Teaching English overseas is a great way to experience local customs, food, and festivals. © trappy76 - Fotolia.com
The smell of fresh tamales mingled with whiffs of
sweet atole and my stomach grumbled. Throngs of
people of all ages were crammed into the dark
plaza with lighted brujas (lamps) as the only source
of light. Someone came onto the stage: a roadie
setting up a mike. An excited murmur moved the
crowd.
It was the Martes de Brujas gathering in Santa Cruz
Xoxocotlan (Xoxo to locals, pronounced ‘ho ho’), a
municipality of Oaxaca, Mexico. Every Tuesday
night for a month, starting in late February, the
small central square is set up with stalls selling
traditional tamales: a corn-dough mass filled
with a variety of sauces and then roasted in
banana leaves or corn husks. You can buy all
kinds: mole (a slightly sweet sauce served with chicken), beef, bean, pork, and even sweet ones
like pineapple and chocolate. They sell for an average of 50 cents and it doesn’t take many to fill
you.
Atole, a hot, sweet drink also made from corn is served along with the tamales. Both tamales and
atole are pre-Hispanic foods that were often used as offerings to the Aztec gods.
The word bruja translates from Spanish as ‘witch’ but it’s also the name of an old fashioned
wick-style lamp, made from tin. In the colonial days when the first cathedrals in this area were
being built, the workers often toiled long into the night, and the lamps, lit by the women were
the signal of a shift change. The men were given tamales and atole as their meal. They all ate
together as if they were one big family.
Now the lit brujas draw in neighbors and visitors looking for a delicious and cheap meal…and
to pay tribute to the hard working men and women who helped construct the town. The recipes
have been passed down for generations and the mood is friendly and social. The entertainment
is nothing to sneeze at either!
I stood among the crowd, peering for a look at the stage to see when the popular singer, Lila Downs,
would emerge. Well known and loved within Mexico, and in particular her home area of Oaxaca,
Lila might be best known internationally for her role in the movie Frida (although she holds many
projects to her credit and three Grammys.) Her songs, often remakes, are tailored to take on a
distinctively Oaxacan sound and encourage the preservation of the indigenous heritage of Mexico.
So there I was, full of tamales and atole and about to watch a free concert of a world class artist. The
large crowd was excited and the atmosphere electric.
Because I am an English-as-a-foreign-language teacher, events like this one are easily accessible.
In fact, this particular festival and concert took place 10 minutes away from my house.
Teaching English is a great way to break free from being location dependent and to experience
local customs, food, and festivals. And teachers are in demand in most parts of the world.
Apart from the opportunities available with language schools, universities, and private classes,
giving lessons online is another option that makes for even more flexibility.
Teaching English to students from all around the world by Internet, while based in Oaxaca,
allows me to receive good pay in a city with a low cost of living. I don’t have to work much
to cover my expenses. A few hours of conversation classes in the morning and I have the rest
of the day (and weekends) to explore Oaxaca and the surrounding villages—and to attend local
events like this one.
As Lila Downs burst onto stage and the crowd went wild, I smiled, feeling grateful once again for
my career choice.
Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas,
sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll
send you a FREE REPORT: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 6 Portable Careers.
