Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun!
This blog post will highlight the arrival of our first guests of the season and spending enjoyable times with family and friends! And maybe a few random sunset pics, just cuz!
We’re very happy that WestJet has added a 2nd flight every week, on Thursdays, to their normal Tuesday flights. It definitely allows more flexibility for incoming guests to choose travel dates!
Last Thursday, WestJet delivered Elaine’s Aunt Betty and her daughter-in-law Joanne to us for a couple of weeks at the beach! Aunt Betty and Uncle Bob had a very memorable visit with us back in 2016, but this was Joanne’s first exposure to the Yucatán!
WS2792 on final approach into MéridaThey’re here! They’re here!The requisite airport pic!
They came out of the airport quite quickly and actually had their luggage, so off we went back out to the beach to get settled in!
A bit of a wind, hence the light jackets… but…… it was a magnificent sunset!
After another great sunset… finally getting lots of good sunset weather…
What can I say?
…we asked if Betty and Joanne were felling adventurous! So off we went to La Loncheria Carolina on the Chicxulub Square!
New digs from years gone by, but still great food!SalbutesEmpanadas
And then a great stroll down to the pier and back to the square!
In the evenings, the Chicxulub Square is a “Happenin” place!
Now about those sunset pics… we couldn’t believe the one the following evening as the cloud cover provided the perfect reflector!
Complete with a shower down near the Progreso Pier…… and then just incredible colours!
As Elaine reminds me… great landscape pics, but where’s the people pics?
The weekend before our guests arrived, we went to our most favourite pub, Hermana República, with neighbours Dave and Carolyn!
Carolyn enjoyed that it was Happy Hour!Carolyn enjoyed the Raviolis!Very little left of our shared dish of Chamorro Aleman!Dave had the Stuffed Xcatik pepper!
Last Sunday, it was great to spend a little time with Boomer and Peggy as they were back in Uaymitun for a few days!
It was a treat to see them again!
Not actually people per se, but I was able to stop for a minute on the Costera and grab a pic of the myriad of birds sheltering in the wetlands beside Chicxulub!
Many large white pelicans!
According to Wikipedia, the American White Pelican rivals the trumpeter swan, with a similar overall length, as one of the longest birds native to North America. While they breed in parts of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, they migrate to sunnier, warmer climes for the winter… including the Yucatán!
Breeding grounds extend into Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta!
While the following forecast from Meteorologia Yucatan wasn’t for the impending storm… I absolutely love his recommendations!
A special shoutout to our daughter, Trish, on her 50th birthday!
Happy 50th Birthday, Trish!
Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 5th blog for now! The next one will highlight a slight wind storm!
Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun!
This post will highlight some Outings and some Innings!
It would appear that this season’s weather has been greatly influenced by El Nino or La Nina or both. We’ll have 2-3 days of warm/hot sunny weather with winds from the E or SE … and then 3-4 days of cooler and windy weather with winds from the NE or NW!
The above video is what a typical storm approaching across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas looks like! They usually bring strong winds and occasionally heavy rain!
A couple of days later, another storm blew in with torrential rains… we got about 60mm of rain in a few hours as the following video shows!
The rains were so heavy our pool almost overflowed!
In the aftermath of the rains!
The next day, we went for an outing to one of our favourite pubs, Hermana República, near Xcanatun on the way into Mérida! We wanted to check it out as there was new signage at the entrance and we didn’t want to take any guests there if the menu and ambiance had changed!
New sign, but no mention of Hermana RepúblicaOur pub area hadn’t changed…… but the outside patio had been greatly improved!Enjoying our favourite appie… Croquetas de Cochinita…… and a Cappuccino Maya!
That evening we enjoyed time on the patio and the “Wolf Moon”!
All of the patio lights are now working!The “Wolf Moon”!
It was time for a Costco run!
Cenote Ka’ Kutsal, otherwise known as the Costco Cenote!Saw a guide dog that reminded me of “Falkor” of The Neverending Story!Costco HotDog and Pizza!
We spent the afternoon at the pool and on the beach for sunset!
