Day two in Merida began with a leisurely breakfast in the courtyard.
The hotel had a buffet for guests. There was fruit and eggs and toast and a whole lot more. The most surprising part was the breakfast meat: sliced hot dogs!
We saw an interesting sign leading into the pool area:
There was something else I hadn't seen before--a machine that dispensed soft drinks and BEER. Please note: I'm just pretending to buy a beer for the camera. I had orange juice for breakfast. Really!
After breakfast we headed to the seaside town of Progresso. The drive took less than an hour. Kerry had not been there before but he used his Garmin. (Yes, they have Mexico chips for GPS units!)
If you look at the map Progresso is almost due north of Merida, and is a much smaller town. The road leading into Progresso had a number hotels so I didn't know what to expect when we got into the town center.
In Cancun the beaches are lined with hotels and high rise condos. Not so in Progresso. There was a large board walk and long pier reaching out into the water. Elsewhere homes lined the windy beach. I saw no hotels in town. Most of the houses along the beach were large. We did find a three bedroom place one block from the ocean for $150,000--downright cheap considering. But I was just looking, not buying. There was no population sign, but I would estimate it was no larger than 25,000 or so.
Most of the town had great pavement. But the east end of town had potholes, potholes, potholes. There was an attractive town square and the boardwalk was nice and clean. The breeze seemed stronger than in Cancun--more a wind than a breeze. I imagine it was due to Progresso being north facing rather than east as in Cancun.
We ate seaside on a long veranda at a large restaurant. It seemed crazy not to have seafood so I did: a pasta dish with fish and scallops in a white sauce; mixed vegetables on the side. Excellent! All in all I was much pleased with Progresso.
Eventually we headed back to Merida and revisited the main square that evening. There were muscians and people selling flowers, jewelry, toys for little ones and much more.
Merida would be a wonderful place to vacation. There is so much to do in town and still be close to the gulf. I'd love to spend a couple of weeks there exploring galleries and museums. As tempting a place as it is, I still want to opt for something smaller and quieter. If I were to land here it would be in Progresso, not Merida.
you'd be amazed how small town Merida feels when you aren't in Centro Historico. In many of the neighborhoods, or Colonias, you can deal with your daily living needs without having to go more than a few blocks - mercados, loncherias, lavanderias, ironworkers, albanils, all within shouting distance. In fact in my neighborhood we still have folks that sell door to door - breads and pastries, tamales, corn, fish, brooms, furniture, all comes buy with its own distinctive sound or call.
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