One month and one TEFL certification down

While not a particularly impressive milestone,  I have officially survived my first month in Buenos Aires.  Close calls with crazy porteño drivers and the gas stove in my apartment have certainly made life interesting while TEFL classes have kept me busy.

During the last two weeks, we did teaching practicums with real Argentine students, which was much more helpful than the first two weeks of lecture.  The eight- to 10-hour days in the charming but AC-less Recoleta Institute (which was once a presidential residence) left us champing at the bit for both fiestas and siestas— the two were a bit at odds.  Unsurprisingly, everyone retired to their respective barrios following the graduation lunch Friday, saving the all-night celebration for another time.

While some TEFL alums are traveling to other exotic locales to teach, most of us plan to stick around Buenos Aires and look for work.  But with an estimated 70 percent of the population still out of town on holidays, finding a decent amount of work will be tricky in February.   But to all of my left-brained readers (you know who you are), let me assure you that I have every intention of finding work this month despite the city's sluggishness.

Still first thing is first: I've got to beat this stomach bug that's had me feeling sick since Thursday.  With any luck, my embarrassing Spanglish exchange with the pharmacist yesterday was not in vain, and I'm now on the mend.