If you enjoyed the video, help us out by subscribing to our channel! We have a lot more videos to come as we explore more of the country including tips about life in Mexico and how we're able to make a living here! 😊 - Lauren & Seth
I did enjoy the video, subscribed and liked. It's my first watch of your channel, too. I look forward to more, you've got me interested in being an ex-pat, or travel to Yucatan Mexico; and I never had before. Living in west -central Florida for years, rural area, but surely can't walk to anything much. How's the air conditioning down there??? lol I feel like I'd like it there in the spring and fall but otherwise, idk.
@@Richannplayshop Awesome! We're so glad to have you along. Moving down here is the best choice we've ever made, we're hoping to make it last as long as possible and after that come back down for retirement. Central Florida is beautiful too, and kind of similar to Yucatan in many ways. Great questions- many places come with strong AC, but a lot of the ones we've seen only have it in the bedrooms. It does get super hot! A lot of people will get a place with a courtyard or backyard that has a lot of vegetation and that cools it down a lot as well. Many people try to get everything done in the mornings or evenings during the hottest months. Luckily such a safe area and active at night, our favorite thing to do is wait for the sun to go down and go out for some drinks and food. It cools down a lot, lots of live music, and a very good atmosphere. Also, we're currently traveling around the country a bit more to kind of see where we'd like to put down more permanant roots...and we've been so surprised at just how cool some parts of Mexico are down here! For instance, San Cristobal de las Casas in the Chiapas state (about 470 miles from Merida), is 40s-50s in the nights and mornings and mid-70s during the day. Cool year-round due to its high elevation. Apparently, a lot of other places in Mexico are like that as well. Good luck with your decision, we both highly recommend coming down and checking some places out down here, we have really fallen in love with it here. Yucatan is the perfect place to start, and where we'll be heading back to after exploring a bit more. Thanks for watching!
Let me tell you I got reverse culture shock. I’m an American and left to Mexico for five years to work for an American company. When I went back to San Francisco I was so shocked that I really just wanted to go back to Mexico. It took me about a year to get used to the grind and American way of life but I still miss Mexico and am sure I will retire there. The people are warm and really kind and you feel more loved with your friends. Weird that I still can’t get that feeling here.
Nice folks like you will always be welcomed in our country. I see that you guys are nice to locals and are learning the language so enjoy our beautiful country.
I'm grateful that I found your channel. I've tried following other channels about expats living in Mexico and I just didn't quite get the feel. You two are much more down to Earth than others. I'm from Texas and I think our state's friendliness comes from its Mexican heritage. Mexico is my favorite country in the world. There isn't much to miss about the U.S.
Before you move to Mexico, check my course and learn Spanish, in a couple months you'll see a difference. I can give you free access to see your progress and so you can make videos in Spanish soon!
@@thenewspanishacademy That's the best advice ever. If going to a Latin country, learn some Spainish! Don't wait until you get there. It's a win-win for you AND the locals. Minimum: be OPEN to learning their language, and TRY to speak it- that goes a long way. It's basically showing respect to their culture. It will affect every aspect of your experience, trust me. I've spent the last three years in Latin countries. The quality of living is higher, mainly because they perceive time differently. The "island time" pace of living forces you slow down and then you start "smelling the roses" naturally! I love it- can you tell?? I digress Download Google Translate app right now. Before you say something to someone, see what it is and spainish. Focus on the person, subject and the action. If you get one of those three words right in español, they will help you with the rest. Entiendo? (Understand) ✌😎 🇲🇽
That's very true! They don't know what they're missing 😜 We're thankful for our experiences here and are happy to share everything we learn along the way. :)
"Most Americans don't travel abroad". Honestly, I'm quite glad about that. In my opinion there is already too much American influence, and of this US exceptionalist culture around everywhere. It doesn't need more.
@@akbk2505 don’t you think if more “white” Americans learned about other cultures their racism would calm down? They don’t experience other cultures therefore other cultures are scary to them. They can’t appreciate anything besides hot dogs and hamburgers. I don’t expect people in other countries to cater to my language and culture. I go there to experience theirs.
That is so cool and after living here, we can believe it! Never been up to Quebec City, but heard great things! We did visit Montreal and it's one of our very favorite cities in the world. Didn't have the time to get up to Quebec City on that trip though. Stay warm, which part of Canada do you live in?
We have traveled all over Mexico and love Mérida. However, we were there in June....and was it ever hot and humid! Thank goodness our hotel had a big, cool pool! We need to return at a different time of year. The city old town, the restaurants, the pyramids, the people, the culture.... it's all beautiful!
I bet that was so hot! 🥵 We’re yet to experience it in the heat of the summer. Agreed that other than the weather it is hard to beat everything else. Cheers amigos!
Thank you, we're loving it down here! That's a great part of the Atlanta area! Smart choice staying closer to the mountains. Both in Georgia and in your future plans for Mexico. Guadalajara looks really nice, can't wait to go check it out as well! Maybe we'll cross paths either south of the border or in back in Georgia in the future! :)
Merida is for sure a good choice worth checking out! It does get super hot in the summer but it's nice that it's just about 30 miles from the coast and also close to thousands of cenotes (sinkhole swimming holes that generally have really nice, clear water). We're going to try and explore as much as possible of Mexico before we put down any long-term roots anywhere though. There are quite a few cities in Central Mexico that are cooler, close to mountains, and also known to be safe, and have a laid-back lifestyle that we can't wait to check out as well! Some examples are San Cristobal de las Casas, Oaxaca, Puebla, and San Miguel de Allende. If you're also looking for smaller cities, Valladolid which is right between Cancun and Merida is another awesome place to consider! We spent 5 weeks there and it was so nice :)
My wife and I visited there for 3 days Nov. 2020 on vacation. Merida is very very safe. Great food and restaurants. You can walk anytime in the evening curfew permitted can't wait o go back.
That's so true! We love how safe and laid back it is. It'd be an awesome city to put full time roots down in eventually! That type of atmosphere is hard to come by in cities of a similar size these days.
Me & my wife are planning on moving to Merida in Spring/Summer 2022! It'll be our first expat experience so we're both scared and excited!! Hope to see ya'll soon! :)
Awesome! It's completely worth it, that is a big move but it'll be an amazing adventure. It sure has been for us. Would be great to get drinks when y'all come down amigos!
We live in S Carolina and are going to retire in Mexico. Merida is way too hot for us so we may do a few months in each city on our short list ( Queretaro, Guanajuato, Puebla, Oaxaca, and San Cristobal de las casas )...but we have 3 years until we can retire so living vicariously through you until then.
Awesome, we're your state neighbors, :) We're both from North Carolina and then again even when we we lived in Atlanta. SC is a great state! That list is awesome, I can see you guys have done your research! Merida and the Yucatan Peninsula has been great so far, but we're looking forward to heading into central Mexico as well. Both for the weather and the mountains, culture, and more. I honestly think you guys are making an awesome choice retiring in Mexico, that's something we're already discussing as well. Right now we want to see as much of this huge country as possible and figure out where we'd potentially like to live for the long term. Thanks for watching and the great comment!
@@laurenandseth We’ve only been here 3 years...we were in Winston Salem for 9 and loved it. My wife is originally from Nicaragua and we’ve lived in Costa Rica before so Spanish is not a problem. We had pretty much decided our first stop was going to be Colombia but we have a sweet little pit mix named Abigail and they have a breed ban, sooo...Mexico it is ! Where were yall in N Carolina ?
@@bananapatch9118 Awesome, Nicaragua and Costa Rica look amazing. We can't wait to explore more of Central America, you guys have really lived in a great mixture of places. Colombia is beautiful but had no clue about the breed ban, that is insane. Totally against judging dogs like Abigail just because she fits a certain physical description. Thankfully there are places like Mexico without these rules! We are actually both originally from just outside of Winston-Salem as well!! That is so cool. Most recently though we lived in Raleigh and Wilson, NC while Lauren was finishing college. We also lived in Seattle for over a year before that. :) Looking forward to hearing more about y'alls adventures living south of the border again. Are you thinking of making RUclips videos about it?? :)
@@laurenandseth We may put some videos on youtube...mostly for our kids n grandkids to kind of share in our retirement adventures....not sure. Ha Hope yall love and enjoy Mexico !
