June 16, 2024 • 53 mins
Ever wondered what it takes to assist American expats and travelers in a foreign land? Today, we offer you an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at US consular services through the eyes of Heather Andersen Cayer, a dedicated US consular agent based in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Heather shares her journey from working in tourism and bartending to becoming a pivotal figure in consular services since 2016. Her stories reveal the often overlooked yet critical role these agencies play, from issuing emergency passports to providing support during crises, showcasing the immense relief they bring to US citizens abroad.
Our discussion takes you through the nuanced distinctions between US consulates and consular agencies in Mexico. We break down how consulates, operating under the embassy’s umbrella, handle a broad range of services, including visas, while consular agencies focus on emergency and routine services. Discover the specific roles of consulates and agencies in Quintana Roo, Yucatan, and Campeche, and gain insights into the challenges posed by the visa application backlog post-pandemic. Plus, we offer essential travel tips, emphasizing the importance of adhering to local regulations, carrying proper identification, and the need for travel medical insurance.
Finally, we cover practical advice on navigating the Mexican healthcare system and planning for unexpected events abroad, including obtaining a US death certificate and dealing with legal matters. Heather's personal anecdotes provide a realistic glimpse into the expat experience, from initial excitement to a balanced view of life in a new country. As we wrap up our first season, we reflect on the idea that home is defined by the memories we create and encourage you to explore the world for personal growth. Join us and learn how proactive planning and understanding consular services can make your international adventures smoother and more enjoyable.
We are incredibly thankful for engagement and stories from our listeners, who have found their own sense of 'home' across the globe. Stay tuned as we continue to share the wisdom and wanderlust of those who've charted their unique international courses. We'd love to hear your comments and questions. Email them to expatslikeus@gmail.com
For more information and content, follow Expats Like Us on Facebook and YouTube
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I get it Like.
I can get the anxiety that youcan feel and a lot of times I
can see it coming on our on ourcameras.
I can see someone Okay, I cansee they've lost a passport
because they're.
You can see they're freakingout.
Hey, it's okay, just calm down,we're going to get you home.
You know what?
We can get you an emergencypassport in 24 to 72 hours.
Don't worry, you're going to beokay.
And I can visibly see them kindof go like they feel like I'm
(00:23):
like this is, honestly, of allthe things that could happen to
you, this is like the least.
This is the least bad thingthat could happen.
We are not in the business ofkeeping us citizens out of the U
?
S.
We will help you get yourpassport and get you back to the
U S.
Welcome to expats like usexploring the world of U?
Speaker 2 (00:38):
S expat life in Mexico.
Welcome to Expats Like Usexploring the world of US expat
life in Mexico.
In each episode, we'll meet newpeople and hear their personal
stories.
We'll also learn more about theexpat life and get a few tips
on everything from making yourmove to settling in and living
your dream.
Let's dive in.
(01:02):
One of the most importantthings for US citizens living or
traveling abroad to know isthat the US government offers
some services, even though youlive or travel in a different
country as an exprat abroad.
You may not even be aware thatthe US consular agency is there
to turn to until a situationarises where you need their help
.
A consular agency focusesprimarily on providing services
(01:27):
such as issuing passports andproviding assistance during
emergencies.
Today, we are thrilled to betalking to Heather Anderson-Caye
, a US consular agent who livesand works in Playa del Carmen,
mexico.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Hi Heather, how are you doing?
Speaker 1 (01:43):
I'm great, thank you.
It's hot, but it's airconditioned in the office, so
we're doing well.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Okay, great, hey, first could you tell us a little
bit about yourself and how youcame to work at the US Consular
Agency in Playa del Carmen?
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Absolutely.
I've been in Playa del Carmensince 2004,.
So it's been almost.
It'll be 20 years on July 4th.
I very intentionally kind ofchose July 4th as being an
American independent spirit andwanting to head off into the
world and I thought I'd try itfor six months to a year, see
how it went.
And I've been here for 20 yearsand I worked initially in
(02:16):
tourism in Playa del Carmen,worked for a Mexican salary for
a Mexican company, and then, Ithink, 11 years into that job, I
was also bartending to makeends meet, because I don't know
if you know that Mexicansalaries can be very low.
And then this opportunitysomeone actually three or four
people sent me.
I didn't know anything aboutthe US government or the
(02:38):
presence of the consular agency.
I had never had cause to use it, and several people said you
would be so great for this job.
They're hiring for a conciergeor agent in Playa del Carmen.
You should apply.
And I had been volunteering inmultiple charities in the area,
which is, I think, why peoplekind of suggested that I apply
and I applied for the job in2015.
It took, I was accepted, I wasoffered the position and then it
(03:00):
took almost a year, 10 monthsfor me to get the required
clearances and, believe it ornot, at that time, it was pretty
hard, probably for anyone else,to actually pass the clearances
in glial carbon at that point,so maybe that's why I went to
the top of the list.
I'm not sure, but I've beenworking for the agency since
2016, april, and so I justpassed, I think, my seven-year
mark.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Great Congratulations , thank you my seven-year mark.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
Great Congratulations , thank you.
So what exactly is thedifference between a US
consulate?
Speaker 1 (03:30):
and a US consular agency.
Okay, the way that I alwaysthink of it is, the embassy is a
country's kind of mothership.
That's the big one.
That's the big one, andunderneath the umbrella of the
embassy, for example, in Mexico,there are nine consulates and
the nine consulates are locatedin various locations in Mexico.
Now, sometimes they have beenthere since nine consulates and
the nine consulates are locatedin various locations in Mexico.
Now, sometimes they have beenthere since the 1800s, some of
these consulates, and sincethey're far away, tourists will
(03:54):
start to appear and things willstart to happen to US citizens
in locations that may be farfrom a consulate.
So that's how they determinedhow to open agencies.
And so, from the nineconsulates that are under the
umbrella of the embassy, there'salso nine consular agencies,
and there is one agent, an agentwithout an agency.
She's in Cozumel.
My colleague, terry so QuintanaRoo, has the highest, I think
(04:18):
the highest number of US citizentravelers, visitors to this
area, and so we have twoconsular agencies, one in Cancun
and one in Playa del Carmen,and one in the agent that works
in Cozumel that handlesemergency services.
What an agency does is differentfrom a consulate or an embassy.
We handle, you know the samethings that a consulate or an
embassy might handle, but we donot handle anything that's
(04:41):
visa-related.
We don't have the training, wedon't have the staff, anything
that's visa related we don'thave the training, we don't have
the staff and we only handleemergency services for the most
part and some routine serviceswe can lead you to how to renew
your passport.
We don't have here in Playa delCarmen.
We do not have routine servicesanymore.
We used to have appointmentsthat you could make to renew
your passport, but now Mexicohas initiated Mission.
(05:02):
Mexico has initiated allmail-in for adult passport
renewals.
So that's what we handle.
That's the difference betweenthe agency and the consulate no
visas.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
So where is the nearest consulate at?
Speaker 1 (05:15):
You know if I did have visa issues.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Where would I have to go to?
Speaker 1 (05:18):
You would have to go to Merida, the consulate in
Merida.
However, if you're in Mexicoand you want to apply for a visa
, you don't necessarily have togo to the one that's nearest to
you.
If you wanted to, you could,but you can look online.
You can check the wait timesfor visa appointments.
Basically, before you even geta chance to have an appointment,
you have to pay online to getyour visa and fill out the form
(05:40):
and do all of the requirementsthey require, and then you start
the waiting period for when youget it.
In Mission Mexico the backlog isquite extensive.
Mexico is a very busy missionfor visas and also after the
pandemic, there was that threeyears where nobody was doing
anything, and so there's a lotof backlog they're still working
through.
So you can check.
(06:01):
You can check and go to any anyof the visa issues, but if you
do have visa issues, you wouldwant to go through Merida here,
and that's in the Yucatan, whichis about three and a half hours
from Playa del Carmen, andMerida's consulate.
Their consular district isthree Mexican states it's
Yucatan, Campeche and QuintanaRoo and this is one of, I think,
(06:22):
probably the busiest consulatein probably the world maybe.
I think they have 9.7 million or9.6 million US citizen tourists
coming to their consulardistrict every year and a pretty
small team of people that workit.
But most of the tourist stuffis concentrated in kind of in
Quintana Rowe area.
(06:43):
Merida is getting more touristsbut a lot of times Merida's
tourists are a little differentthan the tourists that will come
here.
They're maybe a little bit moreworldly travelers, more
accustomed to traveling and adifferent type of traveler.
But we do see a lot of work.
It's called special citizenservices.
Those are things that couldhappen to a US citizen.
Anything that could happen to aUS citizen we handle.
Okay, what?
Anything that could happen to aUS citizen, we handle.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
Okay.
What would be the website ifpeople wanted to go on to make
appointments?
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Well, to make an appointment.
Actually, you can find all ofthis.
All of it is under the umbrellaof the embassy's website, which
is mxusembassygov.
So, if you want to add that inlater, it's mxusembassygov G-O-V
like Victor, not B like boy.
Okay, and then you just theyactually have everything routed
(07:33):
through there and it kind offunnels you to the right
location.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
What types of issues do you find most Americans most
frequently need assistance fromyou for?
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Well, here in Playa del Carmen and this is what
we're here for Someone justasked me this question today.
They had had an incident attheir hotel and I think, for
example, a drunk person wasknocking on their door and they
were terrified and some of theideas people have about Mexico.
They were like, what are you?
You know, are you going to comeget me?
And I was like, well, you know,this isn't like the.
(08:04):
I don't have a helicopter thatI can fly you to your, you know
your hotel.
And I'm like, if you're introuble, call 911.
We are here, we are guests inthis country, and the U S
government has no legal or lawenforcement authority.
So what our role is is to leadus citizens who have chosen to
come to Mexico to the resourcesthat are available to them
(08:25):
locally, meaning, if you're hereand you're in trouble and
you're in danger and you'rescared, don't call me.
Call 911, please, please, call911, because I can't help you.
I have a stapler and a pair ofscissors.
I'm not going to be able to domuch to protect you against
something terrible happening toyou.
And also, this person I wasjust speaking with he was pretty
upset Like what, what are youeven doing here?
(08:46):
What, what, what good are you?
I said well, you know.
Do you know where to call ifsomeone dies, like?
Do you know what funeral homesare reputable funeral homes?
Do you know what happens if youget arrested?
Do you know what lawyers tocall here?
You know it doesn't help tocall a US lawyer.
It doesn't help to call a USfuneral home If the incident
occurred in Mexico.
You have to deal with theMexican resources that are
(09:07):
available.
So that's what our role is.
Our role is to say, oh, we'vehandled this a million times, no
problem, here's who you need tocall.
I have the list right here andthese are the procedures.
This is how it usually goes.
It's basically just kind oflike having a friend that can
tell you what you need to do andhow things work.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
A friend who knows the area really well, exactly
and with the right people.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
Absolutely.
We maintain lists of contacts.
I have three cell phones theduty phone, the emergency phone
and my work phone, and then, ofcourse, my personal phone, and
on all three of those phones Ihave a wealth of contacts phone.
And then, of course, mypersonal phone, and on all three
of those phones I have a wealthof contacts.
And if I don't know the answerto something, which is very
possible I can usually findsomeone who will give me the
answer and I'll get back to you.
(09:52):
So basically, it's just kind ofwalking you through it, holding
your hand in some cases andtrying to tell you what to do,
especially in cases of death,and you're grieving and you
don't speak the language and youdon't know what to do.
You know we can.
That's what we're here for atthe consulate.
We can lead you in the rightdirection.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
And I suppose help calm people down once in a while
.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
I get it Like I can get the anxiety that you can
feel, and a lot of times I cansee it coming on our on our
cameras.
I can see someone okay, I cansay they've emergency passport
in 24 to 72 hours, don't worry,you're gonna be okay and I can
visibly see them kind of go likethey feel like I'm like this is
(10:33):
, honestly, of all the thingsthat could happen to you, this
is like the least.
This is the least bad thingthat could happen.
We are not in the business ofkeeping us citizens out of the
us.
We will help you get yourpassport and get you back to the
US.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
And I suppose people you know a lot of people in the
US, especially, like you said,in Merida.
It's a little moresophisticated traveler, but
people who come to Cancun forspring break or to you know they
have a built-in level ofnervousness, I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
Right I mean.
Well, a lot of them can be very, very young too, and a lot of
people it may be their firsttime ever traveling outside the
US, so they don't know what toexpect.
And I think, because Mexico isso close and because so many
people here speak English, inthis tourist serving tourist
communities, I think peoplesometimes forget they're not
actually in the US A lot oftimes.
