2021.11.29-12.15 Working from Mérida, Yucatán - Wintering in Mexico part 4

I picked Casa 70 not far from the center, because it's cheap and promised good WiFi. Also I need AC and hot shower.

Mérida, the state capital of Yucatán has many handsome buildings and pleasant parks. Free WiFi in all public plazas, large or small. Many benches, some have power plugs. To reduce number of people sitting on the same bench, they put potted plants on benches. People are very friendly, law-abiding. It feels very safe and orderly, even walking alone late at night. It's true in all Yucatan Peninsular. People wear face mask in general. They measure your temperature before letting you in any stores. Merida Culture's Facebook page is a good resource of what's happening, with English translation. It has a modern Palacio de Musica and a traditional ornate theatre, on top of other smaller venues. The city hosts many events. These are weekly recurring free events.

Monday, 9pm, Vaquería Yucateca, Palacio Municipal.
Tuesday, 8;30pm, salsa dancing in Santiago Park;
Wedesady, 8pm, Pok-ta-Pok: a Maya ball game at the cathedral;
Thursday, 8pm, Chamber Orchestra at Olympo Center;
          8pm, Serenade at Santa Lucia Park;
Friday, 8:30pm, video mapping on the cathedral;
Saturday, 8-11pm, Mexican Night (singing and dancing);
Sunday, bici-ruta, a bike ride through the town.

The only draw-back is the heat. 30°C and above.

11/27, Saturday I arrived ~9:30pm. Checked wifi speed, pretty good. It has drinking water. AC works, has hot shower. However, later, I found that my sink leaked: the pipe below the sink didn't connect to anything. reported to the owner, Jose Luis.

11/28, Sunday, I went to Izamal in the morning, really like it. Came back early afternoon with some grocery from the main market near the bus station Surest. Jose Luis and his beautiful girlfriend came to get a room ready. He checked my sink, called a plumber over tomorrow. I was switched to room #4, which a folding table, and access to a balcony shared with room 5. I paid him for a week in cach without fees charged on all these digital platforms. Once he left, I found that the bathroom faucet only trickled. Impossible to use. Reported again.

I walked to Paseo Montejo after dinner, when it's cooler, and picked up a case of beer. Was told I couldn't buy alcohol after 5pm on Sundays! Oh well. I like the Paseo so much that I decided to stay put in the same hotel. When I got back, I found I have new housemate: Mark & Amy from Oakland, whom I would be sharing the balcony.

11/29, Monday, first day of my working from a hotel. I walked to the city center early in the morning, when it wasn't too hot. The govenment palace no longer opens to tourist. There's a free (by donation) walking tour at the main plaza at 9:30am. The guide speaks both Spanish and English. Good way to learning Spanish. I didn't like the tour much, so didn't stay long. Bought somme pastry and fruits from the market. When I got home, Mark took off saying there's no power. Jose was on the phone for a long time. Without power, the house was heating up quickly. It took awhile to get power up. I was late for my 11am meeting (1pm in Yucatan). Plumbers came and fixed my faucet, as well as the toilet.

Again, after 8pm, I walked into the town. When I came back, saw Jose Luis again. Power went out again!

11/30, Tuesday. Visited the city museum in a peach-colored building, next to the main market. It's very small. This one opens at 9am, the earlist. All others open at 10am. The municiple building is closed to tourists. The contemporary art museum was closed this week.
10 am, I went to another walking tour from Santa Lucia park. This one divides the group into English and Spanish. I didn't like this one either.
Electrician was called again. The power went out for a few minutes, while I was in the middle of a call. No more outage for the rest of my stay.

Plaza Santiage salsa dance 8:30-9:30pm. Big band. Kids and senior all kinds, no one looks professional, everyone has a good time. Mask required within the make-shift fence. A guy checks your temperature and squeeze hand sanitizer on to your hands if you want to enter the fence.

12/1, Wednesday Went to the cathedral to see Pok Ta Pok towards its end. I don't know how they hold with the fireball.

12/2, Thursday. Visited Casa Montejo in the morning. I saw a long line in front of the door, so I stood behind them. It turns out, they are here for some govenment functions. I had to come back at 11am, and I was waved in next to the long line. There're only 3-4 rooms I could visit. They would open the door to let me in, and then close it after me. There's a room dedicated to local artisan woodwork: fantasy animals in bright colors. The facade is more impressive than the interior.

