The Travel Chica

Live Simple. Consume Less. Experience More.

Happy Birthday To Me!

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It is Winter in Buenos Aires.

It does not snow, but it is quite cold.  In order to survive, I had to go shopping.  But this chica is on a budget and living out of a backpack.  I wanted cheap and functional. 

I soon found out that this is not possible in Buenos Aires.

The cheap clothes are in the Once neighborhood, but they are of such poor quality that they are not worth the money.  And they really aren’t that cheap compared to other countries I’ve traveled.

So I made my decision.  I will spend the money on a nice pair of fabulous leather boots!

And as an added bonus, I would feel like a somewhat fashionable woman again and even look like a Porteña.

After a full day of scouring stores for the best deal, I circled back to the very first store I went to and bought these.

Photo of leather boots

This is the first nice thing I have bought myself, since I have started traveling. 

My one splurge. My one souvenir.  A birthday present to myself.

And I love them.

How have you splurged when on a budget?  Was it worth it?

Comments

  1. I think that’s the perfect way to splurge. I can relate to being on a budget and thinking that you simply can’t afford to buy yourself something nice. But as you have already seen, it can create such a change in attitude. I love the boots, they would have been my choice, too! Enjoy Argentina!
    Meghan recently posted..American Sisters

  4. Ooh very nice! I definitely want to bring home a pair of leather boots from BsAs, and a leather handbag…how much did the boots set you back, if you don’t mind me asking? :)
    Megan recently posted..Making masala chai

    • I will warn you that if you’re not into spending money on designer clothing and shoes, Buenos Aires sucks for shopping. The cheap stuff is so poorly made and ill-fitting that you don’t want to spend money on it.

      So my choice was a pair of fake crappy boots for US$40-$50 or real boots for $100-200. These were $100, and I spent two days shopping around. Send me an email when you are coming here, and I will give you some suggestions on where to shop. There are some really nice leather bags and boots here if you’re willing to spend some money.
      The Travel Chica recently posted..On My Birthday: Remembering Younger Travels

  7. I definitely splurged on leather shoes when I was in Bs As (and a leather wallet, and a leather jacket… so much leather, I’m not like this back home!). Great purchase, those boots look great! 😀
    Audrey recently posted..London Is Flirting With Me

  8. Hi, Steph! Happy (belated) Birthday!!! I had a feeling you would not be in the USA for your 30th. The boots are simply divine! I wish I was there to help you pick them out. :-)

  13. Those are awesome!! And you totally look like a local… I look awful in boots — I could never fit in. Sigh, I hate spending money on clothes. I need to. I spend all my money on nighttime dresses and dress in rags at work. Baller on a budget!
    Abby recently posted..Maui for Two: Saying “I do”

    • I have to admit I love my shoes. Being a backpacker and limited myself to only the practical was a little bit of a challenge when I finally got to a city where I was living a ‘normal’ life instead of climbing volcanoes and riding chicken buses.
      The Travel Chica recently posted..Saying Goodbye

  21. Great boots! I wish you could bring me a pair home! I splurged by going to Panama to meet you on your travels in February : )
    Love Mom

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