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Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Eats Shops and Buildings

Proper punctuation makes all the difference.  I did not eat shops and buildings!  This post is about eating and shopping and the beautiful buildings in Mexico.  And when you're in a foreign country the way you pronounce a word can make all the difference, too.  For instance, Bebe means "it drinks" and bebé means "baby."  Fortunately, Ken knew enough Spanish to get us around and our son and daughter-in-law speak it fluently and were with us on several occasions.  Other times a stranger would help us translate.

Getting around Merida was easy and inexpensive with the readily available cabs.  Understanding how to shop and what to eat was another matter.  I've shown you where we slept in Merida.  Now I'll show you where we ate and shopped, as well as the architecture we passed on the street as we walked to the shops and restaurants.  I've already mentioned we shopped at a Mexico-made guaybera shirt shop the first night we arrived.  We were soon to learn that overly-helpful people were receiving commissions to steer customers to certain shops where the prices were often higher.  My first advice on shopping is look around before you buy so you can compare.  You will see many of the same items in most of the shops or in the street markets like the market set up in the Grand Plaza every Sunday.  You may also want to have a calculator on hand to help you compare the pesos price to dollars.  I was constantly trying to divide the price by 18 (the exchange rate) in my head.   These slippers were  $180 pesos--$10 USD, an easy calculation. . . .
The embroidery on the women's clothing is beautiful.  From everyday blouses to these formal dresses. . . .



This hand-crafted clay figurine was for sale in a museum gift shop.  I did not bother to look at the price because I was sure it was more than I could pay. . . .

 I bought this lion for Olivia for a few dollars. . . .

And this guaybera shirt and shorts in size zero for August for less than $20--a marked-down price. . . .

I couldn't find an embroidered blouse that went with my skirts so I bought this large bag for its embroidery for $450 pesos ($25)--perfect as a carry-on for all the other things I bought. . . .

This beaded hair jewelery helped keep my hair off my neck for $6. . .

And I can't remember what I paid for this cute dress for Olivia which was made out of sisal.  I bought it the first day there and probably overpaid because I was so in love with it.  There are no sales taxes and you aren't given receipts unless you charge it. . . .

I bought a few other gifts that I neglected to take photos of before I gave them away.  Now I'm wishing I'd bought chocolate to bring home for us and a few other things I'd passed up.

The food was good but I eventually became tired of the same dishes because I generally do not experiment when I go out to eat.  Ken, however, was more adventurous and tried a variety of Mexican dishes.  But even he opted for Italian or seafood a few times for a change of pace.  We even had a Burger King burger one night catercorner from the hotel because we didn't want that much to eat after having such a large lunch.  We went to the chocolate cafe several times--that place we never got tired of.  The best coffee was at The Italian Cafe.  We ate at the Bistrola 57 on two occasions.  It was really nice to walk in the second time and have the waiter recognize me and greet me as a friend.  And the night desk clerk in Playa del Carmen who served us coffee the two mornings we were there gave me a cheek-to-cheek "kiss" when we left.

This slideshow gives you a glimpse of some of the restaurants we ate at and the types of food we and our companions had (we were with family from time to time). . . .

                                 

One evening after dark we were eating ice cream in the Grand Plaza (the park in the center of Merida) that we'd bought at the Dulceria across the street (mine was peach, Ken's was corn).  A little Mexican girl (maybe 6 years old) came up and asked my daughter-in-law in Spanish for her ice cream so she gave it to her.  She came back a little later with the cup of ice cream in her hand and stood in front of me so I figured she was asking for my ice cream, too, so I gave it to her.  She ran back to her parents. My son then told me that he'd seen her parents off in the distance point in our direction and thought perhapps they'd sent her back to return the first ice cream.  I can only imagine what her parents had to say when she returned with two ice creams!   Another little girl had been watching the whole scene from a nearby bench and complained to her parents that they never get her ice cream when they come to the park.  Maybe she's going up to strangers now and asking for ice cream, too, now.

It was this same evening a little earlier that a man with a young boy approached my DIL and asked for money.  He'd paid a "coyote" to smuggle him and his child out of Guatemala into the U.S., but had been dropped there in Mexico.  I asked my son wouldn't it be easier and cheaper to buy a plane ticket to the U.S. and then just disappear instead of paying a "coyote" thousands of dollars and then not even reach his destination.  He said it's very hard to get a Visa even to visit the U.S.  If you aren't married and don't have a job you probably can't get a Visa because you are at risk at doing just that--disappearing once you get here.  Even members of my DIL's family have had trouble getting a VISA to visit her because of their profile.

While we were walking back to the hotel we passed young women carrying a load of women's blouses trying to sell them to anyone they passed.  I remarked that I felt sorry for them if this is how they made their living.  She said it's really sad to see some with their babies on their back.  She said they often have to turn over all the money they make each night to the man who sends them out.  We passed crippled people sitting on the curb begging, flower sellers, and musicians.  This musician came up to the second floor of the restaurant in Playa del Carmen, plugged in his amp and proceeded to play, after which he went around to the tables asking for money. . . .

                   

The architecture we passed while exploring every day was striking--colorful, ornately detailed--and ancient in many cases.  Many of the museums and hotels are housed in former haciendas that were built during the boom period of the sisal industry. . . .

                    

Next time  I'll take you to the several museums we visited during our week in Merida.  Until then. . . .

.•*¨`*•. ☆ .•*¨`*•
Take Joy!