We have a lot of cases, forexample, of people who board
(11:21):
flights to fly down into Cancunwith marijuana or guns and they
end up getting arrested.
I'm a US citizen, like I know,but you're a US citizen who
broke the law in Mexico,unfortunately.
So that's that's one importantthing to say.
Please don't bring marijuana orguns in your luggage.
It's not permitted in Mexico.
(11:42):
It is illegal in Mexico.
So even if you're from a statewhere it's legal or you have a
medical marijuana card even thatI mean medical marijuana I
think we've had cases, butpeople still get arrested for
that.
And then, even if you were ableto get out of it or you're not
put in jail for however manyyears, you still have to lose
your vacation, the money thatyou've spent, and you have to
(12:03):
deal with that rigmarole andhire an attorney and follow the
laws of Mexico.
My suggestion to everyone ifanyone is listening today,
hopefully they will read thetravel information that is every
single country in the world.
The US Department of State hasvery expansive information on
(12:23):
travelstategov G-O-V and it saysinternational travel.
You click on that and then itsays learn about your
destination and you click onthat and you type in the country
that you're visiting.
For example, if you typed inMexico, it would show you all
the passport information howlong your passport has to be
valid for certain warnings forcertain states.
You go and you look it up andthen, secondly, it's called STEP
(12:47):
, s-t-e-p, like taking a step.
It's Smart Traveler EnrollmentProgram and that is a way that
you can log your stay to receiveany kind of alerts or
information that might changewhile you're traveling.
You can let us know.
I'm going to be in this areafrom this time to this time.
I mean, obviously we will haveyour email address, we'll have
(13:08):
your phone number or something.
We won't necessarily bereaching out to you at all, but
in the event that somethinghappens, there's a hurricane or
whatnot, we'll know you're inthe area and we're going to try
to reach out to you to make sureyou get this information and
you'll automatically get updatesand alerts for anything that's
going on in that area.
So I highly recommend readingyour travel information.
Meaning do not bring guns anddrugs into the country.
(13:30):
Also, mexico is something thatpeople don't know.
Mexico does not allow you tobring e-cigarettes or e-liquid
into their country.
So people say, oh, I've gottenaway with it.
I'm like, yes, you probablyhave gotten away with it, but
you could be stopped.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
And don't come crying to me when you do get in
trouble.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
Well, they won't necessarily arrest you for
something like that, but they'redefinitely at least going to
confiscate it or maybe fine you.
Customs may fine you, but theydefinitely will probably take it
and throw it away if they findit.
And even if you get away withit and they let it go, it's
still the point is it's notlegal and we tell you that.
So please read that information, because there's a reason that
we do it, probably just so wecan go back and say see, I told
(14:09):
you.
No, I'm just kidding.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
So if you're here on vacation, or maybe you live here
as a permanent or temporaryresident, is there a certain
identification that you'rerequired or should carry on
yourself?
Speaker 1 (14:21):
Well, technically, I think, the Mexican law is that
you should always be able toprove your legal status in the
country.
So me personally, living here,I have a resident card.
I always carry my resident card.
In the old days we used to havecolor copies because we were so
scared of losing it.
Now it's not so much of ahassle.
If you lose your card, you canget a replacement.
In the old days they made youstart all over, so it was like
(14:43):
terror to not carry yourresident card.
But now I always carry myresident card.
I don't always have my passporton me because I have other forms
of ID.
I have my resident card and Ihave my credentials for being a
consular agent, so I make sure Ialways have those and my
driver's license, of course, ifI'm driving.
But my passport I keep a copyof it on my phone, that way in
the event they were to ask me.
(15:04):
But I can prove my status inthe country is legal, but with
my resident card.
So what I suggest to people ifthey're traveling within
Quintana Roo, if you're close toyour hotel you're traveling out
and about, don't carry yourpassport down the street because
it worst case scenario.
You've got a copy of it on yourphone.
Maybe take a copy of the entrystamp as well that proves your
residency.
(15:24):
Take a picture of the pagewhere they stamped you coming in
and then your bio page and then, if they really want to see it,
you can say, okay, well, myhotel is here, let's go to my
hotel, I can show you it.
So that way at least you'recovering yourself and you're not
exposing your passport tounnecessary risk of being stolen
or lost.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
So does that change at all if I'm going to be
traveling from Quintana Roo toanother state?
My wife and I are going to SanMiguel, and we're passing
through several states on theway there.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
I always say, when you cross state lines, always
have your passport with you.
Okay, I mean, I don't know ifthat's Mexican law, I know that
Mexican law.
You're supposed to always beable to have your passport.
Me personally, I wouldn't feelsafe crossing state lines
without having my passport withme.
Right, okay, that's good.
But if you go to the beach,don't just leave it on the beach
, so please.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Don't leave it sitting on the bar at the resort
.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
Yeah, people are like well, I went snorkeling and I
left my Rolex and my wallet andmy Hermes bag.
I'm like what?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Yeah, that's usually too long.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
I left my Rolex and my passport on the beach and
then I came back and it wasstolen.
I'm like no way, Really, but Ihid it in my shoe, so how did
anyone ever find it?
Right, exactly, I've heardpeople putting them inside
diapers, acting like it's adirty diaper or something.
I'm thinking to myself, butthen someone might come along
and throw it away.
Don't do that.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
So does your agency provide any assistance with,
like medical emergencies andstuff if people suddenly get
really ill or break a bone?
That happens all the time.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
I'm really glad you brought that up because I would
like to stress to US citizensbecause we don't seem we're one
of the only countries in theworld that seem to travel
without being insured and I wantto stress to people the
importance of getting travelmedical insurance, even if you
have insurance in the UnitedStates, if you have, for example
, medicare Medicaid that onlycovers you when you're in the
(17:23):
United States, if you have, forexample, medicare Medicaid that
only covers you when you're inthe United States.
I think maybe in the futurethere may be some they may be
making changes to the, to therules that you may be able to
get healthcare in Mexico as aretired person on Medicare.
But for the moment I wouldsuggest and my, my, my own
parents are the number onepeople that I have taken by the
lapels and shaken a little bitto say get the medical insurance
(17:44):
, because basically, the, thepolicy, the protocols of private
medical care in Mexico is youpay up front for any services.
Now the health law Mexicanhealth law is is they say that
you cannot refuse service tosomeone.
If it's a life and death, if itmeans they're going to die, you
cannot refuse service.
But once you're stable, theycan kick you right out to the,
(18:08):
to the general hospital and onceyou're, you know, but up front.
If you go there with a brokenleg or a broken arm or whatever,
they can say, no, you need topay me.
Okay, we estimate it's going tobe $5,000 or $10,000.
You've got to pay upfront andif you don't have the ability to
pay, they're not going to giveyou service.
And Americans are outragedabout this and they don't
understand that.
I think that's because theywant to make sure they get paid
(18:29):
Now, later on.
If you have, even if you haveinsurance, a lot of times they
won't work directly with yourinsurance companies.
There are some hospitals anddoctors that will, and if you
live here and you have healthinsurance, my suggestion would
be to reach out to varioushospitals and say I have Aetna
health insurance or I have BlueCross, blue Shield.
Would you work with this in theevent that something happened
to me, or would I have to comeup with $50,000 upfront to be
(18:54):
able to get treated at a privatehospital?
Otherwise, you go to thegeneral hospital, which is very
inexpensive and they're not baddoctors.
It's not bad medical care.
It's different from what wewould be used to seeing in the
US hospital and they have veryfew resources, very few supplies
.
A lot of times you need someoneto advocate for you to go and
like, say the doctor will give alist of like supplies that they
need for you and your friend oryour loved one will have to go,
(19:16):
purchase these things and bringthem back to the hospital.
So, yeah, it's very different.
My suggestion is just get thehealth insurance as far as us
paying for it.
When people say, well, don't youhave medical, can't you pay for
us to get treated, and I'mthinking to myself OK, in the US
, does the US government pay foryour medical care?
It does not, you know, unlessyou have certain medical
(19:40):
coverage for your job or whatnot, it certainly does not have the
funds, the funding available,to pay for medical care outside
the US.
In certain extreme cases thatare life and death cases and
this is something that wouldhappen once in a blue moon If
someone is unaccompanied andthey are going to die if they
don't receive an air transfer orthey don't receive medical care
, we can offer loans to assistin that case.
(20:04):
That it would be a loan to theperson to assist them.
But it's not an automatic thingyou have to apply for it, or
the family member that would beyour next of kin that if you're
not able to sign for it yourself, they would have to take on
this on themselves and sign forthe loan.
But as far as just giving money,giving air transfer, the US
government unfortunately cannotassist in medical cases.
(20:25):
It's the responsibility of theUS citizen.
Unfortunately, one of thehospitals I know for sure in
this area that does often workdirectly with insurance
companies is CostaMed.
So if either of you haveinsurance companies, you may
wish to reach out to these justin advance to say what would
happen if I needed to getsurgery.
Do you guys work directly withsuch and such agency?
(20:46):
It's not a bad idea to get yourducks in a row and make sure
you have all this information ina place that everyone can
easily access it.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Are there any health facilities like CostaMed or
anybody around here thatactually work with US insurance?
Speaker 1 (21:00):
I believe CostaMed is one of them.
I know that CostaMed, I believethat CostaMed is one of the
ones that does directly workwith I think Blue Cross, Blue
Shield is one of them.
They have a list of other onestoo, but it changes so often.
That's why I would recommendthat you reach out and we have
on the website of the embassy,the mxusembassygov, that website
if you look for local resources, you'll go through and you'll
(21:24):
have a list of all the hospitalsand doctors in this area.
So it's kind of easily compiledand you can go in there and
contact them to see if, bychance, this were to happen.
That way, if you have a kind ofa go bag or if someone if
you're not able to speakyourself your spouse or your
friend or whoever it is thataccesses can say, oh, they've
already spoken with them andthey'll take them at that
(21:45):
hospital, so you can reach outto them.
The patient services managersat all the major hospitals here
do have English speaking people.
The general hospital does notreally have English speaking
people.
Speaker 2 (21:55):
And I do know from just from friends and stuff that
I know who have had a familymember or somebody in the
general hospital.
It's, it's, and you, you, youkind of alluded to it.
It's not the experience thatyou get in the US in a hospital.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
No, yeah, they're nice and they are good doctors.
A lot of the doctors actuallywork in the private practice as
well and they donate their timethere or they work, you know,
also in the general hospital.
But it's a national publichealth system and they have a
massive amount of local peoplewho it's their primary medical
care and they are underfunded,they're understaffed and they
(22:31):
are underfunded.
They're understaffed andthey're overworked, so it can be
loud in there.
It can be different from whatyou're used to.
I mean, for some people theycould be shocked by it.
But I've had other foreignservice officers that are
colleagues of mine who've saidif you think that that's
different from what we're usedto, you should see what it looks
like in the Philippines or they, you know they'll say other
countries you know as well.
(22:53):
Mexico has, in general has areally excellent healthcare
system and they have excellentdoctors and good education and
caring people and just ingeneral it's just they're
overworked and understaffed.
So if you have the, I mean, thebest thing about it, I think,
is if you have no other means,you're not going to go into a
debtor's grave.
(23:13):
If you go to the hospitalgeneral, you can afford to be
treated there, right, even ifit's probably maybe, maybe you
want top tier medical servicewith round-the-clock care and
like a jello that comes everythree hours or something.
You're not going to get it there, you know right but at least
they're going to save your lifeif they can, if they can.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
That's good to know.
So if someone is visiting hereor you know lives here, like we
do, and you know you lose yourpassport or you lose your
residency card I know that youguys help with that how long
does it take to replace that?
And again, in which?
In what way do you help withthat?
How long does it take toreplace that?
And again, in what way do youhelp with?
Speaker 1 (23:54):
that Okay.
Well, basically, if you livehere and you lose your passport
and you still have a copy ofyour birth certificate and you
have another form of ID and youdon't have any plans to travel,
you can replace that by makingan appointment either Cancun or
in Merida, because Playa delCarmen only has emergency
(24:15):
services we don't have routineservices now or in the other
consulates or any other place inMexico.
You make an appointment onlineand you can go and replace your
passport with a full passport.
That takes right now, aroundsix weeks maybe six to eight
weeks, but people are reportingit's coming back around four
weeks, but they stay six toeight.
But if you are here as atraveler and you're not here,
(24:37):
you need to leave immediately,or you have an urgent need to
travel, you have a medicalemergency or whatever it is, we
can assist you with an emergencypassport.
There are three options for you, basically.
