Mexico is one of the earliest chapters in my travel story. Long before I was thinking about visiting every country in the world, trips there introduced me to the idea that another language could open a different way of living and understanding people.

From childhood trips to real curiosity

I visited Puerto Vallarta and Cancún when I was younger. Those experiences were part of what first drew me toward Spanish, even though learning the language in school did not always come naturally. The turning point was spending about five weeks in Mérida, Yucatán, in an immersion program before university.

Mérida and the difference between learning and using

Studying a language and needing to use it are very different experiences. Mérida helped make Spanish something more tangible than vocabulary lists or classroom exercises. That experience contributed to my decision to study Spanish for the Professions alongside International Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Coming back with a different perspective

I returned to Mexico again as a young adult, including time in Playa del Carmen. Each stage of my life brought a different perspective to the same country. That is one reason I want every destination in the World Project to have one evolving page rather than a collection of disconnected trips.

Where the story continues

Mexico’s influence goes well beyond travel. Spanish later became central to my work and life in Barcelona, Panama and Uruguay. I’ll be adding more of the images and experiences from those early journeys as I revisit them.

Explore the Mexico country page in my World Project.