Do the hustle...

I have been in Puerto Vallarta for 5 days now and figured it is about time to shoot out an update. A few things have changed. First, I have a place to call home. I moved in with the Mitchell family: Colleen (mama), Jenna (15), and Mattias (3.5). We are living a bit north of Puerto Vallarta in a suburb called Valle Dorado. The place is great; the community has a pool, is safe, and tourist free. I love tourists just as next person but it is nice to get away from them a bit. I think this will be a really nice place to live and after night one I already feel like part of the family.

The next thing to get lined up is the whole job thing. Well, it seems that in my moving history finding a place to live has been the easy part and the job is the more difficult part of the equation. I am looking for two jobs actually. The first is the unpaid, some how related to International Health position. I have met thus far with a few organizations. All did some really cool stuff but they had more to do with social work and teaching English than public health. But today after I finish this blog I will visit a local ministry of health hub and the Puerto Vallarta HIV alliance. So, hopefully that will come together.

The other job I am looking for is to pay the rent. I got on the ole business suit and took to the streets, sending my résumé far and wide to the fancy hotels. Basically I dropped my CV off with hotel Concierges in case some guests are looking for babysitters. Also, Colleen says that there should be some opportunities to do some babysitting, English teaching, salsa lessons, etc here in our little community. So, hopefully the odd jobs will come through here too.

I will end this blog update with a short story about my most exciting day here thus far. While walking the streets spreading my résumé around I met this really cool guy named Fidel. After we talked for awhile he said that he bought boat tour tickets for his in-laws but they didn’t want to go. He asked me if I wanted them. When have I been one to turn down free stuff? I imagined that the boat cruise would be a one-hour-around-the-bay deal. I invited a charming Kiwi named Tom that I met at the hostel to come along. As luck would have it, the tour was six hours long, included snorkeling, a hike to a waterfall, two meals, and uh hum..an open bar. Yes, it is fair to say that a good time was had by all. Hopefully I will be posting some picts once I mooch some pictures off Tom.

As you can see, life in México continues to be an adventure. I am not exactly certain how long it will last, however. Today I had a telephone interview for a position in Myanmar formally called Burma. If I got the position I would need to go back to the states for a couple months and wait for a visa. Then I would be gone for a year. In the mean time I am trying to be patient and get established; both of which are no easy task for me.