Decisions... Part 2

Well, I've been in South Korea for six months. I'm closing in on my debt. When I first got here, I was about $13,000 in the hole. I've cut that in half so far, and should be debt-free by the time my contract expires in October.

Here are my options for what to do next.

1. Go back to the U.S.
The comfort of home sounds nice at times, yet from a financial perspective, it doesn't sound nice at all. There's no job in the U.S. that I can envision doing that would be enjoyable and lucrative. Yeah, I could teach, but I'd have to go back to school for that. Getting in more debt doesn't sound fun right now.

2. Private School Korea
I could teach at another private school, or maybe renew my contract at the school I'm at. Upside: Steady cash flow, opportunity to enhance my Korean. Downsides: I don't get many vacations at my current job, and signing on for another 52 straight weeks doesn't sound too appealing.

3. Teach in Japan
Japan has some university jobs opening up right about the time my contract expires. It would be cool to make some more money while seeing a new country. Upside: Chance to experience another country, one that I might enjoy more. Downside: I've been working on my Korean, and starting out on a whole new language sounds frustrating.

4. Travel to Australia
I've got a buddy there and I plan on visiting him for a month and doing some kind of road trip around the country. Unfortunately, I don't see how I'll have lots of money to do that, unless I want to get in debt again. Perhaps a short stint in Japan will finance that.

5. Latin America
I want to end up there eventually, but not just yet. I'm gonna need a solid chunk of change first before I delve back into the lands of pesos and empenadas.

6. Public School Korea
This option is great, and what I really want. The only problem is that I'd have to wait from October all the way till March because that's when the semester starts. Upside: Great job with lots of vacation time and good pay bonuses. Downside: I'd have to figure out something to do from October to March. Perhaps a combination of options 3 and 4 would be the best solution until March rolls around.