I'm teaching in Valencia, Venezuela now. I've been in Venezuela for about four and a half years now.The school is awesome, the kids are friendly, and the resources are pretty fantastic too.

Some days I never want to leave and other days there is no electricity for a few of hours, the water in your apartment doesn't work for half of the day, and your car just broke down for the fourth time in a month after being "fixed". When life gets too annoying inland, we just head out to a nice Caribbean beach that is only about an hours drive away.

Hi Senator,

I'm currently teaching at an international school in Valencia, Venezuela. Life is pretty normal for us expat teachers. I'm going on my fifth year here and life at school is the same other than not having AC when the power is out and we have to use a generator.

Like PsyGuy said, if you get paid mostly in dollars or another foreign currency (pay close attention to the percentages) then you will have access to imported goods which are more costly but necessary if you don't want to spend all day and night in a line. I mostly shop at local street markets and you can also find items sold by bachaqueros (the word for the people who stand in line all day for the subsidized items and then resell them) at a high markup. Costs have easily doubled because at this time last year I was spending $200 a month and now it is more like $400 per month. If you are getting a local salary then you do not have it easy at all.

For a more local perspective, I like to read the Caracas Chronicles blog: http://www.caracaschronicles.com/. If you are interested in the life of an international teacher here you can check out my blog if you are so inclined: https://teachingwanderlust.com/.

I'm single, teaching in Venezuela, and I could be saving about $30K if I weren't aggressively paying down my student loans as per Mr. MM! I also travel at every opportunity or it could be a bit more.

I live two hours outside of Caracas in Valencia. Everything is pretty quiet and calm these days. The apartments that the teachers live in ration water quite frequently (I usually only have running water three hours a day- 1 hour at a time). This is my third year in Venezuela and I love it!

So if you can deal with the difficult to find items (cooking oil, coffee, sugar, flour, milk, toilet paper) and the insecurity (don't walk around with your iphone out or leave valuables in your car), then I would recommend looking at Venezuela as an option.

For my first post in Mexico I was picked up from the airport, given a welcome dinner, a welcome box with some food items and basic kitchen stuff, gave me a working cell phone to use for the year, and a couple of days to figure things out at school.

In China it was very organized and there was an expat/local pair in charge of organizing it. They picked us up from the airport, gave me welcome water, fruit, and basic kitchen stuff, helped me get my phone and internet set up, helped me get a bike, took me shopping for food & to Ikea, got all the medical and visa stuff taken care of, and gave us time to set up our classes. Great experience!

In Venezuela we were greeted by the director at the airport, the houses were already furnished with many kitchen and bed linens, and it seemed like the rest of the time was spent eating and attending social mixers. Perhaps this is why I have felt closer to my colleagues than ever before. We were given some time to set up our classes but it definitely didn't feel like enough during that first year!

I wrote more and shared some pictures of these experiences so far: http://teachingwanderlust.com/2014/04/1 ... ientation/. I think it is really important to have a good orientation because it sets the stage for the rest of the year.

-Amanda

Hello,

I also made my own spreadsheet so I could easily compare the things that are important to me.

I have a 2/3 strategy: I must be happy with two out of the three areas in my life that I have deemed important to have a successful teaching placement- great school experience, fun outside of school, and a good love/family life at home.Some things that I look for are: 1) Overall benefit package; 2) If it is a small-medium school do I think I will get along well with admin and are there other single people my age to hang out with at school; 3) Are there plenty of activities to keep me busy outside of school; 4) Will I be able to find places to go salsa dancing (replace salsa with whatever your passion is)? :)

There are so many schools out there that I could probably find a place I would like to work in most countries in the world!

-Amanda at http://teachingwanderlust.com/

I would love to work at ISKL! I have only heard good things about that school. I have heard that Malaysia is also a wonderful place to retire if you thinking of someplace to settle down.

