Reflections

Wow it is hard to believe that it has been just over six months since I moved to San Miguel de Allende.  During this time I have only left my adopted country once for a short project and I can't say that I have missed much of anything of the life I left behind.  In fact I have an upcoming project that will take me to Toronto and New York and I am so not looking forward to going.

During this six months, much has happened to Jo Ann and I, we have completed a significant remodel to the house we acquired, commenced the reforestation project, adopted four burros and a compo puppy, commenced a project to stop the erosion on our rancho, became significantly involved as volunteers in the Patronatos por Niños organization, learned a new language, made many new friends (both gringos and mexicanos), had my first major biking accident in over 25 years, acquired two horses and added stables to the rancho and finally almost have completed a major landscaping project on the land that surrounds the house. 

Although we did not spend lots of money on these projects (we don't have it to spend) we did learn a great lesson about life in Mexico in general, and construction work specifically in Mexico, and that is patience.  The work is excellent, but it does not always go at the pace and schedule that you would like.

With Jo Ann up visiting her parents this past week, it made me start to think about how I compare living in Mexico to the other places we have lived .  This includes both So. Cal, San Francisco, Mendocino, Chicago and Northern Minnesota as well as comparing it to London, Paris and Southwestern France where we spent significant time due to my work commitments.  I have to say overall, I have enjoyed my time in Mexico more than all the others, although each has some wonderful traits and all of these experiences have been so enjoyable.

So what are the five things that I enjoy the most here in Mexico:

1.  The people who live here, their attitude to enjoying life, their desire to help you when you are in need and the culture of Mexico in general

2.  The food it is excellent and oh so diverse

3.  The climate

4.  The ability to bike and ride our horses in a variety of terrains and locations just by riding from our rancho.  Also not having to follow a road that we need to share with cars

5.  The vast amount of activities that always seem to be happening in and around San Miguel.  There are so many nights that we collapse into bed and say that we have never been so active in our lives.

However there are always things that we leave behind that we miss when we move to a new location and it is not any different here, so the five things that I miss about living in the US.

1.  The availability and ease to purchase just about anything.  It is much more difficult to purchase certain items like electronics, computers, landscaping supplies, etc. that were vastly available north of the border.  I never understood how good the people of the US have it as it relates to access to a multitude of goods at very cheap prices.

2.  The access to technology and the internet.  Yes I have broadband but it is not as fast nor as stable as it was nob and since I am a techno-wienie this upsets me greatly.

3.  Access to college football and basketball.  We don't have a TV down here so I do not get to see or hear much in the way of NCAA football and basketball.  Yes I get updates via ESPN and CBS on the internet, but I don't get to watch many of the games.

4.  Friends and family.  Clearly it is not easy to make visits to our old friends and family who still live nob and this limits our interactions to email and the telephone.  I do miss my almost daily conversations with Matt where we would debate college football and basketball, MLB (especially the Twins) and US politics.  These are just not topics that my friends down here have interests in so it is something I miss.

5.  Well I can't think of another items that I miss, so I will leave it at four.

All in all, I am very happy to be down here with Jo Ann and our pack of animals.  It has been a great adventure and one that I am looking to continue to explore.