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Progreso and Merida, YucatanProgreso and Merida have been written up in many travel books, so if you want to know the who-what-when-where-why, look for those books. I'll give you the idea of the cities from a point of view from someone who lives here. My husband and I lived in a small town adjacent to Progreso, named Chicxulub. If I write the information from a personal point of view, it's easier! Progreso and its People Progreso
is a great town, begun as a fishing village, and fishermen still abound
today. You can see them out
most evenings at sea, their small boats strung together, sharing nets.
Progreso has friendly people, quiet streets and lots of sunshine.
Most of the people lead rather uncomplicated lives, many without
telephones, email, faxes or voice mail. (I hear some of you people
gasping...) Some don't even have hot water in their homes. If they want to see each other, they get on the bus, take a bike or walk to their friend's homes. Cars are less plentiful here than in Merida. Of course,
don’t get me wrong. There is
also an aristocracy in Progreso, and they live in lavish mansions, many by
the sea, with lots of staff to attend to their every need.
There is a
central downtown area which boasts many businesses and restaurants, the
central Mercado (fresh market) and street vendors.
The streets are numbered in Progreso like they are in
Merida...East-West streets are odd-numbered and North-South streets are
even. Makes it easy to find
any place, as long as you know the cross streets! A Big
Meteor Landed National
Geographic did an article in October, 2003 about the cenotes (suh NO tays)
in the Yucatan. These are
fresh-water pools and cave rivers in the porous limestone base of the
peninsula, which were formed 65 million years ago, when a giant meteorite
landed right here, creating a global cataclysm!
The epicenter of this 110-mile-wide crater is here in Chicxulub.
So, we are “on the map,” so to speak.
At least with the archaeologists. Getting
Around The
transportation system here is very good.
Buses run throughout the town all the time, and the cost is only 35
cents to go to the center of our little town of Chicxulub (that's
chik-shu-loob) and 40 cents to go a bit farther, in the other direction,
to Progreso. Each bus driver
carries supplies for his bus engine...water, anti-freeze, tools...most of
the buses are quite old. But I
tell you what...you sure can depend on them!
And in addition to the buses, there are probably 40-50
"combis" or "collectivos" which are usually
Volkswagen vans that can hold up to about 10 people, and the price is the
same as the bus. You can tend
to be a bit squashed in the combis, so keep that in mind.
Whenever you want to get out of a bus or combi, you just holler
"baja" (from the word ‘bajar’, to come down, get down) or
"esquina." (meaning ‘the corner’).
That lets the driver know you want him to stop.
Usually, just standing up and moving towards the door will make a
bus driver pull over at the next corner. Shopping
for food, etc We buy our
fruits and vegetables from the street markets, and they are very fresh,
locally grown, and not very expensive.
In Progreso there are many street vendors selling fruits and
vegetables, plus a large market where you can buy everything from shoes,
clothing, household supplies, meat, chicken and fish besides the
vegetables and fruit. There is
also a supermarket (San Francisco) where you can purchase all the rest of
your household needs. There
are convenience stores open 24 hours as well. We still
see men with horse-drawn carts in Progreso …. and tricycle-carts
too. These are bicycles
attached to carts which carry people, groceries, and supplies.
The cart portion is in front, and the bicycle is in back.
And people ride sometimes 4 to a regular bicycle!
You wouldn't believe your eyes...bikes and motor scooters with 4
and 5 people on them...usually a mom, dad and a couple of kids.
Scary to see, as not everyone wears helmets! Foreigners Progreso,
like Merida, attracts lots of Canadian and American "snow-birds"
who come for 3 to 6 months of the year and set up residence.
The 40,000 population swells by several hundred people, who assist
the economy quite well. There
are also cruise ships that dock in Progreso twice a week, so more
Americans and Canadians are being shown the area … if only for 9-10 hours!
It is easy for them to find tour guides to take them around the
area, even as far away as Chichen Itza, the large Mayan ruins 1 ½ hours
from Merida. Food
Places Progreso
has several restaurants, serving local Yucatecan fare as well as fish,
chicken and pork. We are
becoming enamored of some Yucatecan dishes, mainly Sopa de Lima, Poc Chuc
and Pollo Pibil. On
most days, especially Sundays, you can find grilled whole chickens for
sale, served with side dishes of spaghetti or rice, some type of salad and
tortillas. Usually you pay
around 30 pesos for this meal that will feed a small family!
And 30 pesos is just under $3 in the US. On a daily
basis, you can find several “cocinas economicas” (economical kitchens)
that are set up, usually in the front of a home, with one or two women
serving lunch. The selections
are all-inclusive, from juice, soup, rice and a main course and dessert.