A picture perfect afternoon!Joined by neighbours, Dave & Jeanette and Dave & Deb…… for a great sunset in Uaymitun!
After seeing these little tracks in the sand on our beach many, many times, my curiosity got the better of me, so I asked a local FB group for input!
Weird little tracks!
I got answers that ranged from Iguanas, to tiny little shelled animals, to Sandworms like in the movie Tremors! So the mystery continues!
We finally were able to make our schedules match for a visit with Julie and Curtis, so we met up in the Viejo Bar in Chicxulub near the pier!
My lovely date for the evening!It was great to finally spend time with……Julie and Curtis again!Followed by a stroll on the Chicxulub Pier!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch… DaveP, not DaveC nor DaveD captured this wonderful sunset pic!
Amazing pic by Dave!
On another note, here are two (2) reasons for spending time here in Uaymitun!
Not this…… but this…… and this…… and this…… and this!
Ok… I guess that’s more that 2, but I think you catch my drift!
Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 4th blog for now! The next one will highlight our first guests of the season!
Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun!
This post will include highlights of a couple of excursions to favourite haunts!
We have enjoyed visiting La Picuda in Telchac Puerto and seeing José for many years! Being adventurous, Dave & Carolyn agreed to come along for a new experience!
Welcome to La Picuda!José took our pic!Elaine’s favourite, Camarones con Ajo (Garlic Shrimp)!
After consuming 3 orders of Shrimp, done various ways, and 1 order of Chicken Fajitas, we went for a walk on the pier!
Shark!Excellent pic of the [TE]LCHAC sign and the pier!Dave and Carolyn surprised Elaine with a 49rs hat! The Pier Masters
We enjoyed talked with a young couple from Mérida who were fishing on the pier! They practiced their English and we practiced our Spanish!
On our way back to the beach house, we had to made one other important stop!
Shark 2!
I just have to include another sunset pic! Given our frequent Él Norté storms so far this season, we haven’t had many “sit on the beach” evenings!
The birds were have a hay day fishing!
We are constantly being surprised by the amount of building going on along the Costera! However, we were really surprised to finally, after passing by many times, there’s a new liquor store, Roby, beside the OXXO. While it’s not quite open yet, it wasn’t even there when we left last spring!
The new Roby store!
In talking with a few of the local folks, apparently the Chicxulub parochial Church “Nuestra Señora De La Asunción” was in danger of collapse, so it’s being replaced!
The current church in the Square is now completely demolished!The crane was removing, I think, a large number of pipe sections!
A bit closer to our beach home in Uaymitun, the construction is never ending…
Whether it’s renovation (love the extended scaffolding strategies)…… or a new 3 unit townhouse being built next to the old Rancho Uaymitun!
Since we’ve arrived, we had been to the Bodega Aurrera and Soriana in Progreso, and the Costco, Chedraui and Walmart in Mérida shopping.
It was now time to go to the Soriana in the Altabrisa Mall… of course, the PF Changs there is also an excellent reason to go to that mall!
Anyone need a 98″ 4K TV? Only MXN$30,000 (CDN$2,400)!
After our successful shopping excursion, we headed upstairs to PF Changs!
Lettuce Wraps already delivered… what’s next???
Yes, the Lettuce Wraps were delicious… the best one’s anywhere are found here in Mérida! We also enjoyed other fav’s: Mongolian Beef and Crispy Honey Chicken! Yumm!
The day after our Altabrisa run was very trying! I awoke at 4:30 AM to horrific winds battering our bedroom windows. The power had already been out for an hour or so at that point!
The winds continued howling all day… no power, no morning coffee! I drove down the Costera to the OXXO as I knew they had coffee vending machines. Enroute, near Km 13, already there were 3 CFE (power company) trucks attempting to rectify a downed pole!
The cause of all our problems!
So there was power west of there into Chicxulub but none our way. Our next trip into town to pick up a few things at the Bodega Aurrera showed 5 trucks working.
