A flood of immigrants has been on the move since January, this time Americans going from the USA to Mexico, and apparently the government is ready to cash in on the influx. If you want to apply for Mexican residency, prices are going to double in January to get legal, per the newly approved budget. Getting one year of temporary residency (which you renew for three more) will more than double to $603 at the current exchange rate, while getting permanent status will cost you $876. There are rumors of the high income/savings requirement adjusting downward under a years-old edict that was never implemented, but that’s not official.

Invest in a SteriPen

I’m back in Mexico, in Baja this time, in one of many countries where you can’t trust the tap water for drinking. Like my blogger buddies at HoneyTrek I spent time with recently in Patagonia, I almost never buy or use bottled water in single-use plastic (though I can’t claim a spotless 14-year run like they can). The secret weapon we long-term international travelers have in our bag is a SteriPEN: a UV wand purifier that turns any tap water into purified water. I’ve used about every model in more countries than I can count, including a lot of years traveling with a family, and never have had stomach problems. I’ve got the Adventurer Opti version now, which is not ideal because it uses CR123 batteries. A better bet is the UltraLight UV version that recharges by USB. It’ll easily pay for itself and our future great-grandchildren will thank you.

Nomads Talking About Nomad Issues

Jason Moore has been giving up the mic now and then lately on his Zero to Travel podcast to let his producer and partnership manager, who are both remote workers, do “Remote Roundup” episodes. The two nomadic women talk about joys and problems they are encountering on the road, with more depth than you get in a typical interview format. Here’s the October one, which covers everything from bad bathroom design to living out of one bag to why it costs less to travel than to stay home. They look at these angles from all sides, like pointing out that being nomadic for months will cost you less than living where you came from, but not if you’re still paying for a house and a car while you’re mobile.

Expats Behaving Badly

Substack writer Julia Hubbel publishes a newsletter called Too Old for This Sh*t, from the point of view of an injury-prone 70-something advising others how to stay active and keep adventuring. I loved the latest one: Don’t Land in Hell by Bringing it With You. It’s a great summary of what many expats see but few mainstream media outlets point out in their rose-colored desk coverage: some people really aren’t meant to move abroad. Some want to shut the door behind them, keeping out “the others.” Others move to a developing country because it’s cheaper and then complain about…the lack of development. Some won’t learn even the basics of their host country’s language, while complaining about transaction misunderstandings and hurdles trying to navigate healthcare or get house repairs done. Read it to avoid problems later if/when you move.