Viniciuz, the Brazilian influencer who, from Mendoza, is taking advantage of Argentinians.

Just as thousands of Argentines have emigrated for various reasons, there are also foreigners who choose Argentina to live for its culture, landscapes, customs, and the warmth of its people. And it was precisely all of the above that captivated Viniciuz Scofield, a 35-year-old Brazilian who left everything behind and settled in Mendoza , where he shares his passion for our country on social media .

On his Instagram accounts @viniciuz.scofield and @cucarach0.ar , on TikTok , the Brazilian shares everything that catches his attention about Argentina . Even listening to him speak, anyone could think he's just another Mendoza native because of his accent, except for his Portuñol that gives him away. He learned Spanish by listening - with special attention - to the people of Mendoza, but also because he's very curious and observant regarding the idioms we use to communicate .

It was thus, almost by chance, that Viniciuz became the foreign influencer most familiar to Argentinians . "El cucaracho ," as he's also known on social media, went viral with his first video in which he recounted different expressions used in the country to refer to the same thing, such as "altas ruedas," which is used to refer to the wheels of a car or to tell someone you like the shoes they're wearing.

He currently has more than 350,000 followers across both social networks for his content related to the country, including topics such as gatherings and birthdays in Argentina, or how our conversations are. He also dedicated videos to foods and the names of provinces and towns, which inspired him through his daily interaction with Argentinians.

Viniciuz Scofield is originally from Salvador de Bahía, Brazil, where he worked for seven years as a bank manager . However, after visiting Mendoza with his family in 2014 , he always knew he would return—not just for a visit, but to stay and live.

When she traveled to the country for the first time, she was recommended to visit the Cuyo province, and she didn't hesitate to Google it to find out what it was all about. "I typed 'Mendoza' into my computer and saw it had mountains and a city, and I said, 'Oh look, Mendoza is beautiful, it's gorgeous,' and we hopped on a bus from Buenos Aires, thinking it would take two hours, but it was like 18 hours," she recalls with a laugh about that long trip she took to see the place she'd heard so much about.

"When we arrived here, exhausted, and saw the Andes Mountains , it was as if my mind couldn't identify what a mountain was, because we don't have mountains there, and it really impacted me. I really liked the tree-lined, green streets, and I said, 'If I ever come back, I want to live in this city.' I'd seen other parts of the world, but Mendoza fascinated me ," he confesses.

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The influencer lived in Europe for two years and visited other cities in the north and south of the country, but his plan was always to live in this province . "Last year I came to live, with the goal of looking for a job and buying a house," he says.

And he adds, on the main reasons that brought him to Mendoza: "In Europe I was able to study, work, and, incidentally, save money. But I didn't come to Argentina with the goal of making money, but rather with the goal of living, of enjoying the city, of living in this peaceful place, with nature and the city."

Along the same lines, he effusively emphasizes: "Europe is beautiful. You can change your phone number in six months, have a car, designer clothes... but then I lock myself in an apartment. Here I feel embraced, I have friends, you have get-togethers, they invite me, they go out, and I think human beings need that. You live!"

Viniciuz emphasizes that in few places you can enjoy an afternoon in the park or even see friends or family, even during the week, and share the expenses so that no one is left out.

With the job he had in Brazil, he says he could have had the apartment by the sea, the brand new car, he could have everything, but it was all material things, and " life was passing me by ," he emphasized.

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Already settled in Maipú, the apartment he chose to live in due to its proximity to the city and his friends, Scofield unwittingly went viral with a video and from that moment on, he hasn't stopped uploading content to his social media related to how we Argentines speak and relate to each other, something that never ceases to amaze him.

"When I spoke with friends from other countries, they always said Argentina had delicious barbecue, tango, and mate—Argentina was summed up in that," he says. But he, who knew the country well, disagreed with that narrow idea. "Argentina has those three things, but also much more. It's a country with a great variety of food, music, customs, and traditions," he warns.

"I grabbed a notebook, a pen, and wrote down Argentine words that didn't make sense to me, like 'high tires,' things that came to mind, and I recorded a video for TikTok that I never uploaded. A couple of days went by, and the app sent me a notification asking if I wanted to upload the video, which had been left in draft form. I uploaded it, and the video quickly garnered over 100,000 views and thousands of comments," she says, referring to how she started uploading content to social media.

"And I'm not playing a character, it's not fictional. Everything I say is true because in the comments you confirm what I say, like, 'It's true, I talk like this,' or 'My mom used to tell me that.' And it strikes me that the social media graph shows that people from 6 to 80 years old watch my videos," says this friendly Brazilian. He emphasizes that his posts get a lot of engagement because users identify with what he says.

Once he started uploading videos more and more frequently (he has posted more than 200 since he started in March 2024), he realized that he also made other provinces aware of words and expressions that are used in certain parts of the country, but that are not used in other cities.

"Many times you don't know things about other provinces. I made a video talking about 'pues,' and people from Buenos Aires told me that Argentinians don't use that expression, but in Mendoza and the North they do," Viniciuz explains.

Furthermore, the exhibition and videos led him to create his own business related to social media and Argentina, although he is currently looking for work related to the careers he studied: Business Administration, Logistics, and Foreign Trade.

At the request of his followers, Viniciuz launched T-shirts, mates, bags, caps, and stickers featuring the cockroach and "Shut Up," two expressions he has trademarked, for sale on his website. In this way, he not only created a community of Argentinians who connect through his videos, but also a truly Argentinian brand.

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