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jeana
Joined: 18 Sep 2004
Posts: 5
Location: New York, NY
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 Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2004 11:58 pm Post subject: Fantasy vs Reality?? |
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Hello All,
Call it a mid-life crisis or whatever, but for the last year or so I have been thinking of shaking things up in my life. I am a 45 year old unattached woman who has had a successful career in banking (in NYC), and would like to take a sabbatical and do some traveling, teaching, and personal development/growth. I am working toward my certifications in EFL and Business English. I hope to make the move to Mexico City next year and teach Business English to professionals. Since I have some money saved, I am thinking of living (at least temporarily) in a small residential hotel and working part time with business professionals, and supplementing my income with private tutoring. While I realize this is serious work, I have always been a responsible person and I have every intention to be as good a teacher as I can be. However, I am at the point in my life where I do not want to make this experience all about work. I want to truly enjoy my time as a visitor to this wonderful country, exploring, learning, and experiencing something new. I feel I have the time and funds not to have to "rough it" to make ends meet. I want to live in a middle class neighborhood, not have to commute for hours on end, and set time aside for Spanish language, art, cooking, and dance lessons as well. I also want to develop real friendship with my students or other professional Mexican men and women. Am I living in a fantasy world or can any of this become a reality? Has anyone had experiences (good or bad) that would be helpful to me in making my plans as realistic as possible?
Thanks to all for your advice and insights. Jeana |
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ls650
Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia
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| Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 1:17 pm Post subject: Re: Fantasy vs Reality?? |
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| jeana wrote: |
| Am I living in a fantasy world or can any of this become a reality? Has anyone had experiences (good or bad) that would be helpful to me in making my plans as realistic as possible? |
I think that your question is too wide open for any of us to answer well. I'm sure there are many people for whom the Mexico experience has gone either way.
Living in Mexico can be... challenging... for those used to a 'western' lifestyle. I recommend that if you come to Mexico you manage your expectations. Life in Mexico will be different, and it can be very rewarding, but don't expect it to be paradise. |
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Ben Round de Bloc
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 1946
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| Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 4:30 pm Post subject: Re: Fantasy vs Reality?? |
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| jeana wrote: |
| I want to truly enjoy my time as a visitor to this wonderful country, exploring, learning, and experiencing something new. I feel I have the time and funds not to have to "rough it" to make ends meet. I want to live in a middle class neighborhood, not have to commute for hours on end, and set time aside for Spanish language, art, cooking, and dance lessons as well. I also want to develop real friendship with my students or other professional Mexican men and women. Am I living in a fantasy world or can any of this become a reality? |
I agree with ls650 that it's a difficult question to answer. As a working visitor, you'll experience something new, I'm sure. How long of a sabbatical are you considering? Six months? A year? Two years? Five years?
It seems to me that you've set a rather large agenda for yourself. Teaching Business English to professionals and doing private tutoring can be pretty time-consuming even if done only part-time, especially for someone without previous experience. If you're working even part-time, it may not leave much time and energy for all those other things on your list. It sounds very ambitious to me.
I'm not sure you have a clear concept of how the class system functions in this country. You mentioned not having to rough it and wanting to live in a middle-class neighborhood. A middle-class neighborhood in most cities in this country is not going to be like most middle-class neighborhoods in the USA. If you plan on socializing frequently with lots of those business exec students of yours on their level (probably above middle class,) you'd better have a very good reserve of funds available.
Living and working in Mexico is very different from an extended vacation in Cancun or Acapulco. From a New Yorker's point of view, a few weeks in those places while spending your money on vacation may seem very inexpensive for what all you get. However, if you want to live like that for a year or two in Mexico doing all those extra fun things (Spanish classes, traveling, dance lessons, etc.) + the expenses associated with your house or apartment in a middle-class neighborhood -- I get the impession that what you're picturing is an upper-class neighborhood -- all the expenses will add up. You'll need to have a lot of money set aside to cover the costs, because your very part-time teaching job isn't going to contribute much to your overall expenses. Just my humble opinion.
| ls650 wrote: |
| I recommend that if you come to Mexico you manage your expectations. Life in Mexico will be different, and it can be very rewarding, but don't expect it to be paradise. |
Wise words indeed. |
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jeana
Joined: 18 Sep 2004
Posts: 5
Location: New York, NY
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| Posted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 7:13 pm Post subject: |
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Tim,
Thanks for your honest reply. I appreciate that you took the time to offer your advice.
