Traveling anywhere for the first time is often exciting and right after my father died in November 2010 my brother invited me to go to Merida, Mexico in the Yucatan. It was my first time to Mexico and I was most certainly full of anticipation. I really can't say that I had any particular notion or fantasy about Mexico other than as a child my mother often purchased for me, from the East Village in New York City, Mexican blouses that I adored. So if I associated Mexico with anything it was embroidery and colourful things.
We landed in Cancun and rented a car and almost immediately began our 4 hour drive west to Merida.
Our group consisted of my aunt Charlotte, my father's sister, my sister in-law Elaine and her husband,
my brother, Stephen. The road to Merida from Cancun is a rather boring one with nothing that I am able to recall other than stop points along the way by officials just making sure all is well with travelers.
My personality is such that unless I have a direct experience with something I am not one to spread rumours about someone or something unless I can say it happened to me. That said I am always secretly annoyed when I hear people say things like "Mexico is dangerous" and discover that they feel this way because of something they read in the paper or saw on the news. This is not to say that bad things don't happen in Mexico, its just that there is no way I am going to believe a statement that places ALL of Mexico in the garbage. Yes, parts of Mexico are in a shambles much in the same way as parts of the United States are in a shambles, or Canada, or Ghana for that matter. If one is street wise then one should carry that sensibility with them wherever they might go. I have often seen, witnessed with my own eyes, foreigners doing things in another country that would not be allowed in their native country simply because the laws are more lax or even nonexistent. So if driving drunk is illegal here I would suggest that driving drunk elsewhere, even if the laws are more lax, will not somehow miraculously prevent you from going off the road and killing yourself or others. This is common sense but as we all know not everyone has this sense.
There are parts of Mexico that even common sense might not see you through. But if you have some common sense it might be well advised to use it and just stay away altogether. There is another phenomena that I have seen Americans and Europeans participate in that I think is actually worse than having no sense at all and that is the attitude that because you are an American (or whatever country you deem superior) you somehow are immune from trouble. I think this issue makes you more prone to disaster as arrogance is on the list of annoying others almost universally. And if I was forced to choose between the arrogant one and the dumb one to kidnap or harm I would choose the arrogant one every time. To believe you come from a country that entitles you to more, or quicker, or better treatment is alarming to me. I have seen Americans in foreign countries yell at waiters. I have overheard foreigners make snide remarks to inhabitants of host countries that shame them for not speaking the language of the person wanting something. It's really rather shameful to ponder.
Merida is the safest state in Mexico. The official name of Mexico is Estados Unidos Mexicanos - United Mexican States and just like the United States no one in New York declares that they need to move from America because there is crime in California. It would sound ridiculous to utter such nonsense but yet almost everyday I hear people tell me Mexico is not safe to travel to. I suspect that these are the same people prone to throwing out babies with bath water. While I mean no disrespect to anyone of us that lived in New York during 9/11 we, New Yorkers, where far more traumatized than those in Wisconsin say, that watched those horrific events on the television. Television is probably one of the most passive ways to receive information and it has also become one of the most alarming means of receiving propaganda and misinformation. It remains alarming because most individuals do not have media literacy. Media literacy is simply the ability to understand that every single thing you hear, see, or eventually decide to purchase has been constructed in such a manner that you suddenly think it is your idea to buy, see or eventually purchase a particular item. It is a construction of offerings designed to get the listener/viewer to do one thing or another. Does anyone think there is no connection between what the news and political factions have to say about illegal aliens (mostly Mexicans) and the fact that you might believe that all of Mexico is dangerous? An interesting report on the subject can be found here through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA. It is wordy
and for those that have footnote phobias I apologize, but it is written in simple language and explores what I mean by propaganda and false constructs.
The first thing I noticed after arriving in Merida was that it appeared that most of the building fronts all looked the same, and to be quite honest my initial reaction was to decide it boring to look at. That was, until I entered the home that we were to stay for three weeks. Beautiful does not describe this home and while I am well aware that we were renting the place, and it was therefore expected to be at a certain level of universal comfort, the place was nonetheless gorgeous and grand. The front entry had ceilings that were 25 foot high and the kitchen area was airy and large so that one could have space to cook tasty morsels. The second two bedrooms, where my aunt and I stayed, was across a small garden and in the back, in what I later learned where called 'in-law' housing. Surrounding the entire place were high walls in gorgeous stucco. I could not see our neighbour nor they us.
