Hi,
Definitively you must take the Latin America version. We talk with different words and accent than Spain.
We Chileans, as all countries, have slang. Isn't a must to learn them, usually we use common and neutral words to talk with foreigners. Don't worry about it.
Argentinians have another accent, in some words they change the stress, but isn't a big deal either.
Rosetta Stone is a good way, also you can try for free Livemocha.com, a great community to learn.

Posted Sep 30, 2011

There are a lot of Iphone and Android apps out there now with language translators & learners, so unless you plan to be there for a long time I would probably go with one of the apps - nice and portable on mobile etc

Posted Sep 28, 2011

neil is right- there is an infinite of websites or mobile apps (both free) that will help you (re)learn spanish. focus on latin american spanish and if youre super determined, then memorize some chilean spanish words...about.com has a great mini-site on spanish: http://spanish.about.com/cs/historyofspanish/f/varieties.htm and http://spanish.about.com/
and scroll to the bottom for websites that offer chilean spanish vocab http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilean_Spanish
and if you really want a book, then you can check out some of the books on google: http://www.google.com/search?q=latin+american+spanish&btnG=Search+Books&tbm=bks&tbo=1 

Posted Sep 28, 2011

i'm using the rosetta stone for spanish (latin america) in order to learn spanish before i go to south america, which is what you should probably use if you decide to go with the rosetta stone. keep in mind, of course, that the argentine accent is going to be different than the one in the latin america version, but they don't provide one specific to the region. rosetta stone is great since i'm a beginner but definitely time consuming to move through the levels. well worth the money if you can make the time commitment, but if you just want something to refresh your memory, i've heard good things about the pimsleur approach: http://www.pimsleurapproach.com/  have fun!

Posted Sep 30, 2011

If you are an iTunes/podcast user, I would HIGHLY recommend "Notes in Spanish" (notesinspanish.com). You can download beginner, intermediate and advanced lessons for free! They are wonderful little 20 min. lessons in practical and conversational Spanish. The speakers live in Madrid, so they have the Spain accent, but you will still learn so much from their method. The best part is that they make learning Spanish feel relevant and fun-- how it should be!

Posted Oct 03, 2011

You should definitely try Mango Languages!! It's a new and brilliant program for language learning - it's far more intuitive and opens you up to conversations, useful vocabulary, and pronunciation tips so that you start out sounding like a native and build from that foundation.  mangolanguages.com and there is an AFAR code for a discount (AFAR10). If you need help, send me a message and I'll connect you with someone I've been in touch with at Mango! Buena suerte!!

Posted Oct 04, 2011

Rosetta Stone is great. Yes, you definitely need the Latin American version. Good luck!  
Dudley Parkinson,  DreamWeaver Travel 

Posted Oct 10, 2011