@@bananapatch9118 That's a great idea! :) Thank you, so far we are loving it and can't wait to see more of this country and eventually more countries in Central and South America as well!
Having always lived in walkable cities with decent public transport I can't imagine ever living somewhere where you have to drive everywhere.... it's definitely something I take for granted! Overall Merida sounds like a really nice place to live.
Honestly, we're wondering now how we ever did it haha. It's the source of so much stress having to fight through traffic constantly and worrying about your car breaking down, etc. Merida so far has been a really good spot to call home for the moment. Thanks for watching :)
We love Merida. We’ve been here for almost 7 years but we live north of the city and we have a huge yard for our dogs with tons of grass. Couldn’t get that in centro. We do have a car since we don’t live in centro but we are used to that since we’re from L.A. Merida is muy tranquilo. Welcome and enjoy.
That is amazing! It sounds like you guys have a lovely oasis. There are definitely times when we wish we had a vehicle in Mexico but at least the public transportation has been easy use 😃 gracias por el apoyo!
My husband and I are planning to move to Mexico within this year. We have a modest inheritance saved but know that it will not last. Not wanting to be nosy or too personal but what do you guys do to earn a living, other than RUclips, while there? Trying to get something locked down to get started. Love you videos & the way you show a lot of the places & then explain things. Keep putting the cost of everything in your videos, rent, food, transportation etc. That really helps.
Thanks so much for the awesome feedback! It's great to be here in Mexico and to be learning more about the country as we go. We're so glad you enjoyed it and subscribed! :)
Exactly! It's an underrated place and has a ton of amazing qualities. Glad you see it that way as well. Totally agree about the US, had to way many jobs where you're 'encouraged' to say the least to never take a vacation or time off and if you do, better not even try for more than a week! :| Totally is overwhelming. Thanks for subscribing guys, we subscribed as well and love the content. Looking forward to more! :)
Interesting, never would have thought about the laundry aspect of life there. So cool that you're getting more acclimated to "island time", that really does sound wonderful and we in the states could probably really benefit from slowing down a bit. Glad to hear too that it's really safe, i suppose there is a lot of misinformation about the country so it's good to see a different perspective. Keep it up you two and stay safe!
Yeah we weren’t expecting the laundry to be such a big deal! We are definitely enjoying the slower paced lifestyle! It’s a nice change. 😄 yes!! I think there is a lot of misinformation or maybe just not enough of it so I’m happy to give our opinion of safety in this part of Mexico! Thanks for watching!!
I really enjoyed the quality of your video production. As we hope to retire in Mexico in the near future, I watch as many ex-pat vlogs as possible. I don't know how I've not seen you. You provided great concise information. Looking forward to watching your content. Take care...
Awesome, thanks so much for the great feedback! Retiring in Mexico is such a great idea! That's our long term goal as well. We're absolutely loving it down here and can't wait to keep the videos coming. Thanks for watching, y'all take care as well and best of luck! :)
Love the live music and compilation for your intro! Merida looks wonderful and seems like a wonderful place to live. What a cool experience! Will def re-watch this video before traveling around Mexico! Def on our post-pandemic bucket list :)
It's so underrated! It wasn't even on our radar until a blogger named NomadicMatt visited and talked about how nice it was on his Instagram stories. Caught our eye because of the location in the middle of the Yucatan Peninsula and the cenote in town, but we quickly realized it had even so much more going for it. It's a special place. :) Thanks so much!
@@laurenandseth Yes, I've been to Valladolid. We were at the town square at night, what a vibe of families together, and the street food was awesome! My kids were smaller then, and when we were walking around the town square, I told them, "look at all the people out here enjoying themselves, they don't watch TV for hours, like in America." Even the policeman was nice, when he told me I had to move the car since I had inadvertently parked in a no parking area, on the perimeter of the town square. While stopped at a red light at an intersection, a young boy, about 7-9 years old saw me, and came right up to my window, and he said that he wanted to speak to me, because, " I want to practice my English", which he spoke pretty well!
Sounds like yall are having a fun experience! We are pretty happy in our region of the US. But it does sound very exciting to travel long term and check out new ways of life in new places. Glad you are getting to live that out. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us!
Yes it has been a great experience so far! I totally understand. There are so many amazing parts of the U.S. to visit and to live 😊 thanks for watching!!
No offense, but many Americans are of Latin heritage, who became American citizens. In South Texas, many "Americans" know how friendly people from Mexico, really are.
Yooooo! Just came across your video. No undie problem what so ever! They come back folded, and smell fresh! New to the area and im love. Not only for lavanderias, but with merida. Cheers.
Now that we've started using them (even for our underwear :D) since this video, they're really a game changer! Love them! Merida is fantastic. We're in Central Mexico now but looking forward to heading back that way in the near future!!
Great video , guys. Thank you . We had to buy washer and dryer , little kids activities require several times per day washing clothes :) Good Luck with your journey :)
Loved this video and the updates! Also loved to see so much of Atlanta in the video. The laundry situation was hilarious, I hadn’t thought of how complicated that could possibly be. Merida looks amazing. Can’t wait to see the next video!
Wow! I visited Merida back in March and fell in love. I have been on the fence about trying to live there for a extended period of time and this video solidified my ambition. Unfortunately I don’t work virtually at the moment so I’ll have to figure it out in the meantime. What do you guys do for work?
Thanks so much , I have been interested in moving to Merida mexico for awhile. I have lived in Europe for a while, worked and lived in the Mideast. I will be watching more of your videos. Thanks
Awesome, highly recommend it! It's worth the heat. Living in Europe sounds so nice, we both love traveling there any chance we get. Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the comment! :)
If you rent a house and or apartment in Merida , many of them have a leaking roof for some reason lol BTW we had some time in Russia and the have no dryers as well .
@@MigueltorrucoRivera i understand , in Russia people do that too. Once we tried dryers in US - its amazing. Clothes are dry within minutes and its less damaging unlike sun and dust outside. We bought a set of washer and dryer here in Mexico and wife is happy to use it now. She has to wash clothes daily since 5 little kids stain things a lot :)
Most Europeans cities don’t have dryers either. They are not common outside of the U.S. I lived in Barcelona and London... no dryers. Time to line dry or heat radiator-dry your clothes if you live in a cold & rainy place like London.
In talking about availability of food and not having the opportunity to find a good quick meal, you are missing a huge gastronomical experience in not eating the fantastic street food you can find all over Merida and the Yucatan. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed.
That is a great point. Thanks for the advice! We did eat quite a lot of street food while staying in Valladolid before Merida, and it was great. We must have eaten 2 dozen marquesitas, sopas, churros, etc. :) We were even surprised to see how many hotdogs and hamburger food carts there are here and they're excellent! Where we're staying in Merida the ones convenient to us are mostly desserts but that is still very worth noting! It sure would be nice if more cities in the US would have those everywhere! Cheers! :)
Thank you! Glad it was helpful for you. Good luck with your move and great choice considering moving to Merida. After traveling all over the world...we both can honestly say it's a truly amazing place to be!
You said that right, mi amigo! Thanks for watching! 😊 San Diego is amazing! That was our launching point into Mexico for the first time! We took the train to the border and walked into Tijuana. It’s a great location!! 👍
It's the perfect city to try it out in! Safe, friendly, lots to do in the city and surrounding area AND the coffee shops/cafes and restaurants are awesome! Thank you for watching! :)
Thanks to you guys, we are going to visit the Big Fish filming location. We are visiting my sister who just moved to AL for Spring Break. Rosalie and my wife are excited to see the Goats!!!!!
Guys!! That is so awesome! I can’t wait to see the video from your trip there. I hope you guys have a fun and safe trip! I know your sister will be excited to see you all 😄👍
I was in Merida a month ago. It was a blessing not being around so much processed fast food. Everything was fresh and not genetically modified. The food and medical system in this country are killing us. My air bnb had a washer and dryer. Good luck guys. I'm moving in a few months. I'm checking out Queretero. The driving in Merida drove me crazy. A roundabout every mile. Lol I was there for two weeks and didn't miss the U.S at all.
