The Modern Women’s Dilemma: To lead from heart or brain.

SoireeChic_Admin — Mon, 01 Jul 2024 21:10:54 +0000

Why the average modern woman cannot connect to their creativity to generate seamlessly.

I’ve wondered about how we could connect with our creativity, our imagination, in a way that naturally leads us to produce value for the world. In any way we choose.

I think that is where the problem lies: I’m always wondering. Maybe you are too. We focus all our energy, up in our brain but creativity and real genius don’t come from up there. We know it, as corny as it sounds, it comes from the heart and soul. For women, it might even be the energy of our wombs that centers us and connects us with a deeper wisdom—a wisdom that leads to a creative revolution in our lives.

In this modern day, we hear so many narratives and voices that lead us one way or another. As much as there is helpful advice online, the abundant noise makes it almost impossible for us to sit back, and actually feel, not just think.

If you crave purpose and await the strike of inspiration that will lead to a lifetime of genius, I will say one thing: do it from a place of being, not doing.
I know it’s abstract, but it’s meant to be. No word or statement will ever affect us unless we feel and embody it. That’s our task. We hear, interpret and act according to how we perceive what we’ve been told.

There’s a beautiful energy I’ve perceived in women more and more, and it is a beautiful combination of power and softness. We want to create absolute abundance to hold ourselves and our loved ones. We want to flow in a state of creativity and just being. I’ve been told many times, it’s not so much what you do but why you do it. So I’ve made a decision that I hope you will consider making in your own way.I will write, because I have something I want to speak and share. I will design a visual because I want to paint my words in a way a stranger’s eyes can understand. I will use my hands and my capable eyes to give life to my creativity in any physical form it’s meant to be expressed in.

I’m at the very start of this journey too. And I invite you to join me, no matter how advanced in your journey you are. Let’s align any dream we have with our heart and soul. Choose to want to create as a result of being, and not of doing for the sake of being worthy. Let’s create a space where there is silence. Silence for that little voice in our being that wants to speak and needs the room to grow and become louder.

It might start with a moment of silence in your mornings or evenings. Or in blocking time during your days to pour out in any form of your choice, drawing, writing, designing, or physically shaping something. The choice is yours. It always has and always will be.

How beautiful we have the freedom to be exactly who we want to be. Let’s not forget that innate birthright, because it’s ours.

Decoding the Cost of Living in Mexico: A Reality Check for Canadian Expats in 2024

SoireeChic_Admin — Tue, 27 Feb 2024 01:08:53 +0000

This statement might seem far-fetched but it’s very true to what used to be a totally different reality just a few years ago. The reality of living in Mexico has undergone a significant shift, especially for Canadian expats.The surge in Canadian expats and other foreigners has driven up the cost of living, transforming the Mexican landscape. I’ve seen a lot of content on social media glamorising the cost of living in Mexico while it is not all it seems. The country has been heavily affected by inflation and there are many products that are marked up when compared to the cost in Canada.

With that said, the places I will cover below are still some of the best cities for expats in Mexico.

In this article we will cover:

The rise of costs in two of the most popular and sought-after destinations in Mexico. Mexico City and Playa del carmen.
How long can Canadians stay in Mexico?
Most affordable places in Mexico, in rapport to cost and value.
Best neighbourhoods for expats in Mexico
Monthly living expense in Mexico

Rise of Cost and Gentrification

To begin with the rise of costs in the two of the most popular areas of Mexico, being Mexico City and Playa del Carmen. As someone who lived there in the past three years, I noticed the surge in prices most predominantly reflected in the cost of rent. There is no rent control by the Mexican government and many landlords take advantage of it to increase the price with the high demand for short term rentals from increasing numbers of visitors who are relocating to Mexico long-term.

We have seen this in Mexico City as gentrification has largely pushed locals out of areas such as Condesa, Roma, Escandon, Del Valle, Napoles. Similarly in Playa del Carmen, a hub for short-term tourism and now expats relocation, the central areas have doubled and tripled in price.

What is gentrification? Gentrification is the transformation of a neighborhood as wealthier people move in, leading to increased property values, changes in the community's character, and often the displacement of original residents..

Mexico City and Playa del Carmen - Best for Expats Communities?