The power didn’t come back on until around 5:30, just as we were cooking our supper on the gas stove… and it went off/on again for short periods another 3 times before it settled down. We lost a few items in our freezer unfortunately.
In a similar vein, a few doors down from us, the CFE (local power company) had hired tree trimmers to cut away branches that might impact the power and telecom cables during storms. Well, the workers got somewhat carried away there and were lopping off very large tops of trees! You guessed it… the dropped a very large branch onto the wires and took them out! Our friends, Dave and Jeanette were without the Internet for 4-5 days until they came to fix the damage.
Oops!
While the Natural Thangs market in Chelem features local food vendors on Mondays, the session on Thursday has more artisan vendors. We made a trip up with Dave and Carolyn to see and Elaine was able to find a nice sundress and some cloth coasters for the table. We also picked up some Breakfast Sausages, which we hope to cook up soon!
A beautiful lady in a beautiful setting!
Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 3rd blog for now! The next one will highlight a few mor outings and spending quality time with friends and family!
Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun!
Our 2nd blog post will start out by highlighting a visit by our travelers from afar!
Over the past few years, since 2018, we have included posts with world cyclists, Steve and Dodie! There exploits can be explored at https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/dime/
Once again, they are touring the Yucatán and stopped by on their way to Progreso! We had a great visit before they hit the road again!
The happy travelers!DodieSteveOn the road again!
Now on to some daily happenings!
Another beautiful sunset!
It was such a nice evening we made a quick trip up the Costera to our favourite pizza place, Pizza Paradiso!
The next evening, it was “sit on the beach for sunset”! The sky was full of Frigatebirds just soaring!
A boatload of Frigatebirds…… and a gorgeous sunset, yet again!And Cappuccinos Maya to cap off the evening!
Once our luggage woes had been resolved and the weather turned nice again, I did manage a quick dip in the pool and then a mad dash to the Gulf which was much warmer that our pool!
I’m in!
Monday, January 8th, we celebrated our 52nd Wedding Anniversary at Elio al Mare in Progreso!
Our favourite Italian restaurant in Progreso…… with an unforgettable view!With the Love of my Life for another Anniversary in Paradise!Predictably, we ordered Chicken Parm and Fettuccini “Mode Mio”…… followed by a special dessert…… and Cappuccinos Maya!
It was our first anniversary down here in a very long time that we didn’t go to dinner with my sister Val and husband George. We missed them!
One of our distinct pleasures is in renewing friendships with the folks we’ve met over the years in Uaymitun! Of course, it would be great if I took more pictures when we meet up with our friends! In any case, here we go…
Ray & Pam, who were neighbours for may years, are back in their condo in Progreso for the winter. After a great time relaxing and catching up on our patio, on the spur of the moment we headed up the road to Pizza Paradiso!
Another yummy pizza adventure!
After a brief reunion with Matt & Terri outside Splash II, our “Lavandería“, we met them for Steak Night at FACES in Progreso and then went back to visit at their new beach house.
A favourite pic, but not from the other night!
Our friends from two doors down, Dave & Jeanette, are frequent 5 Crown card night partners with us! It was great to catch up and there will be many more 5 Crown nights this winter!
Not playing cards, but a great sunset pic with them strolling down the beach!
For part of this winter, Dave & Carolyn Drexel are living just a few houses down the beach from us. Dave works with our nephew Bill at Century 21 Realty in Kelowna.
During the morning of our Anniversary, we took Dave & Carolyn Drexel, up to the Natural Thangs Market near Chelem. I didn’t think to take pics, but here’s a couple from their website. We enjoyed a Breakfast Burrito to share!
The next morning… trouble was brewing in the NW! We were hit by the tail end of a massive storm system that started in Colorado and caused disturbances across all of the Eastern half of the US and Canada!
Very strong winds throughout the day, but no rain!Fortunately, we were able to still sit outside away from the winds!
Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 2nd blog for now! The next one will highlight some day trips!
Welcome to this blog post that captures highlights from our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun!
Welcome back to our 2024 Winter in Uaymitun blog. However, it’s only appropriate that I take you all off tender hooks from last year’s “Cliff Hanger” post!