That is very true as well! The markets here are so incredible and everything is so fresh. It's amazing having healthy food that's actually affordable. Haha, I can see that with the roundabouts, they are a bit excessive... reminds us a bit of France with that, especially on the street modeled after the one in Paris! We haven't heard too much about Queretero but looking it up now and it looks nice, we'd love to hear about how you like it there! Best of luck to you and we're not missing the US at all right now either :D
@@laurenandseth Thanks. I’ll keep you posted on Queretero. It’s like Merida but the temp is between 70-90 all year round. It’s extremely clean too. I love the mountains.
This looks like a cool experience guys, I agree with the US being a hustle and bustle life.I know my job I work 50 hours a week and I wish I had more time to focus on my travel, Eventually I think I'm heading my channel into a more travel channel.i can't wait to see how your guys journey there be safe and create memories for a lifetime.
Hey man, I totally feel you on that. I worked mostly in production jobs throughout my early 20s, money wasn't bad but those were some of the craziest hours I've ever done, anything production related usually is I guess. Even now I can't seem to get under 50 hours a week but at least for the moment anyway it's from a computer so I can do it from where ever. Fingers crossed it stays that way for awhile. Thanks for stopping by man, been enjoying the content. Stay safe! -Seth
Hey Lauren & Seth...congrats on taking a true leap of faith with all your adventures in Merida, Mexico! It's so cool to see you both truly living & taking advantage of the limited time we all have in this lifetime. This is truly an amazing video, PACKED with SO much informative information which the pace flows so smooth. #pantyproblems hahaha - funny, but not really. I hope you can find a better perm. solutions moving forward, as I would totally feel the same way! Good to see you so happy, love the visuals & edit, and love seeing you create content you love!! Be safe & I'll be looking forward to your next one!! -Shawn
Thanks so much for the great comment! We love seeing this :) So true about us having limited time. Haha, yeah we almost have to just laugh about the #pantyproblemz at this point :D We're loving your channel as well, looking forward to more content from you as well! Thanks for stopping by!
Prepping to sell our house in Nashville to travel around and settle in Mexico indefinitely as well and this is the first video of yours I came across before watching several more :) You are both such beautiful people inside and out and it has been such a great pleasure to be shown around the country by you two. I've lived in Guanajuato and Chapala. I highly recommend visiting Sayulita near Puerto Vallarta. It was a favorite of mine on my second stay there and I ended up spending nearly half of my time there :) Much love and gratitude to you both for introducing me and my family to such amazing places I'm very excited to see for myself
Thank you, that means a lot! :) We haven't been to Puerto Vallarta yet or Sayulita, they are on our list for ASAP! We've only visited the Oaxacan Riviera and a little bit of Baja on the Pacific side. We're so excited to see more of it. That's very exciting that you are prepping to move down. Safe travels and hopefully our paths cross in Mexico! :)
omg thank you the best video i have seen so far about Merida, I'm for sure going to watch more as i plan my move... (anyone can answer this question for me) is it really that hot people have been telling me about the heat
That's awesome, thank you! Yes-not going to lie, it gets REALLY hot. However, people come up with unique ways to beat the heat there. 1. It's not too bad in the mornings and evenings. 2. The beach is nearby and cenote swimming holes which helps. 3. It's not hard to find places to rent with AC luckily, and even some with shaded areas in the yard. 4. Many people sleep in hammocks which helps with the heat a bit. 5. The drinks are cold, affordable, and delicious, For us, it's worth the heat and kind of makes it fun experience, especially if you're coming from a cold winter somewhere. However, getaways to much cooler cities in Central Mexico are always nice too. :) Good luck with your move, let us know how it goes!
Happy to hear yall live there ... I currently live in Anaheim Ca and my roots are from a small town/village , Tunkas and own a home there and also plan to retire and move back...like we say si Dios quiere .
That's awesome. Been through Anaheim, really like it here! I just looked up Tunkas, we've been super close to there without knowing it! I love the small villages in Yucatan...so peaceful! Retiring back is a great idea. The US is nice but I can already see it's just not the same as being in Mexico! Thanks for a great comment -Seth
I'm going to Mérida in January and staying for 2 weeks. The more videos I watch and articles I read, the more excited I am! Honestly I wish I could stay longer!
Just came across your channel, well done. I’ll be in Puerto Vallarta for the month of December, with the thought of spending more time in Mexico. Looking forward to exploring more of Mexico.
I’m from Atlanta actually Gwinnett buss only runs Monday to Friday and it’s like 2 for hr sometimes 1 for hr wait not good . Rent its1000 n up for 600sqf !
Nice to hear from someone else who knows what it's like living in ATL! We really like it there overall. But honestly, the prices in the US are ridiculous and with all the extra expenses, it can really start to weigh you down! I feel like it can be worth it but it can also be so stressful.
I’ve lived in Mérida for 6 years and can’t imagine living anyplace else. I’ve used the same lavandría for 4+ years and my laundry lady is like family to me. She makes my laundry so clean and fragrant. I live in North Mérida and have the Toyota I drove down here with and I’m very happy to have a car. But I know lots of people who’ve lived here for years without one. The people here are so generous, gracious and friendly.
We've been back and forth for 6 years now. We spent more time each year and now my partner has permanent residency here while I maintain the perpetual travel status. This works well for us for import reasons. We live in our rvs so we can bounce around at will. I definitely recommend seeing as many cities as possible especially small villages. There is so much more see than the cities.
Wonderful! Great commentary on pros & cons and your experience in general of expat life in Mexico so far. And congrats on the growth and success of your channel. Well done, my friends 👍. Big like and full play. Thanks for sharing and enjoy your day 😀.
Merida is a great choice for sure! Thanks to the great food and shops, proximity to the beach, and how walkable and bike friendly it is. All of this just gives it a relaxed and enjoyable vibes that's hard to beat. We've heard the summers are really bad with the heat but at least there's all the cenotes nearby to cool off haha. Thanks for watching! :)
@@laurenandseth if you can deal with AZ heat you can deal with any heat lol, I'm also curious of the rainy and winter seasons, if any...Thank you guys💯
One word: Commando. lol. We're living near Lake Chapala....we don't have a washer in our house, so I've been doing laundry in the kitchen sink and a bucket. We're lucky to have a small "backyard"...I hang our things to dry there. We really love it here but have been wanting to check out the area where yall are. Great video....accurate points from our perspective.
Haha, great comment guys! Put a smile on both of our faces. We've heard very good things about that area and can't wait to visit Guadalajara and all the surrounding areas. Hanging things to dry is really growing on us, it's nice to not have to deal with clothes shrinking from the dryer as much. We've been checking out your channel as well, really enjoying it! Cheers guys, maybe we'll cross paths somewhere in Mexico in the future!
My wife and I went to Merida Mexico last year and it definitely was a great experience. I’ve been trying to get people to go and see for themselves. Needless to say we’re going back next year for longer and to look for a place to stay!!!
Very informative, thanks! I moved to Prague CZ from the States back in 2011 and never looked back! Surprised to hear how safe Merida is, and that you don't need a car. Cool!
I'm here because I want to do the same thing. Hope things go well for you guys. And best of luck with your channel. As you move around Mexico, I would love to hear about language barrier issues. My biggest fear is the fact that I do not know any Spanish
Thanks so much and same to you! We'll make language barrier issues a topic video in the near future for sure! I'd say you'll be fine for a few reasons and with a few tips. We're getting better with speaking Spanish as we go but when we moved down we only knew basic terms and words. One thing we did was download the language on the Google Translate App, it's free and has been a life saver when we don't have cell service or anything, we still have the whole language when in a pinch. It also works with your cellphone camera if you want to hold it over a sign or a menu. It's pretty cool! Another thing we did to start out was learn every 10th number 10-100 in Spanish. That way we could understand prices a bit more when catching a taxi, shopping, etc. To start with you could also just carry a small calculator or use the one on your phone and many people will put the amount in for you if you don't understand it. Many people only do not speak English here BUT we've noticed most people are super patient with us English speakers, while we try to use our translator apps and things like that. :D Especially if you learn the basics and can just greet them in Spanish at least. Good luck on your travels, looking forward to hearing about your experiences in Mexico!
