From Canada to Mexico – How a Near-Death Experience Changed This Expat’s Life

Phoenix:    00:00:00    For the most part, locals are very, they're really good people. And if you treat 'em with dignity and respect, you will be treated with dignity and respect back. Is there a dark side to Tulum and, and Mexico in general? Yeah, there is everywhere. But I mean, that, that happens all over the world. Tulum will either eat you up and spit you out, or you, you'll embrace who you are and you'll feel empowered from it. So I feel very empowered from this place.  

Introduction: Welcome to Badass Digital Nomads, where we're pushing the boundaries of remote work and travel, all while staying grounded with a little bit of old school philosophy, self-development, and business advice from our guests.

Kristin:    00:00:47    Hey there, Kristin Wilson from Traveling with Kristin here, and welcome to episode 250 of Badass Digital Nomads. 250 seems like a milestone, so thank you so much for being here with me and listening for all of these years, almost five years now in May. So whether you are new here or a repeat listener, thank you so much. This podcast is a combination of solo episodes where I dive deep into various topics, as well as interviews with people that I meet throughout my travels around the world. As a long-term digital nomad for decades, I used to joke about how I should walk around with a GoPro strap to my head recording conversations with interesting people that I met along the way, and eventually that led to starting this podcast to share their stories. My guest today is Phoenix Sen, a Canadian transformational coach who moved to Tulum after having a near death experience on his job site in Canada with heavy machinery around.  

Kristin:    00:01:56    So very scary. I met him when I saw one of his flyers in a coffee shop, and he had a flyer there for a blood analysis, which piqued my interest because I have been dealing with some minor health issues lately. So I thought that would be an interesting perspective and kind of help me with my general wellbeing, which I think it did. It was very enlightening. But during that time, hanging out with him during the session, we were talking a lot, and he had such an interesting story that I wanted to invite him on the podcast. He had been in Tulum for six months, so I think he had a really good perspective about what it's like to live there as a foreigner. And I have a few more episodes coming up with interviews with people that I met in Tulum, so I hope you enjoy those as well.  

Kristin:    00:02:45    But let's get into today's conversation. You'll also notice about halfway through this episode that Phoenix talks about the power outages and internet outages that plague Tulum and how important it is to bring your internet with you when you travel. Now he has a subscription with Rogers, which is a Canadian company, but I recommend using a hotspot like the SkyRoam Solis or EZ Mobile. So you can find out more about these internet hotspots that work in hundreds of countries around the world. You can activate them for a day, an hour, or even have a monthly pass. And you can also get one if you don't have one already. Using my links in the show notes. I have personal experiences with both SkyRoam Solis and EZ Mobile, have been using Sky for years, and my friends use EZ Mobile, and I've seen how good it works even on top of a fjord in Norway.  

Kristin:    00:03:44    So if you wanna have control over your internet connection and you're gonna be working remotely and you don't wanna deal with those power and internet outages that I also experienced in Tulum when I didn't have my SkyRoam Solis with me, then you'll definitely wanna pick one of those up. Also, being that it is our 250th episode, if you could leave us a five star review on any of the platforms that you listen to or on our website at badassdigitalnomads.com, my team and I would really appreciate it. And if you're not a review type of person, if you could just simply share your favorite episode with a friend or on social media and tag me at Traveling with Kristin, that would also help us out greatly. Really appreciate it. Enjoy this conversation and see you on the other side.  

Podcast Interview: 

Kristin:    00:04:37    I am here in the beautiful Holistika Hotel in Tulum. It's a very humid and tropical day. We're sitting in the garden here, and I am with Phoenix Sen from Canada. Welcome.  

Phoenix:    00:04:50   Thank you very much.  

Kristin:    00:04:50    And we just met yesterday, but from what everything I know about you so far is completely fascinating. So I wanted to have you on the podcast. Uh, tell us a little bit about your background and how you ended up here in Tulum.  

Phoenix:    00:05:03    I am a transformational facilitator, and so what brought me here is about two years worth of, uh, haggling from my friends that, uh, I need to come to Tulum and to share, share my truth. And, um, interesting how that kind of all started is I've been a, a, a practicing medi physician and transformation coach since, uh, me choosing to make my own transformations, uh, somewhat by accident. Um, I started the metaphysical journey in 2002, and in 2005 I was actually in a work accident. So I, uh, had essentially been crushed between that tractor trailer truck and a loader, uh, to the size of my fist across my abdomen on my 33rd birthday. So then I had to do this thing called Rebuilding yourself. <laugh> 

Kristin:    00:05:52    Yes, physically,  

Phoenix:    00:05:54    Yeah, yeah,

Kristin:      Mentally.

Phoenix:    Mentally, emotionally. And it was an den journey, like crawling yourself from hell and, uh, learning how to walk again, two and a half years of intensive rehab and really dwelling, delving deep into, um, getting to know thyself, working through, uh, post-traumatic stress, um, limitations that, that are newly imposed on me, on top of my already inherited ones from my previous, uh, life, uh, before I was crushed. And, uh, yeah, then, and actually six years, six months later, is coming to a self realization of falling in love with myself. It was actually then and there that I devoted myself to being in service. So that, that kind of turned into what we call the Phoenix Method, which encompasses the body, the mind, the emotions, and, and the spirit into, uh, one energetic Taurical package, if I'm gonna make up a word, it's to which is short for Taurus.  

Kristin:    00:06:54    So you would consider yourself a, like an energy healer, a metaphysical healer or guide. Can you contrast that with what you were doing before your accident? What was your daily life like?  