8pm, Merida Chamber Orchestra playing Yucatan Waltz in Olympo Culture Center. Small auditorium, no AC.
On the way back, walked by Santa Lucia park, more singing and dancing here. Restaurants took over all the good viewing spots.


12/3, Friday. Walked to Walmart via Paseo Montejo early in the morning. Now you see both the stately buildings as well as abandonned ones. I like it bettter in the evening, when everything is lit. Free WiFi along most of the street, many benches.

2 Austrian girls arrived. One had food poisoning and wasn't feeling well. I talked Doris into visiting Celestún for flamingos. They are leaving on Sunday, so Saturday is the only option for her. Went to bed early because we'd be leaving early tomorrow.

12/4, Satuday. Day trip to Celestún. On the way back, bought some fruit from the market. After dinner and shower, I went to see Noche Mexicana. Lots of lights.

12/5, Sunday, planned to visit Maní, a magic town on the 9:30am bus. But I went to the wrong terminal, and by the time I found my bus, it was leaving. The next one is at 11am. Too late. Desponded as wasting a good weekend day, I went to see tour operators. One said for 500 pesos, I can visit Progreso, Laguna Rosada, Dzibilchaltún, and swim in an Ojo de Agua. It was 10am already, and I was to be picked up at 11am. They drove me home. At 11am, before I could eat lunch, the driver was here. Grabbed some pastry and oranges, and hopped in.

12/6-9, getting into a routine: out early in the morning (usually back by 9am), and after dinner (8pm) when the temperature is beareable.
Bought an ADO ticket on 12/6, to take advantage of the advance-purchase discount. Also went to see the Yucatan Cowboys at 9pm on Monday, which I missed last week.

Lots of lights at night. Quite pretty. Paid Jose Luis for another week, and again for 4 more days. Getting friendly with Mark & Amy. Amy was studying psychology in a graduate program remotely, Mark, not sure what he does, other than he meditates every morning and talks to a shrink every day.

12/10 Friday. 2 new girls from Germany. They don't sound German at all. American accent. One is Asian, one is black. They had been studying in Monterray, MX for a semester. They only stayed for a day. Left and forgot to clean a pot which they were soaking.

Concert at Palacio de musica at 7pm. I got the time wrong, arrived at 8 as everyone was leaving.
Walked to the cathedral to see the video mapping. A narrator on the loud speaker. The lights showed the boundy and peace at Maya time, then conquisdors arrived brought disease and misery. People rose up, fires everywhere, and the end is again flowery.
Afterwards, I checked for car rental (the cheapest I found is 11k peso for the day) or tour options for the weekend, most of them are 1000 peso, but happily offered 800 if I buy 2 tours and pay cash.

12/11 Saturday. Day trip to Maní, Mayapán and cenote in Pixya.
I came back from my swim to find out that my Airbnb ran out of drinking water. I filtered water to dinner, while downing a can of beer. Around 8:30pm, I went to see Noche Mexicana again, and looked for an ATM in the vicinity, failed.



12/12, Sunday, Homún for cenotes. Mark bought a big jar of 20L water. They boil coffee every morning.

12/13, Monday, didn't do anything, except for working.

12/14, Tuesday, went to visit the ex-convent and Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Umán early morning. I arrived ~7:30am. Inside is pretty bare. Took a Mayab bus there. It's very close by. At the main plaza in Uman, I saw a long line and bunch of white vans. They are the collectivos for Merida. So I came back on one. The line moves quickly. The van was jam packed.

12/15, Wednesday. Heading to Campeche this afternoon, a different state. Jose Luis allowed late checkout, so I was able to take a shower before leaving. But by the time I got on the bus, I was sweating already. Problem with my ADO ticket. When I bought it online, I was charged twice. I cancelled one purchase from my bank. It turns out, the ticket was canceled. After a bunch of calls and on-line chat to no avail, I had to buy another ticket.

I stayed in Mérida for 2.5 weeks, made day trips during the weekends. Local schedule can be found at SUR Bus Facebook page, out of SurEst station, Mayab, SUR, Centro or Orient bus line. You can use AhorroBus card (not on ADO). Every time you load over 200 pesos, they give you extra 20%. This is one way to reduce cash usage from the bus driver. Many colectivos leaving to different directions near that terminal, cash only. More frequent.

