Remote Work in Merida So Far

My first office in San Sebastian, Merida 

My first month of working remotely from Airbnb #1 went pretty smoothly. I had a big enough desk, and the Wi-Fi was good, if not lightning-fast. At its worst, it took a minute or two to upload big documents, but that was manageable because there are always other tasks to do while things upload.

Livin' on the edge

Just yesterday I moved to Airbnb #2, closer to the center of Merida. The location is amazing; I step out my door and I'm two blocks from the action of Paseo de Montejo, a popular and beautiful avenue where something is always going on. However, the Wi-Fi has not been so stellar. Basically, it's barely usable, even just for checking email and Facebook. Pages take forever to load, and I can forget about trying to download anything.

Typical architecture in my beautiful new neighborhood

Today is Sunday, and the owner of the place said he'll come by to move the modem for me, which he seemed confident would solve the problem. I hope that's true, because this situation is causing me a ton of stress, and I've been considering other options to deal with it (i.e. moving to another place, joining a shared workspace). Then Shannon reminded me I could use my phone as a mobile hotspot. I just tried that and it worked well. Thank you, Shannon and T. Mobile for saving my butt! Hopefully the landlord can also fix the connection, but at least I have a solution for now.

Feel the noise 

Other than that glitch, probably the only real interference with work I've had so far in Merida is with noise. In Antigua, my place was so quiet– like working from a convent– and although that was a bit geriatric, it gave me peace and quiet to focus. But you don't go to a Latin American city for peace and quiet. And even when I was in my first place outside the center of Merida in San Sebastian, it still wasn't exactly a quiet place.

I had gotten used to the sounds of San Sebastian, but wow, there were so many. For example, every day started with shrill honking and yelling as a guy rode a three-wheel bike around town selling something (breakfast-related?) and announcing himself with an incessant clown horn. Then there were the cats. I don't know if it was love or war, but they screamed and howled at night, waking me up at all hours to fantasize about throwing the fallen oranges from my backyard at them. I'm an animal lover, but don't mess with my sleep.

Now that I'm in my new place, there are new noises. I'm right on a street that is, I've learned, fairly busy. Cars not only drive by but actually park on the street right outside my living room window– so close that I could reach through the bars on the window and shake hands with the passenger. I'm sure I'll adjust to this.

Here are some pics of the new house I'm in this month. There are actually three apartments behind this main door. That window goes to my living room.

The new place. They had me at turquoise.

Cute spot in my new place, even if it's right by the road

My stove 

My new office near Paseo de Montejo

Update: a strategically placed router solved my Wi-Fi issues

Most of the time though, the noise here just amuses me because people are so tolerant of it; nothing seems to bother them.  I was discussing this with the local guys at the last meetup I went to, saying that this concept of never being too loud or disruptive is rather freeing. I mean, a five-piece brass band couldn't get away with marching up and down the streets of St. Petersburg at dinnertime, for example, nor could a heavy metal group practice every night at full volume in a residential area (both true stories).

The heat is on

One other big factor that affects the remote work experience here in Merida is the weather, although not in the way you might suspect. When I was in Antigua, the weather was sunny, springlike, and perfect every single day. That was fantastic– except for the fact that I was stuck inside working all day and wishing I could be out enjoying it. Here, it's hot as hell most days, and I hated that at first, but now I don't mind it as much because I realize I'm not missing out.

I truly couldn't be doing much outside between the hours of about 11-5 anyway, even if I wanted to. So I may as well stay inside in the A/C working, and then, when 5 p.m. rolls around, I can go out when things have cooled down. And evenings and nights in Merida are, without a doubt, when everything comes to life anyway.

A typical night in Merida with everyone out

Home sweet home (for now) 

All said, Merida is a great location for digital nomads and I would highly recommend it.  It's very cheap, the people are nice, and there's good Wi-Fi available (always ask though; don't assume!). It's a big city, and you'll find all the conveniences and a community of expats, if that's your thing. Plus, for me, there's an added bonus because flights from Merida home to Florida are really affordable, so all in all, Merida's pretty hard to beat.