June 6, 2020
This week’s post was another fun one for me. I got to talk with Travis Luther about the boomer exodus to Mexico, something that has been happening for decades but has intensified greatly in recent years. Travis spent a total of twelve years doing research on this phenomenon starting with his master’s thesis. Find out the major reasons why more boomers are abandoning the U.S. for what he calls “The fun side of the wall”. Mexico that is.
Baby Boomer Exodus To Mexico:
Travis Luther is a true entrepreneur and among his many talents is writing. He is the author of the bestselling Amazon book titled “The fun side of the wall: Baby boomer retirement in Mexico”. I, being on the very tail end ( I like to call it the caboose) of the boomer generation really appreciated the inside look into this movement.
[the_ad id=”13767″]
Having been to Mexico several times, I can understand the attraction. Lovely cities, really nice people, and amazing food. Don’t even get me started on margaritas, my favourite adult alcoholic beverage. What’s not to love? :-). Also, as of late, I know of quite a few younger people that are “early retiring” in Mexico. The country has also become a magnet for digital nomads taking advantage of the lower cost of living.
Travis, over the years, interviewed about 500 baby boomers in Mexico on his research trips and shared some of the inspiring stories in the book. Our conversation was relaxed as well as eye-opening. It’s easy to see how his calmness and fun attitude makes people comfortable enough to share about their lives.
Highlights of the Baby Boomer Flight to Mexico podcast:
- How the book came about while at college.
- His experience traveling to Mexico for the first time.
- The people he met who had left the U.S. decades before.
- The main reasons why retirees left, from ageism to consumerism.
- Quality of life in Mexico.
- Cost of living.
- Healthcare in Mexico, coverage and how people manage it.
- Hanging out with some wonderful ladies, lots of drinking involved 🙂
- Single life and the dating scene for the boomers.
- Safety of retirees in Mexico.
- The most popular places in Mexico that retirees flock to.
Listen to the episode with Travis Luther here:
You can find Travis here on his namesake website:
Purchase the book on Amazon:
Other podcasts of interest:
[the_ad id=”13969″]
Valencia Life Update:
The streets are definitely busier and way more cars on the streets. Our section of Turia park is also much emptier now when we go for our walks as it seems most people have now gone back to work. It was quite nice to have the cafeteria below us reopen (he had only been open for about six months before the lockdown and l feared the worst even though small businesses got financial aid.). You bet we resumed our chitchat in Spanish).
While l had been okay with the quietness of the whole city, it did feel good to see life picking up. People are starting to sit out on the terraces again and a lot of us are wearing masks which is awesome. The downward trend (infection and deaths) in Spain continues.
[the_ad id=”14098″]
I do worry a bit about them opening the border. This past week, a stupid man got on a short flight (while awaiting test results and who had been warned not to travel). Turns out he was positive. The speed at which he was tracked was awesome. By the time the flight landed an hour later, he had been identified. The bad news was that unfortunately all those sitting within three rows of him, I think 14 (including some guy he had chatted with at the airport), had to be quarantined as well.
I have a feeling this is going to happen more and more as the number of flights increases and people flitter in and out. Some people are just selfish and don’t care about others wellbeing. I don’t know if there is a way to stop it though, and l’m afraid this new normal is going to suck and the powers that be will never be able to guarantee that travellers will be spared being exposed or having borders close again. We’ll stay put for a while till it all shakes out. Federico’s mom reminded us that we were supposed to leave on our cruise today :-(. Times have changed so in such a short time.
You might have seen this already as l posted it on Facebook. This was shown on Spanish TV for the whole 8 minutes and 46 seconds which was how long that officer took to choke the life out of George Floyd. It was agonizing for me to watch, and l can only imagine how he felt as his life slipped away.
These days l am weaning myself off the news because it is overwhelming and l am angry often. I am grateful that people are speaking out on racism. I just don’t want this to be the “trendy” thing to do for a while, and then things go back to business as usual. The work is definitely ongoing. This does feel different as the whole world is watching.
How are you holding up in these crazy times? Do you know any baby boomers who have hightailed it to Mexico? Have you thought about leaving your country for greener pastures?
[the_ad id=”13768″]
Hi Kemkem,
Great interview with Travis, I did really enjoy it. Somehow seems to me that your interview with Travis stopped in a middle of an idea? Anyway was very interesting and I will buy the book…
Thk…
Hello Mike,
Thanks for listening and l’m glad you enjoyed it. Haha! Really? Perhaps it left you wanting more because you didn’t want it to end? :-). I had promised him it would only be 30 minutes and as you can tell, we went over that just a bit, but l could have definitely talked to him some more. I am positive he would definitely appreciate you buying the book.
Thanks, Mike. Appreciate the comments!
Kem, this was such an intelligent, informative conversation and answered a lot of questions about why so many people are choosing Mexico during retirement. Travis dispelled my general opinion of violence, poor health care and poverty and I enjoyed his perspective of Mexico as a retreat from consumerism. I also appreciated your question about establishing a community of familiarity vs. assimilating to the local culture.I was under the impression that most expat communities in foreign countries generally isolate among themselves. It is refreshing to know that is not true. I love this series of interviews and look forward to hearing more.
Yeah, he really did his research for this book. I had no idea that so many Americans had settled there after the war, I just assumed it was a newish migration. The last time l was in Mexico was while my uncle lived there, so l’m sure it’s changed a lot, but in those days, it was also amazing. Looking back, I wish l had learned a bit of Spanish when we would visit my uncle who was working there. Who knew l was going to end up in a Spanish speaking country?… Haha! I really enjoyed the conversation with him as his points were backed up solidly.