Phoenix:    00:07:05    Uh, I was still, uh, part-time practicing in, in metaphysics. Uh, I was very well known, uh, to be the go-to-guy for ask, ask him anything. He might just be dangerous enough to give you the answer. But what I was actually doing, I just, I had graduated from university as an, as an engineer and, and from there as like didn't know what to do with myself and, and looking for, for work and my, my vocation and, and it just happened to be, at that time in technology, there was a big saturation with people of my types of accreditations. So I found myself in a place called Alberta Canada, which is called the Alberta Opportunity if you're interested in the oil industry. And I end up finding myself working, uh, working on the oil rakes. So that's where my accident happened. But even prior to that, I've done a lot of different things and found myself inspired to be, you know, the best of what I can for myself and for the organization.  

Phoenix:    00:08:06    So I've, I've sold cars, I've, uh, I run my own marketing company. I've, um, I'm trying to look back at who the hell I was. <laugh>, I, I've worn so many hats and, you know, I'm still like that today, even as a trans, a transformation coach, I'm still actively involved in, uh, business development. Uh, I know I shared some of those things with you, uh, yesterday. And, uh, and also in, in real estate, uh, anything I can make this world better place if it's, if I'm a conduit for it and I, I have a passion towards it, uh, I'm probably leading myself down that path. So yeah, it's kind of a broad, broad answer to a, to a specific question. Uh, I wish I could be more specific. 

Kristin:    00:08:51    <laugh>. It's okay. We all come from very different backgrounds and yeah, there's a lot of pit stops along the way. Were you also born in Canada?  

Phoenix:    00:08:59    Yeah, I was born in, uh, Edmonton, Alberta, and, uh, I, I'd spent, uh, half of, half of, uh, for all 14 years there. And then had moved to Toronto for a few years, finished high school and then ended up back on the west coast in a, on, on a place called Vancouver Island in, in Victoria. Yeah, I love it there. Uh, and then ended up back in Alberta to do the work and then back on the west coast in where my healing journey really, truly began in White Rock, which is right on the west coast US border. Yeah, that was back, I guess 2007. And going back that far.  

Kristin:    00:09:38    For anyone who's had a very traumatic physical injury, what would you say were the most impactful steps that you took to get your health back?  

Phoenix:    00:09:48    Well, I think the first one is not, not being satisfied of being a victim. That's like the biggest one. Um, as I, you know, go back into that time, like I was an athlete, so, you know, potentially semi-professional in hockey, uh, really good at all sports, and I guess the, the word you'd call it proverbial jock, so to speak. And when you have your physicality taken away from you that you like, like literally I had to kind of rediscover parts of myself.  

Kristin:    00:10:22    Your identity.  

Phoenix:    00:10:23    Yeah. It's like creating a new identity. And, um, so that was a bit of a process and, and, you know, uh, being in wellness and health, um, I wasn't really, um, being subservient to the system that was being placed in front of me, which was, you know, drug cocktails. You know, I kind of worked the system as much as I could in the sense of what, what it could provide for me. And then realizing that it's just, it's, it's just gonna lead me into this state of victimization. So I think that's one of the first steps was recognizing that, that I'm a creator of my own experience and, uh, I'm not a victim. And I think one of those steps is working through PTSD and, you know, having, um, being crushed is probably from my point of view is I don't wish that for anyone, most people don't live from that experience. I'm at 0.001%, uh, story of survival. On the other side of the ratio where most people would die by bleeding to death by, by being, you know, squished, um, right.  

Kristin:    00:11:29    Or a car accident or something like that. I mean, I'm sure a lot of people have broken bones or maybe not as as bad, hopefully, but yeah. Recovering from a car accident. I had a friend that got in an accident where a, a bungee cord snapped off of her bicycle and took out her eye--  

Phoenix:    00:11:47    Oh, wow. Random.  

Kristin:    00:11:48    And she, she said it was also mostly psychological that she had to decide, okay, am I going to be angry about this for the rest of my life and feel like, why did this happen to me? Or am I just gonna accept it, like live with it and move on and just try to make the best of it? And she went from working on yachts, traveling all around the world to now she still works on boats, but she rents out houseboats on Airbnb.

Phoenix:    Oh, wow.

Kristin:       And it's a very physical job, and she's able to do that. And, you know, she's still very young. I think she's in her early thirties, so--

Phoenix:    Oh wow.

Kristin:        Whenever something small happens to me, I just think of Sarah and I'm like, what would Sarah do? She would just power right through so-  

Phoenix:    00:12:32    How, how inspiring and I, I think that was, was for me, it's just not, not being satisfied with this is how my life is supposed to be. And, and knowing that when I died, I came back and that was a  choice. And so I had a second chance. There was something more to, to offer not only for myself and my soul and, and in and my life here, but to be that for others–to inspire others. So I, you know, I was literally, uh, went from like 215 to 280 pounds over, over the course of this time. I remember being at Walmart picking up these two, I call them grimace sweaters. Uh, grimace is a character for McDonald's.

Kristin:      Yeah. Purple.

Phoenix:     He's a big purple guy. Purple, yeah. Yeah. It wasn't necessarily purple, it was just that he was a big blobby guy.  

Phoenix:    00:13:19    And I'm looking at these sweaters 'cause I'm not gonna spend any money. They're cheap. And I'm like, you know what? I, this cannot happen any longer. It took a long time for my insights to actually start working. Like my organs were all displaced, being crushed. Um, so I took matters in my own hands with my lifestyle. So that would be the next thing is just eating, eating, eating in a particular way that can allow my body to remove, uh, not only the inflammation, um, and the acidity, but the fat cells that were holding this inflammation in, in acidity. And, and then coupled with that, with, um, working on the mind, working on the mind with meditations and different types of techniques, I, I got trained in emotional freedom technique, which is tapping which really helped me deal with managing my emotions in the moment.  

