Outward
Published on September 3, 2023

Seasonal Migration Experiment

written by ericaeyoung

(first written in Sep 2023, updated Mar 2025)

Recently I’ve mentioned to many of you that staying in one place all year round doesn’t spark joy. So, I’ve decided to experiment with a new rhythm. For the next year, I’m going to split most of my time between three cities. If it works, going forward I will spend the fall in Hong Kong, travel for a month over the holidays, spend the spring in Mexico City, travel for another month around Easter, and then enjoy summer in London before hitting the road again. Notice how I don’t even mention winter ;]? For now, I expect the three main cities will remain the same from year to year and where I travel in between will vary. 

What’s the experiment? Here are some of the things I’ll be testing out over the next year:

  • How much time do I need to build and sustain a community in each city?
  • Do I like living in Mexico City and does it allow me to see family and US-based friends more frequently?
  • Can I make consulting and/or other income earning activities work across different time zones and locations?
  • What impact does this have on my finances?
  • Can I stand to live in a home I haven’t decorated and without my stuff?!? What are my options to make each place feel like home?

Why Mexico City? Both Hong Kong and London make sense because I already have a network in each of those cities. Here are a few of the reasons I’ve chosen to give Mexico City a try:

  • Vibrant, welcoming city with incredible food and a population of about 8M people (Hong Kong and London are also roughly 8M people, which seems to be about Erica-sized)
  • Gives me exposure to Latin American culture and opportunity to revive my Spanish language skills
  • Close to the US without having to live there :p 

Seasonal Migration Chapters

  • Chapter 1: Hong Kong – the first chapter of my seasonal migration experiment and the first time returning to Hong Kong to live since 2015
  • Chapter 2: Mexico City – my first 3 month experiment of living in Mexico City
  • Chapter 3: London – my first time returning to London after starting the seasonal migration experiment after 8 years of living there full time
  • Chapter 4: Hong Kong – my first time returning to Hong Kong as part of the seasonal migration experiment

The experiment reflections will continue until I’ve had a chance to return to each place, which means at least until I leave Mexico City in June 2025.