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[xjamesax]

As I prepared to come down to South America I read some really good posts on this site but a lot of them were over a year old. I moved to Santiago, Chile 4 weeks ago and am going to give my experience thus far.

I flew in after a brief stop over in Buenos Aires and immediately felt the difference. I've traveled extensively and Santiago had a much different feel from most of the other cities I've visited. It is a large, spread out city that reminds me a lot of Los Angeles, smog and all.

I lucked out and found Hostel de Sammy on the internet (www.hosteldesammy.com). The American owner is willing to let long term residents work in exchange for free room and board, breakfast (Coffee, tea, cereal, yogurt, toast, fresh fruit and sometimes banana pancakes made by the owner!), free laundry, and free dinner once a week. The hostel is also hooked up with 5 computers with high speed internet (totally free), a huge movie room with tons of movies, pool, foosball, and free bikes to take out on the town.

I got settled into the hostel and started exploring the city. After getting to know my way around I got a map and the yellow pages and mapped out all of the "escuelas de idomas" I found that the majority of the schools are in the barrio Providencia and are all within walking distance of each other. I was also turned onto www.4gringos.com which is dated but still had some good info on it.

I'm 23 years old and have a BS in International Business and a TEFL from an American University (Though only one of the institutes checked on these) and no ESL teaching experience.

I mapped out my route and went door to door handing out my CV. I went out completely dressed in my best shirt and tie. I hit up 7 institutes in my first day and that evening I had two interviews lined up.

I picked up a cheap pay-as-you-go cellphone from Claro here in town and spent around 20 USD for a decent Motorola phone. It works great and I've been very happy with it. It also came with around 3.000 pesos pre-loaded on the phone.

After interviewing at 5 different institutes I was offered teaching hours at 4 of them. Most of them pay really well for a native teacher. The lowest paying is 4.444 pesos per hour (gross) plus transportation and the highest has been 5.500 (gross) per hour. One of the institues offered me a contract in which I had to promise them two parts of my day (Morning, mid-day, and afternoon) in exchange for a visa with health benefits. If I had chosen this option the pay schedule changed as well. 4.500 for the first 35 hours in the month and 6.000 for everything after that. The lowest paying institute (4.444/hour) is also the rate for a probation period of two-to-three months and after the period goes up to 6.666/hour.

With the weakening dollar I'm looking forward to weaning myself off of my savings. Its the middle of march and things are just starting to get rolling. People are coming back from vacation and are starting to enroll in classes. From my experience thus far and from everyone I've talked to I should have no problem living VERY comfortably in the city.

You can find furnished a room in an apt here in to for 100.000 - 120.000 pesos per month.

Food is expensive here. I was told to budget 120.000-150.000 pesos per month for food! On that budget you can eat out once or twice a week and the rest is cooking at home. Shopping is also expensive. The malls here carry all of the major US brands such as Levi's, Ambercrombie, Dockers, Calvin Klein and a ton more. You can also find Pizza Hut and Taco Bell in the mall here.

The nightlife here has yet to impress me. There is really a lack of culture here. Nothing really stands out to me. Mexico has its food, music and beer...Peru has its rich history and archeological sites and Chile (Santiago at least) doesn't have much. I hear the South and North of the country are incredibly beautiful but I have yet to explore them. I would say the women here are so-so.

My plan (as of now) is to hang out here for the next 6-8 months teaching and then move to another location here in South America just to say that I got a true feel of South America and not just South America.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me and ask.

Check out my blog for further info on what i've been doing and pics of the city institutes. www.xjamesax.blogspot.com



Anthony H.
[email protected]

[bdbarnett1]

Thanks for the detailed account...I'm getting to make the move myself, except with a wife and kid. Keep it up!

[john_n_carolina]

....excellent post, James....good, applicable, Santiago info. let's us know how you do shuttling around town...

[Lunkey]

thanks for the post!! I'm in the process of figuring out my move to Santiago sometime in the next 6-12 months, and this answered a lot of questions

[mangotoucu]

Hey James,

Sounds like things are going well for you thus far in Santiago. I've considered teaching English in Santiago, and I've got a few questions for you.

1. Are you fluent in Spanish? Is this essential for getting a job at an English academy/institute there?

2. Do you have a Bachelor's degree and/or TEFL/CELTA certificate? Did this affect your job prospects there?

3. Have you been able to successfully find an affordable apartment? How are food/utilities costs so far if you have? Or, are you still living at the hostel? Does the hostel owner need any more help-in-exchange-for-free-room/board?

4. Did it help that you were searching for jobs in March as that's when the school year starts in Chile, or do you think it would be possible to get a job there anytime during the year? I'm asking b/c I want to come there ASAP and I couldn't until now b/c I was finishing my bachelor's.

Thanks for the post. I read your blog as well and will keep up with your progress.

Que te vaya bien!

Alison