasn't high on the list.[/QUOTE]After hearing so many reports of sleazebag black and yellow cab drivers passing fakes, running double speed meters, driving beat up cabs with bald tires, shot suspensions, and worst of all, driving like morons, often with their headlights off during nighttime. Beware, many black and yellow cabs do not have headrests, putting you at risk for whiplash. Granted, there are many good drivers and cabs out there too, yes, but the above problems inspired me to provide something better, a private, premium car service, here in Buenos Aires. At SilverStar, we do the opposite when it comes to fake money, we actually show you specimen fakes, so you know what you are up against in the real world and hopefully avoid getting scammed down the road. We speak English, drive safe, have awesome, well maintained cars, with airbags and A / C, plus we are very serious about punctuality. If you are a premium traveler who wants the best value in a fully licnesed and insured premium car service, please consider us, we can help you avoid getting scammed with fake bills, etc.

[url]www.silverstarcar.com[/url]

Fully Licensed and Insured (Unlike many other low end car services here)

Serving Buenos Aires Premium Travelers Since 2009

[QUOTE=Dickhead; 429968]That's a good point and the USD used to be a lot easier to counterfeit and would have been higher up on the list say 10 years ago.

Because 60% of USD circulates outside the country,

So, the USA does have an export economy then, exports of pretty cool looking green pieces of paper with value more than the paper itself, that's a pretty cool gig.

Pretty cool stuff.

[QUOTE=Silver Star; 429988]After hearing so many reports of sleazebag black and yellow cab drivers passing fakes, running double speed meters, driving beat up cabs with bald tires, shot suspensions, and worst of all, driving like morons, often with their headlights off during nighttime. Beware, many black and yellow cabs do not have headrests, putting you at risk for whiplash. Granted, there are many good drivers and cabs out there too, yes, but the above problems inspired me to provide something better, a private, premium car service, here in Buenos Aires. At SilverStar, we do the opposite when it comes to fake money, we actually show you specimen fakes, so you know what you are up against in the real world and hopefully avoid getting scammed down the road. We speak English, drive safe, have awesome, well maintained cars, with airbags and A / C, plus we are very serious about punctuality. If you are a premium traveler who wants the best value in a fully licnesed and insured premium car service, please consider us, we can help you avoid getting scammed with fake bills, etc.

[url]www.silverstarcar.com[/url]

What

Fully Licensed and Insured (Unlike many other low end car services here)

Serving Buenos Aires Premium Travelers Since 2009[/QUOTE]What does this post have to do with exchanging currency? Are you now spamming the board Fred? Please stop! Stay on your thread unless you want to address the subject being discussed. You wonder why most don't use your overpriced services. Back to your thread taxi chulo! Toymann

[QUOTE=Toymann;430003]What does this post have to do with exchanging currency? Are you now spamming the board Fred? Please stop! Stay on your thread unless you want to address the subject being discussed. You wonder why most don't use your overpriced services. Back to your thread taxi chulo! Toymann[/QUOTE]He was responding to people that have been passed fake bills from tacheros. It's a reach but daddy thinks he made it.

[QUOTE=Daddy Rulz;430032]He was responding to people that have been passed fake bills from tacheros. It's a reach but daddy thinks he made it.[/QUOTE]Just sounds like the same old pitch to me daddy. Airbags, bad divers, yada, yada. With taxi rip off info that ha been mentioned over and over on the forum for years now. Nothing new but the airbags! LOL. Toymann

[QUOTE=Toymann;430003]What does this post have to do with exchanging currency? Are you now spamming the board Fred? Please stop! Stay on your thread unless you want to address the subject being discussed. You wonder why most don't use your overpriced services. Back to your thread taxi chulo! Toymann[/QUOTE]Couldn't agree more, Toymann. You wrote exactly what I thought.

I want to add that I have used taxis for 5 yrs in BA and in fact I mostly use taxis for my transportation. And no radio taxi. I just hail them on the road. I have absolutely no incident to report. I find the drivers extremely polite and helpful. After having used taxis over a 100 world cities, I find BA taxis amongst the better ones I have used.

