What I Learned From Living in Mexico | #LAWM
I've been delaying writing this, mostly because I was still trying to figure out what I learned. I’m pushing myself to write this now as the one-year anniversary of my arrival in Mexico is this week.
The thing I love about travel is you never know how you will be changed until you’ve moved on to the next leg of the journey. Here are a few things I’ve learned from my time in Mexico.
Trust Your Intuition.
Overall, this is the greatest lesson I learned that influences all the other lessons. I talked about this after my first solo-trip abroad to Mexico in 2013. There is nothing like being alone in a foreign place to wake up your intuition. Fortunately, I wasn’t entirely alone during my 6-month stay and I’m thank for my friendship with Rakia, which helped me tremendously. Still, this particular experience was new to me and it was challenging to adjust to living in another country.
Minimalism is not a destination you arrive at.
I knew this already, but adjusting to a new way of life made this very clear. Minimalism is an ongoing process with highs and lows and even seasoned minimalists like myself still have our doubts and setbacks on this journey.
While I have traveled previously and been on this minimalist journey for years now, I had never lived abroad as a minimalist up until this point.
My minimalist challenges were mainly financial and included:
Not having a budget for the first month I was there. When you convert that first batch of pesos you feel rich lol and everything seems cheap compared to their cost in the U.S.
Not being able to prepare food in the home I stayed at for the first month. I ate out almost daily and consumed many snacks before moving into my own home where I could cook.
Furnishing a home and not being aware I would need to buy common household appliances like a refrigerator, stove, gas tank, and heater. I lived in a three-bedroom house and did not use the second floor.
Getting rid of the stuff I purchased for my home when I came back to the U.S. Initially, I had only planned to return to the US for a couple of months, but when my grandfather passed, I decided to stay indefinitely in the meantime.
In hindsight, I should have budgeted to rent a fully-furnished studio with the utilities included. They are more expensive than many houses, but the convenience and long-term savings are better. I talk more about how much it costs to live in Mexico here.
No sooner than I accumulated the things, it was time to shed them. The move in/move out process was accelerated and overwhelming to say the least, but the beauty of practicing minimalism consistently is the ability to quickly forgive yourself and release the stuff you don’t need because you know it’s not apart of the next chapter.
The spiritual world is ever-present.
I have shared previously, I was depressed for a while in Mexico. I believe it was a mixture of the winter blues, my minimalist challenges, and looking back now, a spiritual awakening. I did not realize until joining a community of folx learning about and practicing black indigenous spiritual traditions, that depression often precedes a phase of spiritual evolution.
Mexico is a magical place and that’s not just a marketing ploy by the Mexican government to attract tourism. Dia de los Muertos is a revered holiday to honor those who have passed on to the next realm. Mexico’s history is long and the confluence of Indigenous, African, and European cultural traditions is well-preserved and present.
Additionally, finding out my Pop Pop had a short time to live and then him actually passing while I was in Mexico, was altering. I learned about spirits, protection, crystals, herbs and plants, mal de ojo, egg washing, and reiki from my friend Rakia. I even started observing the moon and set up my first altar.
Going to Mexico actually opened a new chapter of my spiritual journey that is still continuing.
Language is important.
That’s an understatement for sure! Not only did I challenge the boundaries of my Spanish language knowledge and improve it, but I also had the experience of teaching English for the first time.
Both of these experiences were challenging in the best ways. There were miscommunications, puzzled looks, and frustrations all around, but none of that compared to the joy I experienced every time I could understand someone or they understood me! I think we take language for granted when we are in our native environments, but to watch it flourish in new places, is really special.
I say all that to say, I’m more confident in my Spanish language skills and I’m still enjoying teaching English, now via Cambly. I’ll have to write a whole other blog post on my experiences with Cambly, but if you’re interested in becoming a tutor and meeting folx from all over the world, sign up with my referral code.
Until next time.
There you have it! Another chapter complete on my minimalist journey and travels. I’m sure I learned some other things, but these are the most important right now. I have several videos from my time in Orizaba I will be uploading in the coming weeks, so stay tuned! Thanks for reading.
My Minimalist Summer 2018: Southern Charm
Statue of Denmark Vesey in Hampton Park.
After getting back to the states and dealing with my pop pop's passing, the fallout from an ended relationship, and just life changes in general, I was more than ready to get on the road again! I kicked off my summer by visiting friend and BM team member Kenya.
Kenya lives in one of my favorite cities, Charleston, SC and it had been six years since the last time I visited the city. The whole experience was cool and unsettling (more on that later) and I got to do something I've never done before, ride a train! I've traveled by car, plane, and bus before, but I've never taken the train. I also haven't traveled (long distance) by boat yet either.
I really enjoyed my train ride. It was spacious, serene, and cheap. The ride going down was a little long at 10 hours, but that can be improved in the future.
Travel partners.
The first couple of days there Kenya and I explored downtown Charleston and then we got on the road. Our idea was to spend time seeing parts of Charleston that were new to me, visiting Savannah because neither of us had been there in a while and going to Atlanta to meet up with our BM fam there, but we had no plans set in stone, but to enjoy ourselves. We even got to meet a BM community member who took our Black & Minimalist ecourse! Meeting up with our BM community was really life-giving for us and solidified the direction we are headed in for the next couple of years.
So on our way to Savannah, we stumbled upon Oyotunji African Village. If you don't know, Oyotunji is a sovereign African village near Yemassee, SC, founded in 1970. I knew about Oyotunji, but never thought we'd drive right past it! We decided to stop and see what it was all about and that's when things started buzzing, spiritually speaking. The vibe we got was welcoming and intriguing. The visit got us thinking about what it would be like to live in a village of our own. They also informed us they were having their Egungun Festival the next day. The egun are our ancestors.
