Good News Bad News: Living in Santiago

Although teaching English in Santiago may have its many downsides, the few positives outweigh the negatives by far. My time here has only been sprinkled with a few bad experiences. When I finally decide to leave Santiago, I will take home the greatest souvenir- perspective. Living abroad truly enriches your life and instills in you a strong sense of confidence. If I can jump on a plane to South America, then I can do just about anything. Life is never without its bumps, but hands down, teaching and consequently living in Santiago has been the greatest part of my 24 years on this earth.

Bad News - Relax, there isn't much bad news when it comes to living in Santiago!

1. Expenses- Alright, everything here is very comparable to Texas (and I say Texas because it has a lower cost of living than other states). A trip to the grocery store costs about the same. In reality, this is only bad news if you have planned on lower expenses in a South American country. However, clothes and shoes run a bit high for the shoddy quality.

2. Less Amenities- I don't have a dryer, dish washer, indoor heating, air conditioning. To me, this is perfectly fine. Actually, I enjoy putting a little extra effort in hanging up my own clothes. Unless you want to pay a lot of money for all the comforts of your cushy life back home, enjoy this so called "suffering." It makes you a better person. 

Good News

1. Rent- I rent a room in a fairly large older apartment in Providencia. I pay about $260 a month and it includes electricity/gas/internet. My roommate situation is ideal. After I was hired at my institute, I had grand plans of finding my own apartment. However, compared to my month earnings, the feat is fairly unfeasible for a single person. Plus, if you do not have an i.d. card, I hear it's difficult to contract  internet service and it opens up more opportunities for someone to take advantage of your bright-eyed gringo-ness. On another note, finding a room to rent is another great way to meet people and practice your Spanish. It cuts significantly cuts down the amount of loneliness of the first month.

2. The City Itself- When I first arrived in South America I jumped off a plane in Buenos Aires. It was huge, the people were beautiful but cold, the downtown was a little dirty, the transportation was a nightmare, and I couldn't receive change anywhere. So, I was immediately relieved when I hit the streets of Santiago. There is smog and it may not be as fascinating as other cities, but it's the perfect first-time-living-abroad city: different enough to be interesting but similar enough to be comforting.

3. La Vega- This is wonderful. Just plain wonderful. The prices of fresh produce and everything else you could possibly want is sinfully cheap. It's about a 45 minute trek and a couple of hours of dedication. However, I leave with a bag (sometime a bag and a coche) full of beautiful vegetables, dried goods, and fresh eggs.

4. Wine and Pisco- Wine is good. Wine is cheap. Nothing is better than finishing classes a little early on a Friday afternoon, coming home, and pouring myself a little (or big depending on the week) glass of wine. As for pisco, the origin of this liquor is a huge debate between Peru and Chile. It's very difficult to find the US, but it's everywhere in Chile. Whether you like a sweet pisco sour or the ever popular piscola, you will have no problems ordering one at any establishment.

5. A Lot of Humans- I have met more people from around the world here than is anyplace in the US. Santiago is home to some very large university making it a hub for international students. I've met people from Sweden, Norway, Germany, France, Slovakia, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, England, Scotland, Ireland, California and almost every South American country. Whether you take a TEFL course, study, work at an institute, or just bum around, Santiago is a great city to meet other people.

DO IT! DO IT! DO IT! Move abroad, travel, open your mind, and change your perspective. Stop living with your parents or off of their money, step outside of the comforts of home, and enjoy something that reaches beyond the horizon of what you know. Sometimes it's difficult to read through pages of pathetic facebook updates. "My problem is this. My problem is that." NO! The problem is yourself. Now, do something about it and stop littering my newsfeed! Please, of course. :)

Life Currently: Aside from the impending excitement of the September holidays, the weather is by far the best part of this week. It has been in the upper 60's to mid 70's. Nothing brightens your day more than a dose of sunshine. Me encanta Santiago en la primavera! For the next three months, my goals are to eat more veggies, think more positively and kindly, and learn more Spanish. Just practicing for my trip home... which I purchased my plane ticket this past Friday!

La Malena- bad kitty, doesn't come inside when I call her!

air dried

welcome home

My first bottle of Pisco back last fall!