Phoenix:    00:14:09    Uh, especially if, if I got triggered by, even by traffic, just PTSD happens in so many strange ways. And, and then, um, I, you know, just multiple trainings and in metaphysics in and taking on different modalities and really going for it and recreating my own experiences. Like, you know, you see people join groups and you're like, wow, there's over 2 million people part of this group. Why are they still doing this? And it's just like, you hear people, well, it wasn't that good, it didn't work for me. I'm like, well,

Kristin:     What kind of group?

Phoenix:   Any one of them just name one--  

Kristin:    00:14:40    Like a Facebook group or something?

Phoenix:    00:14:41     No, like a philosophy or yoga.

Kristin:        Oh, okay.

Phoenix:       Or anything. And you, you know, I ask myself, well, why are these people still doing this? And, and what experience did they have? So this is where the empathy, power of empathy really kicked in for me is like, you know, I wanna have that experience, right. Because then I can really, truly qualify it rather than judge it from a distance or walk into it and just go in half-assed and then get a half-ass result. And then, so it didn't work for me. I was, I wasn't prepared for that. So number one, like for me, um, in based my lifestyle program, I, I adopted the PH miracle, and I, I lost all that weight, uh, in three and a half months. Went from 280 to 205, 204 in all that time. And recognizing that my whole life is starting to shift and change as well.  

Phoenix:    00:15:31    So one thing I noticed is when your vibration uplifts from a physical level, uh, your mental cognition changes and how you deal with emotions change too. And what I came to realize is that emotions are actually just stored in memory and your body. And when you lift up your vibration, sometimes these emotions can't hold that bondage, uh, signature anymore. So then they get rereleased. And so what was happening for me is that as these emotions were coming up, I was doing it with more ease and grace rather than the grind of the suffering of it. So that was sort of some of the realizations I had in the journey. And to strive, what was I truly striving for is self-love–is really what it came down to is, is I really wanted to love myself and I wasn't loving myself. I didn't know, I didn't actually know what love meant or even really truly felt like until I actually experienced it. And that was in, uh, 2012.  

Kristin:    00:16:29    How do you define love?  

Phoenix:    00:16:32    Love is like the solvent to everything, to all life's problems. So it's, it's, for me, it's like a body of water. And there's, there's no, no bondage to it. It's just free flowing electricity just flows free. And, and the, and the feeling of it is just, you're, you're totally free in this, in this space. And the vibration it creates. It's, uh, there's no corruption in it. It, it's such a, it's such a happy, freeing feeling. Um, it's like you're walking on water. And that's how I would describe it.  

Kristin:    00:17:10    I'm curious if, so you seem like a very aware person, a very happy person. Do you go different places in the world to provide the setting for that? Like, do you feel the way that you feel now in your health and your body the same way in Canada versus being here in Tulum? Or have you noticed that going to different places can support you in your health and your mental state in other ways?  

Phoenix:    00:17:38    That's a really good question. You know, when I first started this practice, I, I did do a bit of traveling, uh, within Western Canada and, and did some, some zipping down into the States. And what I do recognize is there's something about the, the sun <laugh>. Yeah. That is so amazing and it feels so amazing. And in particularly what you asked a question earlier, what, what, what brought you to Tulum? And I, I said, two people were telling me for, uh, a few years that I should come down. And then my girlfriend, she lived in Cancun, and she's like, you know what, you need to be in Tulum. And so Tulum is such a very unique place. Like here we're at a pla, a place called Holistika, which is like one of the most beautiful, amazing resorts, uh, in Tulum. It's a very spiritually minded resort. And I've, I, you know, I love it here. Um, so just a touch shout out to, to, to them right now. Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:18:41    We just walked through a, a nature art gallery. Yeah. So literally paintings and murals and sculptures that are embedded into the jungle. And it's unlike anything I've ever seen. So yeah. We'll link to everything we mentioned in the show notes or in the comments below.  

Phoenix:    00:18:57    Yeah. So, so if you don't know about Tulum, Tulum is in a, in a, in an energetic vortex. So, and it's, uh, it's all water. So, um, underneath. And so what I noticed, uh, there's three places I've been to in the world that, that have given me this sense of feeling. Uh, and for me it's a very empowering, like, I, I hear from people that Tulum will either eat you up and spit you out, or you'll embrace who you are and you'll feel empowered from it. So I feel very empowered from this place. So the three other places to me that remind me of, of that is, uh, Sedona and, uh, Byron Bay and Australia on, on the East Coast. So yeah, Tulum is a very magical place. And, and I've never actually been to a place anywhere around the world where I've met so many heart minded people where I can just rak get right into being real.  

Phoenix:    00:19:54    Um, you know, back in Canada, people are looking down, they can't, they can't seem to really engage. I'm a, I'm an eagle eye type of guy. I'm a Scorpio. So I look, I look people in the eye like, I need to engage people in the eye, and I'm looking for your soul, right. <laugh> the soul to soul stuff. So for me, um, here is like, you do that and you can get really real and raw and don't have to talk about bullshit. You can just be real. So traveling around, uh, this place is, uh, obviously very, uh, amazing. And as far as like really being, um, really just exposing myself to traveling with, with being in practice, like so far away from Canada. Like this was a, this is a great proving ground for, for me, for, for doing that. 

Kristin:    00:20:40    Yeah.  How would you describe the culture here for people who haven't been to Tulum? As far as both the local side and also this integration with tourism and foreigners, travelers?

Phoenix:   Sure.

Kristin:      Spiritual seekers, <laugh> runs the gamut.  

