Roam With Me! -- Merida, Mexico

Most of my friends think I'm crazy for visiting Mexico in July and August. Well, I am a little crazy, but that's not the point. I go at that time because that's when both my best friend and I are free from school obligations, and she's the reason I visit there so often.

She and I are both teachers. I teach Spanish here, and she teaches English down there. This coming year, her role is changing a bit, and she's now the coordinator of all the elementary English teachers at her school.

Silvia is her name, and she was the first exchange student I ever hosted. She is only ten years younger than I am, and, sadly, her parents died in a car accident a couple years after she stayed here. Since that time, I've spent a lot of time there getting to know the rest of her family since I unfortunately never met her parents, and she's returned to my home to see the family she gained here.

This trip was extra special since she got to meet my boyfriend of one year, and he got to meet her. My daughter accompanied us as well, making this her third trip to Mexico and her fifth trip abroad with me.

Silvia lives in Merida, the capital city of the state of Yucatan. The Yucatan Peninsula is comprised of three states -- Yucatan, Quintana Roo and Campeche. The state of Yucatan is located on the western side of the Peninsula and abuts the Golf of Mexico.

Merida is not widely known in the U.S. despite the fact that there are around one million people living there. I'd say this is mostly due to the fact that the city is not located on a beach; however, those at Progreso are only a half hour drive from Merida.

Most travelers from the U.S. to Mexico want to visit the tourist towns on the beaches in Mexico, but I am not one of those people. Yes, I love the beach, but I despise "touristy" destinations. I want the real life experience. That's what I get when I visit my best friend who lives in Merida.

I also like the smaller international airport in Merida over the larger and busier one in Cancun. This means I have to pay a little bit more for a ticket to Merida, but it also means that I don't have to pay for a bus ride to Merida once I land or for the gas for my friend to drive all the way to Cancun to pick me up. It also means I have to plan my arrival time a little more since there are only a few flights in and out of Merida each day as opposed to the numerous ones in and out of Cancun's international airport, but I'm o.k. with that.

There are plenty of tourists who find their way to Merida, don't get me wrong about that. They just aren't as plentiful as they are in places like Cancun, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen on the Caribbean side of the Yucatan Peninsula. Many of the tourists use Merida as a jumping off point for visiting various Mayan ruins like Chichen Itza.

Since I mentioned the best known site of ruins, let's start with Chichen Itza, which is in the state of Yucatan, too. We didn't visit it during the daytime like most tourists do; instead, we attended the night lighting show which was an amazing feast for the eyes. We were the only gringos in attendance that evening from what I could tell. The tickets are free, but they have to be ordered online in advance, and then when you arrive at Chichen Itza you have to exchange the tickets you got online for the actual tickets. Apparently the online tickets are simply tickets that you have a reservation! Even Silvia couldn't make sense out of the "logic" behind needing two separate sets of tickets for the same show.

The lighting show was phenomenal. I don't have photos, though, because they don't allow photography during the actual presentation as it distracts from the pure enjoyment of just sitting there and watching, and it's also a serious distraction to those around you who are trying to enjoy the show. However, prior to the show, there is a lovely lighting display on the main pyramid (of Kukulkan) where it simply changes colors while you wait.
  

During the show, there is a magnificent laser light show of the history of the Mayans and of Chichen Itza. It is conducted totally in Spanish, though, so if you don't know the language then your enjoyment of the spectacle is diminished a bit, but only a bit because the show is so breathtaking that you don't really need to understand what is being said. I'm glad I did, though, because I prefer to understand the whole thing. I spent the show occasionally whispering tidbits of translation to my boyfriend on one side of me and my daughter on the other side. She  speaks Spanish, but not enough to understand a show like that.

Prior to the show, we visited and swam in the largest cenote in the peninsula. It's very near to the Chichen Itza ruins, and it's called Ik-Kil. Cenotes are sinkholes that form in the ground in the Yucatan Peninsula where the ground is comprised of rock. The water in the cenotes is freshwater, and many of them are connected by underground rivers, which are the only kind of rivers you'll find in the Yucatan Peninsula.

