# Homesick in Mexico City



## Phoebe

I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
cultural activities where I might meet some new people


----------



## woodeye

Welcome to beautiful Mexico and we are so sorry that you are homesick . We have been in Ajijic for almost 5 years and never get homesick with the exception of missing the kids and grands . Ajijic is tiny compared to MC and would be a lot friendlier even if it didn't have such a large expat family . Perhaps a visit here would be nice and you could see if the small town life is for you . The nice thing about our area is the wonderful climate and the big city is just 45 minutes should you need to go . 

Hope the sickness gets better.

Woodeye


----------



## erc

*New to Mexico*

Phoebe:
Don't despair. It's very normal to go thru the homesick stage. We once left South America for Europe and eventually moved to Canada. Now we are looking at spending more time in Mexico, probably months at the time. Why Mexico for us? Well, it has one of the best climats in the world. Close enough to Canada to visit the kids and grandkids. You must try to find a place or organization where you can meet fellow emigrants. Not nessecarily from Australia. I promise , it will get better as you get established. Mexico is a wonderful country. The people are friendly, and it has a lot of history. Mexico city might not have been my first choice. I would prefer more towards Guadalajara, Chapala, etc. However, I am sure that there are wonderful areas around mexico city as well. We considered Australia as well, but it's too expensive, another big city (like Vancouver), and too far for us. This is just our opinion. In the meantime , stay in touch with others. If you so wish, you can email us at anytime and we'll reply.


----------



## synthia

Moving to another country is hard even when you speak the language. How long have you been there? There is a general rule that the end of the third month is the pits. You have pretty much identified all the problems but don't really know how to cope yet. There is a 'teach in Japan' program that maps the whole experience out for their teachers. They tell them exactly how they will feel at the end of week 1, week 2, etc.

It will pass, really. Looking for contacts from home is a good step. It also helps to make a real effort to do some sightseeing, to remind you that this is an interesting thing you are doing. 

Also, socially, accept all invitations, atten all events, even if they aren't the sort of things you normally would do. It helps.


----------



## Peterc

We all have gone through that homesick stage. I think the first year is not so bad, the second year gets worse, the third is worse still but after that things get better. Remember you cannot get friends - well good friends at least at the click of a finger...


----------



## Guest

Happy Birthday Phoebe!


----------



## anglomd

*Your appeal*



Phoebe said:


> I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
> desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
> I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
> know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
> cultural activities where I might meet some new people


I don't know when you wrote this, but in the same situation. Just found an expat meeting in Polanco last wed of each month maybe we could try it out?
Scott


----------



## synthia

Are there a lot of ex-pat groups in different parts of Mexico? Or just the big cities? I know a lot of Americans are in San Miguel de Allende, Guadalajara, and at the beaches.


----------



## kate726

*ex pat groups in mexico city*

I am also in the same situation and would love to know about any ex-pat groups, such as the one Scott mentioned in Polanco. Do you have any details? Please feel free to email me!


----------



## atlast

How are you doing? Feeling any better? I hope you are past the bout of homesickness and enjoying yourself more.


----------



## erc

Chapala and Ajijic (and surrounding villages) have about 15,000. They come mainly in the winter months. Some have homes there, while others rent. They are mainly Canadians and Americans.


----------



## synthia

15,000? Really, that many? I really should go back and check it out, then. It doesn't quite fit into the route I had planned, so I'll have to take another look at that. I was trying to hit a couple of retirement spots, go see the Olmec heads, and then go on to Guatemala without doing a lot of backtracking.


----------



## erc

Cynthia
We have been looking for many years for a reasonable priced , good climate place to spent some of our retirement years. We are semi retired and after many searches came up with Ajijic. Considering soooo many places, I believe that this part is the best. Close enough to the border, easy flying connections, beatiful culture, lots of places to explore. Easy access to the coast. Just about as big as Canada. It has a lot of nob's that found the place as well. Good? Bad? I don't know. In general, I think it has a lot to offer. We have travelled a lot. We were born in south america and I believe that we know the latino culture. Mexico , has a lot to offer. Nothing is perfect. There are compromises to be made. Life always is a trade off. To each his own. I am sure it's not for everybody, but then again neither is the US or Canada or western Europe. Check it out and come to your own conclusions.


----------



## sparks

Well - Phoebe must have found friends or another message board .... but yes there are Expat groups in any area with a population. Often they don't advertise much and finding them is word of mouth. Our area of the west coast has them in Vallarta, Manzanillo, Colima and Melaque/Barra de Navidad. Some will be only social and others community help organizations - or a mix. Over the winter months there won't be a lack of Expats anywhere on the beaches. Many stay for 3-6 months and others for only a few weeks. Our small town nearly doubles in population over the winter


----------



## synthia

That's nice to know. Thank you for all your help. I'm going to totally replan my route, which was originally designed around seeing all the Olmec ginat heads! Somehow it morphed into a search for a retirement home. Then it branched out to visiting every place I've considered in the past. I may never settle, just search.


