HELP!!!
Our move to Mexico City to teach English and eventually retire has had some major complications. And we´re asking anyone out there for help.
As I posted back in March during our first trip to Mexico City, my husband, Mike, ended up in the hospital and had 2 brain surgeries after the docs located a cyst growing on his brain. His recovery has been going well - until this week.
Beginning last Monday we plunged deep into training for our teaching positions and this has included LONG, LONG days of reading and writing. The long days have strained Mike´s eyes and he is having a terrible time. So bad that we do not know if he will be able to teach.
He met with with his doctor yesterday (the main doc from the hospital he was at in March) and she did some tests on his eyes and blood was drawn. Tomorrow Mike will have another brain scan and his doc wants him to see an opthomologist asap. Hopefully, he will not need another surgery, however, that is a possibility.
On top of that, the conditions for our employment are not what we had expected. Lastly, we do not believe that we can live in Mexico City (it is much more expensive that we had anticipated) on teacher wages for myself only (if Mike is not able to teach.) We do not want to touch our retirement savings for several years so this poses a gigantic problem.
Of course, our future will depend on what the docs determine about Mike. And if they determine that the eye strain is a normal part of his recovery we would like to stay in Mexico, but not Mexico City.
That said, where do we go? Does anyone have any ideas? If there are any teachers reading this blog, can you suggest where we might go to teach - even if it is just me teaching? Does anyone know of a school that is looking for teachers?
Bottom line is we need to find a place to live in Mexico where I can teach and we can afford to live on just my teaching wages. I know a lot of people read this blog so if you have any ideas please post comment or email me at chizillin@att.net. I am feeling desparate and any help would be appreciated!
The damn palm
5 days ago
12 comments:
Cynthia, that's terrible news. I'm sure this must be a very stressful time for you guys. I hope things go well with the doctor tomorrow.
I was going to send you an email at your old email address, but I wasn't sure if you still had access to it or not. Let me know if you have another one.
What about looking at some of the smaller towns in the interior or on the Pacific coast? I think Guyamas is much cheaper place to live. Brenda and Roy are there. There's a link to their blog on mine, if you need to find it.
Keep in touch and don't let things get you down until you've exhausted all your avenues.
Beth
p.s. We'd to meet you in Playa if you could get there!!
Yikes. I feel for you guys, especially with the medical stuff. At least you know you're in good hands.
With regard to teaching, I would say that there are probably jobs but that it will take some time and some patience and energy to figure out.
What about getting out of town (or staying where you are for a bit) and renting a furnished place for a month so you can sort things out. A smaller community where just day to day life isn't so challenging as it can be in DF.
You'll figure it out, there is a place here in Mexico just waiting for you two.
I don't know too many people who live on teaching wages. Sorry, those that do rent a room or do it to supplement some other income. DF is very,very expensive. Merida is not cheap either but less expensive than DF. Mexico is a bring your own job kind of place. That said, many people live here and do work. you might try some of the private schools and see if they need English teachers.
Also if you have a working FM3 unless you got a special one, it is tied to you being employed by the school, and if you quit you have to tell immigration.
If you have a degree did you have it apostiled? That way you might have a better chance of getting a job.
Have you read what Cancun Cancuk has to say about teaching? Also Rolly Brooks?
I'm sorry for your problems, I wish that I had more cheerful news.
regards,
Theresa
Here's the link Theresa mentioned...
http://www.cancuncanuck.com/2008/03/teaching-english-in-cancun.html
Keep us posted and stay upbeat!
Nancy beat me to it, but here is the link to Rolly Brooks http://www.rollybrook.com/teaching.htm
regards,
Theresa
Hi Cynthia. What sort of conditions/pay are you getting at the mo? How much are you paying for rent? If you don't mind me asking?
DF can be more expensive for property, but it is very cheap to get around here and jobs do tend to pay more. Also, there is lots of work, if you know where to look. What sort of teaching are you doing? As a private Business English teacher, you should, eventually, be able to take 10,000 pesos a month minimum. I say eventually, because the reality is, that you have just arrived and will need to establish yourself and make contacts. Have you tried looking through the Mexico forum at http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/ ? That will probably be a help if you haven't.
Another reality is that teaching jobs in the nicest places, the places where most tourists go, is often not brilliant pay wise, and usually hard to get. That's not to say jobs don't exist there, but DF, Guadalajara, San Luis Potosi and Monterrey remain the best bets.
Cynthia, maybe you could consult with some other English teachers in MX. Peter Rice (http://peterbrice.com/) is blogging from Zamora in Michoacan, and while I haven't read far back in his archives, he seems to be doing fine. He apparently teaches at night, something I'm sure you wouldn't want to do in DF. Also, I'm looking for the info on a school in Guaymas; the owner asked me once if I knew any English teachers.
Here is the linke to Dave's Cafe Mexican Forum
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewforum.php?f=26
I'm not in Mexico - yet - so I'm not going to express a point of view, but my questions are always answered by the experienced, inteligent and helpful teachers on the forum.
Hi there!
My name is Cynthia, I'm a mexican but live in Canada, soon my family and I will move to mexico, i found your blog looking for information ... I just wanted to tell you that in Guadalajara are always looking for people to teach english! I will be moving there ... I will try to find information to try to help you ... You can check in Zihuatanejo too, it's nice there and you may find some work ... Take care and be strong ...
Sorry to hear about that! We all hope Mike is ok!
Love you guys!
-Fiji Heat Girls
Cynthia
This school may have openings. Check it out. http://www.colamex.org/
Hi again!
Hope you are a better today ... Here is some information for you ...
English Teaching Job Web Sites:
www.tefl.com
www.eslcafe.com
www.teachabroad.com
www.linguistic-funland.com
And ... The website for MEXTESOL ... MEXTESOL is a professional organization in Mexico which sponsors regional and national conferences where English teachers, foreigners and Mexicans alike, get together and share ideas. For more information, see www.mextesol.org.
I hope this help! Good luck!
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