Differences We Noticed Between the U.S. and Mexico

After being in the U.S. for several days, Mike and I realized we had yet to hear a car honk it's horn. In Mexico, you don't go five minutes without hearing honking.

Upon taking a walk in downtown Naperville, Mike and I both had the thought "there's so much open space". In Mexico, open space is very difficult to come by.

In the U.S., we had to make a conscious effort to get out and walk around. In Mexico, walking is all we do. Every single time we go anywhere, aside from Mike going to work, we walk.

We used to think traffic in Naperville was heavy and annoying. Now, we think it is light and peaceful. Driving in the U.S. is so much easier and less stressful than driving in Mexico. In Mexico, driver's have to be constantly alert and aware of all the cars around them, jockeying for various lanes, watching for topes (speed bumps), looking for cars going thru red lights, etc.

Certainly, there are MANY things we take for granted in the U.S. Going to the grocery store and having refrigerator upon refrigerator of choices. Aisle upon aisle of beauty products and toiletries. In Mexico, I have yet to see an eye pencil sharpener, nail polish or greeting cards. I am sure they are in abundance at Walmart...but I have only been two Walmart twice in five months. And, at the time, those were not things I needed. When I started wanting these items and was on the lookout, these items were nowhere to be found!

Infinitum Telmex Internet Service

This past Monday afternoon, my internet stopped working. I waited about six hours, until my husband got home, then had him call Telmex - our service provider.

They ran a "test" - unplugging the internet and phone (losing the call with the service person). But, that didn't help.

So, Tuesday afternoon, I called back, ran another "test" - holding the reset button in for 20 seconds. That didn't do anything either.

At that point, Telmex gave me a report number and told me that a technician would be out to look at the modem in 1-3 business days. I said "will he call when he's on his way???". The wonderful service man said "no, if he's in the area, he'll just stop by".

Was I really expected to sit around my house with a crazy two year old for three days?!?! Apparently!

But, when I went to shut the computer off tonight, I noticed that all the lights on my modem were lit up again and I had working internet!

On the plus side, I didn't waste my whole day sitting around the house. Another positive...I'll never again be irritated in the U.S. when someone gives me a 6 hour time frame! Mexico is teaching me patience!

General Questions Answered...

When I began this blog, it was to keep all of my friends and family in the U.S. in the loop on my experiences in Mexico.

In just a few months, it has become so much more. I have had several thousand hits, mostly from the U.S., but also hits from over twenty other countries.

Last week, I received a blog comment from a woman who may move here due to her husband's job. Since her comment, we have traded several emails. She had a few questions that hopefully I answered sufficiently.

But, due to all of the people viewing this blog, I thought I would post my answers to her questions here as well...

1. SAFETY: I take zero precautions here. I don't do anything differently than I did in Chicago. Annabelle and I feel totally safe strolling throughout Polanco. That said, I don't leave my wallet unattended...as I wouldn't anywhere else. I walk Annabelle to school, then continue on to the bank, grocery store, bakery, Starbucks (Mexicans love their Starbucks!...seriously I could walk to five different Starbucks any given morning), etc. When my husband gets home from work, he'll walk to the gym (Golds Gym), or we'll take Annabelle and the dog out walking, going over near the restaurant/"Polanquito" district or walk towards California Pizza Kitchen. We feel so much safer than we EVER thought we would. Annabelle and I will walk to the zoo by ourselves. We don't feel limited at all.

2. SCHOOLS: I viewed three Montessori schools in April. Had no problem getting a spot. There are schools and daycares in abundance. My husbands company hired a company to take me to look at schools. But, if you just walk down a few streets, you'll see something! I joined a playgroup upon arriving, and the women there are FANTASTIC and super helpful. The women are very open about where their kids go to school, what activities they do, and extremely welcoming. You can also join the "newcomber's club" and get tons of helpful information. I didn't join that, just because I met the playgroup women, most of whom belong to newcomber's, and I felt I was fine without newcomber's!

