Having just returned from a 10 day visit to Los Angeles to see my family, I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the future. Listen, I’m happy in Mexico. But I haven’t decided if this is my forever home. I’ve been living one year to the next for a few years now. Since I moved to Michigan from California in 2014, I haven’t lived anywhere for more than 2 years.

• Redondo Beach, California: 2002 – 2014 (Los Angeles area)
• Detroit, Michigan: 2014 – 2016 (Bloomfield Hills)
• Brooklyn, New York: 2016 – 2017
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida: 2017 – 2018 (actually Pompano Beach)
• Miami, Florida: 2018 – 2019 (actually, Doral)
• Dallas: 2019 – 2021 (2020 worldwide pandemic)
• Veracruz, Veracruz: 2021 – 2022
• Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco: 2022-2023
• Bucerias, Nayarit: 2023-2025

I have decided to stay another year in Bucerias. I like my apartment, the community, it’s proximity to Puerto Vallarta. What will I do in 2026 and beyond? That’s the question.

I’ve been giving it a lot of thought the last couple of months. And after visiting with my 90+ year old parents recently, I realized that we have to plan our future, not let it set plans for us by sitting idly by. I want to be able to travel while I’m still able. The last few years I haven’t done much international travel other than the Caribbean, Canada, and Mexico. The last time I was in Europe was 2010. In another Blog in this section, I wrote about my planned 2024 travel. The BIG trip that is yet to come as of today, is a tour to Spain & Portugal. I’m very excited about returning to the Iberian Peninsula. I was last there while I was in College, studying in Madrid. I will be visiting Madrid, Spain & Gibraltar in July to celebrate my birthday! It’s an organized tour; I will land in Madrid. The group will move around the Peninsula on a bus and I will return home from Barcelona 15 days later.

So, let’s go back to where will I be living in 2026? Certainly continuing in Mexico is an option. Perhaps another neighborhood within the greater Puerto Vallarta area, or another city in Mexico. At the same time, I’ve been thinking that maybe I could move to Europe for a year or two. My trip to Europe this summer will help me decide if that is a real possibility.

Then there is Central and South America: Belize, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile. Who knows? My connection to the USA is my parents. I really have no desire to return to the USA, not as a permanent resident. To visit family, sure. So I will take the next year to decide where I want to live. I will likely travel to some possible future home destinations. Maybe even move temporarily to a new city to experience it first hand.

I’m excited about planning my future this next year. Taking my time to decide where I want to live the next few years. Seeing new places, maybe even other countries; maybe at the beach, maybe not.

“Moving to a new place is not just about changing your address; it’s about starting a new chapter in your life.” – Unknown