Mexico with Heart
I live in Mexico much of the time, and I love so much about the people... their warm friendliness, their kindness in overlooking my many grammatical errors in Spanish, the way they take joy in many things in life.
Living in another culture always has its challenges, and I do have trouble with some things, like the traffic's more chaotic nature and the way dogs and cats are treated more casually. But overall, life here is great.
It's also economical. Avacados for 8 cents US (n season, anyway) ... lovely houses and condos for rent furnished for $300 to $1000 , depending on the region, fast internet in many areas... while there are a lot of retirees throughout the country, I also meet quite a few expats who work online.
I live just up the hill from Lake Chapala, Mexico's largest lake, about half an hour from the Guadalajara international airport and another half hour into the city itself. There are a lot of Americans and Canadians in this region, and at first I thought it would be too much of a gringo land. (A gringo is a North American, and while the term used to have negative connotations, now it's pretty widely used, especially by us foreigners to refer to ourselves.) But now I enjoy the bi-cultural aspects of it.
Living in Mexico Links
- Mexico with Heart: Travel Tales and Tips
- My site on Mexico, including a lot of how-to information. This got started a few years ago when I wrote a book called "Mexico with Heart," about some of our travels.
I decided to put the whole text online, freely available, partly because the photos are so much better in color, and also because I wanted lots of people to read it! - Living in Mexico and Mexican Travel: Tales & How-to Tips
- This is my blog: Enjoy Mexico with Rosana and Kelly Hart, as we buy a house near Lake Chapala and set up housekeeping in Mexico. We travel in Mexico at times in our RV, and we are always talking with Mexicans, expats, and tourists.
How-to tips for Mexican travel, Mexican food, and learning Spanish are included, along with reflections on living in Mexico. We may eventually retire at Lake Chapala, so we talk about that too. - Kelly Hart's Flickr photos on Mexico
- Almost all the photos in my husband Kelly Hart's section are taken on our various trips around Mexico.
- Viva Veracruz - Musings from and about living in Mexico
- Long, meaty posts with a lot of terrific photos make this one blog I always keep up with.
- Access Mexico Connect - Current Issue - The Electronic Magazine all about Mexico
- Everything you want to know about Mexico - in Mexico Connect - Mexico's monthly ezine / magazine devoted to informing about and promoting Mexico, her people, culture, history, arts, business and spectacular areas and beaches as a place to visit, live and travel.
There's a modest fee for the membership forum but I sure learn a lot there. Highly recommended. - Learn Spanish Rapidly
- In this site, I review both free and commercial programs and websites for learning Spanish.
- Read the book, Mexico with Heart, online starting here.
- THE BOOK BEGINS:
"Aren't you afraid to travel to Mexico?"
I had heard the question before, but this time it startled me. The young woman asking it was a Mexican-American working in a Wal-Mart in a Texas border town. I didn't expect it from her. She had never crossed the border, she confided. Lowering her voice so nobody else could hear, she whispered, "May God protect you."
I thanked her and told her that we had traveled to Mexico before. True, I was a little apprehensive about some things - traffic, finding good places to park our small motorhome, traveling on a pretty modest budget, and so on.
But mainly I was excited about going back to a place where I find it so easy to live fully from my heart. Most of the Mexicans do it, and it rubs off on me. I love it.
I love passing strangers on the street and exchanging greetings. I love the ready smiles, the courtesy, the friendliness, the encouragement that meets any attempt to speak Spanish.
Just being in Mexico, experiencing the beauty and the climate, the people and the history, the food and the handicrafts, fills my days with enjoyment - as well as with some interesting challenges.
Sharing thousands of miles of border with the United States, Mexico could not be easier to get to. Many thousands of Americans and Canadians travel to Mexico every year, and well over half a million live there. But I am surprised that there aren't even more Americans there.
One reason is probably not knowing what to expect. Rumors of bandits and drug lords may keep some out of Mexico, though such people are hardly unknown north of the Rio Grande. Many Americans who live in Mexico say that they feel safer there than in the United States.
People are often concerned about illness; there are precautions to be taken there too, and even with those, some illness may occur. I can't count the number of times in all my trips that I've had the touristas, even being quite careful. But I don't want to miss out on things I want to do; I would rather take a few modest risks in the doing of them. And, as it turned out, I didn't get sick this time.
This book is meant to give you an idea of what travel in Mexico is like, though it certainly can be done very differently from our trip. The book will also - inevitably - show you Mexico through my eyes. As you will see, my husband Kelly and I have different interests than what the guidebooks usually discuss.
A Few Pictures of Mexico on Flickr, by my husband Kelly Hart
Lots more are available at his flickr section, listed in the links above.
This grandma is watching a parade from her doorstep.
These boys asked me to take their picture, so I obliged and they were delighted ...
The Pena of Bernal, Queretaro.
The result of one trip to the local market.
Riding in style, at a small-town rodeo.
Must-Haves for Travel or Living in Mexico
If you're at least a little adventurous!
Mexico (Country Guide)
The most useful travel guide to Mexico, and also helpful in thinking about places you might live. For example, we found Bernal, Queretaro -- where we lived for several months -- from our battered Lonely Planet. Do get the newest one.
Amazon Price: $32.11 (as of 01/09/2009) 
The People's Guide to Mexico (Peoples Guide to Mexico)
This is a classic! We've been using different versions of this book, gasping at some of their adventures, and laughing at their tales for a very long time.
Amazon Price: $16.47 (as of 01/09/2009)
Any comments about living or traveling in Mexico?
Do you like it as much as I do?
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