Phoenix:    00:20:57    <laugh> you know, I've never seen a place that had so many yoga, yoga offerings in every single business or hotel resort in my life. I'm like, what is this place? I have no idea. I had no idea, um, what it was until I got here. Let me, let me say it this way. There's a bit of everything here. Like, there's beautiful white magic here and there's a lot of black magic here as well.  

Kristin:    00:21:22    Dark sides.  

Phoenix:    00:21:22    Yeah. There's, there's a little bit of, you know, and there's a lot of spiritual bypassing stuff here too. And, you know, like I've met, worked with clients who have worked with through that, and they need to reintegrate. And so I, I see, I see there's a lot of, um, potential quick fix stuff that people just come for the experience. And it's, it's very popular. And, uh, you know, I, I actually don't have a really a judgment or, or bias against any of it. You know, you, you attract, you attract who you are and what you are and what you're looking for. And so Tulum is a pretty good place for that. If you're, if you're looking to open your heart, you're gonna, you're gonna attract heart minded people. If you're looking for, you know, opening your sacral shocker more, you might attract more tantric type type of people.  

Phoenix:    00:22:11    Or maybe you'll attract yoga. I, I, you know, it's like, it's all, it's all relative. And so for a, a, a someone who's on the journey just want to, to open themselves up to an experience, there's so much to do here. And then living here, it's like, it's like at times hard to be focused. 'cause you're being invited to do so much stuff, and you're meeting so many new people, and all these people are, are making offerings. And then there's exchanges and it's just like, yeah. At first it's, to me, it's almost being like, at spiritual high school, this is what's far it feels like. Like energetic high school. 'cause it's, it's just, it's,  

Kristin:    00:22:48    You can take any class you want. Yeah. It's, you just gonna roll in a class.   

Phoenix:    00:22:51    <laugh>and it's a hustle bustle. Like, you know, like you're, you're always being marketed, solicited, uh, you're always engaging people. Everything's like, and, and it's all very mostly positive. And then there's a, the other side, there's like, um, I've never seen so many people go through breakups in, in, in this, in this community as well, because it really tests the waters of where people are, are needing to have resolution or get resolved. And, you know, I, I went through even that, my, that experience myself here. So, you know, but I'm gonna let people know, right. That, that the heart wins every time. Like, love is the solution. So if you're choosing anything other than that, well then it's probably in, for the most part, it's gonna look ugly, you know.

Kristin:    00:23:41     So your girlfriend is from Canada, correct? Yeah. But she was living in Cancun and now you live together in Tulum?   

Phoenix:    00:23:49    Or is she So, yeah, so she, she's uh, actually a mortgage broker, uh, and financial planner in Canada. And so her rate, you know, she moved, she bought a condo in Cancun to, to basically exit, try to exit the system. So she's very, been very influential for me for actually moving here. Um, basically I just, I, I had a gym back in Canada with my partner and I, I just packed my bags and shared the keys back to my partner and, and brought three bags and say, I'm, I'm going for it. I'm just let everything go to, to come here.  

Kristin:    00:24:23    And how many years has she been staying down here?

Phoenix:    00:24:25     Only, only a year and a half.  

Kristin:    00:24:27    Okay. Yeah. What are some of the common challenges that you find, like foreign couples that are moving here experience?  

Phoenix:    00:24:35    Learning the language is like, I think one of the challenges, and you know, for the most part, locals are very, they're really good people. Like, they have good hearts. And if you treat 'em with dignity and respect, you will be treated with dignity and respect back. If you're looking to kind of fool around with drugs and shit, that's where I think people get themselves into trouble. And you hear the horror stories. Is there a dark side to Tulum and, and Mexico in general? Yeah. There is everywhere. There's someone getting mugged every day there, you know, I'm sure someone might die every week, but I mean, that, that happens all over the world. So, um, you know, I've definitely been in a situation where I've seen a gun, a gun pulled in front of me in blue and uh, 'cause some guy was sporting his Rolex watch and, you know, you're just asking for trouble for stuff like that. So, um, and everyone had to duck down. And I actually, I'm not afraid of that. The stuff, I mean, in my mind, time's up, my time's up. um, so.  

Kristin:    00:25:39    You've already gotten at least one or two second chances,  

Phoenix:    00:25:43    So Yeah. Yeah. So, um, it stuff like that happens and this, this community, Tulum, for example, is, is in a massive growth phase, like just in Mexico in general, the Maya Riviera, they're having that, the Maya Train being built, the international airport in Tulum is being built. Uh, the corridor for Mexico, for example, is it's becoming an in international trade hub. So they're, they're moving away from Panama Canal and all the resources from West coast, East Coast is gonna be moving through Mexico. So there's billions and billions of dollars being, uh, allocated for this growth of the Maya Riviera. So there's nothing but really actually opportunity, uh, if you're willing to slug it out and go along with the process. The other thing about Mexico is that, you know, I, I even, I find people here like that are not from Mexico. It's like it's get a bit bit wishy-washy, you know, like where you have expectations for times and meetings and people all of a sudden don't seem to always respect time and-  

Kristin:    00:26:50    From any culture, you mean?  

Phoenix:    00:26:52    Yeah. It's just like, yeah, we'll be there at two, and then it's like, it's four <laugh>.  

Kristin:    00:26:58    Yeah. I, I've definitely experienced that 

Phoenix:    00:27:00    Hey, hi. you know, hi, how are you? <laugh>? It's like, yeah. So when you're trying, when you're running a practice, uh, you can't do that. Right. So I see that, you know, um, it, it depends on, on what goes on. The power goes out here a lot. So I, I really feel for all the businesses when the power goes out. 'cause they don't make any money. Basically. Uh, and so that's a common thing. And, and with power outages, your Wi-Fi goes out. So, so obviously being a digital nomad, there's, there's some concerns there. I know for myself, I plan from Canada. I have a North American wide plan, and I just make sure I have LTE wherever I go. And then I got my maximum bandwidth. I have 150 gigabytes a month so,  

Kristin:    00:27:46    Which plan or pri--provider do you use?  

