In 2015, I moved my family of four from Pennsylvania to Puerto Rico to pursue my dream job. Although I had lived on the island when I was young and vacationed there, I had never worked professionally or lived there as an adult.
30.01.2025 - 00:49 / cntraveler.com
This is part of Why I Moved, a recurring series about Americans building a life abroad.
For cannabis and food writer Mennlay Golokeh Aggrey, a winter-sun whim turned into a decade in Mexico City. In 2014, a particularly frigid November in Brooklyn was brutal enough to have her seriously consider leaving the United States for warmer pastures. “My partner and I were like, let's put our stuff in storage for six months, go there to Mexico, and then figure it out,” Agrrey tells Condé Nast Traveler in a conversation over Zoom. “And as we know, there is no ‘figuring it out.’ I just decided to stay.” Over the last ten years and change, Aggrey has built a life in the Mexican capital that makes space for softness: Her days are long and productive, but hold space for creativity and leisure. She acknowledges that it’s an immense privilege to be an American living abroad, especially as a child of immigrants who has now immigrated to Mexico. In the Q&A below, we chat with Aggrey about what it's been like to grow a life in CDMX, learn how to speak and make friends in Spanish, and find community through her passions.
NAME: Mennlay Golokeh Aggrey
LOCATION: Mexico City, Mexico
JOB: Cannabis and food writer; co-founder of Xula Herbs
DATE OF MOVE: 2014
FROM WHERE? Brooklyn, USA
“I’m now living in Mexico City and I came here about a decade ago from Brooklyn, New York. At the time, I was considering places like Berlin or Paris or Johannesburg, and ultimately landed on Mexico City. It was very much a gut feeling. There's just something really electric about this city. It’s incredibly creative and, I think, a beacon for art, architecture, and literature. It just felt right.”
“Honestly, November 2014 was a brutal winter in New York. I needed a break from being, like, a human icicle. I wanted more sunshine. I was probably yearning for the West Coast, in particular; a few years before coming to Brooklyn, I was living in California. So a jump to Mexico made a lot of sense. That desire for warmth is a big part of why I moved.”
“I moved with my partner at the time. He was in a punk band that toured in Mexico City when he was younger, and he kept in touch with everyone he met there. So when we arrived, a lot of his friends became my close friends—poets, artists, thinkers. It was beautiful, having a sort of soft landing, a great community to fall into. Though our relationship didn't last, my love affair with Mexico City did, and I still live here on my own.”
“When I first arrived, I was on a six-month visa; I updated my visa regularly until I was eligible to get temporary residency. That required speaking to an immigration lawyer, someone who knew all about the necessary paperwork. After having temporary residency for two years, I
In 2015, I moved my family of four from Pennsylvania to Puerto Rico to pursue my dream job. Although I had lived on the island when I was young and vacationed there, I had never worked professionally or lived there as an adult.
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) is America's second busiest airport and one of its largest hubs. Travelers today can get from Knoxville, Tennessee, to Fiji with one quick stop at DFW; a route that 20 years ago would have taken three or more flights to complete.
When you hear about a company retreat, you might imagine traveling to an urban destination with massive hotel complexes just to sit for hours in windowless conference rooms and spend evenings schmoozing over room-temperature drinks. You probably don't imagine jetting off to a charming, nature-filled town along the Pacific Ocean.
Breeze Airways will ramp up its flying in a big way this spring and summer. The Utah-based low-cost carrier on Wednesday announced plans to launch service from three new airports by midyear.
Like a lot of us, I often find myself fried from days spent staring at my computer screen and nights circling back to emails I haven't answered. So when I heard that the Sanctuary Beach Resort in Monterey Bay, California, offered a package known as the Burnout Recovery Journey, I had to try it. When I arrived, I was happy to find the kinds of treatments on the spa menu I've been seeing more and more of lately: science-based offerings like infrared light therapy, IV drips, and electromagnetic pulse therapy. My outstanding massage took place on something called a Pulsed Electromagnetic Field mat. I was grateful that the hotel offered signal-blocking phone bags for the ultimate unplugging experience. Then I realized the irony: I was treating my burnout with…more tech. One has to wonder: How did we get here?
This Q&A about moving to Canada from the US is part of Why I Moved, a recurring series about Americans building a life abroad.
Delta Air Lines is limiting access to its sought-after airport lounges, putting new restrictions in place this month for travelers who use a credit card membership to get in.
Jan 31, 2025 • 8 min read
This is part of Why I Moved, a recurring series about Americans building a life abroad.
Forget the Atlantic or Caribbean oceans — Celebrity Cruises hopes you'll consider cruising European rivers instead, helping its big bet on a growing and lucrative market segment.
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Global leader in luxury travel, Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) is expanding its presence in Mexico with the opening of its newest Destination Management Company (DMC), with offices in Mexico City and Merida.