I'm really thinking to move to Mexico 🇲🇽 I have a Mexican family, after I watched this video I decided to live in Merida because it's safe place to live as you mentioned, thank you so much for your video.
We've been living in Progreso for 3 years and took our laundry to a lavendaria for the 1st 2 years, underwear and all. No biggie. Most everyone wears it.
I'm not sure if that one is still there. Will do some digging and find out if the largest is still in Merida. I know after about 9 months of being closed due to covid, the city opened back up it's famous street markets/flea markets back in December. We visited a few and they were awesome! The fresh food is still there for sure. We've never had such easy access to so much amazing, fresh and healthy foods!
Awesome! Awesome choice, it's a great place with a lot to do and see! We are yet to make it to Alberta but we've been to Canada many times and love it there! :) Cheers amigo!
Think it would be such a great experience to live as an expat. So glad you are both enjoying your time and embracing other cultures and another country as home.
your vids are so casual & informative - just love that i've run across you guys - you've likely been asked this question, but how fluent are y'all? i'm "refreshing" my spanish in advance of moving, but not nearly close enough to be called "fluent" - thanks in advance & look forward to more of your adventures!
Thank you! We aren't fluent either. I'd say were conversational for small talk but we get stuck a lot when the conversation advances! :D We've been practicing everyday though and getting better. Everyone here has been patient with us while we learn. We downloaded the language on Google Translate so that's been a help in different scenarios, and we've been taking classes on a subscription site called Skillshare that's been helping speed up the process a lot as well. :)
3 года назад+1
Valladolid Yucatan is one of the most beautiful city in Mexico....Very Beautiful
in Mexico city, I think you need a car, depending where you live and work. If you want to get quick to your job, in car around 20 min is fine, otherwise in public transport is around 1.5 hours
Great video! I too hope to live there next winter but only stay about four months. My parents were from Progreso and I still have cousins there. I want to go visit later this month. Are most shops open? Is the Mercado open in Mérida? I don’t want to ask the family so we can surprise them should we go. They already told me the beach in Progreso will be closed during Holy Week. Thanks again for sharing your experiences. Safe travels!
Awesome! Yes, basically all shops are currently open in the city. There's just a curfew for 11:30 pm- 6 am in place in the state so things are not open quite as late. The markets are open as well and seem super bustling to us, but we've been told they aren't like they were pre-covid, because there used to be more stalls open and bigger crowds. But for us they're really crazy and absolutely amazing! That's so cool your family is from this area...we love this area now! :) Good luck with surprising your family and we hope you have a great trip!
I always travel Mexico without a car and wish I had one. When I move down I'm bringing mine, traveling is always easier with one. I would eventually stop driving thought when I find a long term place to stay. Driving does suck, you have to keep up on bills and you have to stay sober if you have to drive
That's a good idea. We haven't rented a car here yet but it's going to have to happen soon because we have some off the beaten path places we want to see. A car would be convenient, especially for road trips outside of town! Haha so true about having to stay sober and all the bills, it's always something with cars!
Thanks for watching!! The suburbs of large cities are always a great choice! I think the closest we have ever lived to a downtown area of a city was when we lived in Raleigh! We were only 3 miles from downtown 👌
Awesome! Congrats, coming to Mexico is always a good idea! :) We are hoping to get back out there sooner than later and visit some spots we haven't seen yet there, not sure on any exact dates though. We're currently visiting the Chiapas state and keep finding new places we want to check out before heading back to the Yucatan Peninsula :) Keep us posted about your trip, that's exciting!
Never had an issue with delicates at the lavanderias and we used several different ones. We'd throw them in with the rest of the laundry and it always came back clean and folded, just like everything else. I miss living in the Yucatan. Not having to own a car was so nice. $30/weekly groceries was even better!
If you enjoyed the video, help us out by subscribing to our channel! We have a lot more videos to come as we explore more of the country including tips about life in Mexico and how we're able to make a living here! 😊 - Lauren & Seth
I'm glad you guys are doing well! I enjoy watching your videos. I miss ya girl! Maybe I can come visit one day 😊❤
I did enjoy the video, subscribed and liked. It's my first watch of your channel, too. I look forward to more, you've got me interested in being an ex-pat, or travel to Yucatan Mexico; and I never had before. Living in west -central Florida for years, rural area, but surely can't walk to anything much. How's the air conditioning down there??? lol I feel like I'd like it there in the spring and fall but otherwise, idk.
@@Richannplayshop Awesome! We're so glad to have you along. Moving down here is the best choice we've ever made, we're hoping to make it last as long as possible and after that come back down for retirement. Central Florida is beautiful too, and kind of similar to Yucatan in many ways.
Great questions- many places come with strong AC, but a lot of the ones we've seen only have it in the bedrooms. It does get super hot! A lot of people will get a place with a courtyard or backyard that has a lot of vegetation and that cools it down a lot as well. Many people try to get everything done in the mornings or evenings during the hottest months. Luckily such a safe area and active at night, our favorite thing to do is wait for the sun to go down and go out for some drinks and food. It cools down a lot, lots of live music, and a very good atmosphere.
Also, we're currently traveling around the country a bit more to kind of see where we'd like to put down more permanant roots...and we've been so surprised at just how cool some parts of Mexico are down here! For instance, San Cristobal de las Casas in the Chiapas state (about 470 miles from Merida), is 40s-50s in the nights and mornings and mid-70s during the day. Cool year-round due to its high elevation. Apparently, a lot of other places in Mexico are like that as well.
Good luck with your decision, we both highly recommend coming down and checking some places out down here, we have really fallen in love with it here. Yucatan is the perfect place to start, and where we'll be heading back to after exploring a bit more. Thanks for watching!
@@gabriellewatson9864 Hey! I miss you too and I hope you’re doing well! That would be so fun if you could come visit sometime!! 😄
can you guys not? so annoying we dont need anymore of you people here lol
Let me tell you I got reverse culture shock. I’m an American and left to Mexico for five years to work for an American company. When I went back to San Francisco I was so shocked that I really just wanted to go back to Mexico. It took me about a year to get used to the grind and American way of life but I still miss Mexico and am sure I will retire there. The people are warm and really kind and you feel more loved with your friends. Weird that I still can’t get that feeling here.
Same for me, I lived 3 years in Mexico and I can't wait to get back to Mexico.
Nice folks like you will always be welcomed in our country. I see that you guys are nice to locals and are learning the language so enjoy our beautiful country.
Of course, thank you! :)
I'm grateful that I found your channel. I've tried following other channels about expats living in Mexico and I just didn't quite get the feel. You two are much more down to Earth than others. I'm from Texas and I think our state's friendliness comes from its Mexican heritage. Mexico is my favorite country in the world. There isn't much to miss about the U.S.
We'll be right behind you guys in leaving the US. Super jealous of you guys right now. Looks like you're having a blast in Mexico
Don't blame you! It was finally time and we're definitely not missing the US in the slightest right now.
Hurry up
@@gustavojuarezpantoja6016 trying! Lol
Before you move to Mexico, check my course and learn Spanish, in a couple months you'll see a difference. I can give you free access to see your progress and so you can make videos in Spanish soon!
@@thenewspanishacademy That's the best advice ever. If going to a Latin country, learn some Spainish! Don't wait until you get there. It's a win-win for you AND the locals. Minimum: be OPEN to learning their language, and TRY to speak it- that goes a long way. It's basically showing respect to their culture. It will affect every aspect of your experience, trust me. I've spent the last three years in Latin countries. The quality of living is higher, mainly because they perceive time differently. The "island time" pace of living forces you slow down and then you start "smelling the roses" naturally! I love it- can you tell?? I digress
Download Google Translate app right now. Before you say something to someone, see what it is and spainish. Focus on the person, subject and the action. If you get one of those three words right in español, they will help you with the rest. Entiendo? (Understand) ✌😎 🇲🇽
You’re wise to experience life in another country. Most Americans don’t travel abroad. They think Disney world is a vacation. Thanks for your advice.