So let's say Joe loses his, helost his passport in Tulum.
He goes back to the US onWednesday.
Today is Monday.
Okay, it takes 24 to 48 hours.
If he was able to get heretoday, he might get it tomorrow
(24:59):
and he might get it on Wednesday, but if he doesn't want to take
that risk or he doesn't feellike driving from Tulum.
He still has a driver's license.
He lives in California or helives in Texas or somewhere over
there.
He could also ostensibly fly tothe border and cross into the
US by land.
You can cross into the US byland not even having any
(25:19):
passport, any ID, nothing.
The hard part would be gettinga flight from here to the border
if you didn't have ID.
Now say, joe has, he has an ID,he decides he wants to do that.
Or if he doesn't live anywherenear the border, he lives in New
York, but he still has an ID.
There are programs that were putin place by the airlines and by
(25:41):
Customs and Border Protection,cbp.
They're called.
They're flight liaison programs.
Basically, they are designedfor US citizen travelers or
legal permanent residents of theUnited States to board a flight
, a direct flight to the UnitedStates, without their US
passport or their resident card,and they're called.
There's two of them.
One's called the Joint SecurityProgram, and that one is based
(26:02):
out of Mexico City, I think, andthe other one is the Regional
Carrier Liaison Group and that'sbased out of Miami, and both of
these coordinate betweenairlines and Customs and Border
Protection to allow US citizensto board their flight.
Now the kicker here is that onlythe airline can call and it can
only be the day of your travel.
(26:23):
And if you call in advance andtry to talk to Delta or American
or Southwest or whoever theairline is, they won't know what
you're talking about.
It's only the people at theairports who have these programs
, that you just go there and wemake recommendations on making
sure you arrive prepared.
We have the information printedout for you.
We can send it to you, youprint it out, you have your
other ID.
(26:44):
You may be in some cases, youmay have a police report.
You may have filed yourpassport as missing or lost
online and you have that form toshow them everything you bring.
And they look at the totalityof the evidence and you just ask
them would you please callRegional Carrier Liaison Group
or the Joint Security Program toliaise with CBP to ask if I can
board the flight?
So they'll call or they won'tcall, depending on who it is.
(27:07):
Sometimes Spirit is one of theones that may not be willing to
call, but most of the majorairlines all of them have done
it.
Most of the major airlinesAmerican, delta, united,
southwest, jetblue they've alldone this, especially during the
pandemic.
It was very, very activebecause there was no way you
could get a passport at thattime.
Everybody was shut down andthen they just look at it and
say, okay, well, he has an ID.
(27:28):
A lot of times you're boardinga flight to return and when you
came down on that same airlineyou had your passport.
So they have they still havethose records too.
Ultimately it's up to CBP,ultimately it's up to the
airline whether or not you getboarded.
But it's an excellent chanceand we've sent thousands of
people home to the U?
S without their passports usingthat program.
(27:48):
So we recommend that highly,that's really good to know.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
I've never heard of that.
That's really good yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Yeah, and if you called in advance, the Delta
people wouldn't have heard of iteither.
It's just at the airport andthen we just we just counsel
people, just to be polite andkind, because you know, if you
go up there with guns blazingand screaming at the person, the
person at the airline desk cansay no, sorry, you're not
boarding, and that's their rightto say that.
So my mom always said you catchmore flies with honey, right?
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Very true.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
So in the US we have an election coming up in about
five or six months here.
Does the consular agency or theconsulate or the embassy,
whatever have any resources forexpats or immigrants who would
like to vote?
Speaker 1 (28:36):
Absolutely the first place to start because there are
so many states and all thestates have different rules on
absentee voting is you go to andI'm going to say it out loud
and then I'll use the acronym,because you know the government,
we love our acronyms, becauseyou know the government, we love
our acronyms it's the FederalVoters Assistance Program.
So it's F like Frank, v likeVictor, a like Apple, p like
(28:57):
Paul, gov, g-o-v like government, f-v-a-pgov, and then you
select your state.
Now, if you've lived here for along time, like for me at 20
years, I still vote in the stateof Illinois because my very
last address in the US was inIllinois.
So, even though technically,because that's the last place I
(29:17):
lived, so I think in the lastelection I don't remember
because it was four years ago Ithink that I was able to email
my ballot.
Actually I'm not 100% sure, butif you cannot email your ballot,
if your state doesn't allow forthat, most of them have a
template which you can print outto have the postage paid and as
long as you do the math on howlong it may take you, you can
(29:40):
bring your postage paid envelopeto the consular agency or any
consulate or the embassy.
We can receive your ballot foryou and send it in Now if you
come to Playa.
I'll let you know thetrajectory of your envelope.
It goes from us to Merida inthe diplomatic pouch which we
send, maybe once every two weeks, and then from Merida it will
(30:02):
go, and Merida probably sendsthem on a daily basis.
So maybe it goes every day, orevery week at least, from Merida
to the embassy in Mexico City.
From the embassy in Mexico Cityit would then get sent by
diplomatic pouch, maybe on aweekly basis or a daily basis,
to Texas and from there then itwould go into the regular mail
and then go to wherever yourstate is.
(30:23):
So you want to give it at leasta month or two.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
It takes a while.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Yes, it does take a while, because in the old days
we sent pouches more frequentlybut now we don't have routine
services so we almost veryrarely maybe every two weeks
send a pouch to Merida andMerida does still have routine
services, so they send them morefrequently.
And then I would recommend,like, if you're worried about it
, there was a time when Islacked off and I jerked myself
(30:49):
around for a while and I didn'tget my ballot and it was kind of
the last minute I went aheadand just sucked it up and I paid
the money to FedEx, it to myvoting elections office in
Illinois and it cost me $100,but it was worth it.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
Yeah, right, okay Makes sense.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
So something that many of us don't necessarily
think about when planning aninternational move or a trip
here is what happens when aspouse or partner dies while
you're living or visiting abroad.
We assume the consulate wouldbe contacted, but what would
happen in that scenario as faras maybe bringing the body back
to the States?
Speaker 1 (31:27):
Yes, that happens, unfortunately, more often than
any of us would like, and it'snot ever easy.
Even when there are cases wherepeople who live here and
they're expecting it or it's notan unexpected illness, it's
still a hard thing to navigateand that's why we're here.
It's a major part of my job.
I think in my district alone wehandle probably close to 60
(31:49):
deaths just in the Playa delCarmen district, and then we
have Cancun, which is maybe morethan that, and then Merida also
.
So it happens a lot.
The first thing that we do is wetry to reach out immediately to
the next of kin to offercondolences and to let them know
what to expect.
A lot of them are just lost atsea, especially if this comes
(32:10):
out of nowhere.
They're on vacation, theirhusband has a heart attack while
he's snorkeling and here's thispoor woman.
She's alone and she'sdevastated and she doesn't have
her partner and she doesn'tspeak Spanish.
So we try to get to them rightaway, offer condolences and let
her know the next steps.
The first step would be tochoose a funeral home locally
and you decide on thedisposition of remains whether
(32:31):
or not you want to cremate oryou would like to embalm or
return the remains to the US.
We let them know about locallaws.
Now, any US citizen or anyforeigner not US citizen, any
foreigner in Mexico who diesoutside of a doctor's care has
to have an autopsy.
That's Mexican law.
Now, if a doctor is on scene orcan be called to say this is a
(32:53):
death from natural causes andthe family wishes to waive that
right to the autopsy, they cando so.
But in general, all US citizenswho die outside of a doctor's
care do get an autopsy, andthat's foreigners, not just US
citizens.
And then you choose the funeralhome, obviously the most
economical If your family haseconomic problems.
The most economical way torepatriate your loved one, if
(33:16):
you wish, is to have themcremated and you hand carry
their cremains and theirbelongings that they left here
in Mexico with you back to theStates.
That's obviously the leastexpensive.
We've had a lot of cases in theUS where people don't want to
come down and they have theirfinancially solvent or it's not
too big of a burden for them andthey will embalm, or they will
(33:36):
cremate and then return, havethe remains shipped and their
belongings shipped as well.
That is obviously quiteexpensive.
Other times people are saying Ireally can't afford this and
then I counsel them.
The best way really is to justcome down.
If you can't afford it, takethe belongings yourself and then
you can go back on a plane andcommercial flights and then it
costs you the cost of the flightor whatever you've paid the
(33:59):
funeral home that you've chosenfor cremation or for embalming
services or whatnot.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
So what sort of things should like couples, what
sort of things should my wifeand I think about to have in
place in case something likethat happens?
Speaker 1 (34:12):
That's a really good question.
I'm glad you asked.
It's really important that youboth make your wishes known.
Make sure that your wife knowswhat your wishes are with
regards to whether or not youwant to be repatriated or you'd
like to be buried in Mexico oryou'd like to be cremated, or if
you have a will.
Make sure your will is updatedand that someone knows where
that is.
Make sure your emergencycontact knows what your wishes
(34:34):
are and where your importantdocuments are, because those are
the things you're going to needto do Now.
The US consulate, the USgovernment we operate under the
next of kin being the order ofkinship is basically a living
spouse, a spouse, adult children, and then from then on, it
would go down the line.
So that's just the mostimportant thing, just being
(34:55):
proactive.
Even you think it can't happento me.
You know what you never know.
So make sure your wishes areknown.
Speak about it.
Make sure you have your will ina location.
Now, if you live here in Mexicotoo, it's not a bad idea, even
if you wanted to get a will inMexico.
I know that in September for allthe notaries, because you get
your wills here at notaries.
Notaries in Mexico are morelike attorneys than attorneys
(35:17):
are.
They're more like the USversion of attorneys.
In the month of September, it'shalf price will month in Mexico
, so that's a good month to get.
It's coming up, so that's agood month to get a will if you
don't have one.
And I'm going to take my ownadvice this year, because I've
always been like, oh, I'm soyoung, I don't need to do that.
And then I realized, well, youknow, you're supposed to get a
(35:38):
will when you're like 50, right,I'm like I got wait a minute,
I'm 53.
Oh my gosh, it's time to go.
Speaker 3 (35:46):
So if you, let's say, own property in Mexico, like my
wife's a citizen, if you have aUS will, that won't be honored
here.
Right, we'd have to have aMexican will.
Speaker 1 (35:57):
Yes, if you have Mexican property or Mexican like
, us wills are good for USdocuments and Mexican wills are
good for Mexican properties andthings.
The same thing with like.
If you do die back on that samesubject, you will of course,
receive a Mexican deathcertificate because you died in
Mexico.
That death certificate is goingto be in Spanish and it's for
Mexico.
Now you can't use a Mexicandeath certificate in the United
(36:20):
States to handle any likebanking information or closing
out insurance things or whateverit is in the US.
You have to get, kind of like aUS death certificate and the
consulate.
How we assist in that case.
We issue a consular report ofdeath abroad or a CROTA.
Now these are now they're nowdelivered electronically, which
is super useful in this day andage.
Now they're now deliveredelectronically, which is super
(36:41):
useful in this day and age.
They're electronic consularreports of death abroad.
You get a link to an originaldocument that you download this
and you can print as many as youneed.
So it's much easier than itused to be to to get these,
these documents.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
OK, so what happens if a US citizen is arrested
while they're in Mexico?
Do?
You guys have anything to dowith that, or a victim.
Speaker 1 (37:02):
Well, we're generally notified if a US citizen is
arrested.
In general we request that webe notified and we usually are.
We try to make some contactwith the person within 24 hours.
We aren't always able to have aconsular visit within that time
but in general most of thearrests that I deal with in my
(37:23):
district are misdemeanor arrests, meaning drunken, disorderly or
insulting authorities orwhatever, getting into a fight
in public or urinating in publichey guys, don't be in public,
that kind of thing and generallythey can hold you for those
arrests for 36 hours and thenthey assess a fine at the time
that you're arrested.
(37:44):
Basically they assess the fineand the fine is generally it
should be in the amount ofanywhere from 500 pesos or 1500
pesos, up to maybe 4000.
That should be the max of it,depending on what they deem the
judge on duty deems is theseverity of your, your
infraction.
And if you pay that kind ofimmediately you can get out.
If you decide I'm not paying,that you can wait out your time,
(38:07):
the 36 hours, and at the end ofthose 36 hours they will set
you free with no fine.
However, at any point duringthat you can decide.
After like 24 hours you can sayI've had enough, I can't take
it anymore, I'll pay the fine.
It's less.
It goes down a little by littleas you go.
I'm not sure of the exactincrements.
It goes down, but they assessthe fine and then as you get
(38:28):
closer and closer to yourfreedom, the fine goes down.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
So you need to wait it out.