19 comments:

  1. Goodness! I am always interested in shopping, eating, and architecture. I enjoyed the videos, and felt transported by the music. I can see you ate very well indeed. A quaint little tale of the two girls and the ice creams indeed. I wonder what her mother did say?
    Everything counterbalanced by the poverty
    The architecture seems an eclectic mix and some do not even say Mexico to me, but are more southern, even central European in appearance.
    Certainly, a land full of vibrant colour and that really appeals to me.

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    1. I loved the colorful crafts, clothing trims, and buildings, too. Much of the architecture was called neo-classical and was influenced by the Spanish and French.

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  2. Mexico is a culture of many opposites. It's a place of great beauty and contrasts for sure. I'm sure your DIL has given you quite the perspective on this. Your grandchildren will certainly benefit from both cultures. Our youngest grandsons have a German grandmother that has certainly enriched their lives.
    Your gifts are lovely and so unique to Mexico. I enjoyed the slide show and the accompanying guitar. ♥

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    1. Because I have not traveled out of the country much the contrasts stood out to me. If you leave the Centro section of Merida you quickly begin to feel you could be in Miami. But there are still little Mayan villages surrounding Merida where the contrast is even more noticeable.

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  3. What beautiful gifts and at bargain prices. Such a shame about the poverty and hard times some people are having there, certainly makes you grateful for such a good life.

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    1. Despite the poverty there is little crime in Merida I have read. I wonder if it's because housing and food is so inexpensive that people can at least survive on what little money they make by selling their crafts or working in the tourism industry.

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  4. p.s. there are so many lovely photographs, I forgot to say I would have struggled not to buy the gorgeously Mexican interpretation of the Noah's Ark!

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    1. Thank you Deborah. My camera shutter button fell off the 3rd day we were there while walking through the park! Thankfully, I saw it and retrieved it. A little scotch tape kept it in place so I could still operate my camera. What a disaster that would have been if I could taken my pictures! I wish I'd checked the price on the Noah's Ark just to see what it cost!

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  5. I enjoyed seeing more of Merida. The food looks delicious and interesting. I like your idea of a having a calculator nearby especially for such a wide exchange rate. Looks like you got some lovely bargains. Aren't we thankful for photographs to help us remember such experiences? I hope you can go back some day.

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    1. The trip peaked my interest in the Mayan culture and history so if I went back I would do more exploring along that line.

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  6. Loved seeing all the pictures and your wonderful narrative. It made me feel like I was right there too!

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  7. Another travelog post - something you have always been good at doing, Cathy. I like how you're breaking up into topics, rather than trying to jam so much interesting stuff into a single post. I loved seeing the architecture and even more, the food! You had some sumptuous meals in Merida. And corn ice cream? Wow, did Ken like it? Actually I'm surprised to hear that you didn't buy any chocolate - that's something that definitely would have been on MY list, even though I'm not a chocoholic at all. I've just always heard that Mexican chocolate is extremely good. And believe it or not, chocolate freezes beautifully. My mother used to freeze practically everything we got at Easter - chocolate that is - and it would easily last us until the following Easter. My Dad's parents were HUGE chocoholics. I've heard recently that the Hershey Company moved their manufacturing to Mexico too. Not that that kind of a thing is much of a news item lately. What a double-edged sword all this is! I'm glad to see jobs and futures for so many poor Mexican people, but I don't like seeing American jobs leaving the US. After all, we didn't get to be the world's biggest economy because foreign countries sent us their jobs. We had to create them ourselves! Oh well, I'm sure Donald Trump will fix everything. NOT. I won't go any further... LOL! Olivia's dress & August's little outfit are adorable. You'll have to get a photo of both of them dressed in their Mexican clothes at some point soon. Looking forward to more on Mexico! 💛

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    1. Janet, we bought their dark chocolate with almonds (sold by the pound) every time we went there. I probably felt guilty for eating so much of it already that I dare not bring more home. Ken liked the corn ice cream, but I didn't care for it all that much. Again, I'm not one to deviate much from what I already eat!

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    2. Oh yum, that's exactly what I would have bought too. Dark chocolate with almonds - love them both! There's something in dark chocolate that's actually supposed to be good for us. I don't remember what it is but I DID read it somewhere. I hope that's really true and not just rationalization on our parts - LOL!

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  8. Great touring, Cathy!. Digital cameras have made such a difference for travelers. No rolls of film to be lost or damaged, no surprises that the focus was off or something had ruined the photos.
    You do have a gift for noticing and remembering details and atmosphere. I enjoy it all!

    Foreign foods are challenging. I remember reading a tour book for Greece and being quite impressed to remember how to recognize Fish Eye Soup on the menu! It was noted as a delicacy, but I was happy to forego the experience!
    My husband traveled in his work and I sometimes got to vacation while he was working. On one trip, I do think one of the women had omelets any time they were on the menu so know you are not alone in preferring the known.

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    1. I agree, Elaine, that digital cameras make recording a vacation so much easier. I usually take several shots of the same scene and hope I get a descent shot I can use. And having the video camera in the same camera certainly increases my chances because you can take stills from them. I need to learn the features on my camera, though, so I can use all the settings properly--but that feels like a foreign language to me and I feel very skittish about it. I bet you have some wonderful stories to tell about your travels. Have you written about any of your foreign travel on your web journal? I'm with you on the Fish Eye Soup boycott!

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  9. I need to add Merida to my list of places to visit! It looks like you had a fabulous time. I so enjoyed seeing your photos and hearing about your visit. Take care dear friend, Pat xx

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    1. Pat, you are very well-traveled so I feel very complimented that you enjoyed my post enough to want to go to Merida!

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