I had always dreamed of living abroad, so when the opportunity finally came to move away from home and start over somewhere brand new – I jumped on it.
I had many reasons to go and not a lot of reasons to say no. I had traveled a bit in the past, going as far as Asia when I was in my mid-twenties so I knew it didn’t bother me to be far away from home. I enjoy getting lost and not knowing exactly where I’m going next. The mystery and excitement of the unknown and unpredictable has always been intriguing to me, probably because I didn't travel at all as a kid. Maybe its something from a past life.
My parents were and still are home bodies and have never really left the country outside of visiting an all inclusive resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico, for my brothers wedding. We didn’t have a lot of money growing up so I spent most summer holidays hanging out at home. I didn’t get on my first airplane until I was around 19 and my first trip out of the country wasn’t until I was 21. Viva Las Vegas, baby.
I attribute the beginning of my wanderlust to watching Anthony Bourdain travel the world in “No Reservations”, meeting all sorts of interesting people and eating all kinds of interesting foods. Two of my favourite things — food and travel coming together with hunky bad-boy Bourdain, shooting the shit often with a drink in his hand. Pure gold. After seeing that show I wanted to explore eveywhere and everything.
I got my first itch from the travel bug after I spent a month backpacking across Costa Rica, starting at the tip of the Pacific Peninsula and eventually making my way down the coast and across to the Caribbean side. I remember the first time seeing the turquoise waters of the Caribbean ocean. I felt like I was in a dream. I still remember those beaches, some of the first memories I have of truly being present and in the moment, “being”. Simply put, it was a feeling of immense gratification for the beauty surrounding me. That very feeling has always stuck with me somewhere in the background of my mind and I’ve been chasing it ever since.
So when I was given the opportunity to quit my corporate job and move to Mexico I had noooooooo reservations (lol) and those closest to me weren’t that surprised, although some of the less traveled said they were worried about my safety which I nonchalantly laughed off. I’ll admit, there are parts of Mexico that are 100% not safe and you should probably just avoid, same as there are places in Canada that are 100% not safe and you should probably just avoid. I worked at a bar just off of East Hastings in Vancouver which was high key sketchy af. If you are unfamiliar with the area, Google it. Its considered to be one of Canadas worst areas, if not the worst. I was sexually assaulted once while I was waiting for a bus after leaving a late shift within my first month of working there. I saw countless people shooting up and multiple fist fights just outside the front door of the restaurant and on my very last shift working there, I got a plate of food thrown at me. I guess that was my breaking point. I felt a lot more vulnerable leaving a late shift in Van than I ever did leaving a late shift in Isla Mujeres.
Still, regardless of my own experience, not everyone supported my decision to move. I dealt with a lot of backlash from my family in particular who basically disowned me. Unfortunately some of those relationships are still not repaired and likely never will be. But would I do it all over again? HELL. YES.
So many great things came out of my decision to move to Mexico. I met my husband and I adopted my second dog. It forced me to to grow up a lot and to not stress the small things, something we love to do in Western culture. I turned my macrame hobby into a small business. Olive (my first born fur babe) got to experience living near the ocean on a tropical island, something I will look back on after she is gone with such beautiful memories. I made a whole new family that I will have forever and I gained a second home. I sky dived and scuba dived, I learned some Spanish, I also learned that I am not the center of the universe and got to feel what it was like to be a minority for once in my white privileged life which has since made me look at human rights differently. So no, I have absolutely no regrets about moving away and would encourage you to try it if you are ever given the chance. For goodness sakes, if you do — SAY YES!
It takes a lot of courage to leave everything behind and maybe a little bit of impulse but when its meant to be, the universe will align with you and everything will fall into place the way its supposed to. It might not be that easy at first as anything worthwhile usually isn’t. But with the help of good people, a little bit of planning and a lot of determination, anything is possible and moving away really isn’t that big of a deal or that big of a risk, regardless of what people around you may try to tell you. If things don’t work out you can always move back home, or somewhere else, which I did. For me, the process was fairly easy, I think because I was so determined to make it work and prove my family wrong which pushed me harder. I rented out my place and took a one-month leave of absence from my job which gave me a bit of a safety net. I would definitely recommend having a backup plan like this before you go. Anything can happen and if you need to come back there is some peace of mind in knowing that you can.
As I mentioned, I took my Olive girl with me so there was a little bit of planning there. The Mexican government requires a clear certificate of health issued by your vet within 10 days of travel, proof of rabies vaccine and treatment of internal and external parasites. Life hack — if you qualify, you should register your travel companion as an emotional support animal which is a fairly simple process if you experience any kind of anxiety. For me, it is flight anxiety which I never used to have until I was on a direct, 3 hour flight going from Calgary to Phoenix which ended in us preparing for a crash landing followed by 10 hours of waiting in Salt Lake City’s airport for the airline to send us a new airplane. Fun times! That was such a crazy day. Anyway, now I have anxiety when I fly but having my dog with me helps. Most airlines that allow ESA’S only require a form to be filled out or a letter from your doctor stating that you need to have your ESA (emotional support animal) with you when you fly. Having this allowed me to travel with Olive in the cabin rather than shoving her underneath with the baggage which I would imagine is probably pretty scary for any living animal not used to those conditions. I have even heard of it leading to death in some cases, so ya, thats gonna be a no for me dawg.
When you are packing for your new life I would recommend bringing along some familiar things that remind you of home. For me, it was a few of Olives toys, her fav crocheted blanket from uncle Shayne, a couple of my favourite gemstones, my salt lamp and my journal. If homesickness does come knocking my biggest advice is to check in with your peeps. Phoning home always makes me feel more calm when things get weird, which they will at some point because moving to a new country is weird — but its a good weird. If you do leave on bad terms with your immediate family just call your homegirls (or boys). Friends are family, too. Plus, people living in Canada always enjoy a good FaceTime with a tropical backdrop, especially during winter (not). But if they love you they will love to hear from you and want to hear that you are doing okay. It also helps to do your research before you go and to try and line up some contacts beforehand, especially if you plan to work. VISA’s help to find work but having contacts works better, trust me. Plus it’s a good idea to visit the place a couple of times before moving, meet the people, see if its a good fit, that sort of thing.
My only other advice is to go with an open mind and an open heart and to try to find the silver lining in every situation, even if sometimes it feels like you’re failing because hey — life is boring if you never take risks.
❤ Sam
