My Life in Mexico during the COVID-19 Pandemic [Podcast]

Podcast #173 – Marc Talks About the Last Few Months of Living in Mexico During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Description:

Marc takes you from the middle of February to the last week of April with how he is experiencing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Mexico.

Experiencing the pandemic as an expat in a foreign country can be an “interesting” experience. Every country and culture reacts to these kinds of disasters or events differently. Marc will paint a timeline starting in February and describe what he encounters.

Now on to the podcast…

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The cruise ship Grand Princess docks in Puerto Vallarta (15 February), Manzanillo (16 February), Mazatlán (17 February), and Cabo San Lucas(18 February), spending 9 to 12 hours in each port. The first COVID-19 death in California was a man who had been on this ship on an earlier cruise.

Marc starts the renewal process for his Mexican temporary resident visa on February 20th of 2020. It is projected to take 5-6 weeks to complete the process.

Father-in-law enters an ICU in Longview Texas. Marc’s wife was booked on a flight to Shreveport Lousiana on February 29th. She returns to Mexico on March 8th.

In early March, Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) is downplaying the virus as nothing and is still holding large rallies.

On 14 March, Fernando Petersen, the secretary of health of the state of Jalisco, confirmed the first two cases of COVID-19 were detected in Hospital Civil de Guadalajara.^[34] Two new cases were confirmed in Nuevo León, and the Secretariat of Public Education (SEP) announced that all sporting and civic events in schools would be canceled.^[35] The same day, the Secretariat of Education announced that Easter break, originally planned from 6 to 17 April, would be extended from 20 March to 20 April as a preventive measure

U.S Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on 20 March there would be restrictions on travel across Mexico–United States border. He said that restrictions would not apply to the cargo.

“Some of Mexico’s Wealthiest Residents Went to Colorado to Ski and Brought Home Coronavirus”. Los Angeles Times 2020/03/20 accessed 20 March 2020.

Mexico entered Phase 2 of the coronavirus pandemic on March 23, according to the World Health Organization, with 367 confirmed cases.

On March 24th the Jalisco governor announced a 5-day lockdown that was extended another 5 days at the end of the month.

March 26th – Rolf Potts podcast What it’s like to travel during COVID-19: Reports from around the world

March 31 – the US ambassador to Mexico held a FB live to give us an update. He encouraged us to sign for STEP or Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. I now get regular updates from the US embassy in Mexico City.

The post I wrote on economic refugees is here –> The Stress of the Being an Economic Refugee Expat

My doctor is Dra. Jessica Flores

Lake Chapala Society

Gringos Ajijic & Lakeside