That's very true! They don't know what they're missing 😜 We're thankful for our experiences here and are happy to share everything we learn along the way. :)
"Most Americans don't travel abroad". Honestly, I'm quite glad about that. In my opinion there is already too much American influence, and of this US exceptionalist culture around everywhere. It doesn't need more.
@@akbk2505 don’t you think if more “white” Americans learned about other cultures their racism would calm down? They don’t experience other cultures therefore other cultures are scary to them. They can’t appreciate anything besides hot dogs and hamburgers. I don’t expect people in other countries to cater to my language and culture. I go there to experience theirs.
@@justagirlsd3000 I see this point, too! Yes, absolutely.
Exelent vidoe!... So many young people are moving to mexico its crazy, thankyou guys for the feedback.
Thanks so much! :) It's a great place to be!
Hi guys Merida supposed to be ranked the 2nd safest city in the American Continent just after Quebec City, Greetings from cold Canada!
That is so cool and after living here, we can believe it! Never been up to Quebec City, but heard great things! We did visit Montreal and it's one of our very favorite cities in the world. Didn't have the time to get up to Quebec City on that trip though. Stay warm, which part of Canada do you live in?
I love Quebec City. So beautiful and historic
listening to both of you makes me imagine I'm also living in Mexico it's a great city indeed enjoy your stay in Mexico guys and keep showing us around
Thanks so much! :) We're loving it here so far! We're enjoying seeing the natural beauty of your area on your channel as well!
Carry a length of para cord. You can use it for so many things, including a clothes line in the bathroom.
Trust me. I’ve been a full time traveler and expat for many years.
Awesome tip! Thanks for sharing.
We have traveled all over Mexico and love Mérida. However, we were there in June....and was it ever hot and humid! Thank goodness our hotel had a big, cool pool! We need to return at a different time of year. The city old town, the restaurants, the pyramids, the people, the culture.... it's all beautiful!
I bet that was so hot! 🥵 We’re yet to experience it in the heat of the summer. Agreed that other than the weather it is hard to beat everything else. Cheers amigos!
Congrats! I want to move over toward Guadalajara, from North of Atlanta (Cherokee county)
Thank you, we're loving it down here! That's a great part of the Atlanta area! Smart choice staying closer to the mountains. Both in Georgia and in your future plans for Mexico. Guadalajara looks really nice, can't wait to go check it out as well! Maybe we'll cross paths either south of the border or in back in Georgia in the future! :)
@@laurenandseth sure would like that in either place. There is something about fresh mountain air out from a city but close enough.
OK, I'm interested now! Looking for safe, green places to retire.
Merida is for sure a good choice worth checking out! It does get super hot in the summer but it's nice that it's just about 30 miles from the coast and also close to thousands of cenotes (sinkhole swimming holes that generally have really nice, clear water). We're going to try and explore as much as possible of Mexico before we put down any long-term roots anywhere though. There are quite a few cities in Central Mexico that are cooler, close to mountains, and also known to be safe, and have a laid-back lifestyle that we can't wait to check out as well!
Some examples are San Cristobal de las Casas, Oaxaca, Puebla, and San Miguel de Allende.
If you're also looking for smaller cities, Valladolid which is right between Cancun and Merida is another awesome place to consider! We spent 5 weeks there and it was so nice :)
Yes, now that you mention it, as I hadn't really considered retiring anywhere but the US; the idea intrigues me to go elsewhere.
Loved this one! Thanks for the conversation about Mexico! :)
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it :)
My wife and I visited there for 3 days Nov. 2020 on vacation. Merida is very very safe. Great food and restaurants. You can walk anytime in the evening curfew permitted can't wait o go back.
That's so true! We love how safe and laid back it is. It'd be an awesome city to put full time roots down in eventually! That type of atmosphere is hard to come by in cities of a similar size these days.
Me & my wife are planning on moving to Merida in Spring/Summer 2022! It'll be our first expat experience so we're both scared and excited!! Hope to see ya'll soon! :)
Awesome! It's completely worth it, that is a big move but it'll be an amazing adventure. It sure has been for us. Would be great to get drinks when y'all come down amigos!
Best wishes to y’all 💖
I’m right behind you by fall/winter of 2022! Blessings
@@laurenandseth can I ask what you guys do for work? My wife and I have been thinking about making the move and that’s our biggest concern
Did you move
6:39 "You're killing yourself, but you're glad that you're saving time." What a quote!
We live in S Carolina and are going to retire in Mexico. Merida is way too hot for us so we may do a few months in each city on our short list ( Queretaro, Guanajuato, Puebla, Oaxaca, and San Cristobal de las casas )...but we have 3 years until we can retire so living vicariously through you until then.
Awesome, we're your state neighbors, :) We're both from North Carolina and then again even when we we lived in Atlanta. SC is a great state!
That list is awesome, I can see you guys have done your research! Merida and the Yucatan Peninsula has been great so far, but we're looking forward to heading into central Mexico as well. Both for the weather and the mountains, culture, and more. I honestly think you guys are making an awesome choice retiring in Mexico, that's something we're already discussing as well. Right now we want to see as much of this huge country as possible and figure out where we'd potentially like to live for the long term. Thanks for watching and the great comment!
@@laurenandseth
We’ve only been here 3 years...we were in Winston Salem for 9 and loved it.
My wife is originally from Nicaragua and we’ve lived in Costa Rica before so Spanish is not a problem.
We had pretty much decided our first stop was going to be Colombia but we have a sweet little pit mix named Abigail and they have a breed ban, sooo...Mexico it is !
Where were yall in N Carolina ?
@@bananapatch9118 Awesome, Nicaragua and Costa Rica look amazing. We can't wait to explore more of Central America, you guys have really lived in a great mixture of places. Colombia is beautiful but had no clue about the breed ban, that is insane. Totally against judging dogs like Abigail just because she fits a certain physical description. Thankfully there are places like Mexico without these rules!
We are actually both originally from just outside of Winston-Salem as well!! That is so cool. Most recently though we lived in Raleigh and Wilson, NC while Lauren was finishing college. We also lived in Seattle for over a year before that. :) Looking forward to hearing more about y'alls adventures living south of the border again. Are you thinking of making RUclips videos about it?? :)
@@laurenandseth
We may put some videos on youtube...mostly for our kids n grandkids to kind of share in our retirement adventures....not sure. Ha
Hope yall love and enjoy Mexico !
@@bananapatch9118 That's a great idea! :) Thank you, so far we are loving it and can't wait to see more of this country and eventually more countries in Central and South America as well!
Having always lived in walkable cities with decent public transport I can't imagine ever living somewhere where you have to drive everywhere.... it's definitely something I take for granted! Overall Merida sounds like a really nice place to live.
Honestly, we're wondering now how we ever did it haha. It's the source of so much stress having to fight through traffic constantly and worrying about your car breaking down, etc. Merida so far has been a really good spot to call home for the moment. Thanks for watching :)
Moved from London to coast of Spain (Cartagena) a few years ago..life is so much sweeter & simpler. Best of luck!
We love Merida. We’ve been here for almost 7 years but we live north of the city and we have a huge yard for our dogs with tons of grass. Couldn’t get that in centro. We do have a car since we don’t live in centro but we are used to that since we’re from L.A. Merida is muy tranquilo. Welcome and enjoy.
That is amazing! It sounds like you guys have a lovely oasis. There are definitely times when we wish we had a vehicle in Mexico but at least the public transportation has been easy use 😃 gracias por el apoyo!
My husband and I are planning to move to Mexico within this year. We have a modest inheritance saved but know that it will not last. Not wanting to be nosy or too personal but what do you guys do to earn a living, other than RUclips, while there? Trying to get something locked down to get started. Love you videos & the way you show a lot of the places & then explain things. Keep putting the cost of everything in your videos, rent, food, transportation etc. That really helps.