In the three schools I have worked at internationally, none of them gave me the option of paying into SS. I know I paid into it until I moved overseas so it might be worth it for me to continue paying into it until I am vested...but, will it be around 30 years from now when I retire? I would probably pay into it given the option because I'm an optimist, but I would love to see some proof that SS will still be around in the future.

I live in a small city in Venezuela and my life is pretty great overall. I've now worked here for two years and will be returning to work in a larger city in August.

Yes, for people without access to dollars, life is very expensive and not very easy. However, most of us expats get paid in dollars so we therefore have access to more resources than your average person on the street. Yes, it is difficult to find certain things and you are kinda forced to be a hoarder because you buy a lot of certain products when you see them or else you might be doing without those products for a few months (toilet paper, milk, coffee, soap, laundry soap, sugar, flour, etc.). Many parents at my current school own stores so if you tell the school secretary that you need something (chicken and toilet paper are two things that she has helped me find) then she usually contacts one of the parents and we buy things in bulk to last a few months.

The Venezuelan people I know are very welcoming and warm. I have made many friends here and I usually feel safe. I don't use public transportation and I don't go out at night by myself. I also don't go walking...anywhere really. While this is not the life I envisioned for myself, I make it work and I think the pros outweigh the cons.

I'm working on writing up a packing list, but some things that I plan on bringing back in August are: peanut butter, cooking spices, a good pan for cooking (all of the pans I have brought here are quickly falling apart). Also, quality bedding and nice towels are hard to find. A cardigan to wear inside the school because the AC is always on high to beat the heat outside. Polo shirts and button up dress shirts are popular for guys. Skinny pants and skirts are popular for ladies. Even though it is hot year round, most people over the age of 13 don't seem to wear shorts. High heels and nice shoes for guys are popular.

Sometimes I just try to create my own solutions like making my own coconut milk: http://teachingwanderlust.com/2014/05/1 ... onut-milk/ haha. Good luck!

I've never heard of that school before, but the last time I lived in Italy was 2006 and that was only for three months.

I didn't mean to discourage you about the loan thing. I actually just posted about how I still owe $60K (private school!) http://teachingwanderlust.com/2014/05/01/tuitionbites/ and I'm paying on it while teaching overseas. I don't think most international teachers worry about student loans as much as I do. :)

If I didn't have student loans to repay I would LOVE to be teaching in Italy! Congratulations on landing the job!

If you are looking for reviews or you want to contact people directly who have worked in the school you might also try searching on International School Community http://www.internationalschoolcommunity.com/home.

I'm glad your interview went well!

I just posted a list of some interview questions I have received over the years from various international schools:
http://teachingwanderlust.com/2014/04/2 ... questions/ . I hope it helps someone in the future!

I know I always like to practice answering some of the questions because I am always a little flustered during interviews.


-Amanda

About adding EFL/ESL experience: more and more schools these days seem to be admitting local students which means a high percentage of those students will be ELLs. I think training and experience in teaching EFL is an asset. Be sure to also focus on the lesson planning aspect of it too.

-Amanda at http://teachingwanderlust.com/

I worked at an international school in Beijing at a fairly new "international school" (mainly locals with dual passports). They paid for my flights, housing, and a pretty average salary. I saved some money because I shopped at the local markets and liked to cook my own food (mmm, still daydream about the fresh tofu!). However, I think I would save more in Saudi (never worked there), just because it is so easy to shop in China and spend the night out on the town in Beijing. From what I have read, many people in Saudi spend most of their time in their compounds saving their money until they go on a big trip for vacation.

I am curious to read about specific schools in China where one could earn more than Aramco (maybe ISB?).

-Amanda at http://teachingwanderlust.com/

I teach second grade at a small school called Escuela Las Morochas in Venezuela. I'm pretty sure they haven't filled my position yet. I know they post on TIEOnline.com. I love my school and the students are the best I've ever worked with, I just want to move to a bigger city. I'm staying in Venezuela but it is also not the safest place in the world right now. Pros and cons to everything I guess. At least it would be a place to get your foot into the world of international teaching.

Good luck with your applications!

-Amanda at http://teachingwanderlust.com