If you remember from last year, the 1st unknown was about a building being built near the Police checkpoint… we now know that it’s a grocery store, part of the AKI brand, called MyMarketPlace!
MyMarketPlace
The 2nd unknown was a plot of cleared land… now still a plot of cleared land but with an impressive fence and gate! However, if one were to walk to either end of the fence, you can get to the other side!
Still who knows!
The 3rd unknown was would the new PEMEX actually ever pump gas! The answer is YES! Only a year after the pumps were installed.
The PEMEX in action!
The 4th unknown was the mystery Chunkies… no one may ever know as the red sign is now faded yellow and it’s no longer by the road!
Would you care for a Chunkie? No one will every know!
And for the 5th and final unknown, we opened the door to a new phase of our lives!
About to enter our new home!
Our actual occupancy date for the new apartment was while we were still in Uaymitun! Our daughters were amazing… they worked with the movers on getting our furniture into the right rooms and totally unpacked all but the boxes of pictures and other art work! So when we arrived it was awesome!
While we had visited the model suites before and had seen a few pictures sent by the girls, we hadn’t yet actually walked into our new apartment until that day!
So here’s a few pics from our new home!
Flowers and Champagne from Kris, Andy, Madyn and Daryn!Our Living Room view!The St Clair River and the Duc D’Orleans cruise ship!Sarnia BayOur 1st Sunset!Sarnia Bay in the evening!
And now back to the regular scheduled blog…
On New Year’s Eve, we drove up to Kitchener to visit with Elaine’s Mom and then spent the night in Wellesley at Kerry and Bryan’s home. We did manage to stay up to was the Ball Drop in Times Square on TV!
On New Year’s Day, it was on to the Sandman Signature Toronto Airport for our overnight before the flight the next morning!
Our view of Pearson Airport
The next morning, it was up at 5 to catch the 6:30 shuttle to the airport.
Gone are the days when you check in with a helpful agent who thoughtfully inspects your passports, gives you your precious paper boarding passes, tags your luggage and puts them on the conveyer and wishes you a bon voyage!
Now it’s queueing up for a heartless kiosk who rejects any inappropriate button pushes, can’t read your passport the first go round, spits out luggage tags and then instructs you to go to it’s big brother luggage machine! Then it rolls your luggage into it’s maw and on into the void… more about that later!
In any case, after a shared Eggs Benny at Fionn McCool we made our way to gate area and met up with friends Dave & Jeanette Poisson and Rod & Berri Peters to await our 10:15 flight!
This way to MéridaOn our way!
Our flight left on time and actually arrived a little early. It’s always a great feeling when the wheels touch down and you look out the window at the local surroundings!
And now to continue the story of our luggage entering the maw of the soulless machinery of a major airport!
We were quickly through Immigration and waited expectantly at the luggage carousel. Well, it is Mexico… sometimes luggage waits for break time etc. However, it took a looooooong time for the first dribs and drabs of luggage to appear and it certainly wasn’t arriving in Priority order.
Many folks came and went with their luggage! Finally one of our appeared… yeah! Then more waiting and more waiting! By now a second flight, this from Miami, had arrived and then the luggage was mixed between both flights! Then, behold, our 2nd piece arrives… but now it’s all Miami luggage!
Thankfully, for a birthday present, Kerry had given me a set of 4 Apple Air Tags and I had put one in each of our bags!
So, now I’m trying to get enough cell signal for my iPhone “Find My” app to locate our luggage!
Where’s Waldo… and our luggage!
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to determine from the above screen capture that this was not good!
So yes, I believe the baggage handlers at Pearson pushed all the luggage in except some Priority bags which would be last on/first off and decided that’s enough luggage for this plane! I could tell from the app that our bags were likely on a luggage cart close to Gate B40 in Terminal 3.
So we arrived late Tuesday afternoon in Uaymitun, without our 2 large bags which contained most of our summer garb!
… but we’re here at our Winter home in Uaymitun!
