I moved away from my home country 6 years ago. When I returned, I felt like an outsider.
A writer reflects on the experience of returning to Mexico City after six years abroad, noting how the city has become more cosmopolitan and unfamiliar. The piece explores the personal sense of displacement that comes with migration and the passage of time.
Why it matters
It captures the universal experience of the 'expat' or immigrant who finds that their home country has evolved in their absence.
The author moved from Mexico to the US and then to the UK. Courtesy of Santiago Barraza Lopez Six years ago, I left my home country, Mexico, and moved to New York, then to the UK. I recently returned to Mexico after a long time away and was surprised by how much it has changed. I felt like an outsider, and realized I had changed even more. I grew up in Mexico City and spent most of my life there. Six years ago, I left the country, first for the US and later for the UK, but I never stopped thinking of my birthplace as the place I ultimately belonged. This summer, I returned after two years away, the longest stretch I had ever gone without visiting home . I expected the trip to feel nostalgic and effortless.
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