As some of you know, I am a terrible patient. I am the most frustrated when I’m not feeling 100% and can’t do things I was looking forward to with energy and excitement. Often I behave like a dog playing fetch, who doesn’t notice that they’re tired until well after they’ve exhausted themselves. This got me in serious trouble when I was young. In fact, I was hospitalised with recurrent tonsillitis during my freshman year at university and missed a whole quarter. In Hong Kong in my 30s, a therapist recommended that I schedule “stay home” in my calendar so that I wouldn’t overextend myself and burn out.

These last few weeks have been a real test of these learnings, and I can’t say that I’ve passed with flying colours. My last full week in Mexico I had a triple whammy: heat exhaustion, food poisoning, and an allergic reaction (my best guesses). I was in bed for days. Then I added a long haul flight, jet lag, and hay fever to the mix. To be honest, I don’t think my appetite returned until last Sunday. Of course, I wanted to say goodbye to my CDMX friends and hello to my London friends. Laying low did not feel like an option. This is definitely a tension of splitting time between places – I really feel the need to make the most of each place, sometimes to my own detriment. Below are reflections from the 5th chapter of my seasonal migration experiment (one more chapter to go!).

Reflections

CDMX is much more transient than London or even Hong Kong. It was common for people to count their HK time in years. In CDMX, people often count their time in months. Of the people I considered my friends last year, at least 6 were not living in CDMX this year. You have to be much more proactive about building strong relationships continuously and not rest on your laurels. Thankfully the city is incredibly social!

My network in Mexico City is diverse in some ways, but much less so in others. It’s interesting to compare what types of diversity are easier for me to come by in each city. I know far fewer people with children in CDMX. I don’t know many older people either. However, I meet people with a much wider range of socio-economic status, which is actually much harder in HK and London.  

In order to keep the stats consistent, I tracked how many people I saw 3 or more times during this CDMX chapter even though I was there for 6 months. To be honest, I don’t think the percentage would be much lower if I only counted the people I saw 5 or more times. There was a strong core group of people that I saw on a regular basis, similar to HK. The difference this time around was that they weren’t all associated with the coliving space, which is what made the percentage of people that I saw 3x+ times last year in CDMX so much higher.

The Stats

Here’s the data from this chapter of the experiment (including regional trips):

• Days I spent in CDMX: 167 (mostly for tax reasons)
• Days of family time in CDMX: 40 (more than last year and I’ll get even more in Sep and Dec this year)
• People I saw in CDMX: 52 (now similar to HK, 30% of London)
• People I met for the first time in CDMX: 190 (continues to be about 1 person/day, regardless of the city)
• People I hung out with 3 or more times in CDMX: 84 (29%, Now more in line with HK and London – 26% and 19% respectively)
• Kids I met/saw in CDMX: 10 (much lower than HK or London, and exclusively visitors)
• Visitors passing through that I was able to see: 50 (2 people/week, similar to HK)
• Total number of people I connected with in CDMX: 292 (almost 2 people/day, similar to HK)

Here are my “Stop Start Continue Change” reflections for my second chapter in CDMX:

Stop

• Eating peanut butter (not specific to CDMX, but it has gotten out of hand :p)
• Eating sugar (again, not specific to CDMX, but another experiment I’m running for the next 3+ months)

Start

• (Re)start proactively practicing Spanish – I got a little lazy towards the end
• Dancing – still haven’t taken a Salsa or Bachata class

Continue

• Spending more time in Mexico relative to London and Hong Kong (for tax reasons, to put down stronger roots, really make the Spanish stick)
• Proactively seeking to connect with Mexicans (currently about 30% of the people I spend time with in CDMX)
• Avoiding street food 
• Hosting dinner parties
• All the athletic activities – hiking, kayaking, running, rollerblading, Wolf…

Change

• Visit new Mexican states rather than only revisit places I’ve already been

That’s all for now. If you’re interested in more stats and reflections, you can find them for London here, Mexico City here, and Hong Kong here and here.