Phoenix:    00:27:48    I was with a company called Rogers outa Canada. Okay. Yeah. That's probably worth like a hundred dollars, uh, a week, uh, payment to me, just for mentioning that, eh. 

Kristin:    00:27:59    <laugh>. Yeah. Yeah. I, I definitely recommend bringing your internet with you. If you're coming to many parts of Mexico. Um, but including Tulum, I had my power go out, my internet went out. So you wanna bring a hotspot with you? I'll link to a few that I use in this, uh, video description or in the show notes. And I'm curious also, so you've been here for six months now? You're gonna be leaving soon for your visa run or to go back and do some work in Canada? Yeah. Have you made any friends with people or maybe your girlfriend like that were living here and kind of got fed up and left and went back to their home countries? Or have you heard any stories like that?  

Phoenix:    00:28:39    You know, for, for the most part, most of the people that I met, I've, uh, had really powerful type of connections. I guess the only, the only one that would come up with that was the people, the couple that had their watch stolen from the guy. And when I actually did some emotional freedom work with her and the group of people for the trauma after, ah, um, so when I was talking with her, she mentioned that this always happens to her. And I'm like, well, I go, really? She's, yeah. When I was in such and such, I got robbed. And it happened like three times where she's had these really bad experiences. So I'm like, um, okay, well there's something about your field that's attracting that. So, but out of everyone else, no. I think everyone really loves their time here. It's, it's, I mean, if you're here in the most magical, beautiful place in the world and you're com you're bitching and complaining, you see me missing something here. It's beautiful. It's sunny. You have the most beautiful beaches and the waters on the planet. . And if you're not happy, then, then you should really book some time with me.  

Kristin:    00:29:50    <laugh>. Yes. There could be some, some things going on there. Yeah. Uh, yes. I've had a few trying days of administrative days, you could say, where I was going to the bank and doing lots of things. And I started to feel that like frustration and just yeah. Just not feeling happy. And then I had to remind myself and go to the beach the next morning and see the sunrise and just. Put my feet in the sand and look at the water and go in the water and just remember what, like, how lucky I am to be able to work from anywhere and to choose to be here. And yeah. It's just, and and last night I went out to a Palma Central, which is like, yeah.  

Phoenix:    00:30:33    I, I was gonna go and I, I just, I just, the last minute I elected not to go. So I was gonna mention to you to go there. Because it's, it's pretty happening on Tuesday nights.  

Kristin:    00:30:43    It's fun. They have, um, salsa dancing, they had fire performance. Fire, dancing performance. But I was just observing the crowd and it was just such a unique blend of locals. And you can even tell from the Mexican accents, like that people were from maybe Mexico City or other parts of Mexico. Foreigners from all around the world. At the table I was at, there were people speaking Hebrew. There was a girl and a guy from Finland. Uh, there were just, uh, a woman from Belgium. I mean, it's like all these different people in one place. And I was thinking there's not that many places in the world where you can experience that.  

Phoenix:    00:31:24    Right.  

Kristin:    00:31:25    One of those places.  

Phoenix:    00:31:26    Very true. Yeah. I met so many people from around the world here and, uh, I, I'm really thankful that they all spoke English <laugh>  

Kristin:    00:31:34    Right. Have you learned any Spanish or, it can be hard when a lot of people speak English. Even I speak fluent Spanish, and when I speak Spanish, people talk to me often in English. I just look American or US. 

Phoenix:    00:31:47    Right, you know, I've, uh, I have to be honest, like I've, I've definitely dropped the ball and I, I did start and, and then it, it's like whatever the, uh, the brain fart that I have on that, I, I just tell, tell myself I have some subconscious living beliefs. I need to work on <laugh>, which thank goodness I'm trained in. Yes. So I have to book an appointment for myself on that particular one. But, uh.  

Kristin:    00:32:11    Hint that seed that you can't learn a second language.  

Phoenix:    00:32:14    Yeah. I mean, I, I did, I, I think when I was a bit younger, I, I could have been, um, not even dangerous, but close to being dangerous with a little bit of French just to get by being from Canada. But, um, you know, I, I don't really remember any, anything from there either. So, but yes, I mean, Spanish is such a, it's such a beautiful language. I notice people do tend to speak a little fast. Um, but you know what, if you make the effort, they, they do, uh, make the effort back. Which is very, very mindful of them.  

Kristin:    00:32:48    Yeah. They're, they seem very open to tourism. Totally. And really embracing it. And it's just, it's seems like such an integrated part of the society here. Whereas some areas that are tourist destinations, it feels very artificial. Like there's like the locals and the tourists. But here, there's definitely more of a harmony, I would say. Even though, you know, people will say, locals will tell me, oh, it's dangerous. And things do happen. My friend Amanda got mugged for her cell phone. I mean, things happen everywhere. I saw a girl get mugged in Costa Rica. Like, it happens but-- 

Phoenix:    00:33:27   Yeah, I've had one of my friends get mugged here the other day, and it's like, really? And it's like, yeah. And then, you know, she's like a very spiritual, affluent person in this community, and she's wondering, what the hell did I track this?  

Kristin:    00:33:38    Bad things can happen to good people.

Phoenix:   Yes. Yes.

Kristin:       I remember I was in Nicaragua, this was 2008, and a guy was on this trip through Central America. It was the first week of his three or six month journey through Latin America. He was meditating every morning. And the third day he was there, his surfboard hit him in the chin, actually knocked out a bunch of teeth. He had to get his jaw wired shut. And uh, this guy was so nice. He was so peaceful, ironic, and then boom, um, out for, you know, a while, couldn't eat, was, you know, drinking through straws. And

Phoenix:     Wow, Yep.

