PHOTO GALLERY TWO (Family Reunion)

PHOTO GALLERY THREE (Mayan Ruins, Museum)

PHOTO GALLERY FOUR (Merida, Anthropology Museum, Dances)

PHOTO GALLERY FIVE (Progreso Malecon)

Day Six

Rain. And word of a tropical depression by Cuba. Everybody is watching it closely, because it could turn into a hurricane. And it's only May! That doesn't bode well for the storm season this year.

So, not much to do. Slept in a bit, hung around the hotel. When the rain finally cleared we decided to take a chance and go into Merida again, this time just Rocio, Julie, and I. Turns out there was no rain in Merida, so we had a nice day there together.

There are guys that have these quaint little horse-drawn carriages, so we decided it would be a nice touristy thing to do and bought a ride on one. What I didn't realize was just how far the ride was going to be. I thought he was going to take us back to Progreso. But he finally turned around and took us back. And though the carriage looked cute and quaint, I can't imagine having to use one for regular transportation. Merida has lots of cobblestone streets. Bump bump bump bump. I think my kidneys are bruised. And I was actually getting a little motion-sickness, and I NEVER get motion sickness!

After the ride, we walked for about a million blocks. Hit a few stores, picked up gifts for friends and family back home. Some tequila, a Panama hat for my Dad, etc. We went to this place called an artisans center, sort of like a flea market only the sellers are like the guys on the commodities floor. High-pressure sales all the way. They sniff a mark and they'll follow you around the place trying to MAKE you buy something. Buy product A, and they'll yank out two or three other items to accessorize it. Oh, and they sell bugs. They take these cool-looking beetles and paste rhinestones on them, and attach a little chain with a hook on it. You attach and hook to your clothes and you have living jewelry that wanders around on your shoulder. Neat idea, but I bet it would throw US Customs into apoplexy. Like in the movie Monsters, Inc. where the guy comes back with a kid's sock on his back.

There was one fellow, where we were looking at traditional hipils (a very elaborately embroidered dress common in the Yucatan) and were trying to find one for my Mom. Americans are bigger in almost every dimension from Yucatecans, so that was the first challenge. Rocio was using me as a mannequin, since while I'm bigger around than most I'm the right height to measure the length of the dress.

Anyway, this one guy smelled a sale, and he turned on the pressure. All of the dialog was in Spanish, so it's mostly between Rocio and the seller. We found a dress that was the right size, but the design was not what we were looking for; no matter, he had it packaged up, in her hands, and had her reaching for her money when I stopped her. Of course, as soon as I said something, the price dropped again. We kept trying to explain, price wasn't the issue, it was that it wasn't what we wanted.... we finally had to just walk away. But I have to give the guy credit, he's a great salesman. We practically had to run out of the place, once all the other vendors smelled a mark. That was an interesting cultural experience!

We walked a bit more. There are a lot of shops selling cellular phones. We found one place that must have been selling stuff that was Japanese market, because I'd never seen anything like them in the States. Tiny, tiny phones, about half the size of a typical flip-phone in the US. I'm wondering if I could move the chip from my phone into them and make them work. Just the neatest little things. I'm afraid to ask, because I suspect the answer would be “yes it will work” even if they had no idea whether it would work.

A word on getting around in Merida. NOT handicap-accessible. Lots of bumps, ledges, holes, gutters, and sidewalks are very narrow. It really reminded me of the French Quarter in New Orleans. But trying to maneuver Julie in her wheelchair was a real challenge. I hope the chair survives the trip!

We finally turned the corner where the vans to Progreso were parked and walked into the garage. We had no sooner stepped inside than the sky just opened up, pouring rain. Providence. Trip back was uneventful.

Once back at the hotel we decided to order Domino's Pizza for dinner. Yes, Progreso has a Domino's. The pizza is a little different, but still good. It comes with Salsa Picante and Salsa Verde. The Verde was actually pretty good. The texture of the cheese is a bit different, and it had green olives instead of black. I'm not sure about what other toppings it might have had – we ordered the supreme, but all in all it was very good. We shared with the hotel staff and chased it with cold Dos Equis. Almost like home.

Day Seven

Rocio's cousin took us on a drive today up the coast, from Progreso to Puerto Telchak. There are some amazing homes along what's become known as the Emerald Coast, or the Emerald Riviera. Lots of the old-money, very wealthy people from Merida have beach houses along this coast, along with the new residents from the USA and Canada. It almost looks like Malibu in some areas.

The first stop was an outlook that was for observing flamingos. Unfortunately, there weren't any in residence when we stopped. However, we did get to see a couple big flocks in flight, which was unique because I usually see flamingos at Busch Gardens and they're just standing around looking pretty. This was the first time we'd ever seen them in flight, and it was like big flickering pink clouds.

We went through several towns on the way. The first was Chicxulub, which is where they discovered the evidence of the big meteorite that formed the Gulf of Mexico. It's a very small village, but nice and quiet, with some of the biggest speed bumps I've ever seen. I don't think I could even drive through here in my Mustang without tearing the bottom out of it.

A few miles past Chicxulub was a turnoff for Xcampo, an archaeological site featuring some Mayan ruins. This site is particularly interesting because it's almost like it's only just been discovered. It creeps out of the jungle, with a plaza featuring a palace and a couple pyramids. This was a small town which harvested salt from the sea that was sold to neighboring Mayan cities. The locals still do that today, and you can see the evaporating pool where the sea salt is gathered. One of the things you don't often hear in the glamor of discovering a lost city is the snakes and mosquitoes. I think if you stood still long enough, the mosquitoes would just pick you up and fly you to the top of the pyramids. And while I was nosing around I found a snake skin that was at least three feet long. I didn't stick around looking for it's owner.

From Xcampo, we drove a bit further into Puerto Telchak, another small village. Took some pictures of the lighthouse and beach, and had to take a picture of another Roachzilla, to prove that I'm not exaggerating. Then we got back in the car and returned to Progreso.