Week 3 - más o menos

It has been a roller coaster week. At first I thought I was going to be sent home; miscommunication I think due to both cultural expectations and my not feeling well. But then, a couple days later, I was put in front of my first English class without much of a preparation. They said I would be chatting with some students, which to me is informal, get-to-know-you kind of stuff, probably with people who knew more English. Was I wrong. I have a group of students who don`t know much English at all, just the basics and I had no idea what to do with them. All I know is if someone came to teach me a language and showed up looking hopelessly lost, I wouldn`t be very happy. I don`t know if the expectations are different here, or if they are just too polite. I`ve now had a few classes, so I feel a little better and I got some guidance from one of my former Spanish teachers.

I also have a "real" job working at a hotel. I`m working 9-1 for now, so I can still teach English in the afternoons. I`ve only been there two days now, but I think that it is promising. They are going to try and have me work in a lot of different departments, so that I can learn as much as possible and meet a lot of people too. The name of the resort is El Cid, it`s main business is timeshares, although it does have a regular hotel as well.

I will be relocating again as well. The person I am staying with right now, Adriana, has her house under construction, and so it is not exactly the ideal place. I will be moving to the house of another university employee; her name is Marta. She`s also going to teach me how the bus system works, so I can move freely on my own.

Today, I had a semi-scary thing happen. Marta was giving me a ride home, and we came to a railroad crossing with the red light on. In Mexico this doesn`t mean stop though. It`s more of a yield, make sure the train`s not too close. The problem was that the traffic stopped for a short time while we were still on the tracks. To say that I almost got hit by a train is a little bit of an exaggeration, but I was definitely contemplating my options should traffic not move forward quickly. Luckily it did, and I made it out unscathed, but I think I now know why there are so many crosses and flowers at all the railroad crossings.

Take care everyone!