Thanks so much for the input on the interviews. I am enjoying them a lot and l am trying to find a variety of topics and people, so l hope you keep listening and enjoying them. It’s always nice to hear one way or the other :-). There are plenty more coming.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Suzaane. Making this book totally changed me as well. I shared a lot of the common misconceptions about Mexico and I’m grateful I got the chance to change them!
Nice podcast and really informative. I have to admit that even here across the pond, Mexico sounds like an amazing country to be in. I like most Mexican food, I love the warm weather and the Spanish culture overall so it would definitely be a good fit. We still have some time to decide, but it’s always great to hear about the options!
Regarding the Valencia update, I am happy to hear that the cases continue to go down. Romania still seems to struggle a bit – we had an increase a while ago and the graphs, overall, don’t go down. Even more worrying for us personally is the fact that 11 (or 13 according to some reports) people working in the city hospital – doctors and nurses, but also three patients) were just confirmed with the virus. Hopefully this won’t turn into a massive cluster.
People here are acting as if there is no threat. Very few people still wear masks and care about physical distancing or anything. It’s like they consider the virus gone forever, despite the authorities going daily on TV to tell them otherwise. It’s like that guy that went on a plane… but at a larger scale. Let’s hope that things will be OK, despite all these…
I’m glad you liked the interview. Mexico is indeed an amazing place. You know my feelings about the margarita especially…haha! The food is also incredible and almost ties with Italian as my favourite. I think you would like it there. You do have plenty of time :-).
Fede was a little bit upset this morning when l told him that the discos can now open..haha! He had hoped they would never open. There is one about two blocks from us and it’s open till at least 8am because we see people just going in at that time when we go to walk the dogs. I had thought Madrid and Barcelona were the only two cities that had the clubs opening so late, or early, not even sure if they ever close. No dancing though for now, which sounds ridiculous to me.
Looking at some of the pictures around here, I think a lot of people have also come to the same conclusion as Romanians and Italians. As far as they’re concerned, the pandemic is over no matter what they are being told. Rome right now is exploding with people and you’re hard pressed to find a mask wearer. Only time will tell… yikes!
This is right up Chef William Chaney’s road!
I had to look him up as l never heard of him. Looks like he found his paradise :-).
Kemkem, this was a really interesting podcast, up there as a favorite for me. Travis was great, interesting that the book started life as a thesis project, certainly has made him more of an expert on the subject after studying it so in-depth. I really like the title of his book, much prefer it to his original idea of calling it “Where the Buffalos Roam….” This Mexico ex-pat community has many similarities to the Spanish one…again a much more fun place to be for the ex-pats who often enjoy the lower cost of living, better weather, and great social life. I will be checking out his book.
Thanks Gilda. I really enjoyed talking to Travis too. He really did his research for the book, and yep! Fun side of the wall is a better title than “where the buffalos roam”…. haha! I have great memories of Mexico and it was certainly fun, even that many years ago, each and every time! :-). Yeah, their expat community does sound similar to here. I’m sure Travis will appreciate your checking out the book.
Gilda – thanks for your comments. Now, if you can just help me get 100,000 more people to buy it, I can pay off that tuition for the Masters Thesis =) I’m glad I changed the name, too!
I will do my best Travis…will certainly get a copy of the book for myself 🙂
Very informative interview with Travis. And yes speaking as an older single woman, places like Mexico hold a great appeal due to the warmer climate and lower cost of living. We can struggle in America or Canada to pay the rent, utilities, and groceries and by moving south of the border we can have a higher standard of living for what we were paying back home. Personally, no matter what country I would lean towards a gated community or condo due to safety in numbers. And I would definitely want a modern place to live.
Thanks Cheryl, I learned a few new things as well. I can definitely see the appeal too, especially the low cost of living, and still being close to home. The struggles in America and Canada are no joke. Safety in numbers… Mexico certainly has that, and a whole lot more. Margaritas!!!! :-).
I’m loving your series of interviews and the people you’ve introduced in your podcasts.Travis reinforced so many of the things I found while we were traveling full time as well as expat life. One of the most important things he mentioned is the sense of community with other expats as well as many of the locals I’ve met that was very much lacking in my US life. Perhaps it’s the common bond that impels many of us to live in a foreign country as well as the thrill of meeting new challenges and learning about a new cultures. I find I treasure the friends I have as well as the sense of peace that Travis mentioned in finding a place that is home and the sense of being right where you want to be. P.S. I’m going on 8 years as an early retiree from the pharmacy world and, like you, I find that I STILL hate the sound of a ringing phone! It will probably be with us to the grave. HaHa!
I am enjoying doing the series as well, perhaps because l am nosy… haha! I also found that it has been way easier to find friends than back home, definitely deeper connections, maybe because as you put it, the common bond is there. It’s fantastic being in a place that you actually feel like is home and you want to spend time in. It’s cool to know that this happens pretty much everywhere. Well, maybe not places set up for digital nomads because most don’t really stay and are in constant flux.
I don’t think l will ever come to like the sound of a ringing telephone. One of my older sisters was telling me yesterday that she had just been talking to another sister and mentioned talking to me on the phone, and that sister was shocked that l actually speak on the phone. You can count on one hand how many times l have actually spoken to her on the phone. I am terrible! We text often, but phone?…no! It serves me better for playing Scrabble! 🙂