New subscriber now, nice to hear umbias information from people who actually are in Mexico.
Thanks so much for the awesome feedback! It's great to be here in Mexico and to be learning more about the country as we go. We're so glad you enjoyed it and subscribed! :)
We love this video! Mexico gets a bad wrap but we appreciate you showing how beautiful and safe it can be
Exactly! It's an underrated place and has a ton of amazing qualities. Glad you see it that way as well. Totally agree about the US, had to way many jobs where you're 'encouraged' to say the least to never take a vacation or time off and if you do, better not even try for more than a week! :| Totally is overwhelming.
Thanks for subscribing guys, we subscribed as well and love the content. Looking forward to more! :)
So true. In the US, you are expected to always be productive. I am frankly getting sick of it.
Interesting, never would have thought about the laundry aspect of life there. So cool that you're getting more acclimated to "island time", that really does sound wonderful and we in the states could probably really benefit from slowing down a bit. Glad to hear too that it's really safe, i suppose there is a lot of misinformation about the country so it's good to see a different perspective. Keep it up you two and stay safe!
Yeah we weren’t expecting the laundry to be such a big deal! We are definitely enjoying the slower paced lifestyle! It’s a nice change. 😄 yes!! I think there is a lot of misinformation or maybe just not enough of it so I’m happy to give our opinion of safety in this part of Mexico! Thanks for watching!!
I really enjoyed the quality of your video production. As we hope to retire in Mexico in the near future, I watch as many ex-pat vlogs as possible. I don't know how I've not seen you. You provided great concise information. Looking forward to watching your content. Take care...
Awesome, thanks so much for the great feedback! Retiring in Mexico is such a great idea! That's our long term goal as well. We're absolutely loving it down here and can't wait to keep the videos coming. Thanks for watching, y'all take care as well and best of luck! :)
Love the live music and compilation for your intro! Merida looks wonderful and seems like a wonderful place to live. What a cool experience! Will def re-watch this video before traveling around Mexico! Def on our post-pandemic bucket list :)
Thanks so much, so glad you guys enjoyed it! Mexico is so incredible! :)
Thanks for the beautiful images. GOD BLESS YOU
Thanks so much for your positive feedback! :)
I’ve never been to Valladolid and have not seen many RUclipsrs who’ve lived there. That’s awesome. Best of luck on your new life and travel journey!
It's so underrated! It wasn't even on our radar until a blogger named NomadicMatt visited and talked about how nice it was on his Instagram stories. Caught our eye because of the location in the middle of the Yucatan Peninsula and the cenote in town, but we quickly realized it had even so much more going for it. It's a special place. :) Thanks so much!
@@laurenandseth Yes, I've been to Valladolid. We were at the town square at night, what a vibe of families together, and the street food was awesome! My kids were smaller then, and when we were walking around the town square, I told them, "look at all the people out here enjoying themselves, they don't watch TV for hours, like in America." Even the policeman was nice, when he told me I had to move the car since I had inadvertently parked in a no parking area, on the perimeter of the town square. While stopped at a red light at an intersection, a young boy, about 7-9 years old saw me, and came right up to my window, and he said that he wanted to speak to me, because, " I want to practice my English", which he spoke pretty well!
Sounds like yall are having a fun experience! We are pretty happy in our region of the US. But it does sound very exciting to travel long term and check out new ways of life in new places. Glad you are getting to live that out. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us!
Yes it has been a great experience so far! I totally understand. There are so many amazing parts of the U.S. to visit and to live 😊 thanks for watching!!
Hi guys Welcome to Mexico 🇲🇽😘
Thanks so much, friend! We're so happy to be here! :)
Findly Americans
Are finding the true about
How nice people are in Mexico
Welcome to México
Thank you friend!
No offense, but many Americans are of Latin heritage, who became American citizens. In South Texas, many "Americans" know how friendly people from Mexico, really are.
Native Americans are also from Mexico and south. Anyhow Yucatan is a precious state in general.
Yooooo! Just came across your video. No undie problem what so ever! They come back folded, and smell fresh! New to the area and im love. Not only for lavanderias, but with merida.
Cheers.
Now that we've started using them (even for our underwear :D) since this video, they're really a game changer! Love them! Merida is fantastic. We're in Central Mexico now but looking forward to heading back that way in the near future!!
Great video , guys. Thank you . We had to buy washer and dryer , little kids activities require several times per day washing clothes :)
Good Luck with your journey :)
Yes! I can imagine with kids it's absolutely essential to buy a washer and dryer! :) Thanks so much, we're glad you enjoyed the video!
Second video I'm watching from you guys I love the content and you just got me as a new subscriber thank you for the awesome content.
Thanks for the positive feedback, friend! So glad you’re enjoying the videos. 😊
Loved this video and the updates! Also loved to see so much of Atlanta in the video. The laundry situation was hilarious, I hadn’t thought of how complicated that could possibly be. Merida looks amazing. Can’t wait to see the next video!
Haha yeah, Atlanta was obviously our most recent footage from the US so it got used quite a bit. The laundry situation is wild haha, thanks man!
As far as the safety of Merida ... I've heard that the cartels' families live in Merida so it's considered 'off limits'.
😁
Wow! I visited Merida back in March and fell in love. I have been on the fence about trying to live there for a extended period of time and this video solidified my ambition. Unfortunately I don’t work virtually at the moment so I’ll have to figure it out in the meantime. What do you guys do for work?
Thanks so much , I have been interested in moving to Merida mexico for awhile. I have lived in Europe for a while, worked and lived in the Mideast. I will be watching more of your videos. Thanks
Awesome, highly recommend it! It's worth the heat. Living in Europe sounds so nice, we both love traveling there any chance we get. Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the comment! :)
If you rent a house and or apartment in Merida , many of them have a leaking roof for some reason lol
BTW we had some time in Russia and the have no dryers as well .
In Mexico dryer machines not really used couse we dry by the air and sun even rich people do that
@@MigueltorrucoRivera i understand , in Russia people do that too. Once we tried dryers in US - its amazing. Clothes are dry within minutes and its less damaging unlike sun and dust outside. We bought a set of washer and dryer here in Mexico and wife is happy to use it now. She has to wash clothes daily since 5 little kids stain things a lot :)
Most Europeans cities don’t have dryers either. They are not common outside of the U.S. I lived in Barcelona and London... no dryers. Time to line dry or heat radiator-dry your clothes if you live in a cold & rainy place like London.
Haha, good to know! :D That's interesting, we haven't been to Russia yet but it's on the list.
The sun here is perfect for that! We're really getting used to it, at least our cotton shirts aren't shrinking in the dryer anymore! :)
In talking about availability of food and not having the opportunity to find a good quick meal, you are missing a huge gastronomical experience in not eating the fantastic street food you can find all over Merida and the Yucatan. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed.
That is a great point. Thanks for the advice! We did eat quite a lot of street food while staying in Valladolid before Merida, and it was great. We must have eaten 2 dozen marquesitas, sopas, churros, etc. :) We were even surprised to see how many hotdogs and hamburger food carts there are here and they're excellent! Where we're staying in Merida the ones convenient to us are mostly desserts but that is still very worth noting! It sure would be nice if more cities in the US would have those everywhere! Cheers! :)
What a beautiful place. Love watching the colorful houses. The view is amazing. Thank you for sharing. Enjoy and have fun guys. Have a nice day.
Yeah I love all of the colorful houses too!! Thanks for watching 😊
Thanks for sharing the information and good to know ! I hope you guys are having a good time in Mexico 😊👍
Thanks for watching!! We are really enjoying it down here 😄
Great video! Thank you!! We are looking to move to Merida and this was so helpful.
Thank you! Glad it was helpful for you. Good luck with your move and great choice considering moving to Merida. After traveling all over the world...we both can honestly say it's a truly amazing place to be!