Speaker 1 (38:33):
You can wait it out or you can pay and get out.
You know what I mean For somepeople.
I mean, yeah, for some ingeneral, for misdemeanor arrests
.
By the time I'm notified,because a lot of times they'll
be on weekends or they'll belike two in the morning A lot of
these things happen Drunkendisorder always happens quite
when I'm fast asleep.
By the time I'm notified thenext morning they've already
(38:57):
been released because they'vealready paid their fine or
whatnot.
So most of the time I have nointeractions with people.
For more serious arrests orsomeone who gets sent to prison,
we have consular visit.
We have criteria for how oftenwe visit.
We generally can't help you getout for sure.
We can give you lists oflawyers.
We can let you know what toexpect.
If you're a long-term prisoner,we'll help you initially, in
the initial phase when you'rebefore your sentence, I think
(39:18):
you get a consular visit once amonth and then after your
sentence it I think it increases.
I think it's either every threemonths or every six months.
I'm not a hundred percent surewhich it is, because I really am
lucky.
I don't have a lot, a lot oflong-term prisoners and I
haven't had that.
But the consulate can help youto.
Basically, what we do is we just, if you have a complaint of
(39:40):
mistreatment, you can fill outan affidavit of mistreatment
with us and, if you wish, we canprotest on your behalf to
authorities.
A lot of people choose not todo that because they fear
reprisal or whatnot, or theywant to wait until they're after
they're released and thenthey'll come back and talk to us
.
But we use these affidavits ofmistreatment even if we don't
specifically go into your case.
(40:01):
We use them to raise theseissues with authorities if
they're a repeating problem.
So it gives us a way to say hey, we've had these reports of
this happening in your districts.
What's going on?
And in general, you don't gettreated better because you're a
US citizen, but our goal is totry to make sure you're not
being targeted and unfairlytreated or treated poorly
(40:21):
because you're a US citizen.
We want to make sure thatyou're being treated.
If everyone else is beingtreated badly, you're still
treated badly, but you're nottreated worse.
You know what I mean.
Hopefully there's no humanrights violations.
You know we can raise all ofthese issues with that too.
It's just that we can't get youout, but we can make sure that
we're monitoring what'shappening with you, we're making
(40:42):
visits to you regularly, we'relistening to your concerns and
we provide vitamins to long termprisoners as well.
Speaker 3 (40:49):
We can provide some reading material to US citizens
and, and provided you give usthe required permissions and
things- If you need us to reachout to family or friends to talk
to them or tell them something,we can do that for you as well.
Okay, very good.
Is there anywhere that there'sa resource that people could
look at?
They would have common lawsthat seem to get violated
frequently, so they would knowthings.
(41:11):
Like you said, the urination.
You would think that would becommon sense.
Yeah, I know, I don't knowthat's a good question.
I don't really I really don'tknow.
Speaker 1 (41:18):
I mean, most of the things that are infractions in
the US are infractions here.
Actually, where you want to gois definitely the travel
advisory that I mentioned, theinformation that's specific to
Mexico.
You go on that and they'll have.
If there's something that would, I mean obviously peeing in the
street and being rude toauthorities and fighting in
public and being drunk anddisorder, that's kind of a
universal crime.
And fighting in public andbeing drunk and just sort of
that, that's kind of a universalcrime.
(41:39):
But there are specific thingsthat are listed that are crimes
that we may not think of, like,for example, don't bring weapons
into Mexico, even if it's legalin your country.
You're going to another country.
I don't know.
What I can't figure out is whythe airlines would permit.
A lot of times these peoplehave been boarding a flight in
the US to go to Mexico and theairline doesn't say wait a
(42:01):
minute, you have a gun in yourluggage but why don't they say
you know?
I don't understand that.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Cause it seems like they have a pretty sophisticated
system for finding, I wouldfeel like.
Speaker 1 (42:10):
Wouldn't you like ask the person at least?
Did you know that you havethese bullets in your, in your
luggage?
You know?
It seems to me like you wouldat least give me the better of
the doubt.
I luggage, you know.
It seems to me like you wouldat least give me the better of
the doubt.
Speaker 3 (42:25):
I'd be so grateful to be like oh my God, thank you.
I just remember that I had this, this block, in my luggage.
Speaker 1 (42:26):
Maybe they just sit back and watch and laugh Right.
Maybe, who knows?
I'm sure that, on a levelthat's way higher up than me,
there's someone that's workingwith the airline authorities to
try to to coordinate that,because it's becoming a real
problem and other countriesdon't have it because guns
aren't legal in their countriesas much as it is in our country.
Speaker 2 (42:48):
So is there anything else you'd like to add about the
consular agency and theservices available specifically
in Playa del Carmen?
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Oh, let's see.
Specifically in Playa delCarmen, I've already told you
about the travelstate governmentfor the travel advisor.
I told you that Embassy'swebsite that's good Adding Playa
del Carmen.
I've already said it we arehere for emergency services only
.
If you would like to email us,of course, we're always happy to
answer your emails and it willbe likely me that's answering
your email, because we only havetwo people in our office.
We have myself and my colleagueIrina.
(43:18):
She's a local employee andthat's it and you can email us.
It's con like consular C-O-Nagency A-G-E-N-C-Y playa,
p-l-a-y-a at stategov.
So all one word conagencyplayaat stategov.
You can email me and ask meyour questions.
(43:39):
Our FAQ generally the automaticreply probably answers your
question if you've alreadyanswered it, but I'm happy to
answer questions as well, okay.
Speaker 2 (43:48):
Very good.
So kind of the overall purposeof this webcast is it's for
people thinking about moving toMexico and also, in this case,
it's for people visiting Mexico.
But what's one piece of adviceyou might have for someone
considering an internationalmove, and not necessarily as a
consular agent, but just as aperson who's lived here this
long?
Speaker 1 (44:09):
Well, first of all, I definitely suggest that you at
least spend some time here.
I think all of us we have ourrose-colored glasses on when we
we first moved and everything isso wonderful and so great and
it is, but after a time, if youdon't think about certain things
, then you're going to bedisappointed.
I always say that you kind ofhave to be tenacious and, like
you have to be realistic aboutwhat your life is going to be
(44:33):
like.
And like when I first moved toMexico, I had a blog and this
was back when people had blogsand it was like Heather in
paradise and I was like paradise, I was living in paradise, and
now I realized, whoa, it's notparadise, but it's pretty darn
good, but it's not paradise, youknow.
So the one thing I didn't thinkabout for sure was that I didn't
think about there's nolibraries here with books in
English.
Like what am I going to do?
(44:54):
I don't have any books becauseI'm a big reader.
So there's certain things youhave to figure out if you're
able to go without the thingsthat you need in your life Now.
Fortunately, now it's mucheasier because Amazon delivers.
I mean, as much as I would loveto support the mom and pop
shops, which I do whenever I can.
You know, amazon, I'll thinkabout something and the next day
(45:15):
it's arriving at my house, sothere's that.
Speaker 2 (45:19):
We talk about.
What would it have been like tomove down here before we had
the Internet and social mediaand blogs and all that?
I mean it would be much, muchharder yeah.
Speaker 1 (45:30):
The only way that I knew about Playa del Carmen back
in the day was pre-Facebook.
I predate the Internet myself.
I had one of those big giant,my first cell phone I think.
Here was that big giant, nokia,the blue one.
You had to send text messageslike A, a, a, a, b, c, 3, 3, 3,
4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5.
(45:50):
Just say I love you Now.
I can't imagine what people didbefore there was, you know,
smartphones and things, but it'smuch easier to live here in a
lot of ways.
So there's a lot of good thingsabout living here now because
it's definitely more convenient.
One of the things that's stilllike you asked me about Que
Padre, que Malo, one of the QueMalo things I would still say
(46:11):
that still irritates me to thisday is now that I don't work for
a Mexican company.
I no longer have a Mexican bankaccount, so I only have my US
bank account because I work fora US company.
So my credit card, even thoughit works everywhere, when I try
to sign my my, my tell me, mytell sell bill, for example, my,
my, my cellular, my cell billthey took it when I, when I
signed up for the service and Iautomatically want to deduct it
(46:33):
every month.
No, it declines my card, eventhough it's because it's a US
card.
I'm like so I have to go inperson.
I still have to go in person toCFD and pay the bill.
I have to go in person to thereand I'm like why can't I pay
this online?
It's 2024.
I don't want to.
It sounds like something thatwould exist, right, yeah, I mean
in the old days.
In the old days you'd have toliterally like it was when we
(46:55):
had Cablemas.
It wasn't called Easy Cable,the cable company.
Literally, you had to spend,devote two hours of your life to
go and wait in line at Cablemasto pay your cable bill and CFE
two hours in line to pay yourCFE bill.
And now they've made it so mucheasier.
You can pay in so many grocerystores.
You can pay in Oxo's, somepeople can pay online and once
(47:15):
in a while I can even pay online.
And there's a company that Ithink it's an app called
Undostraze.
Have you heard of it,undostraze?
Undostraze is kind of a.
It's a middleman.
It charges a higher fee.
Like I pay the like 11, I don'tknow.
I would say 20 pesos orsomething.
But if I'm feelingexceptionally lazy and I don't
want to go out in 95 degreeweather that feels like 104
(47:37):
because of the humidity and waitin line to pay my bill, I can
use Undo's Trace because theyhave like some kind of a.
They work with US cards, soUndo's Trace.
I recommend that as an expatimmigrant, I recommend Undo's
Trace if you're feeling lazy anddon't want to pay your bill.
Speaker 2 (47:54):
Okay, very, very good .
Well, thank you so much fortaking the time today with us.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
No, thank you, and I'm sorry if I talked a little
bit too much.
I can edit some of that out.
Speaker 2 (48:04):
It is.
All this information is goldenfor us, Okay great.
Speaker 1 (48:07):
So basically, bottom line, step program.
You guys, you live here.
Obviously you don't have an enddate to your trip, so you guys
can put in kind of a date wayinto the future to make sure you
get on that list.
But you can get the updates andthe travel advisories and then
check out again.
Check out the travel advisoryIf you're planning on traveling
to another country too, ifyou're going to Italy or France
(48:29):
or whatever.
Go to the travelstategov.
Go to the travelstategov.
Go to international travel.
Learn about your destination,type it in and you'll find
amazing things.
It's super interesting.
Even if I can't afford totravel, I like to sometimes just
look up countries I'd like totravel to.
If I was going there, I'd haveto have six months on my
passport.
Mexico does not have that rule,by the way.
Speaker 2 (48:55):
You do not have to have six months on your passport
.
Oh, okay, okay, that's good toknow.
I have friends that come downhere and have asked that Well, I
only got six months left.
Speaker 1 (48:59):
Am I getting?
Speaker 2 (48:59):
it?
The answer is no, if they'recoming here.
Speaker 1 (49:01):
Yeah, you can come in with one day.
Speaker 2 (49:03):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (49:04):
You may have a harder time getting back to the US if
you only have one day and expirewhile you're here, don't come
here and stay three days.
In that case, then we have theRegional Carrier Liaison Group
and the Joint Security Programto help you fly back, or you can
get an emergency passport thereyou go, okay, all right,
heather Anderson-Caye, from theUnited States Consulate in Playa
del Carmen.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
thank you so much for sharing your insight with our
audience.
Speaker 1 (49:26):
Thank you so much.
Have a good day you bet Bye-bye.
Bye-bye, bye.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
In each episode of Expats Like Us, we're going to
teach you a new Mexican slangword.
This is something you may notfind in your phrasebook or your
online Spanish class or yourSpanish app or wherever you're
learning your Spanish.
Instead, this is a term usedprimarily by Mexican Spanish
(49:55):
speakers.
Today's word is Naco Naco.
How do you spell that?
Speaker 1 (49:59):
N-A-C-O.
Speaker 2 (50:00):
N-A-C-O Naco.
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (50:03):
Naco is basically a person who is not well-educated,
ghetto, clumsy, doesn't knowwhat's going on.
Speaker 2 (50:10):
Okay, very cool.
Don't be a Naco.
Don't act like you're a knocko.
Speaker 1 (50:15):
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (50:15):
All right.
Gracias to Erica Kowalski fromMi Vida Margarita.
We'd love to hear your thoughtson today's topic.
Just look up Expats Like Us onFacebook or send us an email at
expatslikeus at gmailcom.
Or send us an email atexpatslikeus at gmailcom.
(50:36):
You can also see the videoversion of today's discussion
and all of our discussions onour YouTube page.
Follow, like, subscribe andleave us a review.
