Most people travel to Mexico to indulge in the delicious cuisine and bask on the gorgeous beaches. I was different, at the time I didn’t know what I was doing but looking back with the experience I have now I realize I was chasing; striving for a life unordinary.
Supportive Community of Expats
Mexico was my first time being an “ex-pat” I don’t think I had ever heard of the word before moving there, to be honest, and this brings me to my first point of why Mexico is such a great place to be a young ex-pat. Thousands of people from all over the world are already in Mexico doing the ex-pat, digital nomad, remote worker life. In fact, one of my roommates was a 50-year-old Irish gentleman who had been living in Mexico for the last 12 years he took me under his wing and helped me learn to be a successful ex-pat. Meeting ex-pats that have been doing this for a while will help you incredibly, and hopefully, help you avoid some of those common ex-pat pitfalls.
Friendly Local Culture
Of the many Pitfalls, that crush potential lifelong ex-pats before they even get started is the feeling of “being far from family and home”. This is a hard one it will follow you everywhere doesn’t matter what country, although Mexico has qualities that definitely make you feel not that far from home. Especially if you are from the United States because well it’s not actually that far from home a quick flight and your back also it’s not difficult to find an American either on vacation or also living the ex-pat life in Mexico. For everybody that is not from the United States your “home” will most likely be much further away so there won’t be that sense of familiarity and that’s ok. What I do when I am living in a new country is I start creating that sense of familiarity, a sense of home and in Mexico, this is very easy, Mexicans are some of the nicest and warm people you’ll ever meet.
Easy to make friends
It’s an incredibly easy place to make friends although it is in your best interest to learn Spanish there are a lot of people in Mexico that can speak English but to really be part of the culture and give you a sense of home you should learn Spanish. If you speak another Latin language it should come fairly easy to you. I had taken 2 years of Spanish classes in high school before moving to Mexico but if you are anything like me you know that paying attention in high school was… well not my top priority. I was definitely regretting not being a more active student in that class but I would always ask myself when are you ever going to be using Spanish living in Canada, and it’s true if you stayed in Canada and never moved you probably wouldn’t ever have to know Spanish but imagine how boring that would be!
Safety Considerations
Now, this point is serious so pay attention (not like me in Spanish class). You are most likely coming from a country that is safer than Mexico. Mexico holds the title of 13th highest homicide rate around the world although this is mostly cartel-on-cartel violence, there is still lots of poverty in the country and poverty drives people to do desperate things where dealing with the repercussions of stealing or robbing a foreigner for their devices and wallet is better than starvation. Obviously, the whole country isn’t a war zone in fact there are way more places that are safe than dangerous, so you will learn in Mexico very quickly to be sharp, be aware of your surroundings, don’t go walking at night wearing jewellery while talking on your iPhone, and always ask locals whether a place is safe or not nobody knows better than them. You can consider Mexico a “trial by fire” if you learn to be safe here you can apply these same principles to most other countries in the world.
Feeling of Freedom
Although the safety of Mexico isn’t perfect the freedom you feel while you live there makes it all worth it. The government doesn’t play the same role in your life as it does in western countries. This feeling might be unique to ex-pats and foreigners but the government kind of lets the “gringo’s be gringo’s” as long as they aren’t causing any trouble. There is more to this freedom than just the government though the pressure of life is taken off the cost of living is much lower, society demands on you to feel like they are gone, and you living on your own time. The locals feel this too Mexicans are notoriously late to everything, you eventually just learn to accept this and adopt a go-with-the-flow attitude, things in Mexico usually will not go as planned so there is no point in stressing when they do. Although it’s contradictory you become more relaxed because things don’t work perfectly all the time.
In conclusion, if you’re a young person looking to explore the world and experience new cultures, Mexico is the perfect destination for you. With thousands of other ex-pats already living there, you’ll never feel alone and you’ll have a support system to help you navigate any challenges that come your way. The warmth and friendliness of the Mexican people make it easy to create a sense of home away from home, and learning Spanish will only enhance your experience. While safety may be a concern, being aware of your surroundings and taking precautions can keep you safe, and the feeling of freedom you’ll experience living in Mexico is truly unparalleled. So why not take the plunge and book a call with me to discuss your next adventure in Mexico? Let’s make your dream of living and working abroad a reality!