Love the intro! This is amazing place,Nice vlog anyway.Loads of information. Great share!. New friend added🤝. Have a great day. Greetings from London
Thanks for watching! Cheers friend! :)
My Mom loved London
Good food, friendly people and beautiful weather , that's Mexico !! Saludos desde San Diego California! :)
You said that right, mi amigo! Thanks for watching! 😊 San Diego is amazing! That was our launching point into Mexico for the first time! We took the train to the border and walked into Tijuana. It’s a great location!! 👍
@@laurenandseth ;)
This video has been so helpful thank y’all so much!
Thank you for watching! 😊
I love how u embrace mexico ty .. watching your videos makes me excited to get there.
Thank you! :) Mexico is incredible!
I would love to be an expat in Merida! Thanks for posting 🙂
It's the perfect city to try it out in! Safe, friendly, lots to do in the city and surrounding area AND the coffee shops/cafes and restaurants are awesome! Thank you for watching! :)
Thanks to you guys, we are going to visit the Big Fish filming location. We are visiting my sister who just moved to AL for Spring Break. Rosalie and my wife are excited to see the Goats!!!!!
Guys!! That is so awesome! I can’t wait to see the video from your trip there. I hope you guys have a fun and safe trip! I know your sister will be excited to see you all 😄👍
Im a full time online poker player and this video really makes me wanna try out Mexico
That's awesome! Sounds like the best job! :) Mexico is a great option, honestly!
thanks a million for sharing a superb job))
I was in Merida a month ago. It was a blessing not being around so much processed fast food. Everything was fresh and not genetically modified. The food and medical system in this country are killing us. My air bnb had a washer and dryer. Good luck guys. I'm moving in a few months. I'm checking out Queretero. The driving in Merida drove me crazy. A roundabout every mile. Lol I was there for two weeks and didn't miss the U.S at all.
That is very true as well! The markets here are so incredible and everything is so fresh. It's amazing having healthy food that's actually affordable. Haha, I can see that with the roundabouts, they are a bit excessive... reminds us a bit of France with that, especially on the street modeled after the one in Paris!
We haven't heard too much about Queretero but looking it up now and it looks nice, we'd love to hear about how you like it there! Best of luck to you and we're not missing the US at all right now either :D
@@laurenandseth Thanks. I’ll keep you posted on Queretero. It’s like Merida but the temp is between 70-90 all year round. It’s extremely clean too. I love the mountains.
Queretaro is also amazing and 2 drive to Mexico City and so close to other amazing places
This looks like a cool experience guys, I agree with the US being a hustle and bustle life.I know my job I work 50 hours a week and I wish I had more time to focus on my travel, Eventually I think I'm heading my channel into a more travel channel.i can't wait to see how your guys journey there be safe and create memories for a lifetime.
Hey man, I totally feel you on that. I worked mostly in production jobs throughout my early 20s, money wasn't bad but those were some of the craziest hours I've ever done, anything production related usually is I guess. Even now I can't seem to get under 50 hours a week but at least for the moment anyway it's from a computer so I can do it from where ever. Fingers crossed it stays that way for awhile. Thanks for stopping by man, been enjoying the content. Stay safe! -Seth
Hey Lauren & Seth...congrats on taking a true leap of faith with all your adventures in Merida, Mexico! It's so cool to see you both truly living & taking advantage of the limited time we all have in this lifetime. This is truly an amazing video, PACKED with SO much informative information which the pace flows so smooth. #pantyproblems hahaha - funny, but not really. I hope you can find a better perm. solutions moving forward, as I would totally feel the same way! Good to see you so happy, love the visuals & edit, and love seeing you create content you love!! Be safe & I'll be looking forward to your next one!! -Shawn
Thanks so much for the great comment! We love seeing this :) So true about us having limited time. Haha, yeah we almost have to just laugh about the #pantyproblemz at this point :D
We're loving your channel as well, looking forward to more content from you as well! Thanks for stopping by!
Prepping to sell our house in Nashville to travel around and settle in Mexico indefinitely as well and this is the first video of yours I came across before watching several more :) You are both such beautiful people inside and out and it has been such a great pleasure to be shown around the country by you two. I've lived in Guanajuato and Chapala. I highly recommend visiting Sayulita near Puerto Vallarta. It was a favorite of mine on my second stay there and I ended up spending nearly half of my time there :) Much love and gratitude to you both for introducing me and my family to such amazing places I'm very excited to see for myself
Thank you, that means a lot! :) We haven't been to Puerto Vallarta yet or Sayulita, they are on our list for ASAP! We've only visited the Oaxacan Riviera and a little bit of Baja on the Pacific side. We're so excited to see more of it. That's very exciting that you are prepping to move down. Safe travels and hopefully our paths cross in Mexico! :)
omg thank you the best video i have seen so far about Merida, I'm for sure going to watch more as i plan my move... (anyone can answer this question for me) is it really that hot people have been telling me about the heat
That's awesome, thank you! Yes-not going to lie, it gets REALLY hot. However, people come up with unique ways to beat the heat there.
1. It's not too bad in the mornings and evenings. 2. The beach is nearby and cenote swimming holes which helps. 3. It's not hard to find places to rent with AC luckily, and even some with shaded areas in the yard. 4. Many people sleep in hammocks which helps with the heat a bit. 5. The drinks are cold, affordable, and delicious,
For us, it's worth the heat and kind of makes it fun experience, especially if you're coming from a cold winter somewhere. However, getaways to much cooler cities in Central Mexico are always nice too. :) Good luck with your move, let us know how it goes!
Great to the point video!
Thanks so much for the great feedback! :)
Happy to hear yall live there ...
I currently live in Anaheim Ca and my roots are from a small town/village , Tunkas and own a home there and also plan to retire and move back...like we say si Dios quiere .
That's awesome. Been through Anaheim, really like it here! I just looked up Tunkas, we've been super close to there without knowing it! I love the small villages in Yucatan...so peaceful! Retiring back is a great idea. The US is nice but I can already see it's just not the same as being in Mexico! Thanks for a great comment -Seth
I'm going to Mérida in January and staying for 2 weeks.
The more videos I watch and articles I read, the more excited I am!
Honestly I wish I could stay longer!
Just came across your channel, well done. I’ll be in Puerto Vallarta for the month of December, with the thought of spending more time in Mexico. Looking forward to exploring more of Mexico.
Welcome to the state. Valladolid is so beautiful.
Thanks so much! It really is! It's a special place, we love it there! :)
I’m from Atlanta actually Gwinnett buss only runs Monday to Friday and it’s like 2 for hr sometimes 1 for hr wait not good . Rent its1000 n up for 600sqf !
Nice to hear from someone else who knows what it's like living in ATL! We really like it there overall. But honestly, the prices in the US are ridiculous and with all the extra expenses, it can really start to weigh you down! I feel like it can be worth it but it can also be so stressful.
Atlanta needs to work on it's public transportation, I used to take it too! Especially now that Microsoft is expanding in the city and all that.
I’ve lived in Mérida for 6 years and can’t imagine living anyplace else. I’ve used the same lavandría for 4+ years and my laundry lady is like family to me. She makes my laundry so clean and fragrant. I live in North Mérida and have the Toyota I drove down here with and I’m very happy to have a car. But I know lots of people who’ve lived here for years without one.
The people here are so generous, gracious and friendly.
We've been back and forth for 6 years now. We spent more time each year and now my partner has permanent residency here while I maintain the perpetual travel status. This works well for us for import reasons. We live in our rvs so we can bounce around at will. I definitely recommend seeing as many cities as possible especially small villages. There is so much more see than the cities.
Wonderful! Great commentary on pros & cons and your experience in general of expat life in Mexico so far. And congrats on the growth and success of your channel. Well done, my friends 👍. Big like and full play. Thanks for sharing and enjoy your day 😀.
This is a great video. I love all the emphasis on the positive. Thank you for posting
Very informative you guys, lookin for a retirement spot, this video gave a different perspective of Merida. Thank you!
Merida is a great choice for sure! Thanks to the great food and shops, proximity to the beach, and how walkable and bike friendly it is. All of this just gives it a relaxed and enjoyable vibes that's hard to beat. We've heard the summers are really bad with the heat but at least there's all the cenotes nearby to cool off haha. Thanks for watching! :)
@@laurenandseth if you can deal with AZ heat you can deal with any heat lol, I'm also curious of the rainy and winter seasons, if any...Thank you guys💯
Nice video. Excited about moving there in Spring.