Thank you to today's guest,Heather Anderson-Caye, from the
United States Consular Agency inPlaya del Carmen, Mexico.
Thanks also to my co-host,Chris Kowalski, and co-producers
Erica Kowalski and SherryBussey.
(50:58):
Most of all, thank you fortuning in to Expats Like Us and
thank you for interacting withus on social media.
This episode marks the end ofour first season and we're
spending our summer in variousparts of the world.
Look for our YouTube shorts allsummer long and the podcast
will be back in the fall.
Until then, enjoy your summerand remember our homes are not
(51:19):
defined by geography or onelocation but by memories you
gotta go.
Speaker 1 (51:38):
If you wanna grow, you gotta go.
Speaker 3 (52:19):
Thank you, one, two, one, two, three.
You gotta go if you wanna knowyou gotta go if you wanna grow,
you gotta go if you wanna know.
(52:42):
You gotta go if you wanna grow.
I get it Like.
I can get the anxiety that youcan feel and a lot of times I
can see it coming on our on ourcameras.
I can see someone Okay, I cansee they've lost a passport
because they're.
You can see they're freakingout.
Hey, it's okay, just calm down,we're going to get you home.
You know what?
We can get you an emergencypassport in 24 to 72 hours.
Don't worry, you're going to beokay.
And I can visibly see them kindof go like they feel like I'm
(00:23):
like this is, honestly, of allthe things that could happen to
you, this is like the least.
This is the least bad thingthat could happen.
We are not in the business ofkeeping us citizens out of the U
?
S.
We will help you get yourpassport and get you back to the
U S.
Welcome to expats like usexploring the world of U?
Speaker 2 (00:38):
S expat life in Mexico.
Welcome to Expats Like Usexploring the world of US expat
life in Mexico.
In each episode, we'll meet newpeople and hear their personal
stories.
We'll also learn more about theexpat life and get a few tips
on everything from making yourmove to settling in and living
your dream.
Let's dive in.
(01:02):
One of the most importantthings for US citizens living or
traveling abroad to know isthat the US government offers
some services, even though youlive or travel in a different
country as an exprat abroad.
You may not even be aware thatthe US consular agency is there
to turn to until a situationarises where you need their help
.
A consular agency focusesprimarily on providing services
(01:27):
such as issuing passports andproviding assistance during
emergencies.
Today, we are thrilled to betalking to Heather Anderson-Caye
, a US consular agent who livesand works in Playa del Carmen,
mexico.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Hi Heather, how are you doing?
Speaker 1 (01:43):
I'm great, thank you.
It's hot, but it's airconditioned in the office, so
we're doing well.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Okay, great, hey, first could you tell us a little
bit about yourself and how youcame to work at the US Consular
Agency in Playa del Carmen?
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Absolutely.
I've been in Playa del Carmensince 2004,.
So it's been almost.
It'll be 20 years on July 4th.
I very intentionally kind ofchose July 4th as being an
American independent spirit andwanting to head off into the
world and I thought I'd try itfor six months to a year, see
how it went.
And I've been here for 20 yearsand I worked initially in
(02:16):
tourism in Playa del Carmen,worked for a Mexican salary for
a Mexican company, and then, Ithink, 11 years into that job, I
was also bartending to makeends meet, because I don't know
if you know that Mexicansalaries can be very low.
And then this opportunitysomeone actually three or four
people sent me.
I didn't know anything aboutthe US government or the
(02:38):
presence of the consular agency.
I had never had cause to use it, and several people said you
would be so great for this job.
They're hiring for a conciergeor agent in Playa del Carmen.
You should apply.
And I had been volunteering inmultiple charities in the area,
which is, I think, why peoplekind of suggested that I apply
and I applied for the job in2015.
It took, I was accepted, I wasoffered the position and then it
(03:00):
took almost a year, 10 monthsfor me to get the required
clearances and, believe it ornot, at that time, it was pretty
hard, probably for anyone else,to actually pass the clearances
in glial carbon at that point,so maybe that's why I went to
the top of the list.
I'm not sure, but I've beenworking for the agency since
2016, april, and so I justpassed, I think, my seven-year
mark.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Great Congratulations , thank you my seven-year mark.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
Great Congratulations , thank you.
So what exactly is thedifference between a US
consulate?
Speaker 1 (03:30):
and a US consular agency.
Okay, the way that I alwaysthink of it is, the embassy is a
country's kind of mothership.
That's the big one.
That's the big one, andunderneath the umbrella of the
embassy, for example, in Mexico,there are nine consulates and
the nine consulates are locatedin various locations in Mexico.
Now, sometimes they have beenthere since nine consulates and
the nine consulates are locatedin various locations in Mexico.
Now, sometimes they have beenthere since the 1800s, some of
these consulates, and sincethey're far away, tourists will
(03:54):
start to appear and things willstart to happen to US citizens
in locations that may be farfrom a consulate.
So that's how they determinedhow to open agencies.
And so, from the nineconsulates that are under the
umbrella of the embassy, there'salso nine consular agencies,
and there is one agent, an agentwithout an agency.
She's in Cozumel.
My colleague, terry so QuintanaRoo, has the highest, I think
(04:18):
the highest number of US citizentravelers, visitors to this
area, and so we have twoconsular agencies, one in Cancun
and one in Playa del Carmen,and one in the agent that works
in Cozumel that handlesemergency services.
What an agency does is differentfrom a consulate or an embassy.
We handle, you know the samethings that a consulate or an
embassy might handle, but we donot handle anything that's
(04:41):
visa-related.
We don't have the training, wedon't have the staff, anything
that's visa related we don'thave the training, we don't have
the staff and we only handleemergency services for the most
part and some routine serviceswe can lead you to how to renew
your passport.
We don't have here in Playa delCarmen.
We do not have routine servicesanymore.
We used to have appointmentsthat you could make to renew
your passport, but now Mexicohas initiated Mission.
(05:02):
Mexico has initiated allmail-in for adult passport
renewals.
So that's what we handle.
That's the difference betweenthe agency and the consulate no
visas.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
So where is the nearest consulate at?
Speaker 1 (05:15):
You know if I did have visa issues.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Where would I have to go to?
Speaker 1 (05:18):
You would have to go to Merida, the consulate in
Merida.
However, if you're in Mexicoand you want to apply for a visa
, you don't necessarily have togo to the one that's nearest to
you.
If you wanted to, you could,but you can look online.
You can check the wait timesfor visa appointments.
Basically, before you even geta chance to have an appointment,
you have to pay online to getyour visa and fill out the form
(05:40):
and do all of the requirementsthey require, and then you start
the waiting period for when youget it.
In Mission Mexico the backlog isquite extensive.
Mexico is a very busy missionfor visas and also after the
pandemic, there was that threeyears where nobody was doing
anything, and so there's a lotof backlog they're still working
through.
So you can check.
(06:01):
You can check and go to any anyof the visa issues, but if you
do have visa issues, you wouldwant to go through Merida here,
and that's in the Yucatan, whichis about three and a half hours
from Playa del Carmen, andMerida's consulate.
Their consular district isthree Mexican states it's
Yucatan, Campeche and QuintanaRoo and this is one of, I think,
(06:22):
probably the busiest consulatein probably the world maybe.
I think they have 9.7 million or9.6 million US citizen tourists
coming to their consulardistrict every year and a pretty
small team of people that workit.
But most of the tourist stuffis concentrated in kind of in
Quintana Rowe area.
(06:43):
Merida is getting more touristsbut a lot of times Merida's
tourists are a little differentthan the tourists that will come
here.
They're maybe a little bit moreworldly travelers, more
accustomed to traveling and adifferent type of traveler.
But we do see a lot of work.
It's called special citizenservices.
Those are things that couldhappen to a US citizen.
Anything that could happen to aUS citizen we handle.
Okay, what?
Anything that could happen to aUS citizen, we handle.
Speaker 3 (07:04):
Okay.
What would be the website ifpeople wanted to go on to make
appointments?
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Well, to make an appointment.
Actually, you can find all ofthis.
All of it is under the umbrellaof the embassy's website, which
is mxusembassygov.
So, if you want to add that inlater, it's mxusembassygov G-O-V
like Victor, not B like boy.
Okay, and then you just theyactually have everything routed
(07:33):
through there and it kind offunnels you to the right
location.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
What types of issues do you find most Americans most
frequently need assistance fromyou for?
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Well, here in Playa del Carmen and this is what
we're here for Someone justasked me this question today.
They had had an incident attheir hotel and I think, for
example, a drunk person wasknocking on their door and they
were terrified and some of theideas people have about Mexico.
They were like, what are you?
You know, are you going to comeget me?
And I was like, well, you know,this isn't like the.
(08:04):
I don't have a helicopter thatI can fly you to your, you know
your hotel.
And I'm like, if you're introuble, call 911.
We are here, we are guests inthis country, and the U S
government has no legal or lawenforcement authority.
So what our role is is to leadus citizens who have chosen to
come to Mexico to the resourcesthat are available to them
(08:25):
locally, meaning, if you're hereand you're in trouble and
you're in danger and you'rescared, don't call me.
Call 911, please, please, call911, because I can't help you.
I have a stapler and a pair ofscissors.
I'm not going to be able to domuch to protect you against
something terrible happening toyou.
And also, this person I wasjust speaking with he was pretty
upset Like what, what are youeven doing here?
(08:46):
What, what, what good are you?
I said well, you know.
Do you know where to call ifsomeone dies, like?
Do you know what funeral homesare reputable funeral homes?
Do you know what happens if youget arrested?
Do you know what lawyers tocall here?
You know it doesn't help tocall a US lawyer.
It doesn't help to call a USfuneral home If the incident
occurred in Mexico.
You have to deal with theMexican resources that are
(09:07):
available.
So that's what our role is.
Our role is to say, oh, we'vehandled this a million times, no
problem, here's who you need tocall.
I have the list right here andthese are the procedures.
This is how it usually goes.
It's basically just kind oflike having a friend that can
tell you what you need to do andhow things work.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
A friend who knows the area really well, exactly
and with the right people.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
Absolutely.
We maintain lists of contacts.
I have three cell phones theduty phone, the emergency phone
and my work phone, and then, ofcourse, my personal phone, and
on all three of those phones Ihave a wealth of contacts phone.
And then, of course, mypersonal phone, and on all three
of those phones I have a wealthof contacts.
And if I don't know the answerto something, which is very
possible I can usually findsomeone who will give me the
answer and I'll get back to you.
(09:52):
So basically, it's just kind ofwalking you through it, holding
your hand in some cases andtrying to tell you what to do,
especially in cases of death,and you're grieving and you
don't speak the language and youdon't know what to do.
You know we can.
That's what we're here for atthe consulate.
We can lead you in the rightdirection.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
And I suppose help calm people down once in a while
.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
I get it Like I can get the anxiety that you can
feel, and a lot of times I cansee it coming on our on our
cameras.
I can see someone okay, I cansay they've emergency passport
in 24 to 72 hours, don't worry,you're gonna be okay and I can
visibly see them kind of go likethey feel like I'm like this is
(10:33):
, honestly, of all the thingsthat could happen to you, this
is like the least.
This is the least bad thingthat could happen.
We are not in the business ofkeeping us citizens out of the
us.
We will help you get yourpassport and get you back to the
US.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
And I suppose people you know a lot of people in the
US, especially, like you said,in Merida.
It's a little moresophisticated traveler, but
people who come to Cancun forspring break or to you know they
have a built-in level ofnervousness, I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
Right I mean.
Well, a lot of them can be very, very young too, and a lot of
people it may be their firsttime ever traveling outside the
US, so they don't know what toexpect.
And I think, because Mexico isso close and because so many
people here speak English, inthis tourist serving tourist
communities, I think peoplesometimes forget they're not
actually in the US A lot oftimes.
We have a lot of cases, forexample, of people who board
(11:21):
flights to fly down into Cancunwith marijuana or guns and they
end up getting arrested.
I'm a US citizen, like I know,but you're a US citizen who
broke the law in Mexico,unfortunately.
So that's that's one importantthing to say.
Please don't bring marijuana orguns in your luggage.
It's not permitted in Mexico.
(11:42):
It is illegal in Mexico.
So even if you're from a statewhere it's legal or you have a
medical marijuana card even thatI mean medical marijuana I
think we've had cases, butpeople still get arrested for
that.
And then, even if you were ableto get out of it or you're not
put in jail for however manyyears, you still have to lose
your vacation, the money thatyou've spent, and you have to
(12:03):
deal with that rigmarole andhire an attorney and follow the
laws of Mexico.
My suggestion to everyone ifanyone is listening today,
hopefully they will read thetravel information that is every
single country in the world.
