Chinese migrants flock to Mexico in search of jobs and taste of freedom

Despite her well-paying tech job, Li Daijing didn't hesitate when her cousin asked for help running a restaurant in Mexico City. She packed up and left China for the Mexican capital last year, with dreams of a new adventure.

The 30-year-old woman from Chengdu, the Sichuan provincial capital, hopes one day to start an online business importing furniture from her home country.

I want more, Li said. I want to be a strong woman. I want independence.

Li is among a new wave of Chinese migrants who are leaving their country in search of opportunities, more freedom or better financial prospects at a time when China's economy has slowed, youth unemployment rates remain high and its relations with the U.S. and its allies have soured.

While the U.S. border patrol arrested tens of thousands of Chinese at the U.S-Mexico border over the past year, thousands are making the Latin American country their final destination. Many have hopes to start businesses of their own, taking advantage of Mexico'