When we decided to go to Mexico, it was never about simply leaving everything behind and seeing what would happen.
Of course, we knew that starting a new life in another country would bring challenges. A different everyday life, a different language, different rules, and many things that one has to first understand.
But Mexico was not an unknown country to us. We had already visited the country, we knew Baja and we had been intensively thinking about what our future life could be like. We didn’t have an answer to all the questions. But we had enough confidence to take the next step.
The moment when a plan turned into reality
Actually, the decision was already made before we bought our property. We knew that we wanted to go to Mexico. We had visited the country, got to know various regions, and became increasingly interested in Baja. But the purchase of our land was the moment when it finally became a reality.
Until then, it was a plan. An idea. A goal. With the plot of land, it became something tangible.
Suddenly, we no longer just had the thought: „Someday we’ll live in Mexico.“ We had a piece of land where we wanted to build our new home. It was our personal point of no return.
We did not go into the unknown
We didn’t arrive in a country that we didn’t know at all. We had already been to Mexico several times.
Even on our first vacation, we had already declared certain establishments as our favorites. The Sea Side for its view, Uruguay for its steaks – and of course, a few other places where we already knew we would return for certain reasons back then. We definitely wouldn’t have gone to Uruguay just because of the ceviche.
So we knew before our emigration where we would like to eat in La Paz, which places we like and where we feel comfortable.
During our second stay, things became more concrete. We applied for our residence permit – and were granted one for four years straight.
We knew where our lawyer's office was, we knew the area where we initially wanted to live, and we had already established contacts there. So we didn't arrive somewhere by chance; we had to first figure out where we actually were.
Many things were already familiar to us – not as residents, but from our previous stays. We had already started to settle in here to some extent, even before we actually lived here.
Research helps – but local people are more important
Naturally, we did a lot of research before emigrating. The Internet was an important starting point. But we quickly realized: Not everything you read online automatically describes how things work in real life. Many processes are different from what you imagine after doing an internet search.
Two things particularly stood out to us: Back then, in 2022, we didn’t read anywhere that you could apply for the residence permit directly in Mexico – and that a classic fideicomiso for a larger property like ours simply doesn’t work. We only learned about both of these things through conversations on the ground. Perhaps it’s long been correct online today, but back then, exactly these things were nowhere to be found for us.
That is precisely why the exchange with people on the ground was so important for us. Our lawyer and our tax advisor were valuable contact points for us. They were able to explain to us how things actually work – not just how they should theoretically work.
This combination of research and real experience on the ground has given us a lot of confidence.
We took this path as a team
We have been working as a team for over 25 years. And it is this trust in each other that has helped us with this step as well. We have divided the tasks up, just as we have always done.
Among other things, Romed took care of health insurance and the search for a place to live. During this time, he also began to intensively learn Spanish.
I took on the communication with the people on the ground and took care of many organizational matters in Austria – including banks, authorities, and documents.
At that time, I was on sick leave due to a shoulder injury, which gave me more time to work on our plans. While Romed was learning Spanish and taking care of his projects, I got involved in an architecture program and drew the first plans for our house.
However, we also did many things together. We researched together on the Internet, discussed the individual topics surrounding our emigration, and repeatedly worked on the plans for our house.
We decided on everything that affected both of us together. We trust each other's decisions. When one takes on a topic, we know that he or she has thought it through. And if something is unclear, we talk about it and find a solution together. This exact trust has accompanied us for 25 years.
We knew: The first few weeks will be challenging
Our credo from the very beginning was: We’ll rock it.
Not because we thought everything would be easy. But because we knew that the first few weeks would be challenging.
We had a full schedule of meetings, appointments, and organization. Much had to be done simultaneously, some things took longer than expected, and almost every step led to the next appointment.
But we had prepared for that as well. We knew that we wouldn’t arrive and that we wouldn’t just be able to start our new life the day after. And that’s exactly what happened.
The first few weeks went well. We worked through schedules, organized things, made decisions, and went through everything step by step as it was being done.
Not because we had made it particularly difficult for ourselves. But because we knew: This phase is just about to begin. And eventually it would be over.
When our gut instinct was right
When we landed in La Paz for the second time, I stood with our luggage in front of the hall and waited for Romed, who was picking up the rental car.
Actually, it was a completely normal moment. And yet there was this feeling: Here we are right.
It didn't feel foreign. It felt a bit like coming home.
Perhaps it was even stronger in me as a woman; but Romed felt it in a very similar way.
So far, I’ve always been good at listening to my gut instinct – and this time it was right.
Viva Problems
Of course, we had expected that not everything would go perfectly. In fact, we had even expected that things would go much worse.
That’s exactly why the name of our YouTube channel was also created: Viva Problemas.
Not because we expected everything to go wrong. But because we knew that in such an adventure, not everything will always go according to plan.
So far, fortunately, the major problems have been avoided. And the challenges that are yet to come? We can handle them.
Because one thing we know: Whatever comes – we will find a solution together.
By the way: We have detailed information on all aspects of national elections, residence permits, and documents in our Checklists for emigration to Mexico collected.