----------



## Phoebe

sparks said:


> Well - Phoebe must have found friends or another message board ....


yes!  you are right.... i have made a lot of friends, and i am speaking the language now, so very happy here in mexico city. I still remember how awful it felt, though, and if anyone arriving here and feeling lonely would feel better having a contact, feel free to email me


----------



## synthia

Thank you, Phoebe, for offering to help Mexico City newbies. And I'm glad to here you are doing so well. It's hard to believe you will ever settle in when you are in the doldrums. I'm glad you hung in there and everything worked out for you.


----------



## Steve Hazzard

Phoebe said:


> I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
> desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
> I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
> know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
> cultural activities where I might meet some new people


Hi Phoebe! Your original thread was originally posted in May of 2007; I hope you have not given up and returned home to Australia. I will admit that moving from Australia in the Southern Hemisphere to Mexico in the Northern Hemisphere would be disconcerting to any person. Personally, I would not make the move, but that's just my opinion. You didn't mention if you spoke any Spanish; I would think that you don't hear a lot of Spanish spoken in Australia. I live in the northeast part of the US and I hear Spanish spoken regularly; I also listen to Latin music for the vocabulary pronunciation. I would think that the best way to assimilate the culture of a new country would be yo learn the native language. I have made inquires and I am aware of several Spanish language schools for English speakers in Mexico City. Maybe you should consider moving to a smaller city where the rush of life is at a slower pace. I plan to move to Cuernavaca in 2009; Cuernavaca is about 50km south of Mexico City and has a near perfect balance of metropolitan and small town culture. I wish you success in your new country! Steve


----------



## larrydoliner

hey, i live in polanco with my partner and am desperate to make friends. i am a flight attendant for continental in the us. if you ever feel like talking, just let me know


----------



## lolaslily

check out jerry's post... he lives in polanco he sounds nice


----------



## Phoebe

hi larry... sure, would love to have a coffee sometime. i dont quite know how to send emails in this thing... but there is a way. if you email me, i'll pass you my contact details and we can catch up sometime


----------



## synthia

If you click on someone's id, you will get a dropdown box that includes 'e-mail'. If the person has a profile set to allow e-mail, you can then send one. An alternative is to send a private message (PM). Again, click on the id and select 'private message'. The person should receive an e-mail announcing there is a PM waiting, and then can log on and click on Private Messages (under the Welcome in the upper left of the heading). You can then put your e-mail in the PM.


----------



## Steve Hazzard

Phoebe said:


> hi larry... sure, would love to have a coffee sometime. i dont quite know how to send emails in this thing... but there is a way. if you email me, i'll pass you my contact details and we can catch up sometime


Phoebe, your private email address is listed in your on-line profile, that is, assuming you entered a private email address and permitted forum members access when you registered for this forum. I would discourage you from posting an email address in the forum postings. There are worm programs that cruise the Internet looking for email addresses that are "in the clear", that is, can be openly viewed without having to logon or access deeper pages on a web site.


----------



## mxpxguy220

Yes, I can definitely relate Synthia. It's very reassuring to here all these others saying they know how you feel as well. We're all going through it together. I wish there was a tangible group as opposed to the internet.


----------



## bigmutt

Hello:
I can't believe no one suggested the Couchsurfing group in Mexico City to Phoebe; it has a very lively bunch of locals, both native mexicans and "gringos". They seem to have something social going on about three times a week. Weekly meetings at a local bar if one feels like meeting up with the most active local members plus an assortment of visiting members from all over the world. It's free and lots of fun. 
CouchSurfing - Participate in Creating a Better World, One Couch At A Time
Once you join the couchsurfing site and put together a bit of a profile, you can join any of the thousands of "groups", whether location-specific or special interest groups. In Mexico City there are two groups you can join: the main group called Mexico City, and a smaller group called Mexico City Gringos.
Lots of get-togethers, excursions, day-trips, sightseeing get-togethers and so on, if you want. If not, you can just use your membership for hosting visitors or staying with other members when visiting their country/city. Or just provide local information to members from abroad who are planning to visit. No obligations of any kind, other than to be honest and considerate and helpful.
Check it out.


----------



## RVGRINGO

We've been homeowners in Ajijic and Chapala since 2001. We're here to stay.......forever!


----------



## bigmutt

*still homesick after all these years .......*



Peterc said:


> We all have gone through that homesick stage. I think the first year is not so bad, the second year gets worse, the third is worse still but after that things get better. ...


Not sure where you came up with the "3-year Homesick study", Peter, but surely it's different for everyone.

I've lived here now for close to eight years and I haven't noticed any change in degrees of homesickness.
In fact, my first year here was fabulous, because everything was so new and different; then my second year was still okay because one is still willing to give the bad stuff "the benefit of the doubt" so-to-speak. Then my third year it started wearing on me and getting really "old". Every year that I'm here I feel a little bit more and more that I really don't belong here.
(for example yesterday: Thanksgiving Day! try buying the ingredients to prepare a traditional thanksgiving dinner! sure, it can be done, but with a lot of searching and hassle; even then, the cost is practically prohibitive.)