I have noticed over the years that Fred has always tried to create fear mongering amongst readers here and at BA expats about using local taxis in order to jack up his market. I absolutely dislike this kind of "pimping".

I don't really blame guys like Fred and Ramiro who have to find and live off pesos. When I was down there I had dollars flowing in magically. Sometimes I attempted to earn some pesos to augment the dollars, so I can see how hard it is to make a living down there. Fred has it even tougher because he has a high-end product and those don't do well in collapsing economies. So he has to annoy a hundred posters to maybe successfully capture one newbie.

I have read in some of the posts in this forum that the exc0hange rate for dollar is around 6 pesos. But when I chrck the yahoo currency exchange, it is only around 4. 80 pesos. I'm confused. Is it the street rate which is that different than official bank rate?

[QUOTE=Argasssaa;430183]I have read in some of the posts in this forum that the exc0hange rate for dollar is around 6 pesos. But when I chrck the yahoo currency exchange, it is only around 4. 80 pesos. I'm confused. Is it the street rate which is that different than official bank rate?[/QUOTE]Yes, there is a parallel market going on here, make sure to bring cash, USD in big bills to take full advantage of this big premium you will get. Try to minimize using ATM's and Credit Cards as you will only get the official rate, less fees.

Besides the place in Scalabrini Ortiz and Cervino that has been reported in this site, can anybody recommend other places where I can exchange USD at the 'parallel market' rate? I will be passing BA Wednesday just for one day and I would like to have more than one option. Thanks in advance!

[QUOTE=Flsailor;430186]Besides the place in Scalabrini Ortiz and Cervino that has been reported in this site, can anybody recommend other places where I can exchange USD at the 'parallel market' rate? I will be passing BA Wednesday just for one day and I would like to have more than one option. Thanks in advance![/QUOTE]Call me if you'd like.

Got $6. 30 to $1. 0 yesterday, about 10 min. From the AP House, walking.

Thanks,

TL.

4 381 2145.

156 116 4254

[QUOTE=TejanoLibre; 430193]Call me if you'd like.

Got $6. 30 to $1. 0 yesterday, about 10 min. From the AP House, walking.

Thanks,

TL.

4 381 2145.

156 116 4254[/QUOTE]*shakes head*

What a chancer. Why am I not surprised!

I was offered 6. 36 on the street and got 6. 44 at my usual place yesterday.

[QUOTE=DavieW; 430200]*shakes head*

What a chancer. Why am I not surprised!

I was offered 6. 36 on the street and got 6. 44 at my usual place yesterday.[/QUOTE]I suspect this is a moderate insult, but I'm not exactly sure what a "chancer" is. I suspect it's somewhere between a Whanker and a Crusty Dragon but I would like to know.

[QUOTE=DavieW; 430200]*shakes head*

What a chancer. Why am I not surprised!

I was offered 6. 36 on the street and got 6. 44 at my usual place yesterday.[/QUOTE]I guess you should tell us where it is so we can RUN over there and save. 14 cents!

TL.

P. S. It changes EVERY fucking day, minute by minute.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;430045]I don't really blame guys like Fred and Ramiro who have to find and live off pesos. When I was down there I had dollars flowing in magically. Sometimes I attempted to earn some pesos to augment the dollars, so I can see how hard it is to make a living down there. Fred has it even tougher because he has a high-end product and those don't do well in collapsing economies. So he has to annoy a hundred posters to maybe successfully capture one newbie.[/QUOTE]


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[QUOTE=

You are the two faced idiot that had to leave this country, not me. Show me how I can make money from this and I will. I only contact the BOYS that I have met at my resto-bar or the Boys that have asked me for Chicas or Drugs in the past and the "Lost Souls"! Does that ring a bell? You Fucking Dickhead! I am the ONLY one that defends you. Great Screen Name! No worries,"I Pardon You!"

I have a tiny handful of insignificant detractors that have "Thanked You" and my "In-Box" runneth over with praise so I can live with that ratio.

