Mujer on the Move, My Story As A Traveling Latina

Ni de aqui, ni de alla, pero un poco mas de alla que de qui. . .

​As a first generation Mexican American born and raised in a working-class, predominantly Latine community in Los Angeles, I always dreamt of freedom & travel. As a teenage girl with limited economic resources, I promised myself that my circumstance would not limit nor define me, that some day I would "see the world." I promised myself that I would give myself wings big enough, wide enough, free enough, daring enough to soar way beyond the confines of my small town and economic background.

And so, throughout my entire life I excelled academically and did everything the "perfect Mexican daughter" should do to make her immigrant parents proud and achieve "success." I transferred out of city college within two years, received a B.A. in Literature from UCLA and an M.A. in Teaching (Secondary English) from Stanford University. For seven years I proudly held on to the title of Ms. H, a 10th grade high school English teacher.

And so, for seven years I was able to make my teenage dream a reality, I was able to see the world! As a maestra I traveled to many states within both the U.S. and Mexico, as well as to other beautiful countries like, Cuba, Greece, Aruba. Undoubtedly, however, trips to the motherland always felt the most healing. Mexico always nourished my soul and allowed me to feel free, loved, present, included, all feelings I longed for in the States.  

Everything was going well until it wasn't.

Like many, the pandemic in 2020 brought a lot of mental and emotional challenges for me, specially as a maestra. During three years from 2020-2023, Ms. H was forced to put on a smile for everyone. Ms. H was forced to be brave, to provide hope even when Angelica did not have any herself, she was forced to work within a system that provided minimal support. While I gave my job and students everything I could to carry us through a time of crisis, I completed lost myself in the process. During the pandemic Angelica became an empty shell of a person, and so it was in this time period that my mental health plummeted fast. What's worse is that the pandemic took away the one things that brought me the most joy and healing: T R A V E L.

Ultimately, in the fall of 2022 I decided to make a radical shift in my life. Instead of pursuing a second masters degree in business (MBA) or continue seeking more accolades, professional recognitions, titles, etc. I would seek things that make my heart sing. And so in the summer of 2023 I let go of everything I had built for myself: my English high school teaching job, my apartment, my beautiful pink sofa, my Mustang, my family & friends, my LIFE in the States.

From July to December 2023 I embarked on a journey less traveled as I took on a 7 month travel "sabbatical" throughout Mexico, my beloved motherland and the place where my raíces come from. I split my time between late July and December 2023 in both of my parent's homelands, Colima and Mexico City, even spent Día De Los Muertos 2023 in Oaxaca (10 days)!

In September 2023 while at a beach bar in the beautiful coastal city of Manzanillo, Colima, Mujer on the Move (MOTM) was born. MOTM was created out of a love and longing to reconnect other Latinas in the States, like me, with their raíces in their perspective LATAM motherlands via travel. Moreover, the goal is to create a space where solo traveling Latinas, or those traveling in grupitos de friends o con familia o con su pareja, can engage with one another and not feel alone, no matter where they find themselves in the world.

Because a Mujer on the Move dares to fly, aveces con miedo, pero nunca sola.

May Mujer on the Move become a movement and safe community for traveling Latinas, both in the motherland and beyond. May it become a space where we can share our travel stories- the good, the bad, the ugly, the funny. May it become a platform that can nurture and grow a community of love, joy, and travel adventures that will last a lifetime. Most importantly, may Mujer on the Move provide a space for Latinas to share and rejoice in their reconnection to their motherlands and cultura.

Con Amor y Aventura,

Angelica H.

Founder of Mujer on the Move