A Morning in Mérida

Off to a foggy start this morning. Evidently too blurry eyed to start my photo journal at 7am. This is Pablo at the Santiago Market, where we had nutritional breakfasts of tacos de cochinita pibil (pork tacos Yucatecan style, a little greasy, great flavor...the onion and habanero salsa help cut the grease. If you order them 'especiales' they give you all lean meat) and tacos de pavo relleno negro (turkey breast with a black sauce and an unidentifiable black pasty substance! I tasted them and could not make out the flavor. Pablo said it was ground meat. He'll avoid answering like that when he doesn't want to tell me the truth! I have a feeling it may have to do with blood-something. Anyhow, yuck.) They have fresh squeezed OJ here, which I order sometimes, but with the cochinita a COCA COLA is the perfect compliment! Next time we're going to eat at the taco stand next to this one; I think the food is better.


Santiago Park. This is the park outside the market is where we had breakfast. They love pigeons here in Mérida. Just like in Hawaii they call pigeons "Paloma", or "dove", whereas in the neighborhood I grew up in Toledo, Ohio, a Polish neighborhood, we called them "soup". Paloma is also the name of the hurricane currently heading toward Cuba.


Walking home, down my street, Calle 75. This is the corner store of Santa Clara de Asis. The owner and operator, below, is Santiago.


Santiago sells just about everything in this little space, including Sharpei puppies. He prepares ham tortas (sandwiches) with the fresh bread brought in on tricycle. His specialties are polcanes, empanadas, and other deep fried breakfast delicacies.

The person walking down the street is walking in front of my house. The place next door to me is for sale. It is an abandonned meat market but it has a HUGE lot, apartments, iguanas, snakes, possum, and lots of potential. It is where Buster lives during the day because of all the cooled refrigerator rooms. The walls are all tiled in and there are blood stains spattered around from the meat market days. It is a scene from a horror movie inside, but it has a certain charm!

The Duñosusa store is two doors down from Santiago, and a few doors away from me. I didn't notice until today when I took these photos that the logo says, "Plecios chinos....Plecios balatos" which in Spanish SHOULD read "Precios chinos...Precios baratos" or "Chinese Prices, low prices". It is a play on words, the same play on Chinese plonounciation we make! But we are a little more subtle.

This is the beer store two doors down and across the street. They sell Bohemia's new dark beer, but I prefer Negra Modelo or Leon Negra. The street ends at Calle 64a, which is a cobblestoned and very historical street. On a hot day it is a great convenience.

Luis owns and operates the beer store. The coke frig is empty. He is changing over to Pepsi. I think he was unable to pay his Coca Cola bill! He's a real nice guy and one of the vigilantes of my house. It is one of those neighborhoods where people watch all your activity. Well guarded!

This is not the most exciting post I have entered here, but I thought it might be good to take some shots of daily life. This was just one morning this week. Have a good day, and a cold beer!