So, the next two days were full of trying to get settled in and calling WestJet lost luggage folks. I must admit, that they were helpful and proactive in ensuring that our missing bags would, in fact, be put on the Thursday flight!
1st morning coffee on the patio!By Noon it was a picture perfect day!Meow! Meow! NoName came for a visit!
Wednesday was more settling in and doing some of the normal activities upon arrival!
Off to rake the beach!A good job done if I may say so myself!Had to dip my toes in the Gulf!Our patio!While checking the propane tank level, had to take a pic from the roof!We saw a couple of kite boarders!Our first sunset pic of the season!Kristy’s personal alarm clock arrived for a drink!
So, after 5-6 calls to WestJet lost luggage folks, many hours of checking out whether the luggage actually was going to leave on the Thursday flight and a stressful 6 hour wait for our bags to make the 1 hour trip from the airport, at 10:45 that night, our bags arrived!!!
Miguel and Elaine with our wayward bags! Hoorah!
Well, I think I’ll close out this Winter’s 1st blog for now! The next one will highlight a visit from folks from afar and our 52nd Wedding Anniversary!
Welcome to the 4th News Post of the “The Ducksoup Blogs”!
It’s that time again! We’ve arrived back in Uaymitun for the winter!
Once settled in, I will restart our blogs and hope you all will enjoy them!
This News Post is also being sent to test out my MailPoet services and to ensure that all subscribers are receiving notification of new posts! As always, should you no longer wish to receive “The Ducksoup Blogs” posts, please let me know and I’ll remove you from the Active mailing list.
I will follow up this post with individual emails, as I will reset all passwords to make it easy for all.
Welcome to this blog post that captures the final highlights from our 2023 Winter in Uaymitun!
We have been back home now for a couple of weeks, so I’m writing our final blog post of the season from the living room of our new apartment!
My apologies, as this will be quite a long one!
It’s been a relatively quiet year in Uaymitun again this year, but we were able to spend time with friends and family in an atmosphere that was almost normal!
We enjoyed having Dave & Deb visit for 2 weeks… it was a time of relaxation and recuperation for them as well as us! As talked about last post, we visited Hacienda Yaxcopoil and really enjoyed it. We went into Mérida and enjoyed the sights and sound of Centro as well as the “Michael Bublé” concert.
Visiting with The Rach!
We also had an outing to Telchac Puerto for Garlic Shrimp at La Picuda!
Great lunch at La Picuda!
After lunch we went for walkabout on the Pier!
Fish and Seafood but no Chicken in sight!Where’s Waldo?Don’t look behind!!!Dave & Doug enjoying a treat from Tere Cazola bakery!
We also had some great food at favourite places!
Hermana República in Xcanatun
We had a opportunity to reprise a special picture from the 80’s…
Three lovely ladies!
… and an opportunity to share one of Elaine’s specialties, “Chocolate Monkees”!
Val, Elaine, Deb and Rachel
We had a wonderful dinner out at Humo Bistro and then went for a walkabout on the Progreso Malecón!
Humo Bistro in ProgresoLooking eastwardLooking westwardOn the MalecónThe newly opened Museum about the Chicxulub Impact CraterWildlife… extinct I hope!Some smooth Jazz!Lots of people enjoying an evening walk!Enjoying the MalecónThe Progreso PierTwo of the new restaurants on the MalecónOur house from the beach! Thanks, Deb!
Their two weeks really passed too quickly!
Happy to have come!Sad to leave!Farewell to Deb & Dave
Here’s a potpourri of other happenings!
Another great sunset featuring neighbours Dave & Jeanette!We have Fire… and actual BBQ’d burgers on my 2nd attempt!
One day coming home from Chicxulub, I spotted a very large group of birds in the Ria including many Flamingos and Great White Pelicans!
The Birds! The Birds!
A couple of local dogs decided that our place was a great hangout! Here’s one!
Soon to be Mama!
When it’s not Wine Time nor Chocolate Monkees…
Cappuccinos MayaYet another!