All the best,
Jeana |
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richtx1
Joined: 12 Apr 2004
Posts: 115
Location: Ciudad de M�xico
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| Posted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 10:46 pm Post subject: EXCELLENT BACKGROUND.... |
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Many of the best foreign teachers are second career teachers. People with business (especially in areas like international finance) backgrounds, with a realistic attitude about their financial prospects here (or, perhaps a sizable nest egg) are my ideal teachers. But, then, my company is more geared to business services (which includes English fluency) than to "teaching English".
Jeanne, if you have an interest in Mexico City, please send me an email or private message. |
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matthews_world
Guest
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| Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 9:46 am Post subject: |
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Has anyone caught the movie "Man on Fire" with Denzel.
Hollywood certainly doesn't paint a pretty picture of Mexico so don't rely on them.
Go for a visit. See the good parts and bad parts and then go back and weigh things heavily.
Mexico, especially Mexico City or the D.F. as they call it, has many opportunistic theives. In my opinion, women should think twice about going there. It also depends on the area you go to though. |
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ls650
Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia
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| Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 1:27 pm Post subject: |
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| matthews_world wrote: |
| Hollywood certainly doesn't paint a pretty picture of Mexico so don't rely on them. |
Does Hollywood ever paint a pretty picture of any country outside the US?  |
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richtx1
Joined: 12 Apr 2004
Posts: 115
Location: Ciudad de M�xico
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| Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 11:21 pm Post subject: Thanks for sharing... |
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| Quote: |
| Mexico, especially Mexico City or the D.F. as they call it, has many opportunistic theives. |
Where are thieves ("i" before "e"...) not opportunistic?
While a poster "somewhere in Korea" is entitled to his opinion, I think the Jeanne, being a New York businesswoman is well aware that every large city has areas one would rather not visit. And a foreign business woman, or foreign teacher is extremely unlikely to visit those bad areas anyway.
The metropolitan Mexico City area, being about 3 times the population of metropolitan New York SHOULD have 3 times the crimes... but doesn't. Despite that film (which was based on events in Columbia, by the way) foreigners -- especially visible foreigners -- are extremely safe in Mexico City. The highly reported kidnappings of foreigners involved people doing business with NOT VERY NICE people (i.e., gangsters). Unless I'm highly mistaken, I don't think Jeanne is planning on a career in the narcotics or stolen automobile trade. |
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moonraven
Joined: 24 Mar 2004
Posts: 3094
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| Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 11:31 pm Post subject: |
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Glad someone else wondered about thieves who are not opportunistic.
I have been spending a fair amount of time for at least 12 years in Mexico City, and have never had even the whisper of a problem with thieves. I did have a guy try something funny with his hands on the Metro once--I shouted out for him to stop feeling me up, and to get out of the car. He got off at the next stop, looking pretty sheepish. But that kind of behavior is not unique to Mexico City. Someone pinched my daughter's butt on the Paris metro. Bad mistake--she beat him around the head and shoulders with her new parisian handbag from La Baggagerie.... |
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Bobbie Jo
Joined: 13 Jul 2004
Posts: 8
Location: Tlaquepaque
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| Posted: Tue Sep 28, 2004 4:43 pm Post subject: |
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Hi Jeana
I am not sure I can say anything to make your expectations realistic but I may be able to provide some comfort in knowing you are not alone.
I decided in early 2003 to leave an awesome job in the corporate world, a five acre hobby farm and basically my life as I knew it. I sold almost everything I owed and bought a one-way ticket to Mexico. I have never looked back. Mexico was and still is a magical place for me. I have travelled around different parts of the country and ended up settling in Guadalajara for a while and then Zacatecas. I returned to Canada to give birth to my first child for financial reasons primarily and because I was a little bit of a chicken about childbirth. My son is now four months old and my partner and I are planning to return to Guadalajara in November.
Mexico for me is a place of possibilities. I adore the people and the culture. You can choose to focus on the negative and thereby see it everywhere or you can focus on the positive and see it everywhere. I love the spirit I found there.
I would recommend just jumping off the cliff and going for it. The worse that can happen is that you discover it is not the place for you long term. You will have lost nothing in making the trip.
I am not sure I can sum up all of my experiences but I can tell you that I made rich and lasting friendships with people (both foreign and native), I was able to find work that I truly enjoyed and I set up a comfortable home.
With my plan of returning I can tell you I am full of excitement and anticiaption. I initally set out to do work that was meaningful to me and what I found was work that felt like play but also friendship, love and a sense of peace in my life I had only imagined.
If I can be of any help let me know.
I wish you the very best in your journey. |
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