An Expat Talks about Living in Tijuana, Mexico

What is the name of the city or town that you are reporting on?

Tijuana

How long have you lived there?

3.5 years

In terms of religious, racial, economic and cultural diversity, are the people of this city or town diverse? Are they accepting of differences? Describe.

Tijuana is extremely diverse culturally. There are a high percentage of Catholics and many Evangelical Christians as well, in addition to an Eastern Orthodox church. Economically, the gap between the wealthy and the poor is more pronounced (vs. US) altough there is a strong middle-class, Mexico in general is much more class conscious than the US

What are the main industries in this city? What types of career opportunities commonly exist? How do most people find new jobs?

Tourism, factories and business.

In general, what are peoples' priorities in this city? For example, do lives revolve around work, family, socializing, sports, etc.?

Because we live in a border region, people's priorities generally revolve around family and work, in that order, then friends, socializing and sports.

If a friend of yours was thinking of moving to this city or town from far away, what other advice would you give them.

Make language acquistion a high priority--but not over taking care of you family's needs! If you know nothing about Mexican culture, working with a Mexican professional language tutor can really help you learn the culture at the same time. Be prepared that adjusting to a foreign environment can be very difficult--usually more so for spouses (typically SAHM) and takes up to 3 years to begin to feel a part of the community.