One of many colorful murals in San Miguel

One thing I love about San Miguel de Allende is how everyone walks everywhere. I leave my Airbnb apartment at about 10am this morning with two main objectives: 1) to find the cute little coffee shop I’d seen during my wandering over the weekend and 2) to pick up my ticket for the jazz festival(!) this weekend.

It’s a cool morning, about 65 degrees, but the sun is rising to warm the day. I hear dogs barking as I walk up Jose Maria de Arevalo, passing the street market and deli, a tortilleria and the panaderia on the corner that makes the best apple-cinnamon muffins for just 8 pesos or about 60 cents each.

The sidewalks here are very narrow, so you’re either squeezing past a bunch of people or stepping down to walk on the cobblestones, large and uneven under your feet. I step up and down, up and down, dozens of times.

The calles are still wet from being cleaned by various shopkeepers and residents. There is very little litter here.

I walk down Avenida de Guadalupe and up Insurgentes, past several florerias lined with colorful bouquets and carnicerias with their cases of beef and chicken and ham.

I walk across Canal, the buildings bright yellow with the sun, cobblestones turning copper in the light. People look up as they pass by with a polite “hola” or “buenos dias,” walking dogs, carrying children, running errands for the day.

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“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

A year ago, I made the leap to live in one of my ideal locations by moving to Honolulu, Hawaii. I was feeling excited and nervous about the direction my life was going to take. I had no idea how long I was going to stay, but I got lucky and found a great place I could rent from month-to-month so that I could leave whenever I wanted.

Since then, I’ve grown so much personally and professionally.

But most of all…

I’ve learned how incredibly important it is to be who I really am.

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