Kristin:         I remember that. That really stuck with me. I thought you could meditate every day and the, with the sunrise and be a very good person and then get hit in the head with your surfboard. So it's just, that's it. Sometimes things happen, <laugh>  

Phoenix:    00:34:28    It is. It's true. It's very so, so, so true.  

Kristin:    00:34:31    Um, can you give us, now that you've been here for six months. And you've developed a routine and you know, your way around, you have scooter, everything, can you give us some insight into what is a typical day in the life? Or even like a week in the life living here?  

Phoenix:    00:34:44    Yeah, sure. Well, you know, uh, being on the West Coast, I was a bit of a sunset guy. And so being on here on the East Coast, gotta be more of a, a sunrise guy. And so I, I can be honest, I haven't been as successful with that, but catching a sunrise here is absolutely magical. Um, so I have like morning rights and routines that, that I like to incorporate, like with, with, uh, affirmations of doing, doing a meditation, taking my my leader of greens upon waking and, and then assimilating yourself with the normal, normal habitual things you do. And then I like to, if I'm not making my smoothie for the day, then I'm, I'm, which I, I just fill up my blender and, and it's so Mexico, 'cause it's avocado, cucumber, coconut, and lime as the base. And, uh, you know, you could drink that all day long.  

Phoenix:    00:35:43    and be happy. But if I'm not in that sort of cleanse mode, then I go get my coffee. There's, uh, or, or I go, depends on where I go. There's so many fricking amazing places,

Kristin:      So many.

Phoenix:   So many to go to. Um, there's an amazing crate place called Jungle Juice here, um, local, local kitchen, uh, and fresh juice. And he has coffee there too. There's Lapa Vida that has a great coffee place. The Otti, which is a cacao, uh, cafe's amazing. Kanobie, uh, there's another great coffee place. Uh, so, you know, that would be like kind of a ritual my partner and I would do, we'd go for a morning coffee and, uh, or if we went to the beach, we'd do our morning rights and stop by, have coffee, maybe grab breakfast and then, you know, try to be back by by 10:30 or so and then, and then do some work.  

Phoenix:    00:36:34   uh, my, my daily, my days would be like working for four to six hours a day. That's it. And then have myself free to head to the beach at around 2:30, 3 o'clock, uh, to just do the rest of the afternoon at, at the beach. And, and then, um, once or twice a week, uh, there's a rooftop down at the beach I go to, uh, there's two, two of them. And I'd go up there to watch Sunset.

Kristin:         Is that Azulik or?

Phoenix:     uh, one was called Mateo’s . yeah. And, uh, the other one's just a few doors down. I can't remember the name of it. I actually enjoy that one more. And I just, the name of it blocks me. It has a heart, something about the heart.

Kristin:       Okay.

Phoenix:     How's that? So funny. <laugh>. So, um, but it's, uh, it's like to the left of Kukulkan Road, um,

Kristin:        Okay.  

Phoenix:    00:37:24    And in, in that hotel zone area, uh, near Potheads, uh, and the free beach access area. So that would be like my afternoon, evening. And then it's like, go home, get changed. If we're not eating in, then we're, we're going out to somewhere nice for dinner. Um, or we're participating in an event. Like, I, I haven't part of a men's group here, uh, called Mantorship. It's actually, uh, it started and originated here, but it's a worldwide men's group, so it's a place where men can gather to, to talk about their stuff. And, you know, there's a nice blend of people who are actually like myself, facilitators, and then there's also people, just normal people. And it's a great networking and, and a space for men who can be men. And they have a women's networking group here too, or, uh, a women's talk group too.  

Phoenix:    00:38:16    So, um, yeah, there's always just, there's always something to do to, uh, feel your heart with, I call it, rather than your time. Because when you're feeling your heart, you're, you're feeling that up with timelessness. But you know, ultimately, like the going out part for me is the, the opportunity to share my craft and, and, and to network. You know, like, um, for this time that I was here every Friday night, I ran a workshop, uh, here at a place called Espíritu or Huaya Camp, and it was called Journey through the chakras of the sub--subconscious. And it was actually a newly developed program. I wrote well here. So that creativity really came forward here. And every week, week we worked on a different chakra center, uh, relating to subconscious limiting beliefs. So it was, uh, very powerful. And, uh, and of course I have, I worked on a cell therapy clinic here in town as well. And in there we do, uh, do comparatives before and after with people who are either getting stem cell therapy, Exosome therapy, NAD, IV Cocktails, and proven out like the process of what healing looks like with, with these types of therapies. And that's called Vortex Vitality and, and, uh, Leaf Spa here, uh, right in Tulum. So cutting edge stuff, cutting edge stuff. And then of course, private, private practice working at, at home is, uh, also the, uh, the benefit.  

Kristin:    00:39:40    Yeah, that seems like a great mix of your day and a lot of, a lot of rejuvenation time and a lot of, you know, balance with your work hours, which is really nice. And I've even noticed this happens a lot when I travel, but I don't even turn on the TV when I am in places like this. I do have a little bit of a phone habit at night, like look at Instagram or something, but-- 

Phoenix:    00:40:05    I call it dopamine habit.  

Kristin:    00:40:06    Yeah. Dopamine habit. But like, not that feeling of like, oh, I have nothing to do. So I guess I'll watch Netflix. It's like, I forget, I have a giant TV in my apartment. I haven't even turned it on, but there's always something to do at night. And even yesterday I wrote in my journal, it was an eventful day because it's like from sunrise to beyond sunset, there's just so many things going on. And now that I'm leaving in a couple days, I'm so sad and I wish I was staying. So I would recommend if you come here to however long you think you wanna stay, just double it. And that's probably okay.  

