Thank you for this and I look forward to the rest of the series. I want to live abroad again and Mexico is leading my list.
I appreciate you addressing racism… it’s something I’m always looking for information about but it isn’t addressed often in information for people looking to move.
Also about the water shortage: what kinds of ordinances are in place about water use? What things do you do to conserve water? We’re so bad about it in the US, and I know wherever I go, my habits around water and energy use, trash disposal, etc will need to change.
I'd be hard pressed to say that Mexico is more racist than the U.S. I suspect it's not, but I also don't have nearly enough information to say that conclusively. But I think it's an aspect that's important to mention for potential residents, and that it's important people understand the economic privilege position they'll likely be inheriting.
For ordinances, there essentially are none. I suspect this would be a bit different if someone lived in a more major city like CDMX, but many of the laws and regulations we take for granted in the U.S. simply don't exist here. There are seemingly no building codes for homes, although I suspect there may be for larger office buildings. You can't get a home inspected; it's not a profession which exists here. As far as I know there's no certification or licensure for tradespeople like carpenters or plumbers. So when it comes to water usage it's not like you get fined if you go over your allotment. If you receive public water when it runs out for your area, it's just gone. And when your cistern is empty it's your responsibility to refill it. It's one of the reasons there's so much civil strife when it comes to resources like water, because an area will go without while another richer, more privileged area will continue to have it.
We're lucky to live in a location famed for having water, so for our own particular usage we don't need to be particularly careful right now. But I'm already planning for a future without water and anticipate we'll install a dishwasher (much more efficient than hand washing), will transition to drip irrigation for our garden, and we'll install a new cistern to watch rainwater and treated gray water. For people living in Oaxaca city, the best you can do is minimize water usage however you can. Short showers, taking care about how you wash your dishes, not always flushing the toilet. Things like that.
Thank you for this and I look forward to the rest of the series. I want to live abroad again and Mexico is leading my list.
I appreciate you addressing racism… it’s something I’m always looking for information about but it isn’t addressed often in information for people looking to move.
Also about the water shortage: what kinds of ordinances are in place about water use? What things do you do to conserve water? We’re so bad about it in the US, and I know wherever I go, my habits around water and energy use, trash disposal, etc will need to change.
I'd be hard pressed to say that Mexico is more racist than the U.S. I suspect it's not, but I also don't have nearly enough information to say that conclusively. But I think it's an aspect that's important to mention for potential residents, and that it's important people understand the economic privilege position they'll likely be inheriting.
For ordinances, there essentially are none. I suspect this would be a bit different if someone lived in a more major city like CDMX, but many of the laws and regulations we take for granted in the U.S. simply don't exist here. There are seemingly no building codes for homes, although I suspect there may be for larger office buildings. You can't get a home inspected; it's not a profession which exists here. As far as I know there's no certification or licensure for tradespeople like carpenters or plumbers. So when it comes to water usage it's not like you get fined if you go over your allotment. If you receive public water when it runs out for your area, it's just gone. And when your cistern is empty it's your responsibility to refill it. It's one of the reasons there's so much civil strife when it comes to resources like water, because an area will go without while another richer, more privileged area will continue to have it.
We're lucky to live in a location famed for having water, so for our own particular usage we don't need to be particularly careful right now. But I'm already planning for a future without water and anticipate we'll install a dishwasher (much more efficient than hand washing), will transition to drip irrigation for our garden, and we'll install a new cistern to watch rainwater and treated gray water. For people living in Oaxaca city, the best you can do is minimize water usage however you can. Short showers, taking care about how you wash your dishes, not always flushing the toilet. Things like that.
Thanks for this.