WHAT A YEAR.

Since my last post, it’s been almost a year. Thus, this is a long one:

1. Finishing my PhD
2. Leaving Cambridge
3. Leaving the UK but becoming British
4. Becoming a digital nomad and travelling the world
5. Rediscovering my hometown
6. Final reflections on this year

Finishing my PhD

A while ago, I wrote about the (then-upcoming) final year of my PhD.

From an academic point of view, the end of my PhD was fairly conventional (yet very enjoyable!). I made a writing plan. I set a target submission date. 8 months later, when that day arrived, I submitted my thesis. Two months later, it was time for my PhD viva (also known as a defence). I passed my viva.

After doing some minor corrections during the summer, my examiners have approved the final version of my PhD thesis. And, just like that, all I have to do now is submit a hard-bound copy of the thesis. After that, I will be eligible to graduate. Soon I will share what’s next for my career: to get an email when I do so, you can subscribe to the blog at the bottom of this post. (My PhD thesis will also be available online in a few weeks, but here is a new preprint with part of one chapter.)

From a personal point of view, however, this year was very unconventional.

Leaving Cambridge

After seven years, I finally moved away from Cambridge. This is the story of why I left Cambridge (the English city) before finishing my PhD.

Cambridge is lovely. Really, one of my favourite places on Earth. But it can also be quite a small bubble. After four years of undergrad and masters there, I had already reinvented myself to keep enjoying it during my PhD (by switching colleges and taking up college rowing, both of which I highly recommend). But after a couple more years, the novelty wore off. The new friends graduated. During the third year of my PhD, I had taken up every opportunity to get as far as possible from Cambridge; whether for a month and a half (I spent most of the time between Michaelmas and Lent working remotely from my parents’ home in Mexico) or for half a day (including one-day trips to Italy and Denmark).

During year 4 of my PhD, my supervisor was going to be on sabbatical. Hence, it wasn’t going to matter that much if I was in Cambridge or not. As soon as I realised that I could work fully remotely, I didn’t hesitate in pursuing that option (officially, it’s called Leave To Work Away). And so on September 2nd (of 2024), I grabbed my belongings and moved out of Cambridge.

Leaving the UK but becoming British

A big reason why I was tired of Cambridge was the British weather. During my last year in Cambridge, I really felt the effect on my mood from the bad weather and the lack of sunlight. I clearly needed a break from the UK. However, the UK is a country that I love.

The UK had been my home for all of my adult life. It has given me so much: independence at a young age, great memories, many friends, a world-class education, and a career I am passionate about. It’s made me enjoy Parkruns, love kettles, and hate the weather (both hot and cold). The UK is a big part of my identity, of who I am today. And viceversa: when I was living there, I felt like I was a (tiny) part of it. I belonged.

It’s plausible that, at some point in the future, I’ll want to return to the UK (perhaps when climate change makes it hotter…). So, in August of 2024, I applied for British citizenship. And soon after, I did something very British: heading to sunny Spain.

Becoming a digital nomad and travelling the world

On September 2nd, 2024, I landed in Madrid and went to my childhood home. I spent a few weeks there enjoying the last days of real summer weather (the weather in Madrid during September – unlike earlier in the summer – is absolutely perfect). And, honestly, I could have stayed in Madrid all year. But I knew that I didn’t want to spend my year away from Cambridge in my hometown (more on Madrid later). I had a unique opportunity, with a remote ‘job’ that I could do anywhere with WiFi. And I loooove to travel.

Have you heard of the term ‘digital nomad’? Well, that’s what I called myself this past year. But, where to go? I needed somewhere with reasonable living costs (I still was on a PhD stipend!), and connections to Madrid (family) and London (for passport paperwork, I ended up going twice in one-day trips). I also wanted something very different to the Cambridge bubble, with warm weather in the winter, and good routes for running. How about the Canary Islands, Malta, Athens, or Cyprus? If you ask me: amazing. Especially Las Palmas, it’s such a hub for digital nomads during the European fall/winter.

I also did a few shorter trips for leisure (Marrakesh and Zurich) or work-ish reasons (Bilbao for a conference and Cambridge for my PhD viva). And I spent almost a month solo-travelling around the USA (conferences and visits to universities, with some tourism). Oh, and a month visiting my parents in Mexico (they live there temporarily), from where we went to Panama and on a cruise along the Caribbean.

Working this way (even with some time off included) is not for everyone. Especially if you’re busy writing a PhD thesis…you have to make some tradeoffs. For example, I didn’t attend social events for over two months while on my Mediterranean trip, because that wasn’t my priority at the time. It wouldn’t have been sustainable in the long term. But it didn’t need to. Looking back at this year, I only regret not having travelled more.

Rediscovering my hometown

Despite all that travel, I did spend a substantial amount of time in Madrid (and for the record: I do pay rent to my parents for living in their flat).

At first, I was in Madrid only when I had no other realistic option: After I failed to find suitable accommodation for another month in the Canary Islands. Or during Christmas. Or when I was in the very last stages of writing my thesis (I had to eliminate all the distractions and logistics involved with living in a foreign country). Having grown up here, Madrid wasn’t exciting.

But then, a friend from abroad visited. I showed him around the city centre on a beautiful early-spring afternoon. And I realised that Madrid is gorgeous. But for me, it was still boring. Slowly, I challenged myself to meet like-minded people here. I’m still working on it. When you’re not in a university environment, it’s harder to make new friends. I’m not sure if I will get any long-term friends from these “experiments”. But does it matter? I sure did exciting things.

I reconnected with old friends. I dined with strangers. I took the last metro train for the first time in my life. I joined a public speaking group. I went to the trendy run clubs that crowd Retiro Park. I attended events for remote workers and yoga classes for expats (aka, guiris – remember, I am British now!). I’ve driven around the M-30 up and down, looking for the best running routes. I’m writing these words from a fancy cafe in the centre of Madrid, as part of a co-writing group.

These activities have not made me fall in love with Madrid, but they’ve given me a different perspective of it.

Final reflections on this year

Great. Growth. Grateful. These are the words that come to mind (with only a slight push for alliteration) when I attempt to summarise this year.

It’s been great. Things went, to a large extent, according to plan. Of course, there have been challenges. And a few things didn’t go as planned or as I hoped. But this year has been the experience of a lifetime – to be honest, the whole PhD has been – and I’d 100% do it again.

It’s been a year of growth (cliché, I know). But when you’ve spent your whole adult life in college accommodation, you eventually need to face the “real world” a bit more. Don’t get me wrong: I’ve still been in a very priviledged and protected position. But I’ve done a lot more “adulting” than ever before. And I’m sure that it’ll be handy for my next adventure…

Finally, I am very grateful for this year. Grateful that the possibility of working online crossed my mind. Grateful that my supervisor let me do it. Grateful that I was crazy enough to think I could finish my PhD while travelling, and without the academic/support environment I had in Cambridge. And grateful that it worked out so brilliantly. To everyone who made it possible or was a part of it: thank you.