Three years in La Paz! I posted the following list on my social media explaining some of the differences of living in La Paz as opposed to the states. We went to San Siro for dinner to celebrate. Makes sense, right? Italian food to celebrate living in Mexico! Ha ha ha!
-Power will go out much more often than when living in the U.S.! Sometimes, just half of your electricity-very odd! You will get used to this.
-When the power goes out, you have no water because the water pump cannot function without power. We have several water jugs for emergencies. Our dogs go through quite a bit of water each day, so we have to be prepared.
-Preparing for a hurricane is A LOT of work! We have to take a lot of stuff down on our roof...pillows, cushions, bird feeders, etc. We have to make sure the backyard is cleaned up...no dog toys, no laundry on the line, etc. We have to charge everything. We have to have a five gallon bucket of water in each bathroom for flushing, We have to put up this huge water balloon thing in front of our back door so our house doesn't flood. I usually try to cook something beforehand, but we do have a gas stove so can cook without power. We try to do all laundry. We bring in some of our outdoor solar lights so we can see once it gets dark. It feels like a cluster of anxiety and chaos. Then, we have to put everything back once the event is over. Not to mention the dogs track in so much water so there are wet towels to launder.
-You will use WhattsApp for communication. People do not text here.
-You will have people saved in WhattsApp by their name and profession! 😂 Mario Plumber and Ade Delivery exist!
-You carry coins with you everywhere to tip the grocery baggers and gas station attendants.
-You carry cash with you because you have been double charged via card at the beach one too many times.
-You will use your hazards more in three years than your whole life. Hazards mean anything from a cow in the road to a puddle! 😂
-You carry dog food, bottled water, and plastic bowls in the car to feed/water stray dogs. 🐾
-You wash your fruits and vegetables very diligently after one BAD situation with raspberries. I mean soap and water on the outside of watermelons, etc.
-You will discover that merging is a very hard concept for a lot of people here, to the point where they stop before getting on the highway. This feels incredibly dangerous. On the flip side, people aren't as much in a hurry and will let you in, etc.
-Food is fresher and there are significantly less pre-packaged food items. I cooked bacon yesterday, let it cool, and then chopped it up to make bacon bits.
-You will go to different events like Carnaval and the Baja 1000.
-You will learn that cockroaches fly.
-You will also learn to differentiate between cockroaches, crickets, and beetles where before everything was a big bug!
-You will be shocked about the fogging the city does. It's intense! Some people leave their windows open so the mosquitoes in their house will die. That is a no for us. While it is intense, I support them doing it because I hear dengue fever is not a lot of fun.
-As an Oregonian, this one is so weird...you stay home when it rains. Roads flood so quickly here and I've seen enough videos of people and cows being swept away!
-You will learn that stop signs are suggestions.
-You will eat at McDonald's twice and decide it's disgusting (haven't had McDonald's in 2 1/2 years now). Carl's Jr is so much better and an occasional treat.
-You go in person every other month to pay your electricity bill. There is an office next door to the grocery store.
-There is no porch drop off here. Any delivery must be handed to you. They honk their horn very loudly to get your attention.
-Powdered sugar is called glass sugar.
-You will learn to make your own whip cream after a small mental breakdown one day when it wouldn't firm up. There is no cool whip here.
-You will have a few people treat you poorly because you are American. I use the "kill them with kindness" approach in these instances. This is rare...most people here are so nice.
-You will have people get in your bubble while grocery shopping. If you are looking at something, people will come right in front of you to grab an item. Our neighbor says this is because we are from the Pacific northwest and used to lots of space.
-You will learn to drink/eat boxed (shelf stable) milk, unrefrigerated eggs, and drinkable yogurt.
-You will be criticized for moving away from family, sometimes by acquaintances and sometimes by family. 🤷♀️
-You wonder why we didn't use/learn the metric system. Inches, miles, gallons, and even Fahrenheit are definitely not used here. I have memorized that 1 kg is 2.2 lbs. The U.S. seems so behind using the imperial system.
-Geckos make loud noises! At first we thought it was a bird, but the noise happened at night. Then we thought it was a chipmunk as we have several behind our house. Then, when Maria was here over the new year she clued us in to the fact it was a gecko! This took us almost three years to figure out!
-You will receive ZERO pieces of mail minus your electricity and water bill. These bills get stuck in your meter, car door handle, or under your welcome mat. Your debit card was sent via FedEx to you, but you never received it.
-We have ordered a few things from Amazon Mexico, Temu MX, etc. and received them. Shipping is slower, about a week for Amazon and a few weeks for our one Temu order.
-Often it's cheaper (or there is more selection/better quality) to order from Amazon U.S. and then we pay a courier 34% of the purchase price to drive items down from San Diego. This adds up though (we try to limit orders)! This takes a few weeks. Always have to plan ahead!
-The dust here is remarkable! You could dust every day and it wouldn't be often enough. You go through a lot of Windex and Pledge.
-The salt air is hard on vehicles, outdoor furniture, and sunglasses.
-Speaking of sunglasses-we are realizing we will need to replace them regularly. Saving money on winter coats, but using those savings for sunglasses and swimsuits! 😂
-You will attend funerals, court, parent Dr. appointments, and complete your taxes via the internet, live streams, or Zoom meetings. I feel this is one helpful takeaway from Covid.
-You will learn about VPN's, firestick, and free apps to watch the NFL, etc.