I am a large woman who grew up in tiny NYC apartments. Apartments that often required a bend here, or a sideways turn there, to navigate. For the average New Yorker this is a part of life if you want furniture in your living space. In Mexico I suddenly had space. I could walk through a room and not have to sidestep an obstacle. The ceilings where high enough that even indoors I felt as though I were outdoors. I was instantly smitten. There was a grandeur there that whispered into my ear: O sweet life I've finally found you! I found myself standing taller and my unconscious worry about taking up too much space with my girth disappeared. Suddenly I was petite.
Behind every one of those somewhat drab uniform facades is a treasure to be found. Some open up to small humble abodes and others open up to palaces. I have been in homes that open up to private gardens or indoor personal garages. I have never seen the same layout twice and after seeing the 30 or so residences that I saw, I was convinced that Merida is an elegant if not historically significant place. This might also be why small hordes of people are rushing down there and snapping up properties left and right. What I really want to impart about these homes, and which differs greatly from American layouts, is that in America ostentatiousness is meant to be shown off. If you plunk a million down for a house in America or Canada everyone in the neighbourhood is going to know about it because everyone can see it. In Merida, you have to get an invite from me to see how beautiful my home is. What this also means, to a certain extent, is that the more affluent live side by side with the less affluent and I can not help but believe that this is a good thing. Things like 'White flight' and ghettos sort of disappear and we all become equal in a way.
Another architectural detail about Merida are the Pasta Tiles. This link gives a nice history of the tiles but below are some examples that have not been buffed up yet. They are simply gorgeous and add to the opulence of these grand homes.
Sometimes the tiles are wall to wall but in many homes you will see them splashed on the floor as though a carpet has been placed. It is easy to imagine that a table once stood over the area when the tiles appear to be placed in the middle of a room. In the warmer tropical climate of Merida, the pasta tiles are cool, offering a nice foot chill for the body.
In my next post I will delve more into historical issues as well as things to do in Merida. Come along for the adventure.
Continued in Part ll of Mexican Shenanigans
We landed in Cancun and rented a car and almost immediately began our 4 hour drive west to Merida.
Our group consisted of my aunt Charlotte, my father's sister, my sister in-law Elaine and her husband,
my brother, Stephen. The road to Merida from Cancun is a rather boring one with nothing that I am able to recall other than stop points along the way by officials just making sure all is well with travelers.
My personality is such that unless I have a direct experience with something I am not one to spread rumours about someone or something unless I can say it happened to me. That said I am always secretly annoyed when I hear people say things like "Mexico is dangerous" and discover that they feel this way because of something they read in the paper or saw on the news. This is not to say that bad things don't happen in Mexico, its just that there is no way I am going to believe a statement that places ALL of Mexico in the garbage. Yes, parts of Mexico are in a shambles much in the same way as parts of the United States are in a shambles, or Canada, or Ghana for that matter. If one is street wise then one should carry that sensibility with them wherever they might go. I have often seen, witnessed with my own eyes, foreigners doing things in another country that would not be allowed in their native country simply because the laws are more lax or even nonexistent. So if driving drunk is illegal here I would suggest that driving drunk elsewhere, even if the laws are more lax, will not somehow miraculously prevent you from going off the road and killing yourself or others. This is common sense but as we all know not everyone has this sense.
There are parts of Mexico that even common sense might not see you through. But if you have some common sense it might be well advised to use it and just stay away altogether. There is another phenomena that I have seen Americans and Europeans participate in that I think is actually worse than having no sense at all and that is the attitude that because you are an American (or whatever country you deem superior) you somehow are immune from trouble. I think this issue makes you more prone to disaster as arrogance is on the list of annoying others almost universally. And if I was forced to choose between the arrogant one and the dumb one to kidnap or harm I would choose the arrogant one every time. To believe you come from a country that entitles you to more, or quicker, or better treatment is alarming to me. I have seen Americans in foreign countries yell at waiters. I have overheard foreigners make snide remarks to inhabitants of host countries that shame them for not speaking the language of the person wanting something. It's really rather shameful to ponder.