The US Department of State hasvery expansive information on
(12:23):
travelstategov G-O-V and it saysinternational travel.
You click on that and then itsays learn about your
destination and you click onthat and you type in the country
that you're visiting.
For example, if you typed inMexico, it would show you all
the passport information howlong your passport has to be
valid for certain warnings forcertain states.
You go and you look it up andthen, secondly, it's called STEP
(12:47):
, s-t-e-p, like taking a step.
It's Smart Traveler EnrollmentProgram and that is a way that
you can log your stay to receiveany kind of alerts or
information that might changewhile you're traveling.
You can let us know.
I'm going to be in this areafrom this time to this time.
I mean, obviously we will haveyour email address, we'll have
(13:08):
your phone number or something.
We won't necessarily bereaching out to you at all, but
in the event that somethinghappens, there's a hurricane or
whatnot, we'll know you're inthe area and we're going to try
to reach out to you to make sureyou get this information and
you'll automatically get updatesand alerts for anything that's
going on in that area.
So I highly recommend readingyour travel information.
Meaning do not bring guns anddrugs into the country.
(13:30):
Also, mexico is something thatpeople don't know.
Mexico does not allow you tobring e-cigarettes or e-liquid
into their country.
So people say, oh, I've gottenaway with it.
I'm like, yes, you probablyhave gotten away with it, but
you could be stopped.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
And don't come crying to me when you do get in
trouble.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
Well, they won't necessarily arrest you for
something like that, but they'redefinitely at least going to
confiscate it or maybe fine you.
Customs may fine you, but theydefinitely will probably take it
and throw it away if they findit.
And even if you get away withit and they let it go, it's
still the point is it's notlegal and we tell you that.
So please read that information, because there's a reason that
we do it, probably just so wecan go back and say see, I told
(14:09):
you.
No, I'm just kidding.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
So if you're here on vacation, or maybe you live here
as a permanent or temporaryresident, is there a certain
identification that you'rerequired or should carry on
yourself?
Speaker 1 (14:21):
Well, technically, I think, the Mexican law is that
you should always be able toprove your legal status in the
country.
So me personally, living here,I have a resident card.
I always carry my resident card.
In the old days we used to havecolor copies because we were so
scared of losing it.
Now it's not so much of ahassle.
If you lose your card, you canget a replacement.
In the old days they made youstart all over, so it was like
(14:43):
terror to not carry yourresident card.
But now I always carry myresident card.
I don't always have my passporton me because I have other forms
of ID.
I have my resident card and Ihave my credentials for being a
consular agent, so I make sure Ialways have those and my
driver's license, of course, ifI'm driving.
But my passport I keep a copyof it on my phone, that way in
the event they were to ask me.
(15:04):
But I can prove my status inthe country is legal, but with
my resident card.
So what I suggest to people ifthey're traveling within
Quintana Roo, if you're close toyour hotel you're traveling out
and about, don't carry yourpassport down the street because
it worst case scenario.
You've got a copy of it on yourphone.
Maybe take a copy of the entrystamp as well that proves your
residency.
(15:24):
Take a picture of the pagewhere they stamped you coming in
and then your bio page and then, if they really want to see it,
you can say, okay, well, myhotel is here, let's go to my
hotel, I can show you it.
So that way at least you'recovering yourself and you're not
exposing your passport tounnecessary risk of being stolen
or lost.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
So does that change at all if I'm going to be
traveling from Quintana Roo toanother state?
My wife and I are going to SanMiguel, and we're passing
through several states on theway there.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
I always say, when you cross state lines, always
have your passport with you.
Okay, I mean, I don't know ifthat's Mexican law, I know that
Mexican law.
You're supposed to always beable to have your passport.
Me personally, I wouldn't feelsafe crossing state lines
without having my passport withme.
Right, okay, that's good.
But if you go to the beach,don't just leave it on the beach
, so please.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Don't leave it sitting on the bar at the resort
.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
Yeah, people are like well, I went snorkeling and I
left my Rolex and my wallet andmy Hermes bag.
I'm like what?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Yeah, that's usually too long.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
I left my Rolex and my passport on the beach and
then I came back and it wasstolen.
I'm like no way, Really, but Ihid it in my shoe, so how did
anyone ever find it?
Right, exactly, I've heardpeople putting them inside
diapers, acting like it's adirty diaper or something.
I'm thinking to myself, butthen someone might come along
and throw it away.
Don't do that.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
So does your agency provide any assistance with,
like medical emergencies andstuff if people suddenly get
really ill or break a bone?
That happens all the time.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
I'm really glad you brought that up because I would
like to stress to US citizensbecause we don't seem we're one
of the only countries in theworld that seem to travel
without being insured and I wantto stress to people the
importance of getting travelmedical insurance, even if you
have insurance in the UnitedStates, if you have, for example
, medicare Medicaid that onlycovers you when you're in the
(17:23):
United States, if you have, forexample, medicare Medicaid that
only covers you when you're inthe United States.
I think maybe in the futurethere may be some they may be
making changes to the, to therules that you may be able to
get healthcare in Mexico as aretired person on Medicare.
But for the moment I wouldsuggest and my, my, my own
parents are the number onepeople that I have taken by the
lapels and shaken a little bitto say get the medical insurance
(17:44):
, because basically, the, thepolicy, the protocols of private
medical care in Mexico is youpay up front for any services.
Now the health law Mexicanhealth law is is they say that
you cannot refuse service tosomeone.
If it's a life and death, if itmeans they're going to die, you
cannot refuse service.
But once you're stable, theycan kick you right out to the,
(18:08):
to the general hospital and onceyou're, you know, but up front.
If you go there with a brokenleg or a broken arm or whatever,
they can say, no, you need topay me.
Okay, we estimate it's going tobe $5,000 or $10,000.
You've got to pay upfront andif you don't have the ability to
pay, they're not going to giveyou service.
And Americans are outragedabout this and they don't
understand that.
I think that's because theywant to make sure they get paid
(18:29):
Now, later on.
If you have, even if you haveinsurance, a lot of times they
won't work directly with yourinsurance companies.
There are some hospitals anddoctors that will, and if you
live here and you have healthinsurance, my suggestion would
be to reach out to varioushospitals and say I have Aetna
health insurance or I have BlueCross, blue Shield.
Would you work with this in theevent that something happened
to me, or would I have to comeup with $50,000 upfront to be
(18:54):
able to get treated at a privatehospital?
Otherwise, you go to thegeneral hospital, which is very
inexpensive and they're not baddoctors.
It's not bad medical care.
It's different from what wewould be used to seeing in the
US hospital and they have veryfew resources, very few supplies
.
A lot of times you need someoneto advocate for you to go and
like, say the doctor will give alist of like supplies that they
need for you and your friend oryour loved one will have to go,
(19:16):
purchase these things and bringthem back to the hospital.
So, yeah, it's very different.
My suggestion is just get thehealth insurance as far as us
paying for it.
When people say, well, don't youhave medical, can't you pay for
us to get treated, and I'mthinking to myself OK, in the US
, does the US government pay foryour medical care?
It does not, you know, unlessyou have certain medical
(19:40):
coverage for your job or whatnot, it certainly does not have the
funds, the funding available,to pay for medical care outside
the US.
In certain extreme cases thatare life and death cases and
this is something that wouldhappen once in a blue moon If
someone is unaccompanied andthey are going to die if they
don't receive an air transfer orthey don't receive medical care
, we can offer loans to assistin that case.
(20:04):
That it would be a loan to theperson to assist them.
But it's not an automatic thingyou have to apply for it, or
the family member that would beyour next of kin that if you're
not able to sign for it yourself, they would have to take on
this on themselves and sign forthe loan.
But as far as just giving money,giving air transfer, the US
government unfortunately cannotassist in medical cases.
(20:25):
It's the responsibility of theUS citizen.
Unfortunately, one of thehospitals I know for sure in
this area that does often workdirectly with insurance
companies is CostaMed.
So if either of you haveinsurance companies, you may
wish to reach out to these justin advance to say what would
happen if I needed to getsurgery.
Do you guys work directly withsuch and such agency?
(20:46):
It's not a bad idea to get yourducks in a row and make sure
you have all this information ina place that everyone can
easily access it.
Speaker 2 (20:52):
Are there any health facilities like CostaMed or
anybody around here thatactually work with US insurance?
Speaker 1 (21:00):
I believe CostaMed is one of them.
I know that CostaMed, I believethat CostaMed is one of the
ones that does directly workwith I think Blue Cross, Blue
Shield is one of them.
They have a list of other onestoo, but it changes so often.
That's why I would recommendthat you reach out and we have
on the website of the embassy,the mxusembassygov, that website
if you look for local resources, you'll go through and you'll
(21:24):
have a list of all the hospitalsand doctors in this area.
So it's kind of easily compiledand you can go in there and
contact them to see if, bychance, this were to happen.
That way, if you have a kind ofa go bag or if someone if
you're not able to speakyourself your spouse or your
friend or whoever it is thataccesses can say, oh, they've
already spoken with them andthey'll take them at that
(21:45):
hospital, so you can reach outto them.
The patient services managersat all the major hospitals here
do have English speaking people.
The general hospital does notreally have English speaking
people.
Speaker 2 (21:55):
And I do know from just from friends and stuff that
I know who have had a familymember or somebody in the
general hospital.
It's, it's, and you, you, youkind of alluded to it.
It's not the experience thatyou get in the US in a hospital.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
No, yeah, they're nice and they are good doctors.
A lot of the doctors actuallywork in the private practice as
well and they donate their timethere or they work, you know,
also in the general hospital.
But it's a national publichealth system and they have a
massive amount of local peoplewho it's their primary medical
care and they are underfunded,they're understaffed and they
(22:31):
are underfunded.
They're understaffed andthey're overworked, so it can be
loud in there.
It can be different from whatyou're used to.
I mean, for some people theycould be shocked by it.
But I've had other foreignservice officers that are
colleagues of mine who've saidif you think that that's
different from what we're usedto, you should see what it looks
like in the Philippines or they, you know they'll say other
countries you know as well.
(22:53):
Mexico has, in general has areally excellent healthcare
system and they have excellentdoctors and good education and
caring people and just ingeneral it's just they're
overworked and understaffed.
So if you have the, I mean, thebest thing about it, I think,
is if you have no other means,you're not going to go into a
debtor's grave.
(23:13):
If you go to the hospitalgeneral, you can afford to be
treated there, right, even ifit's probably maybe, maybe you
want top tier medical servicewith round-the-clock care and
like a jello that comes everythree hours or something.
You're not going to get it there, you know right but at least
they're going to save your lifeif they can, if they can.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
That's good to know.
So if someone is visiting hereor you know lives here, like we
do, and you know you lose yourpassport or you lose your
residency card I know that youguys help with that how long
does it take to replace that?
And again, in which?
In what way do you help withthat?
How long does it take toreplace that?
And again, in what way do youhelp with?
Speaker 1 (23:54):
that Okay.
Well, basically, if you livehere and you lose your passport
and you still have a copy ofyour birth certificate and you
have another form of ID and youdon't have any plans to travel,
you can replace that by makingan appointment either Cancun or
in Merida, because Playa delCarmen only has emergency
(24:15):
services we don't have routineservices now or in the other
consulates or any other place inMexico.
You make an appointment onlineand you can go and replace your
passport with a full passport.
That takes right now, aroundsix weeks maybe six to eight
weeks, but people are reportingit's coming back around four
weeks, but they stay six toeight.
But if you are here as atraveler and you're not here,
(24:37):
you need to leave immediately,or you have an urgent need to
travel, you have a medicalemergency or whatever it is, we
can assist you with an emergencypassport.
There are three options for you, basically.
So let's say Joe loses his, helost his passport in Tulum.
He goes back to the US onWednesday.
Today is Monday.
Okay, it takes 24 to 48 hours.
If he was able to get heretoday, he might get it tomorrow
(24:59):
and he might get it on Wednesday, but if he doesn't want to take
that risk or he doesn't feellike driving from Tulum.
He still has a driver's license.
He lives in California or helives in Texas or somewhere over
there.
He could also ostensibly fly tothe border and cross into the
US by land.
You can cross into the US byland not even having any
(25:19):
passport, any ID, nothing.
The hard part would be gettinga flight from here to the border
if you didn't have ID.
Now say, joe has, he has an ID,he decides he wants to do that.
Or if he doesn't live anywherenear the border, he lives in New
York, but he still has an ID.
There are programs that were putin place by the airlines and by
(25:41):
Customs and Border Protection,cbp.
They're called.