2021.11.28 Isamal - day trip #1 from Merida - Winter in Mexico part 3

11/28, Sunday. Izamal.
Bus line Centro. M$44 to Izamal. 9:45am. I made a mistake buying the first ticket I saw. Not only that, I bought a RT ticket for 80 pesos (2nd mistake). It was only ~8:30am. So I walked around, and found Orient has a departure at 9am. So bought a ticket again. M$33. "Only" 10 min late. Oversold seats, with 2 standing. On the way, picked up and dropped off more passengers, stopped at numerous small towns, all standing. The bus itself is fine, with AC and curtain. We arrived just before 11am.

Orient bus terminal is 1 block W, and Centro is 1 block S of the main attraction: Convento San Antonio de Padua. Huge, elevated, with ramp and stairs to get on its large lawn, surrounded by columned walkways. All painted yellow, like other houses near the center. All very picturesque. The cathedral itself is a bit bare inside other than the gilded altar piece.

Between the convent and the main plaza (to its north), a line of flower-decked horse carriages waiting to be summoned.

The market is just west of the convent. I went to look for Centro's bus terminal, and took a photo of its schedule from Izamal.

Then I went to look for the ruin. I followed Google's label to the out skirt and couldn't find it. A lady saw me bewildered, and offered me a ride to the 'pyramid'. It's only 1 block north of the plaza. You can climb to the top, no gate. Good view of the town from the top. The upper stairs are not repaired as much, so climb with care. This pyramid is named Kinich-Kak-Moo.

On the way back, I took Centro, 30 min late, from Cancun. No direct bus except early morning, so either via Tepakan or Motul. The bus is colder, maybe because it is only 50% full. Bus has no bathroom.

2021.11.25-28 Valladolid, Yucatan - Wintering in Mexico, part 2

11/25, Thursday. Tour of Chichen Itza.
The pickup time is 6:50am on my ticket. I went to the pickup hotel ahead of time, near Ado station. Quite a few were lingering outside waiting for various tours. My pickup never came. So after half an hour, I walked to my ticket agent, and he claimed that it was yesterday. Anyway, after a bunch of calls, a small van came and picked me up, and took me to the hotel zone, a giant operation with 3 buses going to Chichen Itza alone. The guide told me that they were going to Valladolid first instead of last, so couldn't drop me off in the city.

Turn clock back 1 hour when we cross the border from Quintana Roo to Yucatan. Same timezone as in Chicago.

1st stop, the city of Valladolid. We were given 20 minutes. I walked to my AirBnb just to check out the neighborhood. Only had time to use the toilet before I had to be back on bus. Did find out that the ADO station here has free wifi.

2nd stop, cenote Saamal, right outside of Valladolid (~3 miles west). It's very busy (lots of Russians). The cenote is large, pretty. Watch your steps going down the stairs, as they are wet. There are platforms at different levels for you to admir the water. It's very clear. You have to wear (rent) life vest in order to swim here. I didn't swim here. Walked around the property -- still being worked on: ground cleared and old buildings restored. Quite nice. In addition to a large restaurant, there are multiple cafes and souvenir shops. There's a bike rental here. Not sure where to, on a bike.

3rd stop Cooperativa Maya Ixchel. One of the guides on the bus claims that he's from this Maya community. You can buy a asstrology birth certificate hand painted in Mayan pictograph on a papyrus for $20. All you need is write down your birthday and name, and when the bus depart, the certificate will be ready for you. A large gift shop selling obsidian rocks and clothes. The store employees gave demostration outside of the stores in multiple groups. There was also a guy dressed like a shaman waving smoking plants and chanting. After all this, we were led to Restaurante Yaxkin right behind the store. It's large and nicely decorated. A buffet, but you are not allowed to serve yourselves except for desert. Every so often, a couple in traditional dress will dance with half filled beer bottle on their heads. When we board the bus, we were given a shot of alcohol to taste. I didn't drink it. Was told it's very sweet. Among the ingrediants are honey, anise, a local herb that I don't recall the name. Then bottles with your photo printed in front are passed down the bus. If you keep the bottle, it's $20. I avoid all photos, so don't have a bottle.