I HELP people and ALL you do is Berate people because you are stuck in a nasty fucking place like Mexico; yes, cheap 5ft. Aztec hookers to grace the mud hutt's floor!

TL.

P. S. Fuck the idiots that "Thanked You Too!"

Especially the ones that have NEVER met me.[/QUOTE] 12345678910

Hunh? What? Are you on the drops again? I have not been in México since 2003. Fuck you too.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;430227]Hunh? What? Are you on the drops again? I have not been in México since 2003. Fuck you too.[/QUOTE]

I wish! No, not really!

Mexico , Guatemala , etc , ( All American and Central American Countries are the same ) not including North America or South America ! The only thing that Changes are the Pyramids and the Gods !

But if you TRY to fuck me I have to Fuck You back!

Come on Boy, you if anybody should know that I try to help the Boys on the board whenever I can. If someone needs Cambio I take them where I go but if you or Davie Jones knows a better place then you Boys are the ones that are FUCKING the rest of US by NOT sharing the wealth! Why would'nt you? It should NOT be a secret! (Davie Shit) , please share!

You started it and YOU have'nt even had the pleasure to meet me! (Davie Jones)

Thanks Anyway,

"I Pardon You as I Wave the Sign of the Cross!"

TL.

P. S. Did you know that more people on earth recognize the Golden Arches of McDonald's than the Christian Cross?

I think you must be confused.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;430229]I think you must be confused.[/QUOTE]

About the Geography or where you hang your condoms ? ( Hat )

Not about the unecessary barbs.

TL.

I go where I go, nothing else.

Geography and Ancient Cultures :

Yes, I know that most of those countries did not and could not even stack a pile of bricks much less build a Pyramid!

To quote the great 20th century philosopher Dean Vernon Wormer: "Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, boy."

[QUOTE=Dickhead;430233]To quote the great 20th century philosopher Dean Vernon Wormer: "Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, boy."[/QUOTE]I quit drinking, I have a decent I. Q and I will be ripped in 4 weeks so your quote does not apply.

You still drunk and stoned every day Buddy?

That's no fun!

TL

You will be ripped in four weeks of steroids and your nutz will be like raisins.

[QUOTE=Dickhead;430235]You will be ripped in four weeks of steroids and your nutz will be like raisins.[/QUOTE]Don't need nutz if you don't want punks, kids, bastards, Chica's Kids!

Hair loss?

Too late!

Acne?

Too late?

Roid Rage?

Too late!

Bastards? Way too late!

Funny!

Hope your doing ok Buddy!

TL.

Merry Christmas to All the Boys on this Board!

[QUOTE=Daddy Rulz;430201]I suspect this is a moderate insult, but I'm not exactly sure what a "chancer" is. I suspect it's somewhere between a Whanker and a Crusty Dragon but I would like to know.[/QUOTE]From thefreedictionary. Com:

Chancer = "an unscrupulous or dishonest opportunist who is prepared to try any dubious scheme for making money or furthering his own ends."

And dear Mr TejanoLibre. You're right, I've never met you. And do you know what? I never want to. I don't mix with racists and homophobes.

With regards sharing the information about better exchange rates, before finding out what a weasel of a human being you are, when you were once boasting about changing USD20, 000 per week, I PMed you with an offer to take you to the dealer I use (with no profit in it for me) and you dismissed me contemptuously. That 14 cents would add up to 11, 000+ pesos per month if your claims were anything even close to resembling the truth. It was at that point when I discovered that you live in some kind of fairy-tale world. Despite that, I've never said anything against you and have just tried to ignore your rantings, but some vile things you've written recently have made me feel more and more uncomfortable to even share the same on-line space with you.

[QUOTE=DavieW; 430265]From thefreedictionary. Com:

Chancer = "an unscrupulous or dishonest opportunist who is prepared to try any dubious scheme for making money or furthering his own ends."

And dear Mr TejanoLibre. You're right, I've never met you. And do you know what? I never want to. I don't mix with racists and homophobes.

