Now that Cindy and I have been here in Mérida for two weeks, I feel it is time to record our impressions of the White City. In short, we like it. A lot. Ok, now, post over.
Kidding. The reality is that with so much to offer and so much history and character, it is difficult to sum up a place like this. Happily, we plan to be here until the end of April, and we will have still more time and things to discover.
When we set out on this grand venture in late October, part of our intention was to check out different areas of Mexico with an eye toward eventually settling on one and looking at properties, or at least starting to think about it. We have always had the understanding that this process might take a year or two, given that we plan to return to western Oregon from May to October. We had originally wanted to be on or very near the beach, and while our first two locations, Mazatlán and Playa Del Carmen, offer that, Mérida does not; it lies 30 km inland.
Is this a deal-breaker? Absolutely not! The beauty of Mérida, and its vibe, more than makes up for the fact that it does not lie directly on the water. The beach is close enough. We took a jaunt out just yesterday with friends, and while the Gulf of Mexico is not the Pacific with its fabulous cliffs and seastacks, or the Caribbean with its astounding blue, the water is warm and comfortable, and clear enough where we were, which by the way saw us enjoying an entire beachfront restaurant to ourselves–on a Saturday!
Back in the city itself, the downtown offers fabulous colonial architecture and a number of parks and plazas. The city also has a vibrant cultural scene, with an event of some kind going on every day of the week. The city is cheap, safe, and large enough that it doesn’t feel like a tourist city even though the expat community is fairly large and tourists visit often.
Do I sound like a Chamber of Commerce? What the fuck. Sorry, I don’t mean to sound like a Chamber of Commerce.
Cindy and I live in a neighborhood called San Vicente Chuburná, which lies about 20 minutes by car outside of downtown. Our house is at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac, and we’re surrounded by shade trees and visited all day long by several species of tropical birds. This has served as a perfect workspace for us, and the perfect place for me to kick off my new blog and project “Change Without Limits.” If you’re interested in universal spirituality, you can check it all out at http://www.changewithoutlimits.com .
We have been here in Mérida 18 days now, and plan to stay through the end of April, so a lot of time remains, and of course the road is long, but when it comes to making a decision about what part of this incredibly diverse country to focus on for the long haul, we may have just found it.
Note to Future Visitors: Mérida is large, one of the largest cities in Mexico, and the international airport (MID) is easily accessible from the United States, particularly from Dallas, Houston, and Miami. Excuses? They are few.