Merida is the safest state in Mexico. The official name of Mexico is Estados Unidos Mexicanos - United Mexican States and just like the United States no one in New York declares that they need to move from America because there is crime in California. It would sound ridiculous to utter such nonsense but yet almost everyday I hear people tell me Mexico is not safe to travel to. I suspect that these are the same people prone to throwing out babies with bath water. While I mean no disrespect to anyone of us that lived in New York during 9/11 we, New Yorkers, where far more traumatized than those in Wisconsin say, that watched those horrific events on the television. Television is probably one of the most passive ways to receive information and it has also become one of the most alarming means of receiving propaganda and misinformation. It remains alarming because most individuals do not have media literacy. Media literacy is simply the ability to understand that every single thing you hear, see, or eventually decide to purchase has been constructed in such a manner that you suddenly think it is your idea to buy, see or eventually purchase a particular item. It is a construction of offerings designed to get the listener/viewer to do one thing or another. Does anyone think there is no connection between what the news and political factions have to say about illegal aliens (mostly Mexicans) and the fact that you might believe that all of Mexico is dangerous? An interesting report on the subject can be found here through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA. It is wordy
and for those that have footnote phobias I apologize, but it is written in simple language and explores what I mean by propaganda and false constructs.
The first thing I noticed after arriving in Merida was that it appeared that most of the building fronts all looked the same, and to be quite honest my initial reaction was to decide it boring to look at. That was, until I entered the home that we were to stay for three weeks. Beautiful does not describe this home and while I am well aware that we were renting the place, and it was therefore expected to be at a certain level of universal comfort, the place was nonetheless gorgeous and grand. The front entry had ceilings that were 25 foot high and the kitchen area was airy and large so that one could have space to cook tasty morsels. The second two bedrooms, where my aunt and I stayed, was across a small garden and in the back, in what I later learned where called 'in-law' housing. Surrounding the entire place were high walls in gorgeous stucco. I could not see our neighbour nor they us.
I am a large woman who grew up in tiny NYC apartments. Apartments that often required a bend here, or a sideways turn there, to navigate. For the average New Yorker this is a part of life if you want furniture in your living space. In Mexico I suddenly had space. I could walk through a room and not have to sidestep an obstacle. The ceilings where high enough that even indoors I felt as though I were outdoors. I was instantly smitten. There was a grandeur there that whispered into my ear: O sweet life I've finally found you! I found myself standing taller and my unconscious worry about taking up too much space with my girth disappeared. Suddenly I was petite.
Behind every one of those somewhat drab uniform facades is a treasure to be found. Some open up to small humble abodes and others open up to palaces. I have been in homes that open up to private gardens or indoor personal garages. I have never seen the same layout twice and after seeing the 30 or so residences that I saw, I was convinced that Merida is an elegant if not historically significant place. This might also be why small hordes of people are rushing down there and snapping up properties left and right. What I really want to impart about these homes, and which differs greatly from American layouts, is that in America ostentatiousness is meant to be shown off. If you plunk a million down for a house in America or Canada everyone in the neighbourhood is going to know about it because everyone can see it. In Merida, you have to get an invite from me to see how beautiful my home is. What this also means, to a certain extent, is that the more affluent live side by side with the less affluent and I can not help but believe that this is a good thing. Things like 'White flight' and ghettos sort of disappear and we all become equal in a way.
Another architectural detail about Merida are the Pasta Tiles. This link gives a nice history of the tiles but below are some examples that have not been buffed up yet. They are simply gorgeous and add to the opulence of these grand homes.
 |
| Pasta Tiles in a Front Entry |
 |
| Tiles in a Dining Area |
 |
| Tiles in a Bedroom |
 |
| More Bedroom Tiles. |
In my next post I will delve more into historical issues as well as things to do in Merida. Come along for the adventure.
Continued in Part ll of Mexican Shenanigans
Comments
"the more affluent live side by side with the less affluent and I can not help but believe that this is a good thing. Things like 'White flight' and ghettos sort of disappear and we all become equal in a way."
But since you put it that way, it kind of makes sense that all of Mexico is like that and that is part of what makes it such a comfortable place to be, despite the constant fear mongering of the american press.