Okay, so before we said this out loud, we (husband and I) talked about this extensively. In fact, years. We have been planning a move, out of the country, for at least two years.
It all started in Italy :), but really after we moved from one town, to another, when our oldest was in 9th grade (right after the Italy trip). She begged us to not move again until after she graduated. So there we were, renting, pondering our next steps after she finishes 12th grade. Well, guess what? Time is here! She finishes 12th grade …. now.
So up until this past January, just 5 months ago, we planned on the move being to Mallorca aka Majorca, an island in Spain. We toured (virtually) schools, spoke to immigration lawyers, had our plan. But then COVID… closed borders, strict regulations had us with second thoughts. Do we want to move to a country that has its borders closed to US citizens? NO! Especially if our oldest daughter is staying behind (but she is moving to Rhode Island, for college). That scary thought of not being able to visit her easily, or other family, emergencies, etc. had us change our minds.
So one day, likely a cold one, since it was January in NY, the husband says Mexico.
Why?
We LOVE Mexican food. Not the cheesy, greasy, flour-filled Mexican. We mean real, authentic Mexican. in fact, right now, its our favorite cuisine, and has been for some time. And you know us, we follow the food.
We also love the culture, its vibrant, happy, family-oriented, the people are kind/welcoming. Plus, it meets the feeling of an island, warm, and super low-cost of living (also on the must-have list for this move).
While originally Tulum was the target, after some research into private schools, ease of travel from airport, and the community, led us to choose Playa Del Carmen. This beach side, which you likely heard of (and likely visited) is about 45-60 minutes from Cancun, which means its that far from the Cancun airport (ease of traveling back to visit our oldest & family!).
Plenty of private schools, good food, weather. Sounds dreamy, right? yes, we think so :)
So before we actually told the two youngest kids this is the place we’re moving to, we decide to take a trip to visit, to make sure (which isn’t even possible for Mallorca!), but since Mexico is arms-wide-open to US, off we went!