Phoenix:    00:40:42    Absolutely.  

Travel to Costa Rica with Kristin

Kristin:    00:40:43    Kristin here, if you're looking to get away this summer, then why not join me in Costa Rica? There are still two early bird spots left for our group trip to Costa Rica, August 9th through 12th, 2024. If you want to join me and members of the Traveling with Kristin community in the beautiful Gulf of Papagayo in the northwest Guanacaste province of Costa Rica, for a nice, relaxing long weekend filled with amazing food, coffee, beaches, sunsets, hot springs, and more, then use the link in the show notes to reserve your place today with just a 25% deposit, and you can save $150 on the price of the trip. Just check out our link at the top of the show notes. And I look forward to seeing you in Costa Rica this summer.  

Phoenix:    00:41:36    I, I do mention, like, one of the things I recognize, uh, about Tulum, it's a bit of anomaly for other parts of Mexico. Um, Tulum and Cabo seem to be the most expensive places in Mexico. So one, one of the things is, is that there is ways where it can be less expensive. First of all, it's like long-term rentals is definitely one way to make sure your rent is lower. And then secondly is, is finding the local, the local eat spots. There, there's still, there's places, uh, in town to do the, the, when you, when it's taco night for me, like I can get the 25 peso tacos and it's like you got so many little, uh, vegetable and, uh, stands and stuff. Is that just you, you can eat for less? Um, just--   

Kristin:    00:42:22    the fruit markets,  

Phoenix:    00:42:24    Vegetables. Yeah. Like you got so many avocados and limes and like, you know, so you can, you can, you can do it, um, for less, but don't get caught up. My, my trap when I first got here was like, I was in holiday mode and I blew so much fucking money on food.

Kristin:       Oh yeah.

Phoenix:     Like unbelievable.  

Kristin:    00:42:41    If you eat at the, uh, tourist restaurants, it's, for me, it's the same as eating in Miami. You can spend $15 on a smoothie bowl. You can spend 15 same dollars on dinner. Uh, yeah. $25 for a meal, versus you could get five tacos for 60 pesos, which is like $3 or less than $3.   

Phoenix:    00:43:04    So, and that's why I do my juices and my smoothies during the day. Yeah. And that way I'm like, you know, taking care of myself and, and doing what's necessary in my body to process toxicity. And then at night, you know, it's like, yeah,

Kristin:      Treat yourself <laugh>.

Phoenix:   You, you can treat yourself. Uh, you know, you're not, you know, from a wellness point of view, you know, like we're talking about, you're, you're, you're an energy bank. You're making deposits or withdrawals depending upon how you eat, live, think, and feel. So, you know, if I'm doing some good things all day long, uh, drinking my greens powders and then, and then doing my smoothie, if I happen to resort to something strange or obscure that my, my ego's calling out from like childhood emotionality, I don't feel bad doing it. <laugh>. Right.  

Kristin:    00:43:53    You have some pizza, maybe  

Phoenix:    00:43:55    <laugh>. I have some pizza. There's a place called La Pizzine here at Calle 7.   

Kristin:    00:43:58    It was closed yesterday.  

Phoenix:    00:44:00    It has such a awesome vibe. The music, they have this, this awesome beat per minute and it, they, you just roll with the beat per minute and the ambience and the color and lighting in there. It's just, it's so, so, so cool. I actually go there twice a week.  

Kristin:    00:44:14    Okay. Everyone, everyone has mentioned it to me, so it's right next to my house. I'll have to go. Well, can you also speak a little bit about the, um, medical tourism industry here and some of the, the reasons that people travel here for medical issues and maybe why they get the stem cell therapy and kind of the cost of that?  

Phoenix:    00:44:36    Yeah. I mean, people obviously are looking to places like Mexico and other maybe tertiary countries. Uh, 'cause the cost for, for medical treatment is, is less expensive. And, you know, for example, the, the clinic that I'm been, uh, privy to work out of and, and you know, it's been quite fun to have an integrative approach is that everyone gets to work with the client and in a, in a fashion, a way that's actually productive for their, for them to have positive results. So, um, you know, what we can do or have done is like set people up on, at, at a place where they can stay and then they have access to the facility. If they want to invest in, like say from working with me, I can put 'em on, on a, on a, uh, it's a cleanse, but it's a feast.  

Phoenix:    00:45:27    You can have as much as you want, but a cleansing program, I can coach with them every day. We can do work on meditation techniques to up raise their energy, open their energy channels to work in doing, working through emotions and all that stuff. So, you know, for me it's a one, one all come all place. And then you have all these other options that you can create your own customized wellness program. You know, and that was one thing I learned. Like I did a business retreat when I came here. And, uh, not only did we do business, but we, we went to Temascalapa, we went to a Cenotes we went for beach for meditation. Like I had to have a scooter to, to buck around town for, for five days to doing all these events and, uh, different things. But it really got me to know the town.  

Phoenix:    00:46:15    And not only that gave me exposure to different types of modalities that we, you know, I did yoga, we matching singing, and like, we did everything like five days filled up, eight hours a day. It was like so much fun. So like myself with other colleagues that I met here, it's like, hey, we, you know, collaborations have, have always been in the mindset. Like I just did a, a seven day retreat down in backlogs called 4D--4D Yoga Retreat and is with these amazing people calling Hakey, who are basically sacred geometry, uh, specialists, I'll call them. And, and how they apply the, the physical sciences, uh, into a, a mental and emotional, spiritual aspect quotient. And of course, what I'm working with is the same thing they're working with, with Toal Fields. So I got to also work with them with, uh, with the group in identifying the subconscious limiting beliefs and, and just add to that quotient. And, uh, back layer is another beautiful place, uh, for people who are looking to, to experience Mexico. Uh, backlash known the seven chakras and, uh, waters. Wow. It's, uh, kinda reminds me of Maldives.