We were happy to share Bob & Pat’s 48th Anniversary and then enjoyed a night in Mérida including a walkabout at the Oaxacan Food Fair!
About to enjoy PF Chang’s!ChapulinesNot English MuffinsOaxacan QuesoGuanábana Ice CreamOaxacan DancersTlayuda ChefsBucket list next yearMore ChapulinesOaxacan Food FairOaxacan Dancers
Now for a change in pace!
Some minor news on the Uaymitun 2023 “Hand & Foot” playdowns… not really a championship by any stretch!
A couple of unverified, purported winners of a few disputed games!
Meanwhile, some actually important happenings were going on outside Raymond and Pamela’s condo!
A Squadron of Frigatebirds were swooping very close to us!
A few pics from our final few days at the beach!
A very special Brother/Sister lunch at Crabster!Last sunset in Uaymitun for 2023
It was hard to believe that our winter in Uaymitun was drawing to a close!
Farewell to the beach!
As always, it was a tearful goodbye to Miguel, Maria, Jesus and Mauricio!
It was transition time… leaving our beach home, we headed into Mérida to drop off our car at the Fiesta Americana hotel and arrive at the Luz en Yucatán, our favourite boutique hotel.
What a great place to spend a couple of nights!
We met up with Bob & Pat for dinner at La Tratto in Sta Lucia square!
Always a magical place in the evening
We spent a quiet day at the Luz after a great breakfast at Bistrola 57 just down the street.
HelpMe! HelpMe! met Fabio which is Mayan for bean farmerLuz en Yucatán
After enjoying the pool to cool off from the heat of the day, we celebrated our farewell to Uaymitun dinner at another fav, Amaro, with Bob & Pat! As usual we enjoyed Pollo Xcatic followed by Cafe Maya made by Victor! This time, with an erstwhile assistant, he was able to perform a 4 chaffing dish pour!
Victor performing his magic!
One last walk in Centro before heading back to the Luz!
A few more pics of the Luz at night!
After another breathtaking taxi ride out to the Mérida, we met up with Dave & Jeanette and Bob & Pat as they were on the same flight to Toronto as us!
The departure area was totally different from last year… looking quite modern and new! We had some lunch at Guy Fiere’s Burger Joint!
Getting prepared for the flight home!HelpMe! HelpMe! has spotted our plane arriving!
After a good flight home and quick passage through Immigration & Customs, we met up with Kerry & Bryan for our overnight stay in Wellesley.
I wanted to wrap things up differently for this season’s blogs… and I’ve always found that it’s good to end a story with a cliff hanger… so here goes!
There were a number of things we were wondering about and not knowing if we’d know the answer to the question before we left at the end of the season! All but one of these mysteries are located in proximity to all the new developments near the Police Checkpoint on the Costera!
What will this new building be?What will be built on this empty lot?Will this Pemex ever pump gas?What on earth is a Chunkie?
And now for the biggest cliff hanger…
At the door to a new chapter in our lives together!
Well, that’s it for the final blog of Uaymitun 2023! Please let me know if you’ve enjoyed the blogs from this season!
Welcome to this blog post that captures some more highlights from our 2023 Winter in Uaymitun!
First off… some culture for my penultimate post of the season!
Over the years, we have enjoyed many performances of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Yucatán (OSY) in the Teatro Peón Contreras, in Mérida Centro. Unfortunately, the theatre suffered a devastating fire on November 3, 2022!
Below are a couple of pictures from our visit in 2017.
As I’ve said before, the theatre is beautiful!Incredible mural on the ceiling!
Although the State Government has promised to restore the theatre to its glory, that could take quite a long time!
After the fire!
On a more positive note, shortly after our arrival in January, I saw an announcement for an evening concert by the Mérida Big Band at Teatro Armando Manzanero featuring the music of Michael Bublé! So we quickly got tickets to go!
Luis Poblete, Michael Bublé’s brother from another mother!
We came in early to visit with Bob & Pat in Mérida and enjoyed a dip in the pool before dinner at La Chaya Maya!
It was a great visit…… and a refreshing dip in the pool!
