Job Discussion Forums

[AjarnErnes]

I've narrowed down my choice of cities to teach in to these two.

Mexico City:

Pros:
Good climate, big city, familiar culture, great food ( even the street food ), medium cost of living, I can explore all of Mexico and maybe Central America and the Carribean on holidays, closer to the USA and family there, good transport system, I speak passable Spanish

Cons:
High crime rate, pollution, over crowded, not much of a cultural stretch ( I travel and live outside the US to explore different cultures and people ), Very Catholic, unsure about my ability to find a job, unsure about size of expat community

Prague:

Pros:
Beautiful city, lots of expats, lots of jobs, able to explore Eastern Europe on holidays ( I've done most of Western Europe ), new culture to explore, I've been there 3 or 4 times in the past on holidays,

Cons:
IT'S COLD, higher cost of living than Mexico City, I'd have to learn a new language, The Czech republic is now part of the EU so it could be more difficult for me ( an American ) to get a work permit, IT'S VERY COLD

So if you were me, which would you choose?
I really like the idea of being in a familiar culture after living in Bangkok Thailand for the last 2 1/2 years. So Mexico City would be nice. On the other hand, exploring Eastern Europe on holiday breaks would be great, too. So Prague would be nice.

Decisions... Decisions

Ajarn Ernest

[Cdaniels]

This is a tough decision, although the weather is the deciding factor for me. How bad is the pollution in Prague? Probably not as bad as the DF. Another problem is that I hear Prague is nearly overrun with English teachers who have gotten in ahead of the EU requirements. I imagine the hiring market for English teachers is better in Mexico City. Warm climates also seem to have a correalation with the warmth of the people, too. I imagine Czechs aren't as friendly as Mexicans, although any available Czech women are welcome to change my mind about this

Hey!, You haven't posted this in the Czech forum! Maybe subconsciously you have already made the decision?

[Guy Courchesne]

Very Catholic is a con for Mexico City?

[Sgt Killjoy]

Ah, guy, you may not have noticed why it is a Con for Ajarn Ernes. Ajarn is Thai for professor. Now, just about every westerner in Thailand who is not a missionary, and some that are, like to delve into the nighttime pursuits that Thailand is famous for. Living here, they also take on a hatred on Christianity. If you want to find the largest group of Christ haters, just come to Thailand. Not Thai people, they are very welcoming and caring, but the westerners they host have extreme hatreds in their heart. So without a doubt, Ajarn Ernes has a fear of Mexico City because of the Catholics.

I might make a side note, Mexico City does have a better climate than prague, but December and January in Mexico City where no place has heat can really make you think twice about it being a better climate choice than Prague.

About the expat community, again in Asia, since you are always a foreigner, you stick out and you tend to want to hang out with other foreigners. (I personally can't stand most westerners) In Mexico, it is quite easy to just hang out with Mexicans. In all my time in Mexico, I have never hung out with a Westerner other than to show him the ropes and get him to fend for himself.

[ls650]

I've never been to Prague, so it's a difficult question to answer.
I know that no one goes into TEFL expecting to make a lot of money, but I'm sure it's a lot harder to find a well-paying job in Prague than in DF.

[Guy Courchesne]

I thought he might have made a con along puritanical lines perhaps...

Mexico City is fairly modern, and very Western. Here you'll find every stripe of Catholic, (and Muslim, and Jew, and Protestant, and...) though I would suspect most are like those of us from French Canada...sin all you want Monday to Saturday and sometimes stumble into the church on Sunday for forgiveness!

You have to go into the smaller towns in Mexico to find traditional Catholics.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

[Cdaniels]

[Sgt Killjoy]

if you need to get a sense of self worth by attacking your own culture then by all means do it. But just because you are out of your own country, that doesn't mean you need to attack it with a venom.

I am sorry you take offense to what I say, it is just in my experience, Gringos in Mexico tend to adapt to life in their new land and tend to enjoy the good and bad more so than expats in other Asian countries. In thailand, particularly, the westerners tend to attack their home culture with a vengance because they are not there anymore. One of those things is religion. I know only 1 expat here in Thailand who is not a missionary(and I know many expats here) who doesn't feel the need to attack Chrisitianity in any of its forms. Those people are people I chose not to want to be around. I would rather be around happier people.

So since you brought yourself into this, cdaniels, what group do you belong to? The expat group who adapts to their new vulture and enjoys living in it and meeting friends in it, or one who is not in touch with the local culture and feels the need to attack their own past. So? What group?

[AjarnErnes]

I grew up in the church. I went to private Catholic high school. I went to private Catholic College.

Catholicism and I have both had about enough of each other for one life time. I DO NOT HATE CHRIST. I just am concerned about being surrounded by narrow minded ultra conservative people and the effect they can have on government that affects ALL of its citizens. One reason I don't live in the USA.

Yes, Thailand being 95% Buddhist has more of a live and let live attitude which I like a lot.

As far as the night time persuits... I am a good boy.

Back on topic please.