With regards sharing the information about better exchange rates, before finding out what a weasel of a human being you are, when you were once boasting about changing USD20, 000 per week, I PMed you with an offer to take you to the dealer I use (with no profit in it for me) and you dismissed me contemptuously. That 14 cents would add up to 11, 000+ pesos per month if your claims were anything even close to resembling the truth. It was at that point when I discovered that you live in some kind of fairy-tale world. Despite that, I've never said anything against you and have just tried to ignore your rantings, but some vile things you've written recently have made me feel more and more uncomfortable to even share the same on-line space with you.[/QUOTE]Well Spoken but not quite true so we will talk about this little rant of yours one step at a time :

You started it by calling me a "Chancer" so I laid into you yet you claim that you have never said anything against me. That's pretty strong for someone that you know NOTHING about and that you have NEVER met; although I'm sure we have fucked the same hookers.

Boasting about exchanging 20k a week :

Did it constantly at my Resto-Bar and now I take my FREE TIME and I walk the Boys over to where I exchange every Monday. I have been using the same guy for years and because I exchange a trivial amount every week I have never BOTHERED to look elsewhere. God knows I could use the EXTRA $11, 000. 00 Pesos a month so THANKS for pointing that out to me but I'm not about that; I do it to make new friends, speak a little English every once in a while and maybe have lunch or dinner with someone instead of eating alone. I remember your PM but I don't remember If I responded, sorry if that hurt your feelings, I never meant to dismiss you.

Vile Rantings and Racist Homophobe :

A TRUE Hetero-Monger should always be disgusted by a Transsexual; drug addicted, disease riddled mental defectives that think that they were born into the wrong body! Yes, that's true; I am disgusted by them. They are the ones that have brought A. I. D. S into "OUR" world.

Argentines from BA have ALWAYS jokingly held Mexicans from the D. F in disdain and they do it to us. There are a shitload of anti Argentine jokes that came from Mexico, and they are funny and appropriate. Argies from BA think that the Mexicans are a bunch of Indians so if you are a Mexican I apologize but not much because It was a joke; and like they say, if they can't take a joke then %$# them.

I can't remember everyone of the 2000 posts so AGAIN, sorry Charlie.

Thanks for Reading My Posts!

TL.

P. S. TM, you should really quit Thanking these detractors they are insignificant yet I will continue to wave the sign of the cross and Pardon them!

If you can tell me what MOVIE that comes from I will be amazed and you will know a lot more about me Davie Jones.

But sometimes I just can't help myself.

[QUOTE=TejanoLibre;430270]A TRUE Hetero-Monger should always be disgusted by a Transsexual; drug addicted, disease riddled mental defectives that think that they were born into the wrong body! Yes, that's true; I am disgusted by them. They are the ones that have brought A. I. D. S into "OUR" world.[/Quote]Never speak for me on any subject you cretin. I have no sexual interest in Tranies, but my compassion for humans and my belief that people should be free to be who they wish so long as their actions don't DIRECTLY affect others extends to ALL people. I enjoy my hobby and wish to be left in peace to engage in it. How can I ask for this for myself and not be willing to extend that tolerance to others. Regarding your assertion that they are the ones that brought AIDS into our world, I recon it's a nice propaganda piece but as usual it's only true in your little corner of reality.

[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinshasa_Highway[/url]

By far one of the biggest factor in the spread of AIDS into western culture were the hetero truck drivers that used this road. Why did they become such efficient vectors you my ask? Why because they were having uncovered anal sex with the hookers along this road. Now who does that remind us of? First name Tejano, last name Libre.

[QUOTE=TejanoLibre;430270]Argentines from BA have ALWAYS jokingly held Mexicans from the D. F in disdain[/quote]This is true, I was talking to a girl not on the program here and she kept telling me how innocent she was. She was 26 years years old and was allways saying, soy incoente, soy inocente. One day I asked her,"are you trying to tell me you're a virgin?" I loved her answer,"if you want a 26 year old virgin you need to go to Mexico not Argentina."