They're flight liaison programs.
Basically, they are designedfor US citizen travelers or
legal permanent residents of theUnited States to board a flight
, a direct flight to the UnitedStates, without their US
passport or their resident card,and they're called.
There's two of them.
One's called the Joint SecurityProgram, and that one is based
(26:02):
out of Mexico City, I think, andthe other one is the Regional
Carrier Liaison Group and that'sbased out of Miami, and both of
these coordinate betweenairlines and Customs and Border
Protection to allow US citizensto board their flight.
Now the kicker here is that onlythe airline can call and it can
only be the day of your travel.
(26:23):
And if you call in advance andtry to talk to Delta or American
or Southwest or whoever theairline is, they won't know what
you're talking about.
It's only the people at theairports who have these programs
, that you just go there and wemake recommendations on making
sure you arrive prepared.
We have the information printedout for you.
We can send it to you, youprint it out, you have your
other ID.
(26:44):
You may be in some cases, youmay have a police report.
You may have filed yourpassport as missing or lost
online and you have that form toshow them everything you bring.
And they look at the totalityof the evidence and you just ask
them would you please callRegional Carrier Liaison Group
or the Joint Security Program toliaise with CBP to ask if I can
board the flight?
So they'll call or they won'tcall, depending on who it is.
(27:07):
Sometimes Spirit is one of theones that may not be willing to
call, but most of the majorairlines all of them have done
it.
Most of the major airlinesAmerican, delta, united,
southwest, jetblue they've alldone this, especially during the
pandemic.
It was very, very activebecause there was no way you
could get a passport at thattime.
Everybody was shut down andthen they just look at it and
say, okay, well, he has an ID.
(27:28):
A lot of times you're boardinga flight to return and when you
came down on that same airlineyou had your passport.
So they have they still havethose records too.
Ultimately it's up to CBP,ultimately it's up to the
airline whether or not you getboarded.
But it's an excellent chanceand we've sent thousands of
people home to the U?
S without their passports usingthat program.
(27:48):
So we recommend that highly,that's really good to know.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
I've never heard of that.
That's really good yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Yeah, and if you called in advance, the Delta
people wouldn't have heard of iteither.
It's just at the airport andthen we just we just counsel
people, just to be polite andkind, because you know, if you
go up there with guns blazingand screaming at the person, the
person at the airline desk cansay no, sorry, you're not
boarding, and that's their rightto say that.
So my mom always said you catchmore flies with honey, right?
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Very true.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
So in the US we have an election coming up in about
five or six months here.
Does the consular agency or theconsulate or the embassy,
whatever have any resources forexpats or immigrants who would
like to vote?
Speaker 1 (28:36):
Absolutely the first place to start because there are
so many states and all thestates have different rules on
absentee voting is you go to andI'm going to say it out loud
and then I'll use the acronym,because you know the government,
we love our acronyms, becauseyou know the government, we love
our acronyms it's the FederalVoters Assistance Program.
So it's F like Frank, v likeVictor, a like Apple, p like
(28:57):
Paul, gov, g-o-v like government, f-v-a-pgov, and then you
select your state.
Now, if you've lived here for along time, like for me at 20
years, I still vote in the stateof Illinois because my very
last address in the US was inIllinois.
So, even though technically,because that's the last place I
(29:17):
lived, so I think in the lastelection I don't remember
because it was four years ago Ithink that I was able to email
my ballot.
Actually I'm not 100% sure, butif you cannot email your ballot,
if your state doesn't allow forthat, most of them have a
template which you can print outto have the postage paid and as
long as you do the math on howlong it may take you, you can
(29:40):
bring your postage paid envelopeto the consular agency or any
consulate or the embassy.
We can receive your ballot foryou and send it in Now if you
come to Playa.
I'll let you know thetrajectory of your envelope.
It goes from us to Merida inthe diplomatic pouch which we
send, maybe once every two weeks, and then from Merida it will
(30:02):
go, and Merida probably sendsthem on a daily basis.
So maybe it goes every day, orevery week at least, from Merida
to the embassy in Mexico City.
From the embassy in Mexico Cityit would then get sent by
diplomatic pouch, maybe on aweekly basis or a daily basis,
to Texas and from there then itwould go into the regular mail
and then go to wherever yourstate is.
(30:23):
So you want to give it at leasta month or two.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
It takes a while.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Yes, it does take a while, because in the old days
we sent pouches more frequentlybut now we don't have routine
services so we almost veryrarely maybe every two weeks
send a pouch to Merida andMerida does still have routine
services, so they send them morefrequently.
And then I would recommend,like, if you're worried about it
, there was a time when Islacked off and I jerked myself
(30:49):
around for a while and I didn'tget my ballot and it was kind of
the last minute I went aheadand just sucked it up and I paid
the money to FedEx, it to myvoting elections office in
Illinois and it cost me $100,but it was worth it.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
Yeah, right, okay Makes sense.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
So something that many of us don't necessarily
think about when planning aninternational move or a trip
here is what happens when aspouse or partner dies while
you're living or visiting abroad.
We assume the consulate wouldbe contacted, but what would
happen in that scenario as faras maybe bringing the body back
to the States?
Speaker 1 (31:27):
Yes, that happens, unfortunately, more often than
any of us would like, and it'snot ever easy.
Even when there are cases wherepeople who live here and
they're expecting it or it's notan unexpected illness, it's
still a hard thing to navigateand that's why we're here.
It's a major part of my job.
I think in my district alone wehandle probably close to 60
(31:49):
deaths just in the Playa delCarmen district, and then we
have Cancun, which is maybe morethan that, and then Merida also
.
So it happens a lot.
The first thing that we do is wetry to reach out immediately to
the next of kin to offercondolences and to let them know
what to expect.
A lot of them are just lost atsea, especially if this comes
(32:10):
out of nowhere.
They're on vacation, theirhusband has a heart attack while
he's snorkeling and here's thispoor woman.
She's alone and she'sdevastated and she doesn't have
her partner and she doesn'tspeak Spanish.
So we try to get to them rightaway, offer condolences and let
her know the next steps.
The first step would be tochoose a funeral home locally
and you decide on thedisposition of remains whether
(32:31):
or not you want to cremate oryou would like to embalm or
return the remains to the US.
We let them know about locallaws.
Now, any US citizen or anyforeigner not US citizen, any
foreigner in Mexico who diesoutside of a doctor's care has
to have an autopsy.
That's Mexican law.
Now, if a doctor is on scene orcan be called to say this is a
(32:53):
death from natural causes andthe family wishes to waive that
right to the autopsy, they cando so.
But in general, all US citizenswho die outside of a doctor's
care do get an autopsy, andthat's foreigners, not just US
citizens.
And then you choose the funeralhome, obviously the most
economical If your family haseconomic problems.
The most economical way torepatriate your loved one, if
(33:16):
you wish, is to have themcremated and you hand carry
their cremains and theirbelongings that they left here
in Mexico with you back to theStates.
That's obviously the leastexpensive.
We've had a lot of cases in theUS where people don't want to
come down and they have theirfinancially solvent or it's not
too big of a burden for them andthey will embalm, or they will
(33:36):
cremate and then return, havethe remains shipped and their
belongings shipped as well.
That is obviously quiteexpensive.
Other times people are saying Ireally can't afford this and
then I counsel them.
The best way really is to justcome down.
If you can't afford it, takethe belongings yourself and then
you can go back on a plane andcommercial flights and then it
costs you the cost of the flightor whatever you've paid the
(33:59):
funeral home that you've chosenfor cremation or for embalming
services or whatnot.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
So what sort of things should like couples, what
sort of things should my wifeand I think about to have in
place in case something likethat happens?
Speaker 1 (34:12):
That's a really good question.
I'm glad you asked.
It's really important that youboth make your wishes known.
Make sure that your wife knowswhat your wishes are with
regards to whether or not youwant to be repatriated or you'd
like to be buried in Mexico oryou'd like to be cremated, or if
you have a will.
Make sure your will is updatedand that someone knows where
that is.
Make sure your emergencycontact knows what your wishes
(34:34):
are and where your importantdocuments are, because those are
the things you're going to needto do Now.
The US consulate, the USgovernment we operate under the
next of kin being the order ofkinship is basically a living
spouse, a spouse, adult children, and then from then on, it
would go down the line.
So that's just the mostimportant thing, just being
(34:55):
proactive.
Even you think it can't happento me.
You know what you never know.
So make sure your wishes areknown.
Speak about it.
Make sure you have your will ina location.
Now, if you live here in Mexicotoo, it's not a bad idea, even
if you wanted to get a will inMexico.
I know that in September for allthe notaries, because you get
your wills here at notaries.
Notaries in Mexico are morelike attorneys than attorneys
(35:17):
are.
They're more like the USversion of attorneys.
In the month of September, it'shalf price will month in Mexico
, so that's a good month to get.
It's coming up, so that's agood month to get a will if you
don't have one.
And I'm going to take my ownadvice this year, because I've
always been like, oh, I'm soyoung, I don't need to do that.
And then I realized, well, youknow, you're supposed to get a
(35:38):
will when you're like 50, right,I'm like I got wait a minute,
I'm 53.
Oh my gosh, it's time to go.
Speaker 3 (35:46):
So if you, let's say, own property in Mexico, like my
wife's a citizen, if you have aUS will, that won't be honored
here.
Right, we'd have to have aMexican will.
Speaker 1 (35:57):
Yes, if you have Mexican property or Mexican like
, us wills are good for USdocuments and Mexican wills are
good for Mexican properties andthings.
The same thing with like.
If you do die back on that samesubject, you will of course,
receive a Mexican deathcertificate because you died in
Mexico.
That death certificate is goingto be in Spanish and it's for
Mexico.
Now you can't use a Mexicandeath certificate in the United
(36:20):
States to handle any likebanking information or closing
out insurance things or whateverit is in the US.
You have to get, kind of like aUS death certificate and the
consulate.
How we assist in that case.
We issue a consular report ofdeath abroad or a CROTA.
Now these are now they're nowdelivered electronically, which
is super useful in this day andage.
Now they're now deliveredelectronically, which is super
(36:41):
useful in this day and age.
They're electronic consularreports of death abroad.
You get a link to an originaldocument that you download this
and you can print as many as youneed.
So it's much easier than itused to be to to get these,
these documents.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
OK, so what happens if a US citizen is arrested
while they're in Mexico?
Do?
You guys have anything to dowith that, or a victim.
Speaker 1 (37:02):
Well, we're generally notified if a US citizen is
arrested.
In general we request that webe notified and we usually are.
We try to make some contactwith the person within 24 hours.
We aren't always able to have aconsular visit within that time
but in general most of thearrests that I deal with in my
(37:23):
district are misdemeanor arrests, meaning drunken, disorderly or
insulting authorities orwhatever, getting into a fight
in public or urinating in publichey guys, don't be in public,
that kind of thing and generallythey can hold you for those
arrests for 36 hours and thenthey assess a fine at the time
that you're arrested.
(37:44):
Basically they assess the fineand the fine is generally it
should be in the amount ofanywhere from 500 pesos or 1500
pesos, up to maybe 4000.
That should be the max of it,depending on what they deem the
judge on duty deems is theseverity of your, your
infraction.
And if you pay that kind ofimmediately you can get out.
If you decide I'm not paying,that you can wait out your time,
(38:07):
the 36 hours, and at the end ofthose 36 hours they will set
you free with no fine.
However, at any point duringthat you can decide.
After like 24 hours you can sayI've had enough, I can't take
it anymore, I'll pay the fine.
It's less.
It goes down a little by littleas you go.
I'm not sure of the exactincrements.
It goes down, but they assessthe fine and then as you get
(38:28):
closer and closer to yourfreedom, the fine goes down.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
So you need to wait it out.
Speaker 1 (38:33):
You can wait it out or you can pay and get out.
You know what I mean For somepeople.
I mean, yeah, for some ingeneral, for misdemeanor arrests
.
By the time I'm notified,because a lot of times they'll
be on weekends or they'll belike two in the morning A lot of
these things happen Drunkendisorder always happens quite
when I'm fast asleep.
By the time I'm notified thenext morning they've already
(38:57):
been released because they'vealready paid their fine or
whatnot.
So most of the time I have nointeractions with people.
For more serious arrests orsomeone who gets sent to prison,
we have consular visit.
We have criteria for how oftenwe visit.
We generally can't help you getout for sure.
We can give you lists oflawyers.
We can let you know what toexpect.
If you're a long-term prisoner,we'll help you initially, in
the initial phase when you'rebefore your sentence, I think
(39:18):
you get a consular visit once amonth and then after your
sentence it I think it increases.
