Growing up in Mexico

The year I turned 16, my parents and I moved to Mexico. My younger brother was living in Spain at the time while my older brother was going to the university in France. This was a difficult move for me considering that I thought I was going to live permanently in France and I was in my 2nd year of high school (we have 3 years of high school -lycee- in France and 4 years in middle school -college-). My only stipulation with the move was that I go to a French high school in Mexico City. So we moved there before school started.

In France, in high school  your schooling becomes more specialized with classes that focus on skills you are planning to use as you go to the university. I had chosen the social medical field since I wanted to be a nurse and already had some classes in that area. The Liceo Franco Mexicano did not offer that particular program so I had to repeat my 11th grade (1ere) and chose a different focus. I ended up with literature and philosophy. I had 8 hours of philosophy classes per week: not fun nor interesting. However I made friends fairly quickly, had my 1st kiss (and last for quite a few years, lol) and some fun adventure with my friends. I ended up enjoying my 2 years in Mexico City. I learned Spanish and visited different places in the country.

One fun adventure was when my girlfriend and I decided to the Chapultapec park. We rented a canoe to have fun on the lake: well we couldn’t get anywhere rowing so these two young guys our age asked us if we want to pair up with them so we could enjoy the lake. So we did and also had fun at the fair that was in the park. Now I don’t remember if we met them at the Six Flags type park (called Reino Aventura at the time) a few weeks later or whether my friend caught the eye of the orca whale trainer but we were both chosen to receive the whale’s kiss during the show. Turns out this whale was Keiko the whale that played Free Willy later on. So I can say I was kissed by a movie star!

A few other things that stand out apart for my hair and style (which I hope have improved with time) are the fun times playing soccer with my classmates indoors in the gym (too much pollution outside), earthquakes (no big ones while we lived there) and my mom doing the laundry with the maids on the roof because we live in an affluent area but could not afford, car, phone or maids. My dad worked as a catechist so the salary reflected that but I was taken care of with being enrolled in a private French school and we had a nice appartment!

Hope you enjoyed this second part of my living abroad as a youth. I do not regret my experiences since they have made me the woman I am today!

A bientôt!

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