3. General feeling about living here... I love it. If I have my choice of staying here or moving back to the U.S., I will choose to stay here for awhile! For us women, Polanco is awesome. I am so much more active here than I ever was in the U.S. I get together with one or all of the playgroup women at least twice a week. I could definitely do more if I made just a bit of effort! I enjoy walking everywhere and love that Annabelle is learning Spanish and going to school. I see Americans all the time. For my husband it is harder. He rarely sees Americans and interacts with them. So, he craves going to the U.S. a ton more than I do. I feel very at home here in Polanco!

Living in Mexico has it's frustrations. Nothing gets fixed or taken care of very quickly. But, if you know that going in and take it in stride, you'll be fine.

All the Mexicans I have interacted with have been very friendly and soooo helpful. They speak very little to no English. But, if you have a knowledge of Spanish, you'll do great here!

The first time we visited, we were driven around by a driver from my husband's company in an armored car. If your husband is high up in a company and it is provided...go for it. But, it's not necessary. If anything, we feel like the driver and armored car just draw more attention to you. On Friday nights in the restaurant district, you'll see the bodyguards/driver's standing outside restaurants...but they NEVER have to do anything. Zero crime and violence in Polanco. Almost every building has a 24 hour guard, along with stores. So, wherever you walk, there are people.

Around the corner from us is a Porsche dealership, with all glass windows - no bars or anything preventing the breaking of glass. If you walk two minutes up the street, there are the W and Presidente Intercontinental hotels, along with more Starbucks, a Bentley dealership, and some other car dealers. Down the road, on Presidente Masaryk, there is a Tiffany, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, etc. The local mall is called Antara. It is super expensive and consists of high end stores. We have McDonalds, Wendy's, Burger King, Chili's, the Coffee Bean, etc. Mexicans are apparently obsessed with American culture!

I always laugh at this one complex that boasts a McDonalds, movie theater and Maserati/Ferrari dealership. An interesting combo!

This is NOT real Mexico that the newspapers write about. This is the absolute BEST part of Mexico. It is like the Gold Coast in Chicago, or the Upper West Side in New York.

We did a TON of research before moving here. My parents specifically were convinced we would die five minutes after setting foot here. But, the violence is not in Polanco or the surrounding towns. It is in the border cities and the poor areas.

You could get kidnapped if you just flag down a taxi on the street. But, that is rare. And, you just make sure to call a radio taxi. Our building security guard does that for us. Or there are a bunch of radio taxi stands around. If you were to get "express kidnapped" as they call it, they just drive you around and take you to an ATM to get money from you. Very unlikely to happen though, provided you use a little common sense.

A website that my husband has used to look at housing here is www.inmomexico.com. They don't seem to use websites like we do, ie. realtor.com. They are behind the times in some aspects, for sure! I would expect in Polanco for you to pay at least $30,000 pesos for rent. My husband's company pays $35,000 pesos for our place. It is a brand new building. I think we have 1,800 sq. feet or so, with 2 bedrooms, a den, living room/dining combo, kitchen and 3.5 bathrooms. All appliances, but no furniture. I rent furniture for about $170 USD/month. Cable/satellite costs about $100-120 USD a month. We have internet and a landline (with unlimited calls to the US) for about $120/month. We also have a gas bill of about $40 USD a month. No other bills associated with our apartment.

We have a maid on Saturdays. We pay her $300 pesos ($25 USD) a week. She stays from 10 am to 4 pm. A lot of my friends have maids that either live in or come 5 days a week. Several have personal drivers. Labor is cheap here.

Most buildings here do NOT have bathtubs, nor do they have furnaces and air conditioning units. The bathtub could come in handy with kids! But we are fine without it. The a/c and furnace is just not necessary! The weather is amazing! Absolute love that aspect of living here!

Healthcare. Doctors are soooo much more accessible here. They give you their email addresses and cell numbers. They answer after hours. On the recommendation of a friend, my husband saw a doctor a few weeks ago for vertigo. The doctor studied in the U.S. at Johns Hopkins. From the expats, you get great referrals.

All around, a very nice place to live and call home!