5 Things No One Mentions About Living in Mexico

We've been living in Mexico for over 6 months now and loving it! But and there's always a but, there are some things that no one really mentions when speaking on living in Mexico. And of course we, meaning Amber and I, have to tell you those 5 things.

1. Central Air doesn't exist outside of shopping stores and the mall. Seriously ensure that the rooms that you will be living in the most (bedrooms/living room) has an AC unit or be prepared to purchase/install one. There's nothing worse that sitting on a couch sweating and the inside and outside temperatures are the same.

Pro Tip - Ceiling fans and floor fans will save your life!

2. The floors are hard as f*ck! and as a result shin splits might be your new friend. Concrete is the only home building material and it leads to a very hard surface to live in. If you don't like that type of non compromising environment then seriously consider another part of the world.

Pro Tip - Invest in area rugs and nice thick socks or house shoes.

3. Adding to the floors, why are there no handrails on the stairs? This is quite possibly the scariest part of living here to me. It's not the traffic or the even the Cartel, nope its the possibility of tumbling to my death either down the concrete stairs or over the concrete stairs. Maybe it's a Merida thing and not common in the rest of Mexico. I hope so but for the love of my knees please home builders, start including hand rails.

Pro Tip - Choose a one story home only if no handrails bothers you. It bothers me.

4. You can't flush toilet paper. Or anything really. Most of of the older and some newer homes are built on septic systems that do not tolerate your roll a day habit, Susan or baby wipes Ken. It is what it is and unless you want to pay the septic company to come out every six months to "fix" the situation you will adapt.

Pro Tip - But a small garbage can with a lid.

5. Sensitive skin and soap. There aren't a lot of options available that aren't scented so start using Dove before your move to get you skin adjusted.

An extra why and something you should know!

6. Why are the only options black beans and more black beans? Can some store in Merida import something other than black beans. My kingdom for a lima bean. At this point I'll take some black eye peas, I don't even like black eye peas. The band or the pea. And don't try to bring them in either. Yep, don't try that.

7. Staff. Hiring staff is a whole process and one that is not simple. By staff I mean a pool or yard person and possibly house cleaning services. There are contracts, payments into the federal social security program. All kinds of things!

Pro Tip - Hire a lawyer.

Watch our video where we discuss this with a little color commentary!

Kat