-You will take in one street doggy. Supposedly, this is a right of passage. We love said street doggy (Shadow) and can't imagine life without him.
-You will root for the USA and Mexico in the Olympics. Also Canada because the majority of your friends are Canadian.
-You will take up new hobbies....darts, making pickled eggs, diamond painting, learning how to play the guitar, painting rocks, keeping plants alive, hummingbird watching, card games, crafting, cornhole, scrap journaling, collecting shells/sea glass, etc.
-You will get creative on ways to gift your family members. Amazon delivery, flower delivery, Venmo, Target deliveries, Instacart, Walmart deliveries, restaurant gift cards, Etsy orders, and using an app that mails out cards for you (helpful for sympathy or unplanned situations).
-You will have visitors take home stamped and addressed greeting cards to mail out for you. I always want our people to receive a handwritten note. 🩷
-When you visit Oregon, you leave gifts and cards to be mailed for upcoming holidays.
-You find creative ways to keep in touch with people. We play Wordle every day and text the results to my brother. He sends his results to us too. It's basically just trash talking when you are the winner! We compete with the boys every week during football season on wins/losses for the Broncos. I was the winner last year, but somehow Carson won this season. I love these group texts!
-You will have people bring you items when they visit. Adam has been here five times and brought a full suitcase each time.
-You will get gas in the car once every six weeks.
-Your water bill each month is $11-$13 depending on exchange rate.
-Internet is around $28 per month.
-Electricity is around $100 per month for us. More in the summer though when we use the air conditioning.
-My monthly pedicure is around $25 which includes the tip.
-My haircut at a nice salon with wash, blow dry, and style is around $25 with tip.
-You will decide to groom the dogs because we have the time and it saves a little money x3.
-Uber Eats worked for a few months, but no longer works. You will find a good wing place, Chinese food place, and pizza place that deliver.
-August is HOT! 🥵 I call it hibernation mode...lay under the a/c each afternoon. You will get your chores or shopping done early in the day. This is the time of year that I would prefer to visit Oregon (maybe this year...?). Larry loves the heat more than me.
-You will take ice packs every time you go to the store because chocolate, butter, sour cream, cream cheese, yogurt, frozen items, etc. will melt before getting home. Ice cream is a gamble!
-Candy is different here. We do have Snickers, m&m's, Kisses, Milky Way, Reese's peanut butter cups, and Kit Kats. No Twix, Baby Ruth, Butterfinger, Almond Joy, Laffy Taffy, or red/black licorice.
-We miss crackers. We have saltines and Ritz...that's it! No Wheat Thins, Triscuits, or Chicken in a Biscuit! This is something that we always bring home from an Oregon visit.
-Eggs are better here. 🥚
-Fresh tortillas are amazing! 😋
-Fruit is so much better! 🍉🍍🍑
-Avocados are the bomb dot com and affordable! 🥑
-Corn on the cob in the winter months is a welcomed difference!
-You will never ever get used to the sewer smell that happens from time to time. 😷
-You are still astonished when you see a cow roaming on the side of the road.
-The most requested item when people are visiting? Pepto Bismol. The second most requested item? Anti-itch ointment (mosquito bites).
-Your Mexican Drivers licenses will expire soon as they are only good for three years here.
-You will go three years without dying your hair or getting highlights. Never thought this was possible. 😂
-You will adjust/lower your spending. Examples include no more Tommy John underwear for Larry and I buy a lot of my clothes via Poshmark (second hand website, but I usually look for new items). I recently ordered brand new shorts from Stitch Fix that were originally $68, but I got for $6.97 shipped. I love finding a good deal so this is a fun challenge for me! We definitely splurge here and there, but it's about balance.
-You will spend more of your money on activities/hobbies as opposed to clothes/shoes/watches/purses/make-up.
-You will get many hours of entertainment from the HOA group chat.
-You will have no plans for the foreseeable future, then boom-the week is full with beach days, game nights, darts, etc.
-You will carve pineapples and watermelon for Halloween. 🍍🍉🎃 It's cheaper, easier, and the insides are tasty!
-You will decorate for Christmas with bright multicolored lights/ornaments, sugar skulls, cactus ornaments, and Mexican pom pom garland. This year you plan to add heart and Frida ornaments. 🌵🩷🎄
-You will collect sea glass, bring it home, clean it, and separate it by color.
-You will find snakes, centipedes, scorpions, crickets, cockroaches, and one large spider in your yard/house. 😳
-About two weeks after it rains, you will experience a fly and/or mosquito invasion. It's gross!
-Larry stopped chewing tobacco on Sept 14, 2024 because it's not something you can find here and if you can, it's VERY expensive.
-A stoplight will be added at the 12 way stop intersection that gave you anxiety. Believe it or not, traffic seems to move slower with the light.
-You will find both of your prescriptions at the pharmacy for much cheaper than your co-pay in the U.S. No prescription required.
-Ambulances are run by volunteers and calling 911 is not an easy process. We support/donate to the ambulance often as they put on occasional beerfests to raise money. The whale shark tour we went on last month also supported the ambulance.
-You will take approximately 642 pictures of the sunset. 🌅
-You will buy a Mexican queen mattress to fit in your US Queen headboard! 🤣 Still need to fix this.
-You will miss your friends and family like crazy.
-You love being retired! No Sunday scaries, no sick calls, and no deadlines.
-You love your simpler life. Watching hummingbirds, cuddling dogs, and drinking your morning coffee with the sun streaming in is every day life! ☀️