After dinner, we walked down to the square to enjoy the Sunday evening vibe!
Before I continue on, I must take a few minutes to wax eloquent about Mérida! There are probably other downtowns or “Centros” in cities around the world that are as wonderful as Mérida! But I haven’t found one yet!
The Gran Plaza is always alive with activities, music, dancing, tasty treats and wonderful, gracious and friendly people.
Gotta Dance!!!!Dave and Deb with the Mérida sign!The CathedralThe Museum of Contemporary ArtThe Governor’s PalaceMy new favourite pic of Mérida Centro
Just a block away from the square is the Teatro Armando Manzanero.
Teatro Armando ManzaneroArt Deco style interiorExcited patrons!Luis Poblete as Michael Bublé
It was a fabulous evening!
And now for some history…
We try to make the trip to one of our favourite places every year… Hacienda Yaxcopoil! So please bear with me as I share some pics!
HelpMe! HelpMe! was as excited to go as we were!Let’s go in!
The architecture of this hacienda is very unique!
The Moorish GatewayThe facade of the main building
The flora is also very diverse here! The name Yaxcopoil means “the place of the green alamo trees” in Mayan!
The Alamo treeThe enormous Laurel treeHelpMe! HelpMe! is unsure what kind of shrub this is!My lovely wife with the lovely shrub!HelpMe! HelpMe! is admiring the Alamo tree and wondering where are all the horses!Bougainvillea frame the entrance to a quiet path
We were able to reacquaint ourselves with Senor Alejandro Quintal Solis, whom has been restoring, by hand, the intricate designs on all of the main house rooms. He has been featured in several previous blog posts from earlier years!
Senor Alejandro Quintal Solis
And now for some pics of the interior of the main house…
Featuring the handiwork of Señor Solis
… and some from the courtyard!
The Courtyard
It’s always nice to have a walk through the factory area too!
HelpMe! HelpMe! that’s a really deep well!!!I never get tired of seeing this!
One of the rooms is now being turned into a bit of a museum with artifacts from the Hacienda and from the nearby Mayan ruins!
A Mayan Stella
I had a short chat with Señor Armando beneath the Laurel Tree. He was able to pass on memories from many decades at Hacienda Yaxcopoil!
Señor Armando!Doug, Deb and Dave
We all had another wonderful visit to Hacienda Yaxcopoil!
Well, I think I’ll close out this blog for now! The next one will highlight family, friends and local favs!
Welcome to this blog post that captures some more highlights from our 2023 Winter in Uaymitun!
As promised there will be an important update on the Uaymitun “Hand-and-Foot” Championship, but before that, to increase the tension and intrigue, a few other items for your pleasure!
A lot has happened since my last blog post, but here’s some highlights!
Val & George’s good friends, Kent & Arlene came for another visit with them. We went out for dinner one night at Crabster in Progreso!
Enjoying Crabster!Our waiter, Cero, who we knew from the Faro in Chicxulub!
We went back to Pizza Paraiso with Raymond and Pam to actually have pizza rather than to just check the place out!
Fabulous pizza at Pizza Paraiso!
Our long time friends, Dave and Deb from Sarnia, came for another two week visit!
They’re here! They’re here!
We’ve been fortunate to be able to spend a bit of time with Roger’s daughter Julie and partner Curtis, who now have a home in Chelem! They came for a visit to Uaymitun and then we dropped by their home one day on the way home from the Natural Thangs Farmers Market.
The whole gang!Enjoying time in Uaymitun!Enjoying time in Chelem!
We also took Dave & Deb back to Pizza Paraiso… yumm!
Enjoying best pizza on the beach!
Rachel came down for another visit with her Oma and Opa… we all went out for dinner at PF Chang’s!
Happy and full PF Chang’s customers!
A bit of potpourri…
Maria made us some Panuchos… yumm!Enjoying the pool!Deb took a great night pic of our house from the beach!The folks from the new Big House anchored their boat off shore for a swim!Some great pelican pics courtesy of Kent Wong!