Last stop is Chichen Itza. The state of Yucatan imposes a hefty price on foreigners. All ruins have 2 tickets, one for IHAH, one for the state. Yucatan has 3 levels of entrance fee: foreigner, Mexican, Yucatan residents. Mine costs a wooping US$26, out of which, 80+% goes to the state. This tour took care of the entrance fee. While lining up for the temperature check at the gate, I chatted with 2 small Asian girls from California who just completed Iron Man at Cozumal.

The main pyramid is surely grand. A lot of people. I took this photo when the park was about to close. It sits on water. Our guide made us clap in unison 3x3, and the pyramid will echo. At the large ballcourt next door, he also claps in the center axis, the echo is higher pitched. After the guided portion, we didn't have much time until the closure. They started to fence off various parts and chased tourists out at 4:30pm. I did go to the sacred cenote. Still has water.

On the way back, I asked to be dropped off at the exist to the cenote. It just past 6pm, but already pitch dark. I waited for a collectivo for about 10 minutes, and then started walking. There's a gravel trail for bikes and walkers all the way to the city of Valladolid.

11/26, Friday, Valladolid.
Valladolid is a nice little town, good base for some cenotes and Chichén Itza. It's one of the Magic Towns in Mexico. Pretty center plaza, great cathedral.
The government palace is open to visit. Go up to the 2nd floor for 4 large paintings of the history of this area, and great view of the plaza. At Maxi-go, the only tour agent who arranges trips to Rio Lagardos. I left my name and my Whatsapp number (everyone in Mexico uses Whatsapp, so I installed it just before I arrived). They need at least 3 person to make the trip. It is expensive, about US$95, entrance tickets not included.

I walked around the city center. Then went to look for Cenote Zazi. The streets around it were being repaved. No one was allowed to walk there. The market is also this area, not very big.

Visited Convento San Bernardino (40 pesos). The original site was built on top of a cenote. Photos of the excuvation were shown in a small room with English description. Nice ground. It was getting too hot, and I went back to my AC room. Most stores close between noon and 4pm.

Got a message from Maxi-go. There're enough tourists for the tour. Had to get cash to pay, otherwise, they charge you extra 5%. 6 tourists total. We were to return 5-5:30pm. I bought an ADO ticket to Mérida online for tomorrow 6:15pm.

Packed up for tomorrow. Threw away 1 shirt, 1 pair of socks.

11/27, Saturday, tour to Ek Balam and Rio Lagartos
I had miscommunication in the morning, and missed the pickup. I finally called the office, and I was told they were looking for me for an hour. But I hadn't received any message. One guy drove me to meet the group at Ek Balam.

Ek Balam (456 pesos ~US$22). Not too crowded here. The guide showed us an orange flower, called Cirocote(?), which the color is used in dye. The most notible structure are the stucco fangs on the middle platform. Not sure if it's a good idea of the new plaster of the giant teeth, even if they were like that in originally. Some round corners. The view on the top pyramid is quite good. The execuvated ground is not very large, so doesn't take long to walk around.

2nd stop, Las Coloradas, the pink salt pond of Sal Sol. There's a promotional video playing in the brand-new modern visitor center, where you can use the nice bathroom and purchase ticket to walk on to one dike to the middle of the pond (290 pesos). None of my group was willing to shell out the extra dough to walk in the heat. Because you can see the pink pond from the parking lot. The pond just on the left side is of a clear greenish color.

Last stop, Rio Lagartos. We had lunch at a restaurant at waterfront. Because of the hiccup this morning, all other tourists were given a free drink. Then we boarded 2 boats going along the river, under the main bridge to town (you can also hire a boat right there, so shorter drive). Saw 5 croc, a couple of black hawks, 4 ospray, 1 flying vulture, egrets (small one has yellow feet). Many camerons, pelicans. A couple of termite nests. An "ojo de agua" - a waterhole with clear fresh water. Fairly relaxing. The goal is to find flamingos. At one spot, we walked over some very muddy shore to see these magnificent birds. A bit too far for my phone camera. They are more red than I thought. Then, we were told to smear this sulphoric smelling mud on to our skin if we like. At the end of the tour, we were driven to the ocean front, to wash out the mud plaster, and swim.

Back to ADO station by 6pm. A litte traffic getting into the town. The bus departed almost on time. It's a large van. Comfortable, but no bathroom. Arrived at Merida ~9m. Pick up the key in a lockbox. No one else in the house.