Why I feel more Mexican living abroad

I’ve been living abroad for almost eight years. During this time, I’ve come to appreciate Mexico in a way that I think only distance can teach you. 

I left Mexico in 2015 with my newlywed husband to move to Dubai after he got a job as a pilot. We lived there for five years but were forced to return to Mexico in 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. We settled first in Guadalajara and then in Mexico City. After two years, he got his job back and we moved to Dubai again. 

That two-year-break from our expat experience helped me reconnect with my roots and traditions. Yet, while being in Mexico made me feel at home, it didn’t make me feel more Mexican. If anything, it made me feel I didn’t have to think about my nationality as often as I did in Dubai. 

In the two years and half that have passed since we came back to Dubai, I’ve reinforced that feeling: I feel more Mexican abroad than in my actual home country.

Why does this happen? Here are some reasons why I think it does. 

I represent my culture abroad

My mother-in-law once told me that we are ambassadors of Mexico abroad: The image we project of ourselves shapes the perception others have of our country. 

I think that’s true, and to some extent, I want people to form a positive and friendly image of us Mexicans when they interact with me. At the back of my mind, I find myself carrying my Mexican identity wherever I go, trying to project a good image of what a Mexican is. It feels as if, the moment I step out of my house, I put on an invisible badge that says “I’m Mexican.” 

I didn’t have this feeling back home, much less consciously think about my nationality on a daily basis. I guess that’s because back home, my nationality was implied. I didn’t have to clarify it to anyone or even think about it — it just was.   

That identity also intentionally shows up in certain social interactions. In a multicultural city like Dubai, where so many nationalities abound, we often get asked “Where are you from?” This is an inevitable reminder of my nationality and culture. And because people want to connect, they will bring up an anecdote of a time they met someone from Mexico, or the time they traveled to Mexico or ate Mexican food. The country effortlessly blends into the conversation, making me feel very Mexican.  

I’m sure I’m not alone in this. I think it happens to every expat in the world, because it’s common that we find ourselves talking about our home country, culture and food much more often than we would do back home. 

I feel proud when I hear a foreigner appreciate Mexico

The other day, my husband and I were having lunch at a restaurant. There was a Swiss man, probably in his sixties, having lunch with his daughter next to us. We began talking and he told us he worked in the tourism industry and that he had to travel a lot. When he asked where we were from, he got excited at the mention of Mexico. 

“I love your country,” he told us. “It’s one of those rare countries in the world that truly has everything.”

We couldn’t help but feel extremely proud of Mexico and of being Mexican. 

At the risk of sounding presumptuous, this wasn’t a one-off. Whether it’s someone raving about a trip to Cancún or a stranger saying how much they love tacos or how friendly they find Mexicans to be, these types of compliments to our culture make me feel incredibly proud and incredibly Mexican. 

Back home, amongst Mexicans, we rarely give or receive compliments about Mexico. And if we do say something nice about our country, it will almost always be followed by a critique of our government, politics, insecurity, Mexicans — you name it. 

Either way, it’s interesting how being away and hearing positive feedback from others can shift the perspective of our own country and make us feel proud of it.  

I appreciate Mexican food more 

Food is probably the one thing that brings people closer to home, regardless of where they are in the world.

Since I was a teenager, enchiladas have probably been my favorite food — especially the ones made by my abuelita. And although I’ve always appreciated and enjoyed them, it’s different when I prepare and eat them in Dubai. For some reason, I cherish each bite more than if I were eating the dish in Mexico. Even the process of fixing the plate — adding the cream, lettuce and chopped onion and sprinkling cheese on top — brings back those familiar feelings of comfort, belonging and family back. 

I also get excited whenever I find rare Mexican foods at a restaurant or at the supermarket— let alone when I find Mexicans preparing Mexican food. 

The other day, at a supermarket I had never been to before, I bumped into a stand of Mexican food from a place that has gained a good reputation for its Mexican cuisine called Lila Taquería. Two Mexicans were preparing quesadillas and serving them with Mexican salsa. The moment I approached and asked, “Are you Mexicans?” our faces lit up. We talked about Mexico, food and the odds of bumping into fellow Mexicans in this context. I ended up buying corn tortillas, totopos and green salsa after trying a sample of everything.  

The identity boost that comes from connecting through food with your roots and with your own people in a foreign land is hard to beat. It’s hard to think of things that make you feel more Mexican.

What makes you feel more patriotic as an expat?