Ajarn Ernest

[Guy Courchesne]

[Cdaniels]

At the request of the OP, I will try to stay ontopic.
Be careful of defenestrations in Prague! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defenestrations_of_Prague
Well, that was almost ontopic

[parrothead]

As an American in the Czech Republic I found it difficult to gain legal employment, as opposed to Britons. Many job adverts list their preference for an EU passport holder; it's simply easier for the employer. Private teaching often involves countless hours commuting from one client to the next. The headaches are huge once you do land a position with a school. Plan on a month or two to go through the visa process. Some schools will probably let you work as long as things are being processed and if they know you will eventually have your work visa.
That being said, Prague is not as cheap as it once was, and it is easy to delete your reserves if you don't have money coming in. A recent study found Prague to be the 28th most expensive city for expats. If you come as a tourist it's inexpensive, but if you come to work it can be difficult. The average pay for a typical Prager is anywhere between 12,000 and 24,000kc/mo. ($500-$1,000USD/mo.), and as a foreign English teacher working 40hours a week one can also plan on making that much. The difficulty for many expats, however, is that they have to reserve between 5,000 and 12,000kc/mo. for rent (depending on shared apartment or private), whereas many Pragers own their flats.

Let's do some math, shall we.

Base pay (high end): 20,000kc/mo.
Take home: 15,000kc/mo.
Rent (shared flat) - 6,000kc/mo.
Phone card - 400kc/mo.
Food (including eating out) - 5,000kc/mo.
Entertainment (+internet) - 2,000kc/mo.
Transportation - 400kc/mo.

Savings = 1,200kc/mo. (Currency conversion=$50.00USD)

Keep in mind this is living a modest lifestyle on a good salary. You can do it for less of course, or you can spend a lot more, but the most traveling you will be able to do on a Czech teaching gig is to Slovakia or some last minute special to Greece or Croatia. That being said, it is inexpensive traveling within the country.

The Czech Republic is a secular country.

Prague is overrun with tourists and you will be competing with legally employed Britons as well as semi-fluent Czechs.

Pragers are not generally warm and fuzzy, at least at first. (Customer service seems to be the last import to the country).

Opportunists abound. Expect to pay for such treasured services as: Plastic grocery bags: 5kc.
Public toilet: 3-5kc. (depending on no. 1 or no. 2)
Fork for your salad: 2kc.
Ketchup packet: 2kc.

Czechnology is generally of poorer quality.

There's always something to do, however. It's a major international city with lots of clubs, pubs and arthouse movie theaters.

Wonderful and inexpensive public transit system.

You can get by without extensive knowledge of Czech (at least in Prague).


If you love the Czech Republic (and these days I don't necessarily consider Prague to be the essence of the Czech Republic), head to smaller cities where the cost of living is lower, the people are friendlier, and the beer, amazingly, can still be had for 10kc.

[M@tt]

this is an interesting comparison. i've only visited the czech republic for a week and i really enjoyed it, but one of my main issues would be the weather (mexico wins for me). winter nights are very uncomfortable here because the windows are single pane with bad insulation, and there is no central heating. options are bundling up before going to bed (which i have taken to doing) or buying a space heater.

traffic and pollution here are bad. i don't know enough about prague to tell you.
there's an expat community here but you won't notice unless you live in certain areas. i have zero foreign acquaintances (outside of my classmates, and we only speak to each other in spanish) and rarely see expats, but i live near the center of the city and take the metro a lot. for whatever reason, i do not cross paths with any foreigners. in terms of percentages, i would guess that 1% of mexico city's population is non-latino.

culturally, there is a huge difference between mexico and the US. probably a gap equally as large as prague, so if you're looking for cultural DISTANCE, i think they're about the same.

i would hesitate to compare mexican catholocism to anything you would find in the states. much of what is practiced here is totally heretical and would better be described as a cult than a christian denomination. of all the "catholics" i know, none of them read the Bible or know anything about Jesus, but they all know enough to basically hate the church here. i'm not sure how to characterize people. there is obviously a wide variety of practices and beliefs in a city this size (probably 20 times bigger than prague). the catholic church has a huge cultural influence as an institution but as far as doctrine and spirituality is concerned, there seems to be a total disconnect between people's daily lives and what i think of as christianity. and if you think 99% of mexicans have any influence on their government you probably don't know mexico very well.
you know, i'm just going to stop here because anything i write about religion is going to sound like utter bullshiznit.

food, i would vote for mexican but it's such a personal thing. you eat in the streets? i get sick every time. so, that's an example of how something important to one person could be totally irrelevant to another.

i think it just depends on whether you prefer spending time in a latin culture or a slavic/european one. there are good and bad points about both. i personally prefer latin culture. sure, i'm fascinated by slavic culture too, but not enough to live there. maybe i'm biased against it by my cruel slovakian grandmother, who knows? good and bad people in both places. i'm sure prague is a million times more cosmopolitan than mexico city, so be sure to take that into account if that's your thing. prague is city dedicated to tourism. mexico is a city dedicated to el desmadre.
i still like it though.
good luck choosing!

[Guy Courchesne]