I think it's either every threemonths or every six months.
I'm not a hundred percent surewhich it is, because I really am
lucky.
I don't have a lot, a lot oflong-term prisoners and I
haven't had that.
But the consulate can help youto.
Basically, what we do is we just, if you have a complaint of
(39:40):
mistreatment, you can fill outan affidavit of mistreatment
with us and, if you wish, we canprotest on your behalf to
authorities.
A lot of people choose not todo that because they fear
reprisal or whatnot, or theywant to wait until they're after
they're released and thenthey'll come back and talk to us
.
But we use these affidavits ofmistreatment even if we don't
specifically go into your case.
(40:01):
We use them to raise theseissues with authorities if
they're a repeating problem.
So it gives us a way to say hey, we've had these reports of
this happening in your districts.
What's going on?
And in general, you don't gettreated better because you're a
US citizen, but our goal is totry to make sure you're not
being targeted and unfairlytreated or treated poorly
(40:21):
because you're a US citizen.
We want to make sure thatyou're being treated.
If everyone else is beingtreated badly, you're still
treated badly, but you're nottreated worse.
You know what I mean.
Hopefully there's no humanrights violations.
You know we can raise all ofthese issues with that too.
It's just that we can't get youout, but we can make sure that
we're monitoring what'shappening with you, we're making
(40:42):
visits to you regularly, we'relistening to your concerns and
we provide vitamins to long termprisoners as well.
Speaker 3 (40:49):
We can provide some reading material to US citizens
and, and provided you give usthe required permissions and
things- If you need us to reachout to family or friends to talk
to them or tell them something,we can do that for you as well.
Okay, very good.
Is there anywhere that there'sa resource that people could
look at?
They would have common lawsthat seem to get violated
frequently, so they would knowthings.
(41:11):
Like you said, the urination.
You would think that would becommon sense.
Yeah, I know, I don't knowthat's a good question.
I don't really I really don'tknow.
Speaker 1 (41:18):
I mean, most of the things that are infractions in
the US are infractions here.
Actually, where you want to gois definitely the travel
advisory that I mentioned, theinformation that's specific to
Mexico.
You go on that and they'll have.
If there's something that would, I mean obviously peeing in the
street and being rude toauthorities and fighting in
public and being drunk anddisorder, that's kind of a
universal crime.
And fighting in public andbeing drunk and just sort of
that, that's kind of a universalcrime.
(41:39):
But there are specific thingsthat are listed that are crimes
that we may not think of, like,for example, don't bring weapons
into Mexico, even if it's legalin your country.
You're going to another country.
I don't know.
What I can't figure out is whythe airlines would permit.
A lot of times these peoplehave been boarding a flight in
the US to go to Mexico and theairline doesn't say wait a
(42:01):
minute, you have a gun in yourluggage but why don't they say
you know?
I don't understand that.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Cause it seems like they have a pretty sophisticated
system for finding, I wouldfeel like.
Speaker 1 (42:10):
Wouldn't you like ask the person at least?
Did you know that you havethese bullets in your, in your
luggage?
You know?
It seems to me like you wouldat least give me the better of
the doubt.
I luggage, you know.
It seems to me like you wouldat least give me the better of
the doubt.
Speaker 3 (42:25):
I'd be so grateful to be like oh my God, thank you.
I just remember that I had this, this block, in my luggage.
Speaker 1 (42:26):
Maybe they just sit back and watch and laugh Right.
Maybe, who knows?
I'm sure that, on a levelthat's way higher up than me,
there's someone that's workingwith the airline authorities to
try to to coordinate that,because it's becoming a real
problem and other countriesdon't have it because guns
aren't legal in their countriesas much as it is in our country.
Speaker 2 (42:48):
So is there anything else you'd like to add about the
consular agency and theservices available specifically
in Playa del Carmen?
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Oh, let's see.
Specifically in Playa delCarmen, I've already told you
about the travelstate governmentfor the travel advisor.
I told you that Embassy'swebsite that's good Adding Playa
del Carmen.
I've already said it we arehere for emergency services only
.
If you would like to email us,of course, we're always happy to
answer your emails and it willbe likely me that's answering
your email, because we only havetwo people in our office.
We have myself and my colleagueIrina.
(43:18):
She's a local employee andthat's it and you can email us.
It's con like consular C-O-Nagency A-G-E-N-C-Y playa,
p-l-a-y-a at stategov.
So all one word conagencyplayaat stategov.
You can email me and ask meyour questions.
(43:39):
Our FAQ generally the automaticreply probably answers your
question if you've alreadyanswered it, but I'm happy to
answer questions as well, okay.
Speaker 2 (43:48):
Very good.
So kind of the overall purposeof this webcast is it's for
people thinking about moving toMexico and also, in this case,
it's for people visiting Mexico.
But what's one piece of adviceyou might have for someone
considering an internationalmove, and not necessarily as a
consular agent, but just as aperson who's lived here this
long?
Speaker 1 (44:09):
Well, first of all, I definitely suggest that you at
least spend some time here.
I think all of us we have ourrose-colored glasses on when we
we first moved and everything isso wonderful and so great and
it is, but after a time, if youdon't think about certain things
, then you're going to bedisappointed.
I always say that you kind ofhave to be tenacious and, like
you have to be realistic aboutwhat your life is going to be
(44:33):
like.
And like when I first moved toMexico, I had a blog and this
was back when people had blogsand it was like Heather in
paradise and I was like paradise, I was living in paradise, and
now I realized, whoa, it's notparadise, but it's pretty darn
good, but it's not paradise, youknow.
So the one thing I didn't thinkabout for sure was that I didn't
think about there's nolibraries here with books in
English.
Like what am I going to do?
(44:54):
I don't have any books becauseI'm a big reader.
So there's certain things youhave to figure out if you're
able to go without the thingsthat you need in your life Now.
Fortunately, now it's mucheasier because Amazon delivers.
I mean, as much as I would loveto support the mom and pop
shops, which I do whenever I can.
You know, amazon, I'll thinkabout something and the next day
(45:15):
it's arriving at my house, sothere's that.
Speaker 2 (45:19):
We talk about.
What would it have been like tomove down here before we had
the Internet and social mediaand blogs and all that?
I mean it would be much, muchharder yeah.
Speaker 1 (45:30):
The only way that I knew about Playa del Carmen back
in the day was pre-Facebook.
I predate the Internet myself.
I had one of those big giant,my first cell phone I think.
Here was that big giant, nokia,the blue one.
You had to send text messageslike A, a, a, a, b, c, 3, 3, 3,
4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5.
(45:50):
Just say I love you Now.
I can't imagine what people didbefore there was, you know,
smartphones and things, but it'smuch easier to live here in a
lot of ways.
So there's a lot of good thingsabout living here now because
it's definitely more convenient.
One of the things that's stilllike you asked me about Que
Padre, que Malo, one of the QueMalo things I would still say
(46:11):
that still irritates me to thisday is now that I don't work for
a Mexican company.
I no longer have a Mexican bankaccount, so I only have my US
bank account because I work fora US company.
So my credit card, even thoughit works everywhere, when I try
to sign my my, my tell me, mytell sell bill, for example, my,
my, my cellular, my cell billthey took it when I, when I
signed up for the service and Iautomatically want to deduct it
(46:33):
every month.
No, it declines my card, eventhough it's because it's a US
card.
I'm like so I have to go inperson.
I still have to go in person toCFD and pay the bill.
I have to go in person to thereand I'm like why can't I pay
this online?
It's 2024.
I don't want to.
It sounds like something thatwould exist, right, yeah, I mean
in the old days.
In the old days you'd have toliterally like it was when we
(46:55):
had Cablemas.
It wasn't called Easy Cable,the cable company.
Literally, you had to spend,devote two hours of your life to
go and wait in line at Cablemasto pay your cable bill and CFE
two hours in line to pay yourCFE bill.
And now they've made it so mucheasier.
You can pay in so many grocerystores.
You can pay in Oxo's, somepeople can pay online and once
(47:15):
in a while I can even pay online.
And there's a company that Ithink it's an app called
Undostraze.
Have you heard of it,undostraze?
Undostraze is kind of a.
It's a middleman.
It charges a higher fee.
Like I pay the like 11, I don'tknow.
I would say 20 pesos orsomething.
But if I'm feelingexceptionally lazy and I don't
want to go out in 95 degreeweather that feels like 104
(47:37):
because of the humidity and waitin line to pay my bill, I can
use Undo's Trace because theyhave like some kind of a.
They work with US cards, soUndo's Trace.
I recommend that as an expatimmigrant, I recommend Undo's
Trace if you're feeling lazy anddon't want to pay your bill.
Speaker 2 (47:54):
Okay, very, very good .
Well, thank you so much fortaking the time today with us.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
No, thank you, and I'm sorry if I talked a little
bit too much.
I can edit some of that out.
Speaker 2 (48:04):
It is.
All this information is goldenfor us, Okay great.
Speaker 1 (48:07):
So basically, bottom line, step program.
You guys, you live here.
Obviously you don't have an enddate to your trip, so you guys
can put in kind of a date wayinto the future to make sure you
get on that list.
But you can get the updates andthe travel advisories and then
check out again.
Check out the travel advisoryIf you're planning on traveling
to another country too, ifyou're going to Italy or France
(48:29):
or whatever.
Go to the travelstategov.
Go to the travelstategov.
Go to international travel.
Learn about your destination,type it in and you'll find
amazing things.
It's super interesting.
Even if I can't afford totravel, I like to sometimes just
look up countries I'd like totravel to.
If I was going there, I'd haveto have six months on my
passport.
Mexico does not have that rule,by the way.
Speaker 2 (48:55):
You do not have to have six months on your passport
.
Oh, okay, okay, that's good toknow.
I have friends that come downhere and have asked that Well, I
only got six months left.
Speaker 1 (48:59):
Am I getting?
Speaker 2 (48:59):
it?
The answer is no, if they'recoming here.
Speaker 1 (49:01):
Yeah, you can come in with one day.
Speaker 2 (49:03):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (49:04):
You may have a harder time getting back to the US if
you only have one day and expirewhile you're here, don't come
here and stay three days.
In that case, then we have theRegional Carrier Liaison Group
and the Joint Security Programto help you fly back, or you can
get an emergency passport thereyou go, okay, all right,
heather Anderson-Caye, from theUnited States Consulate in Playa
del Carmen.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
thank you so much for sharing your insight with our
audience.
Speaker 1 (49:26):
Thank you so much.
Have a good day you bet Bye-bye.
Bye-bye, bye.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
In each episode of Expats Like Us, we're going to
teach you a new Mexican slangword.
This is something you may notfind in your phrasebook or your
online Spanish class or yourSpanish app or wherever you're
learning your Spanish.
Instead, this is a term usedprimarily by Mexican Spanish
(49:55):
speakers.
Today's word is Naco Naco.
How do you spell that?
Speaker 1 (49:59):
N-A-C-O.
Speaker 2 (50:00):
N-A-C-O Naco.
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (50:03):
Naco is basically a person who is not well-educated,
ghetto, clumsy, doesn't knowwhat's going on.
Speaker 2 (50:10):
Okay, very cool.
Don't be a Naco.
Don't act like you're a knocko.
Speaker 1 (50:15):
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (50:15):
All right.
Gracias to Erica Kowalski fromMi Vida Margarita.
We'd love to hear your thoughtson today's topic.
Just look up Expats Like Us onFacebook or send us an email at
expatslikeus at gmailcom.
Or send us an email atexpatslikeus at gmailcom.
(50:36):
You can also see the videoversion of today's discussion
and all of our discussions onour YouTube page.
Follow, like, subscribe andleave us a review.
Thank you to today's guest,Heather Anderson-Caye, from the
United States Consular Agency inPlaya del Carmen, Mexico.
Thanks also to my co-host,Chris Kowalski, and co-producers
Erica Kowalski and SherryBussey.
(50:58):
Most of all, thank you fortuning in to Expats Like Us and
thank you for interacting withus on social media.
This episode marks the end ofour first season and we're
spending our summer in variousparts of the world.
Look for our YouTube shorts allsummer long and the podcast
will be back in the fall.
Until then, enjoy your summerand remember our homes are not
(51:19):
defined by geography or onelocation but by memories you
gotta go.
Speaker 1 (51:38):
If you wanna grow, you gotta go.
Speaker 3 (52:19):
Thank you, one, two, one, two, three.
You gotta go if you wanna knowyou gotta go if you wanna grow,
you gotta go if you wanna know.
(52:42):
You gotta go if you wanna grow.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.