Before you get started, don't. Just do yourself a favor and don't, just don't. There are no facts to support your position.

Coin store cueva on junin offered 6. 15 for small amount. 6.2 for larger exchange.

I have read on this board that the exchange rate in smaller Argentina cities is usually lower than in Buenos Aires. I was in BA for 10 days and Mendoza for 4 days. Just wanted you to know that I was in Mendoza last week. They were giving 6. 2 at the Cambios right on the main street by the McDonalds. You did not have to do large amounts. You did not have to bargain. For 100 dollars you got 6. 2. I went there multiple times and never got a bad bill in exchange. There are always 4 or 5 guys together (from different Cambios) in front of the building whispering "cambio". As you walk inside the building there are different offices for all these guys but the one right down the stairs straight ahead in the Oro (gold) office was the easiest to deal with. Very professional. Clean bills. Very safe. If they are giving that much in Mendoza for small amounts I would suggest that you might see the BA rate climbing even higher very soon.

Mountaineer

What are the opening hours for cambio in Centro and Recoleta?

[QUOTE=Chicago Guy;430439]What are the opening hours for cambio in Centro and Recoleta?[/QUOTE]Omnia Travel.

Florida 520 (lower level of mall) corner of Lavalle.

Shop number 19.

Open from 11am till 7pm M-F.

4 393-2021.

4 4 328-4615.

Up to $6. 4 to $1. 0.

Always changes though.

Safe enough.

It's a travel agency across from a sex shop but there are various travel agencies and sex shops.

TL

[QUOTE=Mountaineer; 430407]I have read on this board that the exchange rate in smaller Argentina cities is usually lower than in Buenos Aires. I was in BA for 10 days and Mendoza for 4 days. Just wanted you to know that I was in Mendoza last week. They were giving 6. 2 at the Cambios right on the main street by the McDonalds. You did not have to do large amounts. You did not have to bargain. For 100 dollars you got 6. 2. I went there multiple times and never got a bad bill in exchange. There are always 4 or 5 guys together (from different Cambios) in front of the building whispering "cambio". As you walk inside the building there are different offices for all these guys but the one right down the stairs straight ahead in the Oro (gold) office was the easiest to deal with. Very professional. Clean bills. Very safe. If they are giving that much in Mendoza for small amounts I would suggest that you might see the BA rate climbing even higher very soon.

Mountaineer[/QUOTE]Which 'main street' in Mendoza is this? Where is the cambios building in relation to McDonalds? How do you identify it? A few more details would be welcome. Thanks.

I was in Mendoza in June and posted exact directions to this cambio. So look in the (wait for it) MENDOZA section for the information you seek! Y no seas boludo.

[QUOTE=Jim Mac;430500]Which 'main street' in Mendoza is this? Where is the cambios building in relation to McDonalds? How do you identify it? A few more details would be welcome. Thanks.[/QUOTE]The McDonalds is on San Martin not too far from the intersection of Sarmiento which is the wide Las Ramblas pedestrian shopping street leading to the park. The Cambios are in the open building about 100 feet to the right of the McDonalds. The are open from 9 AM to 8 or 9 PM (except Sunday when they close earlier). Good luck!

[QUOTE=Mountaineer;430503]The McDonalds is on San Martin not too far from the intersection of Sarmiento which is the wide Las Ramblas pedestrian shopping street leading to the park. The Cambios are in the open building about 100 feet to the right of the McDonalds. The are open from 9 AM to 8 or 9 PM (except Sunday when they close earlier). Good luck![/QUOTE]Thanks. That's very helpful.

[QUOTE=Silver Star;430184]Yes, there is a parallel market going on here, make sure to bring cash, USD in big bills to take full advantage of this big premium you will get. Try to minimize using ATM's and Credit Cards as you will only get the official rate, less fees.[/QUOTE]Anywhere in particular to get the premium rate?

[QUOTE=Davenyc;430575]Anywhere in particular to get the premium rate?[/QUOTE]I've always used the one at Cervino and Scalabrini Ortiz. Safe and not far from where I am.