Despite the rising costs I would still choose one or the other as my base living in Mexico. First, it’s very well connected to the rest of the world with international airports available.

The number of expats, foreigners, and entrepreneurs is evident in Mexico City and Playa del Carmen. You are guaranteed to come across and access a lot of people with similar and like-minded views. Mexico City is a beautiful city, much greener than most believe, and as a woman in my 20’s I found it very safe.

It is also a very pet-friendly city. You will spot furry friends all over the city, predominantly in Polanco, Condesa, Coyoacan and roma. Mexico city has everything you might enjoy, art, nightlife, fine dining and a very good transport system.

In Playa del Carmen, you have access to different perks, one of the main ones being the good weather and proximity to the beautiful Caribbean sea. Another thing I found particularly lovely about Playa del Carmen in comparison to other popular destinations like Tulum or Cabo, is the true sense of community you can find when living there “long-term”. I spent periods of 6-months there, which was the best experience. You will find gyms, a few nice cafes to do remote work, a lot of nightlife, some decent food but a lot of great energy all around. The type of expats that are residing there tend to be very open-minded and welcoming.

How long can Canadians stay in Mexico? As of January 2024.

Canadians can still visit Mexico for less than 180 for touristic purposes without a visa.

You only need to present a valid passport and complete the correct entry forms (Migratory Form for Foreign Tourists, Transmigrants, Business Visitors or Councillor Visitors).

Check for all the official information, here. You can also check your country Immigration page.

Most affordable places in Mexico, in rapport to cost and value

In Mexico city, Condesa, Roma Norte and Roma Sur, are without doubt my personal favourites. They are also the most popular so might be overpriced and harder to find.

In Mexico city I recommend you venture to Napoles, Del Valle, Roma Sur, Coyoacan among others. This leads straight into the best neighbourhoods for expats to live in Mexico.

Having covered Mexico City, I will move to Playa del Carmen. It’s a well-developed town that despite being well serviced, cannot be considered a city such as Cancun. However, that contributes to its charm. The closer you are to the ocean front the steeper the prices will get. My suggestion is to look for neighbourhoods past 30th street. As seen on the map below. It’s ideal to move towards the Colosio area where you are more likely to find nicer and newer apartments for 70% of the price.

Monthly living expenses in Mexico, covering two main cities, Mexico city and Playa del Carmen.

I will start by saying that there has been a big price surge in rentals all over the country but even more so in Mexico City, Playa del Carmen, among other tourists areas where foreigners have relocated to. With that said a rent in one of the more sought after neighbourhoods in Mexico city such as Roma Norte and Condesa will start around 15,000 mx for one bedroom which comes down to approximately 1,170 cad, which may vary depending on any currency changes. That’s the starting point. Most one bedrooms will stay within that 15,000 – 25, 000 mx budget while two bedrooms would likely start at 18,000 mx – 35,000 mx. In Canadian dollars, that range looks like $1400- $2731 as of January 31, 2024.

My Weekly Breakdown:

Please use this as a reference, however, consider that there will be a difference in our spending based on habits.

Groceries:

1000 mx (-$80) per person buying comfortably fresh fruits, meat, nuts.

Coffee and restaurants:

3000 mx/ person when you like to go to cafes a few times in the week, for me it was 4-6 times and eat out 2-3 times a week. I wouldn’t usually go to extremely upscale restaurants because those can get very pricey, comparable to cities like toronto. However, totally worth it from time to time.

Activities:

There are lots of things I would enjoy doing as an activity that were free or low cost, such as going to read a book at a cafe, riding the city bikes around the city, walking around Reforma or condesa window shopping.

However, there’s a lot more activities you might be interested in partaking in to make the most of your living time in Mexico, and so this part is entirely up to you.

An overview of some activities:

Museum entrance fee – approx 150mx (12 cad)
Turibus (tour bus /hop on and hop off) – approx 150mx (12) . This is the one I’ve taken before. https://www.turibus.com.mx/
Mexico city is one of the biggest cities in the world, with more museums than New York. This city has food, sports, bars, and countless things for you to do. Here is a great list of ideas. https://ca.hotels.com/go/mexico/best-free-things-mexico-city?pos=HCOM_CA&locale=en_CA

TheSoireeChic