Usually you won’t spend more than 25 to 30 pesos ($2.50-$3.00,
US) There are
lots of restaurants where we can buy whole fish, gutted and fried whole,
served with salad, rice and bread. On
the side, you are served "botanas" (snacks) before the meal
comes, and they range from 1 or 2
items, like ceviche (a seafood cold plate with onions, chiles and
cilantro), beans, mangoes-in-lime, pineapple with chile powder and lime,
and tortilla chips. Once we
had 8 different botanas served to us before our meal.
We had 3 fish, 8 botanas and 4 beers, and the total was just under
$14.00 (US). You won't go
hungry and you won't go broke! We can get
2 liters of freshly-squeezed orange juice for under a dollar.
The bakeries in the neighborhood offer fresh bread, cakes and
cookies twice a day. We can
get two loaves of french bread for 30 cents, and if you throw in 2
cinnamon rolls, it boosts the price up to 60 cents!
It's a nice treat every now and then. At the
fast-food places, jalapeños are available to spice up your burgers,
salads or chicken! You will
find all the American fast-food places, if you have a hankering for
burgers and fries! Merida
boasts restaurants for every taste and price range.
As far as American franchises goes, Progreso only has a Burger
King! Usually
a Very Tranquil Setting Most
months of the year, Progreso and Chicxulub are very quiet and tranquil.
In the summer, however, and during the 2 weeks of Easter, the place
blossoms with the homeowners from Merida who come to the sea to rest, play
and party. For those who
don’t own homes here, they rent condominiums and houses of others to
spend the summer. Jet skis rip
up and down the shore, sailboats and yachts breeze by, and swimmers crowd
the shore to play. Traffic
swells to record levels and new businesses pop up on every block to serve
those who are here. Our
house is owned by a family in Merida, so the summer belongs to them here.
We must leave for July and August and see other parts of the world.
I’m not so sad to be gone during this busy period…we like the
tranquility offered instead. About
Merida Merida is
the capital of the Yucatan, and is about 40 minutes from Progreso.
Its population is 950,000, so it is a well-developed city. Founded
in January of 1542, it has retained a
beautiful charm of old-world, mixed with modern world.
If you want an of location, it is just south of New Orleans in the
US, across the Gulf of Mexico. It
has a tropical climate, with rainy season June through September, when it
rains for just an hour or two late in the day.
Maya is still spoken by many inhabitants, and it sounds quite
different from Spanish. I
equate the sound (to my ears) of Native Americans of the United States. If
someone speaks Maya, he usually speaks Spanish as well, so it is still
easy to communicate. Many
people even speak English! To get from Progreso to Merida, you can take a bus that runs every 15 minutes or so, directly from a bus station in Progreso. The fare is roughly a dollar each way, and the buses are comfortable and air conditioned. Dental
Care, Medical Care We have
found a great dentist in Merida, and you can find equally skilled doctors
and other health practitioners. Many
doctors have been trained in the US, Canada and Europe, so their English
is good. We have also found
the
medical doctors extremely competent, and have had many aches, pains, and
sprains worked on for much less than in the U.S.. Merida is
beautiful and clean, with a great transportation system in addition to an
international airport. Its
nickname is “The White City,” as many buildings were painted white in
the early days. Now, other
bright hues adorn the homes and buildings there.
They have some of the most beautiful stores! The Sears store looks
like Neiman Marcus. There is a
large English-speaking community of Americans and Canadians in Merida who
live there all year long. There
is an English-language library which offers over 15,000 volumes, rental
movies, books on tape, and community bulletin boards.
It is staffed by volunteers, and runs well. The first Friday of
each month they hold a social, where we “foreigners” can meet and
share a story and a glass of wine. What’s
Really Neat… In
Progreso and Merida, you will still see older women dressed in the
traditional dress called a hipile (hip ee lay).
It is white, with embroidered bodice and hem of brightly colored
flowers. Many men wear
the traditional shirt called the guayabera (gwy a berra), usually white,
with fine stitching and smooth fabric.
Those shirts are seen all over Mexico, and they originated in the
Yucatan. It is
refreshing for me to see people keep traditional clothing, food and
celebrations in their lives…gives me pause to wonder what traditions I
keep! Not many, I’m ashamed
to say…. It’s
also great to see people ride horseback down the beach in front of our
house, kids running around with no shoes, parents holding their children
lovingly, grandmothers and grandfathers living with or socializing with
their children and grandchildren. Family
togetherness is very obvious here, and people seem more calm and happy.
Grown daughters hold hands with their moms just because they want
to, and men kiss their sons, brothers and friends….because they want to
also! Many
public establishments still have ice blocks delivered to keep food and
beer cold. Haven’t seen that
in the US since the fifties! We are very glad we live here in the Yucatan. We are exploring Mexico, and may choose another location in the future, but for now, we have planted ourselves here and our little roots are sprouting!
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