We journeyed on to Savannah and without a plan, decided to visit Sankofa House that I had heard about on Instagram. We didn't know exactly what the Sankofa House was, but with just an address and good vibe, Spirit led us right to where we needed to be. They were actually about to close when we arrived, but ended up staying open to chat with us for two hours! When I say the vibe was strong, I mean it! We even went back the next day to take an offering for their kindness and we returned to Oyotunji for the festival. Those 24 hours in particular really made me realize that I needed a spiritual reset and that it was time to listen and answer the call of my ancestors so I can live my best life.
After our spiritual intermission, we continued on to Atlanta. It was actually my first time visiting Atlanta. We had a meetup at the Soul Vegetarian restaurant in SW Atlanta, attended Spiritual Homegirl Maria's meetup at Chattahoochee Nature Center, and then visited Little Five Points. It definitely an enlightening experience moving about in a predominantly black city. I like the vibe of Atlanta, but the only thing that turned me off was how spread out it is. If I didn't need a car to live there, I would definitely consider it.
Fresh Future Farm
The rest of my time in Charleston was spent exploring. We went to the beach, Riverwalk along Cooper's River, Hampton Park where the first Memorial Day celebration was held on May 1, 1864. We visited the riverfront and saw Gasden's Wharf where many of our ancestors first stepped foot on this land and helped clean out some weeds at Fresh Future Farm in North Charleston. My last day was spent helping Kenya declutter her apartment and we celebrated with ice cream.
On my way back up the coast, I stopped and spent the weekend with my sister in Norfolk. It was really chill and I got to sleep in her RV for my first tiny home experience. I also got to meet up with an OG black minimalist, India.
All in all, I must say it was a great way to kick off my summer. Next up, I'm visiting DC so stay on the lookout for me!
My Minimalist Summer 2017: Veracruz & Orizaba Mexico
The last leg of my minimalist summer travels included the cities of Veracruz and Orizaba. Veracruz was hot and it was definitely welcome after being in rainy, chilly Puebla. I can't even believe I'm saying this, but it was almost too hot! I stayed in a little Airbnb studio apartment that was about 2 blocks away from the beach. I could see the sea from window and the sea breeze at night was refreshing. I thought Veracruz would be the city where I moved abroad, at least initially, but the vibe just wasn't there at the time.
While in Veracruz, I was able to make a day trip to Orizaba to meet the black women living there. Taking the bus to Orizaba, I definitely loved the scenery. My impressions of Orizaba was that is was nice size small city, it was clean, and there were a lot of things to see. While there we took a drive around the city, visited the Poliforum and had lunch, and took a stroll along the art walk that flanks the Orizaba River. I also loved the fact you could see the mountains from anywhere in the city. I had a great time meeting Rakia and Roxana, and ultimately, connecting with them sealed the deal for me choosing to live abroad in Orizaba.
Enjoy the slideshow!
My Minimalist Summer 2017: Mexico City & Puebla (Video)
This was my second time visiting Mexico City. The purpose of my second visit to Mexico was to check out potential locations to live. It was really just a pit stop, but my friend Lani was visiting Mexico for the first time, so we did some of the touristy stuff. Lani's flight was delayed and she did not arrive until the second day, so the first day I went to visit Elyse of Keen & Ready, a black expat who has been living in the city for over a year now. Elyse was actually the person who informed me about black folks living in Orizaba.
The morning after Lani arrived, we went downtown to the zocalo and visited the National Palace, Cathedral, Templo Mayor, and Palacio de Bellas Artes. That evening we left for Puebla. This was my first time here and I really enjoyed the city except for the cold and rain. The churches were beautiful and the outdoor market was nice to walk through. We also visited the ruins of Cholula, which is a smaller city about 30 minutes outside of Puebla.
Lani left early to go back to Mexico City and check out some other attractions before flying back to the States and I chilled in Puebla for a couple more days before heading to Veracruz. Check out the video below.
My Minimalist Summer 2017: Sacramento (Video)
After visiting Seattle, I headed down to Sacramento to see two of my favorite people, the EcoConscious Minimalists! It was my first time visiting Cali and I did about a day of touristy stuff then headed to Sean and Pastaveia's home to chill for a couple of days before heading to Mexico.
I was so excited to be able to visit them. I met Pastaveia and Sean virtually when I started following their minimalist journey on YouTube in 2015 and they were featured on this site as part of my Black Minimalists interview series. After that, Pastaveia traveled to the DC area a couple of times for work and we hung out in person.
Let me just say I love these two people. They are just cool, intelligent, down to earth, and incredibly generous people. To add to their awesomeness, they just welcomed a tiny human to their family.
Anyways, this video is short and highlights a few sites from Sactown. My main focus was resting and hanging out with Pasteveia and Sean. West Sacramento did have some good food though. I ate at Sal's Tacos and Bean & Barrel and they were both delicious.
Next up: Mexico City & Puebla!
My Minimalist Summer 2017: Seattle (Video)
This summer I did some traveling on the West Coast. It was my first time out there and I loved it! I finally got to visit my friend Sylva, meet one of my coaching clients in person, and hang out with some black minimalists!
I visited the Seattle Art Museum, Pike Place, and Alki Beach in West Seattle. I also got to see Jimi Hendrix Park and the Northwest African American Museum. I ate some great food, enjoyed riding the metro, and the long Seattle days (it didn't get dark until 10pm!).
I definitely want to return to Emerald City and do more exploring in the future. Check out the slideshow of my time there below.
Stay tuned for more videos from my Sacramento and Mexico visits. Also, I will be sharing what I learned from my travels this summer.
How did you spend your summer?