Uaymitun 2025-Blog Post #2 “Traditions!”

Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2025 Winter in Uaymitun!

This blog post will highlight the goings on as we settle in!

Traditions! Just what do we mean by a “Tradition”?

Merriam-Webster says that a tradition is an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior.

Every family has their own traditions that are most apparent during special family times. For us, Christmas includes our traditional Snowman Count, where all the grandkids (and now a great-granddaughter) hunt through our house and now our apartment counting how many Snowmen Nana has placed throughout!

When arriving back in Uaymitun each winter, there are certain traditions we try to keep! Whether it’s an actual tradition or not, before we leave home our thoughts naturally move through what we usually do upon our arrival:

• Wheels down at Mérida International Airport (MID)
• Make our way through Immigration & Customs, hopefully with all the luggage
• Meet up with Diego to get our car
• Drive around the Periferico and out the highway to Progreso
• Grab a few items from Bodega or Soriana
• Head out La Costera
• Arrive at Uaymarima
• Take a pic at the pool

Now one could argue that’s not a tradition, but it is what is ‘normal’ and what we look forward to! Once we’re settled in, other ‘traditions’ are also looked forward to:

• Opening our Storage Totes… like Christmas all over again
• First dip in the pool
• First dip in the Gulf
• First get togethers with friends and family
• Celebrating our Wedding Anniversary with Val & George

Traditions provide continuity, comfort and joy! So we’re all IN for continuing Traditions!

The day before Val & George are scheduled to arrive, we ambled down the beach to their beach house, Paraiso, to see how things were progressing there. We met Lourdes (aka LuLu) who is the owner of Paraiso!

We enjoyed a quiet morning at the house, before popping into Chicxulub to drop off laundry and pick up water from the Water House.

We relaxed a bit and continued the last of our unpacking while awaiting Val & George’s arrival. We hadn’t heard anything since their arrival in Mérida, but that turned out to be a phone problem. Finally, we heard a Toot! Toot! at our front door and they had made it safely!

Another great tradition is having dinner with Raymond and Paméla at La Carolina Loncheria… Salbutes, Panuchos and Empanadas!

Our dinner, with a Coke in an actual glass bottle, included “2 Empanadas Mixtas con Pavo y Queso, 1 Salbut con Pavo y 1 Tostada con Pavo” and cost us, with tip, MXN$ 150 or about CDN$ 11!

For those astute viewers, one might say “I’ve seen that pic before”… too true! Unfortunately, our waiter’s pics this time where not representative our good looking selves, so I substituted one from 2023!

January 8th, 2025… our 53rd Anniversary! We’ve been very fortunate to have been able to celebrate our anniversary here with Val & George! Once at Tecnohotel near San Bruno, once at Humo in Progreso and several times at Hacienda Xcanatún. This year we went to Elio al Mare in Progreso!

Another tradition is my morning chore… after my first cup of coffee on the patio, I head down to the beach!

That day, the caretaker next door had pulled in his nets and was cleaning his catch down at the beach!

Later in the morning, we headed into Mérida for some grocery shopping at Chedraui! We stopped in for a walkabout in the Liverpool Mall first.

We decided to have a light lunch at Chili’s in the Mall

After lunch, we went through the Circle of Death glorieta (refer to many previous posts for details) to the Chedraui Selecto grocery store. The entire front of the store has been renovated to provide more smaller stores as you enter the building.

The next day was bright, sunny and warm! It was the day of Elaine’s 1st appointment with Gaby in Chicxulub, with the traditional pic!

Last year, the town’s Catholic Church had been dismantled due to safety issues but this year the reconstruction is well underway.

Back at home, it was time for the traditional “Welcome Sharon” pic and a dip in the Gulf.

Later in the day, the “not as little” kitty, Gatito, came for a visit

And the finish to a great day… sunset on the beach!

Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 2nd blog for now! The next one will highlight a trip to another traditional spot for lunch and joining good friends at another favourite spot!

Cheers!

Love to all,

-Doug and Elaine