Why Mexico???

We had to pick a place to start our journey and decided Mexico was a good option.  It's only 5 hours to the border from our home in Houston, and I thought it'd be great to just drive our car to Mexico.  Never having been to Mexico, much less driven in this country, I'm not sure why I thought it was a great idea!  But I did, and I still do, although it's a bit more complicated than I realized.  We have to get new car insurance, a permit for the car, and figure out how to do a land border crossing and navigate Mexican roads.  Not as easy as flying but definitely doable!

Besides close proximity to Texas, why else did we choose Mexico?  Jodee doesn't speak any Spanish, and I only speak un poquito (4 years of high school).  But our 10 year old son Ian has been in a dual language class since kindergarten, and our oldest took Spanish in high school last year.  So what better way to help them improve their skills and help us all to learn another language than to move to a Spanish speaking country?  At least, that's our hope!

As I researched, I came to realize how awesome it's going to be to live in Mexico!  So many wonderful reasons why this is a great first pick including:

1. Variety of things to see and do - beaches, mountains, jungles, woods, ancient ruins - Mexico has it all!

2. Mexican cuisine - we're big foodies and excited to experience real Mexican food (as opposed to Tex Mex)

3. Culture and history - music, art, dancing, Chichen Itza, Teotihuacan, etc.

4. Affordability - always an important factor with a family of 6!

5. Friendly people and relaxed life-style


After learning more about this wonderful country, the only question left is why not Mexico?!  

More research and talking to a new friend helped us decide on San Miguel de Allende as our first stop in Mexico.  It's a beautiful, colonial city in the mountains, with near-perfect weather and a good amount of ex-pats (although still maintaining a traditional culture).  And it's only a 14 hour drive from our home in Texas!  We've rented a home there for July and August and can't wait to explore this great city!  Then we'll move on to other
cities - maybe Oaxaca, Merida, or Tulum?  Wherever we end up, I'm sure we're going to love Mexico!