This particular cenote is well-known and very deep. The signs there state that it is 50 meters deep or roughly 150 feet deep! The water is cool because it's essentially in a cavern, and there are hundreds (or thousands) of tiny catfish swimming in there with you. I deliberately tried to touch a few, but I only managed it a couple times because they are speedy little suckers! The only photos I took in there were on a disposable underwater camera, and I haven't yet developed them to even see if anything turned out, so I will steal a few photos from online, so you can see just how spectacular this place is.




You climb up the wooden ladders to get out of the water and down them to get in if you don't want to just jump in from the side. The higher platform is for the more intrepid to leap off of into the deep, deep water. I did it once many years ago. Once was enough as this is a "swim at your own risk" cenote.

Now, let's get back to Merida. Merida is a very old city, having been founded officially by a Spaniard named Fracisco de Montejo y Leon in 1542. However, it is actually much older than that because he founded the city upon a Mayan city, but he changed its name to the name of a city in Spain called Merida. The Mayan language, culture and way of living are still to be seen throughout Merida and in its surrounding communities, most of which still bear their Mayan names. (Thus making them difficult to pronounce!)

We visited the main plaza a few times including once at night to watch a re-enactment of the famous game of "pelota" or the ball game that was once played by the Mayans in their ancient cities. In it, two teams face off to attempt to get a small hard ball through a stone ring mounted sideways on a wall. The players can only use their hips and chests primarily. I've seen a much better re-enactment two years ago during the finale at Xcaret on the Caribbean, but this display was interesting too.

Here are the players preparing to start the game in front of the main cathedral.

The main cathedral of Merida lit up at night.

The cathedral closes to the public at 8:00 p.m., so we had to return another time to go inside. My boyfriend is Catholic, so he especially wanted to see inside. It's not ornate like the cathedrals in Spain and Italy are, but it's still pretty impressive due to its size. 

Looking up!

Mass is conducted throughout the day, and people can just come and go. Around the edges on the floor you'll see engraved stones in the floor -- these are grave markers as the cathedral is also a cemetery.  

While in the main plaza, a person can people watch like crazy or one can visit the main government building and the numerous stores and markets that are in the area. Inside the government building, there are impressive paintings that tell the history of the area and of Mexico.

The interior courtyard of the government palace.

The above painting shows the "conquista" or conquest of the Mayans by the Spaniards, and the painting below shows them being shackled and sold into slavery.

Here are my boyfriend, myself and my daughter in the long side room of the government palace. You can see the above-mentioned painting over his shoulder.

The above painting shows the emblem of the national flag -- an eagle holding a serpent in its talons while perched on a nopal cactus. Now, let's look at the size of this painting in relation to me and my daughter.

 Pretty darn big, isn't it! Now for my favorite painting in the government building. The following one shows the true and authentic liberator of the Mayan slaves, and I love it so much because of the books in it. These show that education and literacy are the mark of true freedom no matter where you are. 

As I mentioned, while in the heart of Merida, you need to visit the stores and markets. Sometimes in the markets you can bargain a bit for a better price, and sometimes you can't. I'll tell you this, though, once they know you speak Spanish, they immediately reduce the price for you. That shows that they appreciate your effort to understand them and their culture. Here are a few photos of the market areas on Merida. Understand that the prices are in pesos and not in dollars. While we were there, the exchange rate was roughly 15 pesos per every U.S. dollar.


  


The one shows a tortilla making machine, and the other shows a variety of fruit you can buy to which you add chile if you like it that way.

Here is a view of one of the streets in the heart of Merida later in the day.

Surprisingly, belly dancing is quite popular in Merida and has been for many years now. Two years ago, when I was last there, we attended a belly dance performance in a small square. This time, though, we went to a two hour performance of dances done by the dance school where my friend's daughter goes for belly dance lessons. Here is a photo of many of the performers on stage at the end of the show along with the main teacher, who is dressed in the pink outfit.

While in Merida, we often ate "sorbetes" or sherbets at branches of the well-known store called El Colon. 

"Elote" is corn. Yes, that's right. Corn. It is the favorite of my friend's daughter, and it wasn't bad. I preferred the lemon one myself, and I also liked the pitaya one. That's a fruit that is common and popular there at this season. 

From Merida, one can easily get to the towns along the coast for some adventures. I'll share those in my next post.