Kristin:       Oh, interesting.

Phoenix:    Yeah, it's just absolutely stunning and beautiful.  

Kristin:    00:47:31    How far from here?

Phoenix:    00:47:31  Two and a half hours from Tulum  

Kristin:    00:47:33    South.  

Phoenix:    00:47:34    Okay. South. Yeah, towards Belize.  

Kristin:    00:47:36    Nice. Nice.  

Phoenix:    00:47:37    Yeah.  

Kristin:    00:47:37    You, yeah. Oh gosh. And I wanna come back already.  

Phoenix:    00:47:40    <laugh>, I move in there. So my, oh, okay. My goal is September to, to move there and give it a six month season. Okay. Uh, rather than, than Tulum. And then if I'm working up here, I just, I just bank my days when I'm coming. I'm used to traveling to drive to go places. So if I have to travel to go somewhere for two hours, uh, two hour drive is nothing to me. It's like whatever. I'm not like a city dweller that can't leave, you know, 15 minutes to go anywhere. Oh, it's too far. Like could city dwellers are like that all the time. Yeah. So I'm a little bit past that consciousness.  

Kristin:    00:48:15    So net what's next for you? You go back to Canada for a while, uh, do some work and then come back here.  

Phoenix:    00:48:21    Yeah. So what's, what's next for me is, um, so I have, uh, a couple of facilitators who, who facilitate ayahuasca and coaching. And I actually had the privilege of working one of them out here. And, uh, the realization for, for Kayla is their name is that, uh, what I offer is something very integrated for people as they come out of their journey to kind of ground back in into, you know, their everyday reality and, uh, is exactly something that she's been looking for. And, uh, actually her mom is a facilitator too. So they've asked me to come back to Canada and they go, what would it take to get you to come back here? I'm like, keeping me busy. <laugh>. Yeah. So they said, well, that's not a problem. We can keep you busy here. So I've, uh, I probably have a month's plus worth of work just through that porthole loan with them. And for me, what a busy workday is, is, is no more than four clients a day.

Kristin:     Right.

Phoenix:   And as you can see, the body of work that, that we did, uh, was pretty intense. And, and I think I spent a little longer with you too. Um, I think we spent like three and a half hours, four hours.

Kristin:      Was it really?

Phoenix:     Yeah. But it went by pretty good, right?  

Kristin:    00:49:36    Yeah. Yeah. We did, um, I did a blood analysis very fascinating. Just take a drop of blood, look at it under the microscope and just look at everything that's going on. It's, and you get this whole report. Yeah. If, if, so if people are interested in learning more about what you do, where can they find you?  

Phoenix:    00:49:56    Um, that's really good one. 'cause I lost, I lost, uh, my old phone for three weeks. I had no phone. And then when I got my new one, my, my two business accounts I cannot even access anymore. So that was, uh, called Blood Analysis Tulum and Phoenix Sen– S-E-N official. Um, but I still have my personal one, which is Phoenix Risen 72. Okay. So I might just have to resort back to, to using that one. All right. I might even change my name. I don't know.  I haven't figured that out.  

Kristin:    00:50:27    Okay. We'll linked your Instagram.  

Phoenix:    00:50:28    But, uh, I do have WhatsApp and, uh, my email is, uh, changeyourtaurus, not T-O-R-U-S, @gmail.com. So that, that's also a contact point for me.   

Kristin:    00:50:41   Well, thank you so much Phoenix, for sharing your thank of experience and your world travel experience with us, and very glad that you were able to recover from your injuries and-- 

Phoenix:    00:50:52   Thanks.  Yeah, me too.

Kristin:    00:50:53     And thank you as well for, for helping me. I, I saw his flyer at the, at Otti  or Otti Cacao Bar. I'm glad we connected and that you could share with us here today and--  

Phoenix:    00:51:04    Yeah, I really appreciate it.  

Kristin:    00:51:05    Our paths will cross again.  

Phoenix:    00:51:06    I really appreciate your time and your energy and, uh, obviously to your digital community. You know, wonderful work and service that she's providing to everyone in her group. And, uh, yeah, definitely exploring Mexico, Tulum, Bacalar, and all those areas. If you ever want me on your show again, I'd be happy to give you the updates.  

Kristin:    00:51:27    I definitely wanna go to Bacalar, adding it to my wishlist.  

Phoenix:    00:51:30    <laugh>, Come to my retreat, <laugh>. Okay. Thank you. Alright, thank you. Namaste.  

Kristin:    00:51:35    Kristin here. I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Phoenix. He's such a unique guy, but very down to earth and very straightforward about his life experiences. So thank you Phoenix for being so open with us and offering all of those tips. As we talked about, it's so important to have your internet with you when you are traveling abroad and every time I forget my hotspot or don't have it on me, or it's not charged, I completely regret it. It wastes so much time and energy when you end up in a place where the internet is not working, whether it's for an hour or for two or three days as happened with me in Mexico. So make sure to pick up a SkyRoam Solis hotspot or an EZ Mobile hotspot using my referral links in the show notes. And also, we would really appreciate if you could leave us a review for our 250th episode here on Badass Digital Nomads. You can leave a review on any podcast platform or most of them, or also directly on our website at badassdigitalnomads.com. Thanks for spending time with me today, and I will see you again next week when we'll be back to our regular Tuesday schedule.