(or for example today: this morning a couple of teenagers were bored, I guess, and started throwing rocks at our windows. They broke one of them before I was able to run outside and chase them off. There's a hundred bucks right there that I had not budgeted.)

No, I never expected it to be just like living in a first-world country, but for all the benefits that people always brag about, there's an equal list of problems & hassles that living in Canada or the U.S. just doesn't present.
Our next-door neighbour, a mexican who's lived all his life here in D.F., had his new car stolen recently, by two armed thugs, who also got his wallet and all the contents of his car (he's a professor). at 4 p.m. in the afternoon, while he was sitting in a local restaurant eating, these guys just stuck a gun into his chest and said "give me your keys". A supposedly-safe part of town, in broad daylight, among restaurant patrons. 
No where is safe at all anymore in Mexico, and we are preparing to get the heck out of here; it will take a while, though, to sell the house, etc.

So yeah, I'm homesick, still, and don't see that changing any time soon.

Rick


----------



## Rodrigo84

My cousin lived in Mexico City for 6 years and occasionally got homesick, but it in the end concluded it was time to go home.


----------



## Jetter

*Another newbie*

Hey there,

I'm just wondering if Phoebe is still around, or if there are any other newbies to Mexico city? I just arrived a month ago. I work in a big company and there are lots of people my age, but it would be nice to know some people outside work too, especially for the weekends. Feeling a bit lonely at the moment because I'm just back after the xmas holidays and a lot of people are away for a while longer. It's just hitting me how much I miss all my friends at home.

Anyway, it was great to hear that Phoebe ended up making lots of friends and being really happy. I hope that will be the case for me eventually but it's still very early days!


----------



## bloomfieldtj

Phoebe said:


> I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
> desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
> I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
> know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
> cultural activities where I might meet some new people


I would suggest to get involved in "Newcomers Club of Mexico City". It's an ex-pat club of (mainly) women and they do all sorts of things like trips out, art fairs, meals out, gallery visits, coffee mornings etc. All of the members have "been there, done that" in terms of homsickness, so you'll get a lot of support. They have a web-site, or their office is based at Union Church in Lomas de Chapeltapec. 

Julie


----------



## MegO

*also new...*



Jetter said:


> Hey there,
> 
> I'm just wondering if Phoebe is still around, or if there are any other newbies to Mexico city? I just arrived a month ago. I work in a big company and there are lots of people my age, but it would be nice to know some people outside work too, especially for the weekends. Feeling a bit lonely at the moment because I'm just back after the xmas holidays and a lot of people are away for a while longer. It's just hitting me how much I miss all my friends at home.
> 
> Anyway, it was great to hear that Phoebe ended up making lots of friends and being really happy. I hope that will be the case for me eventually but it's still very early days!


I'm also new...I recently got married and moved here from Baltimore to mexico city because my husband is working for the government here...I literally don't know a soul! My Spanish is so-so and I'm actually pretty social, so hoping to make some friends, and ideally get a job or involved with some social/volunteer organizations, so I would be really happy to connect with anyone looking for a friend! Feel free to email me Jetter or anyone else looking for a fellow newbie


----------



## bloomfieldtj

Phoebe said:


> I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
> desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
> I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
> know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
> cultural activities where I might meet some new people


I would suggest you contact "The Newcomers Club of Mexico City". It's an ex-pat group of, mainly women and they do all sorts of things like trips out, coffee mornings, bazaars, art fairs, and much more. All the members have "been there, done that" in terms of settling into Mexican life and its challenges. They have website, or their office is based in Union Church, Lomas de Chapeltapec. It's a good way to meet new people and make some friends.

Julie


----------



## MelbourneMandy

*Another Aussie who has just arrived!*

HI Phoebe. I just arrived in Mexico City this week. I'll be doing the same as you and finding the few Aussies who are here. My first stop is going to be the embassy, but I know how you feel. It always passes. Which part of town are you in? I am in Polanco.




Phoebe said:


> I have recently moved to Mexico City from Australia and am going through the
> desparate and homesick stage.... I am a very friendly and social person, but
> I am feeling rather lonely without all my friends around me. I would love to
> know of any contacts for groups or associations that run social or
> cultural activities where I might meet some new people


----------



## MelbourneMandy

*Expat Polanco meeting?*

Hi Scott - I just arrived from Melbourne and am in Polanco - would love to know some information about the expat meeting! 



anglomd said:


> I don't know when you wrote this, but in the same situation. Just found an expat meeting in Polanco last wed of each month maybe we could try it out?
> Scott


----------



## englishman

i live in mexico city for work purposes. Ugly place imo. Could never feel settled here.


----------



## dizzyizzy

Hi,

If you search on Facebook, there is a group called Mexpat that holds regular expat meetings in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey. I attendeded one in Mexico City a couple of years ago, it was an interesting crowd and the meeting was in Polanco. Perhaps this is the group you guys have heard about?

Good luck!! 

OH and I miss my lovely country too  It does get better with the time though.


----------

