Job Discussion Forums

[browniea]

I am thinking about moving down to Chiapas, Mexico in the city of Tuxtla Gutierrez to work.... do you know any information about living down there? What is there to do? What are the people like, etc.? Any information would help.

[El Gallo]

Chiapas is beautiful. Mountains, waterfalls, beaches. Very diverse but very poor. The political climate is stable at present with a PRD governor who gets along well with Calderon. I've only experienced racism here two or three times in the past three years. Most racism is directed toward the indigenous. The people are otherwise gentle with less machismo than in Northern Mexico.

Tuxtla Gutierrez is a modern city with good cinemas, shopping and a great zoo. It is very hot, dirty and mostly run down. People throw trash in the streets and let dead dogs lie around and smell bad. It is the educational center of far southern Mexico so there are a lot of students who want to learn English. Private English schools are Harmon Hall, Canadian Center, Euro Center and Cosmul Lingua. Be careful to research the forum for threads on a few of these before you become involved with them. There are many public and private universities and many private elementary and high schools. There aren't many gringos with the exception of tourists in San Cristobal. Immigration here is a pain in the ass with long waits and many return trips to get an FM-3 or renewal.

I live here because I love Chiapas and the people here. Make sure you can escape Tuxtla often to places like San Cristobal or the beach because Tuxtla leaves a lot to be desired.

[corporatehuman]

I'm sitting in the most modern building in Tuxtla right now, the Jaime Sabines Cultural Center, from the inside of the internet library one would think the city as a rapidly technologically progressive place of the 21st century!

I'd just like to second El Gallos thoughts. I live outside of Tuxtla, but work in Tuxtla everyday. There are times where I do really, sort of like the place. I get a �t isnt so bad feeling now and then, there ARE some really nice places in Tuxtla...like Parque Marimba. Also, there are lots of discos, if you like discos you'll like Tuxtla, thats what many, many people do thursday, friday, saturday night.

The collectivos kill someone everyday and drive away, but there are great taquerias and like El Gallo, I do like the people in Chiapas a lot. One of the benefits of Tuxtla, I think, is the lack of tourists. It feels more ADVENTEROUS than the cobble stoned calles of San Cristobal. Theres a big mall, all that...and plenty of work too. Lots of private students. Lots of English schools.

Best of luck,

C

[lisa1968]

After a few years, I have finally decided to make my way back to Mexico. I spent a lot of time in Chiapas a some years ago, and am having a hard time finding any other place in Mexico that I want to go!! I will admit that is where I got my TEFL certification and later that is where I worked, so there is a great deal of comfort level going on, but Chiapas is a fabulous place.

I worked in Tuxtla, and it is not a pretty, or even nice city, like Guadalajara, but there is a feel to Chiapas that I have found nowhere else in Mexico. People are great, there is plenty of work in Tuxtla. Things are close enough now that you don't have to live in Tuxtla to work there. You can live in Teran, Coita, Chiapa de Corzo, and still work in Tuxtla, where you will make more money. I worked in some of the language schools in Tuxtla, some good, some bad. I will be glad to give you names and my personal experience with those.

I don't know what you are looking for, but Chiapas is one of a kind!