Good News Bad News: Teaching English in Santiago

Okay, seven months later, I think I have some experience to comment on the pro's and con's of teaching English in Santiago. I always prefer bad news first. So I assume you do, too.

Bad News


1. Uncertainty of hours. First, I love the English institute that I work for. It's probably the best in the city as far as I am concerned. However, no matter how many times my boss tells me "oh, Katie, we'll be filling up your schedule so soon that you won't know what to do," I always nod my head and smile while keeping a steady head. Unfortunately, for a small institute, a owner cannot guarantee that Chileans will sign up for classes during free periods in your schedule. For example, even though I was hired in March, I (as well as almost all other teachers at the institute) did not have a full schedule until June. Then, this year there has been student protests as well as a strike at the bank. In January/February/March, everyone and their dog goes on vacation.

2. Cancellations. Okay, so you have a full schedule (about 25-30 teaching hours per week). Beautiful! Now, your students will most likely cancel. My institute has a relatively lax cancelation policy of 3 hours prior other institutes require more notice from the student. I cannot tell you how many times I've received an e-mail or call EXACTLY three hours before my class saying that "something has come up." And you guessed it, you don't get paid for a cancelled class.

3. Commuting. I have a pretty sweet deal because most of my classes are in the center and I LOVE walking. I take the metro only a couple of times a week. However, I have friends who must take the metro all around town a few times a day. This adds up! Currently, the metro cost $570 CLP (roughly $1.25 US) for each trip.

4. Hourly Pay. This applies to me, but not to everyone. There are some institutes that offer some sort of base salary pay. Mine does not. So I do not get paid extra for planning, only teaching. Not a great incentive to plan exciting classes, right? For example, I have a class at a newspaper. And I had the wonderful opportunity to read and correct 10 articles from my students. Did I get paid while I sat in front of my computer? Nope.

5. Schedule. Since I teach business English, I teach before working hours, at lunchtime and after working hours. Although I am able to run errands between classes, I don't have to go grocery shopping everyday twice a day. There are two to three hour gaps in between my classes that start at 8/8:30am and  can end at 8pm.

6. Sticky Situations. I cannot speak for male teachers, but I've been in some interesting situations when it comes to male students. First, gringas have a stigma for being more sexually free than Chilenas. So combined that with the fact that we smile and make eye contact when speaking, you have a recipe for disaster. Once, I had a student who after our class was over I received an inappropriate e-mail from him. When I didn't respond, I received a skype request as well as about five calls after he had moved out of the country. I've had a few other sketchy ones, too. So, be on your guard, ladies.

Good News


1. Students. Although some students can be a real pain, cancel, and not respect the fact this is your job, many are taking classes to learn English. I can honestly say I enjoy all of my classes the majority of the time. Rarely, I have a class that is scant on laughter. Since I work mostly in banks, I am constantly challenged to learn more about the world of finance. My students are keen on discussing current events. This is could be the only reason to teach English in Santiago.  Because it is worth it! How many times in your life will you be able to discuss the movie Borat with a Chilean banking executive? Would it be too corny to say that I get true satisfaction when I see my students progress?

2. Walking. Alright this one is for me. I walk all the time. I walk a lot. I haven't talked about in my blog that much, but I've also lost weight because of it. It is awesome. My legs are killer...  minus the fact that they are blindingly white.

3. I'm in South America. Alright, so may be there are more negatives to positives, but the most important part about teaching English, is that you are living in a foreign country. You are (slowly but surely) learning a different language and culture. Every weekend is filled with some sort of adventure. It's not a fairytale and I've yet to meet single, young, sexy, Chilean prince charming (that doesn't have a child or live with his mother). Life is seldom boring. Also, I'm looking forward to traveling to Bolivia, Peru, and Argentina for a reasonable price.

Life Currently
Recently (as in yesterday and today), I have had a little meltdown. I don't wish to plaster my emotions all over the internet, but I would like to be honest. I've been planning on coming home for Christmas for the past several months, and according to current plane ticket prices, it's going to be dead expensive. The possibility of me spending a very hot Christmas away from home is enough to send me into a mode of over analyzing and worrying, something that drives me crazy with anticipation and a desire to make rash decisions. All I need is a little perspective and some Chilean wine.