And now for the “Hand & Foot” Update!
First of all, there was an important presentation… overseen by an impartial judge… of the award for the 2022 Uaymitun Hand & Foot champions!
2022 Champions Pam and Doug!
After the presentation and once the crowds of fans had left, the 2023 competition began in earnest!
After the first session, Raymond and Elaine claimed victory. However, as is plain to see the supposed victors have artfully covered the actual scoresheet with their hands and hence put the final score in doubt!
Purported victors of Game 1!A well-deserved photo bomb!
A week later, the rematch was on! The impartial judge was again in place and has reported of scoring discrepancies, so again, the final outcome is in doubt!
Official press release photo!Apparently they think they’ve won again!
There will be another match before the end of the 2023 season… so the final outcome hasn’t been decided!
Well, I think I’ll close out this blog for now! The next one will highlight some local culture and history!
Welcome to this blog post that captures some more highlights from our 2023 Winter in Uaymitun!
Again, I must apologize in the tardiness of my blog posts, but I’ll try to catch up on a few things!
As promised at the end of the previous blog post, this post will feature a very special guest… but more about that later!
I’ll start off this post with some more “day in the life” pics!
A squadron of FrigatebirdsBeautiful skies!Veggies on the PatioSunset on the Beach!Meeting new friends
As Longfellow once said… “Into each life some rain must fall“
Batten down the hatches!
But then morning comes!
More beautiful skies!
We had a great trip into Mérida for an overnight with Bob & Pat! After a yummy dinner, we went for a walk on the Paseo de Montejo and I had my first marquesita of the season!
Tony’s is the best!
The architecture of the buildings along the Paseo is marvellous!
Lot’s of favourite foodie places too!
Hennessy’s Irish PubRosas y Xocolate HotelDulceria y Sorbeteria ColonLove the doors!
Resting after our walk, we enjoyed the pool light show!
The next morning, Bob and I went for a great walk on the Paseo!
One of those bucket list tours! Next time!Would love to know the history of this block!The reward… Guanábana ice cream!
One morning, on a laundry run into Chicxulub, the sun was gorgeous, the weather not too hot and the pier was fairly quiet… so I went for a little walkabout!
The Chicxulub Pier… ignore the T-Rex!Looking eastward towards UaymitunLooking westward towards ProgresoI Chicxulub! (the Heart has gone missing)
Ornithophobia is a fear of birds… so it’s a good thing that’s not one of my phobias!
Just chillin’Lots of cormorants…… and pelicans!Some drying their feathers……and one out for a stroll!
So, now onto our very special guest!
First, the “back story”! From the time she was a little girl, our granddaughter Kirsten and her Papa played a special game. I would place her favourite toy kitten in precarious situations and then say to her, “HelpMe! HelpMe!”. Then she would have to look through the house to find and save her!
Now, harken back 10 years to 2013… it was our very first ‘winter’ in Uaymitun! Kirsten, then a teenager, was sad that she couldn’t come with us! So I took “HelpMe! HelpMe!” with us to be her stand-in for the winter! You can reprise her adventures from her own blog posts at… HelpMe! HelpMe!-Blog Post #1 “Her first experiences with foreign travel!”
Enjoying the pool in 2013!
Now, 10 years on, HelpMe! HelpMe! is a teenager and as such acts like one! For most of January, she was happy to just sit and watch her TikToks. Finally, we were able to convince her to venture out!
So here’s some pics from our trip down and HelpMe! HelpMe!’s first adventures of 2023!
Just 5 more minutes… I don’t want to get up!Coffee will help!Where’s our plane?Ah! Back at the pool!Not so close to the edge, Papa!!!Oh no! A Portuguese Man O War!!!I’m old enough to drive now!HelpMe! HelpMe! there are dinosaurs everywhere!With Carmen at Splash II
With a little convincing, I hope to have the occasional pic of HelpMe! HelpMe! in future posts!
Well, I think I’ll close out this blog for now! The next one will highlight important updates from the Uaymitun “Hand-and-Foot” Championship!
