Claudia is passionate about travel and loves making other people fall in love with her country. Born and raised in Mexico City, she has lived in California, Portugal, and Guatemala. You can either find her searching for cheap flights to travel all around the world, exploring new places and activities in her hometown, or chilling with her friends and hanging around with her dog, Sam.
What is your favorite travel memory?
I am lucky to say that I have been to many places in the world and in different situations, which is what makes every travel memory unique. It is hard to pick my favorite one but I would say that one of the best things that I have done is traveling with my two best friends to Cuba.
One day we saw an amazing flight offer and purchased the flights without thinking of how, when, or if we could take days off from work, etc. We wanted to see the “real Cuba”, so we managed to stay at a married Cuban couple's home - their kids were gone so they rented their spare bedroom.
They made us feel at home, introduced us to other Cubans and truly got us to experience the soul of that amazing country.
Dancing salsa, having a mojito, eating Cuban food and lying on white sand beaches are a must! I think the best trips are always unplanned and it's important to keep an open mind because you get to know things that you wouldn’t in an all-inclusive resort.
How have you changed/grown since working for your current company?
I am an outgoing person with a lot of love for Mexico, so being in this position has allowed me do what I enjoy. I would say that I have definitely grown into a better person since I have had the chance to meet a lot of amazing people and gain friends all over the world.
Meeting people with different personalities, beliefs, backgrounds and cultures makes me want to share all that knowledge and experience I have gained in return.
What is the best story you've heard from a return student?
We always hear stories of students that have never been to Mexico before and after a summer or a semester here, they decide to move here indefinitely.
One of the best stories was from one our Aussie students; she had never been to any country in Latin America before and she decided to continue her Spanish language studies in Mexico in a short program. Once she came back to Australia, she decided that her place was in Mexico and last year she just took her things and moved here. She is now teaching English near an amazing beach in Mexico.
Another one of our students, just a week after she went back to France, purchased her flight ticket back here because she was homesick for Mexico. She now eats more tacos and Mexican food that I do, and I believe she is a Mexican hiding in a French body.
I think my favorite phrase was from an American student that had never left the U.S. before, and he said referring to Mexico and our culture: “I have never been more comfortable being uncomfortable, and it feels great”.
If you could go on any program that your company offers, which one would you choose and why?
If I did not have the opportunity to go to Mexico for a full semester, I would choose to participate in the “Social Realities in Mexico” program, because it offers you a full immersion experience; not only living with a Mexican family, but you get to know so many people in those 6 weeks.
Plus, the participants of that program travel a lot inside the country, from historic and trendy neighborhoods inside the huge city, to ancient pyramids and small indigenous villages in Southern Mexico. There is never room for getting bored or a day that goes by without knowing something different.
What makes your company unique? When were you especially proud of your team?
I feel proud of working in a Jesuit institution; I personally identify with a worldview where you help others as much as you can. I feel also proud of our team, because we always try to give the best of each other and we go beyond boundaries to make each student feel at home. We are a diverse – and multicultural – team and I think we complement each other’s work very well.
What do you believe to be the biggest factor in being a successful company?
Loving what you do, and we definitely do.
