Job Discussion Forums

[MELEE]

[Guy Courchesne]

Mel, I'll back you up on each and every item on that list, including the last one.

I'm at the point where when I go home to Canada for visits, I simply have to bring a small bag of chile peppers with me...Chipotle, Ancho, and Arbol, just to survive the bland food (sorry mom).

[Ben Round de Bloc]

Guy, regarding your recent avatar, I think when they said foto infantil, they were referring to the size of the photo rather than your age when the photo was taken.

I'm sort of surprised that this thread hasn't grown. Is it that only a couple of people have good things to say about living and teaching in Mexico? Is everyone too busy enjoying all those good things to take time to post here? I don't know.

Perhaps MELEE's and Guy's postings have summed it up for all the rest of us. Except for "marrying Mexico," I guess my list wouldn't be all that different from the two previous postings. Interesting that the other 3 foreigners in the foreign languages department of the university where I teach (a French teacher from France and 2 EFL teachers from the UK) are all married to locals, foreign teachers being an extreme minority in the foreign languages department.

At the risk of sounding like an exploiter -- Is that a word? -- I like the idea that even on my teacher's wages, I can afford to pay someone to do many of the things I don't like to do or don't have the time to do such as clean house, run boring errands, fix little things that need repairing, do laundry, wash dishes, wash my car, etc. See why I don't have to marry a local? (I'm joking here! )

Although it is *beep* hot in this corner of Mexico much of the year, for me it still beats the heck out of Iowa winters. I like having a beach about a half-hour's drive from my house. Sun, sand, ocean breezes, and fresh seafood provide a great escape from the normal routine.

Compared to my many years of teaching high school in the States, I find my job teaching EFL here quite low-stress. I wouldn't say it's an easy job, but it is enjoyable most of the time.

I like the "flexibility" of so many things in this country, although sometimes that flexibility can cause some frustration, too. Except for my job (time clock ,) I don't have to worry very often about being somewhere or getting something done on time. There's always ma�ana.

Most of the people I come into contact with are easy to take. In general, people here have a live-and-let-live attitude, which I like. People here do like to gossip, that's true. I think for many, it's their favorite passtime. However, it's usually not malicious gossip.

[I hope others with some experience teaching in Mexico will add to this thread.]

[saraswati]

I love living here too! My area, M�rida, is 20 minutes away from the beach, an hour away from Mayan ruins and a couple of hours away from bioreserves. Diversity! It's fabulous.

[moonraven]

I have been living here for 10 years. It's my home. I wouldn't consider living in the air-conditioned nightmare (dixit Henry Miller) of the US again.

[chicagogirl]

Hello all,
While I haven't lived in Mexico (yet) I do enjoy reading your posts! It is very encouraging. I've only been to Oaxaca City and Puerto Escondindo and felt so at home...more so then here in the states for all of the same reasons you have described...laid back attitude, people, the weather..etc.

I'm excited about being there for an extended period of time...while also being fullly aware of the realities of life there...wages, crime...etc

Does anyone have a reccomendation on a city? I'm in debate between Guadalajara and Cuernavaca. Guadalajara because it is a big city (I currently live in Chicago) and its relatively close to the beaches...Cuernavaca because its central location (and its close to a big city) and I hear its as beautiful as San Fransisco ( where I used to live). I'm looking for a city with a lot of culture , where I can meet interesting people and have fulfilling weekends ...going climbing, to beaches, ruins etc....Meanwhile having a very rewarding job teaching!

My first stop will be Guadalajara where I will get my Tefl certificate.

Thanks for all the information and sharing your thoughts about Mexico!
Christina

[moonraven]

Guadalajara is big. I have only visited there but found it too gringolandia for me. Ditto Cuernavaca, where I did live for 8 months--plus the development there has all been done on the basis of graft rather than planning and it just isn't a great place anymore. The problem is that most of the places where jobs pay a living wage are in big cities. You can live and work in places like Oaxaca--and also on the coast in Puerto Escondido and Puerto Angel (I spent a year as head of languages at the university there) and get paid a living wage--but lack of sanitary conditions drive almost everybody away from the coastal spots and the air pollution in Oaxaca Cityis terrible. You willjust have to take your chances and find out where you want to be by being there. You won't stay very long unless you really have a passionate love for the country.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

What's good?

Right now Semana Santa is good. Two weeks of paid vacation time off!

[M@tt]

Only one for us but i think we get out earlier than most, so I guess it's an even trade.

I have to say one great thing about Mexico is the bus service. Getting on the right bus at the right time is a challenge, but once you're there it's comfortable and pleasant. Best of all it's cheap, which leads me to another good point: traveling! I travel every weekend here and have gotten to know some other cities really well. I couldn't really afford to do that in the US and if it meant using Grayhound, I wouldn't even want to.

That's all for now... I'm kind of fried from my vacation.