Nice! It's incredible, you're most likely going to love it!
One word: Commando. lol. We're living near Lake Chapala....we don't have a washer in our house, so I've been doing laundry in the kitchen sink and a bucket. We're lucky to have a small "backyard"...I hang our things to dry there. We really love it here but have been wanting to check out the area where yall are. Great video....accurate points from our perspective.
Haha, great comment guys! Put a smile on both of our faces. We've heard very good things about that area and can't wait to visit Guadalajara and all the surrounding areas. Hanging things to dry is really growing on us, it's nice to not have to deal with clothes shrinking from the dryer as much. We've been checking out your channel as well, really enjoying it! Cheers guys, maybe we'll cross paths somewhere in Mexico in the future!
My wife and I went to Merida Mexico last year and it definitely was a great experience. I’ve been trying to get people to go and see for themselves. Needless to say we’re going back next year for longer and to look for a place to stay!!!
Love this video. Can you do one specifically about the cost of moving and cost of living down there? Stay safe and keep up the great content!
Very informative, thanks! I moved to Prague CZ from the States back in 2011 and never looked back! Surprised to hear how safe Merida is, and that you don't need a car. Cool!
WOW thank you soooo much for this video !!
Really enjoyed a lot the informations and the views.... you gave a Profi vlog image! Great job guys one more time 👏
Thanks a ton! :)
I'm here because I want to do the same thing. Hope things go well for you guys. And best of luck with your channel. As you move around Mexico, I would love to hear about language barrier issues. My biggest fear is the fact that I do not know any Spanish
Thanks so much and same to you! We'll make language barrier issues a topic video in the near future for sure! I'd say you'll be fine for a few reasons and with a few tips.
We're getting better with speaking Spanish as we go but when we moved down we only knew basic terms and words.
One thing we did was download the language on the Google Translate App, it's free and has been a life saver when we don't have cell service or anything, we still have the whole language when in a pinch. It also works with your cellphone camera if you want to hold it over a sign or a menu. It's pretty cool!
Another thing we did to start out was learn every 10th number 10-100 in Spanish. That way we could understand prices a bit more when catching a taxi, shopping, etc. To start with you could also just carry a small calculator or use the one on your phone and many people will put the amount in for you if you don't understand it.
Many people only do not speak English here BUT we've noticed most people are super patient with us English speakers, while we try to use our translator apps and things like that. :D Especially if you learn the basics and can just greet them in Spanish at least.
Good luck on your travels, looking forward to hearing about your experiences in Mexico!
I'm really thinking to move to Mexico 🇲🇽 I have a Mexican family, after I watched this video I decided to live in Merida because it's safe place to live as you mentioned, thank you so much for your video.
Awesome, Merida is a great choice. If we had kids we always say we’d probably move full time to Merida. Good luck and enjoy amigo!
We've been living in Progreso for 3 years and took our laundry to a lavendaria for the 1st 2 years, underwear and all. No biggie. Most everyone wears it.
Nice video, very informative.
Thank you! :)
Merida used to have the largest open air "flee market" in the Yucatan. Fresh everything. Is it still there?
I'm not sure if that one is still there. Will do some digging and find out if the largest is still in Merida. I know after about 9 months of being closed due to covid, the city opened back up it's famous street markets/flea markets back in December. We visited a few and they were awesome!
The fresh food is still there for sure. We've never had such easy access to so much amazing, fresh and healthy foods!
We have friends there..we'll be moving this fall..thanks for the video..cheers from Alberta Canada 🇨🇦
Awesome! Awesome choice, it's a great place with a lot to do and see! We are yet to make it to Alberta but we've been to Canada many times and love it there! :) Cheers amigo!
Think it would be such a great experience to live as an expat. So glad you are both enjoying your time and embracing other cultures and another country as home.
Yes we're so glad that we're able to try out expat life! It's been quite the experience so far. Thanks for watching :)
Awesome video! I love all the colorful homes
Thank you! :)
Oh, I have to follow you. Great video!!!
your vids are so casual & informative - just love that i've run across you guys - you've likely been asked this question, but how fluent are y'all? i'm "refreshing" my spanish in advance of moving, but not nearly close enough to be called "fluent" - thanks in advance & look forward to more of your adventures!
Thank you! We aren't fluent either. I'd say were conversational for small talk but we get stuck a lot when the conversation advances! :D We've been practicing everyday though and getting better. Everyone here has been patient with us while we learn. We downloaded the language on Google Translate so that's been a help in different scenarios, and we've been taking classes on a subscription site called Skillshare that's been helping speed up the process a lot as well. :)
Valladolid Yucatan is one of the most beautiful city in Mexico....Very Beautiful
Very informative ad interesting. Thanks for sharing guys!
in Mexico city, I think you need a car, depending where you live and work. If you want to get quick to your job, in car around 20 min is fine, otherwise in public transport is around 1.5 hours
Great comparison, guys.
Thank you, both.
New to your channel . Luv it✌✌✌✌😎😎😎👍👍👍👍👍👍👍😎
Awesome! Welcome and thanks so much! :)
Lots of great information! Subscribed!!
Thank you!! 😊
You two are great!!
Loving your channel! 😊
Thank you!! That means a lot to us 😊
Great video! I too hope to live there next winter but only stay about four months. My parents were from Progreso and I still have cousins there. I want to go visit later this month. Are most shops open? Is the Mercado open in Mérida? I don’t want to ask the family so we can surprise them should we go. They already told me the beach in Progreso will be closed during Holy Week. Thanks again for sharing your experiences. Safe travels!
Awesome! Yes, basically all shops are currently open in the city. There's just a curfew for 11:30 pm- 6 am in place in the state so things are not open quite as late.
The markets are open as well and seem super bustling to us, but we've been told they aren't like they were pre-covid, because there used to be more stalls open and bigger crowds. But for us they're really crazy and absolutely amazing!
That's so cool your family is from this area...we love this area now! :) Good luck with surprising your family and we hope you have a great trip!
A fabulous upload you have done my dear friend . mind-blowing , entertaining , genuine .. God be with you always . my best wishes . love.❤️❤️
Many thanks! You too :)
I always travel Mexico without a car and wish I had one. When I move down I'm bringing mine, traveling is always easier with one. I would eventually stop driving thought when I find a long term place to stay. Driving does suck, you have to keep up on bills and you have to stay sober if you have to drive
That's a good idea. We haven't rented a car here yet but it's going to have to happen soon because we have some off the beaten path places we want to see. A car would be convenient, especially for road trips outside of town! Haha so true about having to stay sober and all the bills, it's always something with cars!
Thanks for sharing 🙏🏼
Good to hear that it is clean and safe over there!!! I like living in the suburbs and working in the City!!!! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Thanks for watching!! The suburbs of large cities are always a great choice! I think the closest we have ever lived to a downtown area of a city was when we lived in Raleigh! We were only 3 miles from downtown 👌
Thanks for the info , excited to be omw to Merida 🎉 looks beautiful!
Hey guys were headed there in 13 days!! Woot woot! Will you be in the Quintana Roo region at all?
We are heading to Merida for the month of July
Awesome! Congrats, coming to Mexico is always a good idea! :) We are hoping to get back out there sooner than later and visit some spots we haven't seen yet there, not sure on any exact dates though. We're currently visiting the Chiapas state and keep finding new places we want to check out before heading back to the Yucatan Peninsula :) Keep us posted about your trip, that's exciting!
Merida looks nice but I could not take the heat and humidity year round.
Understandable. It's definitely nice to take a break from the heat and take trips to some of Mexico's many high elevation cool weather cities. :)
Never had an issue with delicates at the lavanderias and we used several different ones. We'd throw them in with the rest of the laundry and it always came back clean and folded, just like everything else. I miss living in the Yucatan. Not having to own a car was so nice. $30/weekly groceries was even better!
I love Merida and have been here for a year