MEXICO CITY : What you Should Know Before You Begin?

All of Mexico City will not be covered in this article series. Instead, the focus is on two areas; The ZONA ROSA for employment and the Historic District around the Zocalo for places to stay, meals, sights, entertainment, culture and elements of "local color". Our experience is that too many well-meaning English language teaching hopefuls arrive in this horizon-to-horizon megalopolis of more than 23 million and are instantly overwhelmed. Interviews with quite a number of new arrivals to the city coupled with our own experiences and observations have led us to the conclusion that dividing the city into smaller, more manageable, 'bite-sized' sections is the way to go in addressing the multitudinous possibilities. By concentrating their efforts on only two areas of the city, newcomers - who may or may not be fluent in Spanish - can at least get their new lives initially under control, branching out as their skills, abilities and fluency increase. All the basic, and some not so basic, needs can be adequately met in these two areas and there are abundant job prospects. In addition, these are good areas for the TEFL newcomer and foreigner which are relatively 'safe' by Mexico City standards. Finally, a disproportionately large number of businesses in these two areas staff English-speaking personnel due to the abundance of foreigners. You'll find the information provided here to be both useful and helpful.

Websites for city and cultural information

These websites will be useful in doing some pre-travel boning up on Mexico City and environs as well as help you with some basic facts.

http://www.Mexview.com

Mexview.com is a site dedicated exclusively to tourism in Mexico. Information on Mexico City events, weather, music, theater and ecological tourism, among others, is offered. Practical information on hotels and restaurants, buses and airlines, archeological sites and points of interest is also logically provided. Need to know locations of ATM machines, hospitals or drug stores? This is the site to find it all. Emergency telephone numbers and even typical Mexican candies are highlighted at this essential site.

http://www.whatsgoingon.com/event/intl/mexcity.html

'Whatsgoingon'? provides detailed information on upcoming festivals, events and celebrations in and around Mexico City.

http://www.gonomad.com/destinations

Gonomad's site is very handy for descriptions of some out-of-the-way spots to visit, places to stay and unusual things to do, this is an interesting site to visit. It covers other countries as well but features Mexican locales, especially near Mexico City. Another option features the city and state of Oaxaca.

In part two of this article series, we'll look at options for getting to and away from Mexico City. Be sure to check out my other articles in the two continuing series: Teaching English in Mexico and Traveling in Mexico. If you would like more information, have questions or comments, the author can be e-mailed at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com