The Beginning

This has been a lifetime dream of mine to teach abroad in a Spanish speaking country. After teaching for four years in the Walnut Creek School District I decided that this would be a great time to fulfill this DREAM...so I began researching places. At first, I thought about Spain, Argentina, and also Chile. Many of the programs required me to pay money to learn how to teach, but I had already done this. My step dad had mentioned Mexico City because he has nephews and nieces who work at an American School in the city. I decided to apply there and sent in my resume. A week later, I got an email from the dean and he asked me to have a phone interview! I was so excited and couldn't believe that my dream was actually coming true. A few days later I had a phone interview on my cell phone during my prep time of teaching. He asked lots of questions about my experience, my travels in other countries, strengths, weaknesses, and reasons why I wanted to teach abroad. After about a 1/2 hour it was over and he said he'd contact me in a few days...

A week went by and I hadn't heard anything...then the Swine Flu broke out in Mexico and I began to have second thoughts...I wondered if this was the right choice and if it would be safe to even go. I contacted him a few days later and he apologized for not contacting me and had said they were ordered to close the school down for a week. That explained the no contact:) He then offered me the job and that they'd send me a contract to sign.

Once I got the contract I then needed to write a letter to my district for a personal leave of absence. If the district approved my leave they would hire me back the next year, but couldn't guarantee me a spot back at Walnut Heights or my same grade level. It was a risk I was willing to take and I sent the letter in. Two weeks later they accepted my leave and a week later I signed the contract to teach in Mexico City. Whew...!

It's now summer and I beginning to tie up all the loose ends of my life before I leave. Setting up bank accounts, gathering all the documents for my work visa, getting a passport, paying bills, selling my computer, getting a laptop, visiting with as many family and friends before I leave, and gearing up to live in a foreign country for a year. It's been a whirlwind of decision making these past few months, but I'm excited and thrilled for the adventure to begin...HERE WE GO!!