Dear reader, I am Thomas from Internship in Mexico. In this article, I will share with you my personal journey in Mexico: how I ended up studying in Guadalajara and how I returned to work in Puerto Escondido. I hope to convey my enthusiasm and make you want to have your own experience in this beautiful country.
About me
I was born in a lovely port city called La Rochelle, on the west coast of France. After high school, I went to study at IESEG, a business school on the Lille campus in northern France. My school requires all students to go on an exchange abroad so they can benefit from international education. So I decided to go abroad when I was 20 years old, during my third year of studies.
I was desperate to go to Latin America to improve my Spanish because the courses I was given in France were not enough to improve my level. There is nothing better than learning a language in the country where it is spoken. I could choose between different destinations in Latin America and finally went to Guadalajara, Mexico.
Why this destination? Because a few people had already told me about the benefits of the city and I was excited about studying at ITESO, the university I went to during my exchange period.
My experience in Guadalajara
I arrived in Guadalajara at the beginning of August to study for two semesters at ITESO. Not knowing where to stay, I made a last-minute reservation for a room in a shared house. It turned out to be full of international students who were also enrolled in the university exchange program in Guadalajara.
This is one of the best things about the city: a huge network of international students. This provides new interactions every week, allowing you to develop your openness. However, it may be better not to spend too much time within this network if you want to fully experience the local culture and improve your Spanish.
Most shared houses are in the center of GDL, far away from the universities located on the edge of the city. Transport to the university varies, you can take the metro, bus, uber or you can carpool. I strongly recommend using carpools organized by students from your university via WhatsApp groups. This way, you can meet Mexican students and use the fastest and cheapest transport. I was able to meet great people through carpooling.
The premature departure; due to the Covid crisis, all Mexican campuses closed by March 2020. Like most international students, I decided to return to France for security reasons. Unfortunately, my second semester ended with online classes from France, and I could not carry out my travel plans.
My experience in Puerto Escondido
With an unfinished experience in Mexico, I decided to go back in September 2022 and work with the founders of Internship in Mexico whom I met during my exchange in Mexico. Working from home, I chose to go to Puerto Escondido this time and have a very different experience from Guadalajara. Indeed, Puerto Escondido is a small town on the west coast of Oaxaca, famous for its beautiful waves, visited by many surfers. You can read more about my experience in Puerto Escondido in the life of a digital nomad in Puerto Escondido.