Whackamoling Meals in the Art Hub of Yucatan

Mérida, Mexico, February 9th to 13th 2018

You know the whack a mole -game? No? Google it.

It is quite similar to find an open restaurant in the cities I visited in Yucatan. If there is information on the opening times of a restaurant online, it most likely is not connected to reality. One shouldn't trust the opening times on doors, either. Or count on the restaurant being open at the same time you saw it open yesterday. Or at all. And, if the pronounced opening times do match real opening times, they most likely are bizarre. Like from after lunch to right before dinner. or opening after dinner time. The breakfast might be served way to the afternoon and, accordingly lunch only after breakfast. I ended up eating two breakfasts per day quite often. Not complaining about that, though. My advice is to eat whenever you see a nice restaurant open. Just whack it while you can!

One of my favorite restaurants in Mérida, the lebanese Cafe Alameda, open till 5 pm [sic].

In Merida,  I did feed my soul, too, with art. It was easy, since Merida is the capital of Yucatan, also in terms of art. There are several art galleries and institutions there, I'll list some below.

On the grounds of the 10–15 exhibitions I visited, the Mérida art scene is way more playful and colourful than the North European one I'm used to. Modernism is alive and well to the point that sometimes a painting from five years ago looked like one from the fifties. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Also, women in art were mostly portrayed as mysterious and super feminine, which was kind of boring for me. Then again, the gender roles are a tad different in Mexico and Finland I guess.

OK, let's start with galleries!

Gallery Nahualli presents mainly two artists: sculptor Melva Medina and painter Abel Vázquez.
The space is beautiful and so are the art works.
Location Calle 60, between Calles 43 and 45, www.nahualli-gallery.com

La Sala exhibits up and coming Mexican artist, for example the style chameleon
Alfredo Romero and gray scale expert Miguel Rodriguez Sepúlveda
Location almost next to Nahualli, Calle 60, between Calles 43 and 45,
www.lasalaart.com

La Sala also has the most beautiful tile floors.

Galeria Eskalera is a charming two floor gallery, presenting local artists, including later settlers.
Eskalera was the most avant garde gallery I visited, with works of surprising materials and
laconic humor. It's located at Calle 70, between Calles 57 and 59.
Eskalera in Facebook

A crocodile art piece by the big name of Eskalera, Joseph Kurhajec

Unlike in Valladolid, here the vernissage was not an illusion and I was invited!
SoHo Galleries had an charity exhibition Art with Heart with loads of artists,
international but emphasizing Mexican and Cuban talents.
Located at Calle 60, between Calles 41 and 43,
www.sohogalleriesmx.com

One of the most interesting artists of SoHo galleries was Jorge Aguilar Jaar, 
combining traditional imagery with contemporary style.

El Caimito is a small gallery, with an emphasis on trading art,
also from other artists than currently exhibited.
Located at Calle 54 between Calles 39 and 41, www.elcaimito.com

There was a couple more galleries and studios near La Eskalera I was told about by Eskalera's Janet. Unfortunately I didn't find them right away and had to rush to dinner errm to very important meeting and missed them. People with more strength, ask again and visit! Another missed gallery was Galerie Mérida at Calle 59, between Calles 52 and 54. Based on stalking from the windows, a place worth visiting!

And then to the art institutions!

Centro Cultural La Cupula presents art and design in a stylish, white cube
and folk crafts combining large gallery space. At the time of my visit there was
the super interesting exhibition De-Construcciones by Demian Flores on display.
Located at Calle 54, between Calles 41 and 43, lacupulamerida.org

Nice floor tiles here, too

Museum Fernando García Ponce aka MACAY presents both modern and
contemporary art, not that the line is that clear. Located at
Pasaje de la Revolución, between Calles 58 and 60, www.macay.org
Pictured here: Haiku by Wendy Ross

Centauro by Mario Martín del Campo

The scale model -like atrium exhibition space presented works by Georgia Chahuras

The accidental light art piece in the corridor, on display in sunny afternoons.
At the front a work by Jorge Yazpik.

Jorge Marín's dynamic-corporal statues

Pia Seiersen Lorenzana's exhibition Oscilaciones was a rare specimen of minimalism.

In addition to architectural and cultural interest, Palacio del Gobernador falls also into the art sector. Pretty much like in Valladolid, the mansion was decorated with large murals about the history of Yucatan. That's not a beautiful history, as it rarely is in colonial areas. The use of art as a way of information is pretty well done here, I think, and the murals have an independent artistic value, too.

Making it in Public

Using local public transport is always a challenge for me, since the habits of paying, stopping a vehicle and getting out of it are different everywhere. A risk of an awkward moment of  mistake making is all too present. In Mérida, however, I gathered all my courage and asked the hotel receptionist, how to act in the local bus. Here's what I learned.

There are no official bus stops, except somewhere in the central area. You just wait and hail the bus anywhere by its route. Enter and pay the price of the trip to the driver. The price is the same, no matter the lenght of the trip, 8 pesos in Mérida, 6,5 in Progreso, other cities I have no idea. When you want to exit the bus, go and say so to the driver, although it did seem to be enough just to go and stand by the door and/or driver. If it's full, shout "Bajan!" as you want to stop. Playing by the rules, one should exit from the back door, but the front door seemed to be the preferred way out.

I was warned that the bus drivers might be a little macho and unpolite, but all the drivers I met were quite nice, except the one that shouted after me "Your Ticket!", just as I had nonchalantly given my coins without waiting for one. Like a local. Luckily, no one did that after the incident. Also, my dabbling bajan-por-favors were aptly understood as "Hello, I'm a tourist, let me out".

Sunday Stroll on Wheels

Paseo Montejo, the super long boulevard of Mérida, is hugely overstated. Just being long is not that interesting, unless the topic is killer snakes or pay check, and the "many interesting houses, cafés and restaurants" along the boulevard, advertised by tourist guides, are really not that numerous, either.

An actually interesting building along Paseo Montejo.
Zebras on sale!

On Sundays, though, the boulevard comes alive, when half of the lines are closed from cars and reserved for bikes and vehicles remotely reminding bikes. There are a lot of vendors hiring out bikes and I rented one for an hour. There was a childlike joy in riding a bike with no destination, among all the other people, I must say! Mind you, this is not a sports event, more like flaneuring on wheels. There are kids learning to bike, friends having conversations while driving so abrupt changes in directions are likely. Be careful!

Francisco de Montejo the Younger shows when it's time to turn back

Mental Upgrade/Downgrade

I stayed in a hotel which was a fresh reminder of Scandic style simplicity (in Mexican scale). I soon realised that the ground floor rooms were actually converted from a garage, the yellow parking lines still visible. I admired the quite hipster design decision, just wondering why the rest of the ex parking area wasn't used as a lounge – not that I'd resent the empty space, either, all breathing and zen. Oh my golly, my designer friends would be so jealous to hear what an extraordinary place I'd stayed in! 

Imagine my disappoinment waking up the next morning to find two cars in the after all not so ex garage. Matter really matters: those two cars had downgraded my super hipster hotel room to a room in a back of a garage, with quite a peculiar view.

A room with an ex view

Other than that, the hotel was beautiful, quiet, clean, well connected and affordable. Next time I'll demand a room on the first floor, though.

Pieces of Information
• Mérida in Yucatan Today
• Other people exploring Mérida: Food Fun Travel, Hippie in Heels, Aye Wanderful, Prince & the Pear, Sillä välin maailmalla (in Finnish and English)

One Night Stand with Soul Sucking Fish

Valladolid, Mexico, February 8th to 9th 2018

On my way from Holbox to Merida I decided to stay in Valladolid overnight, because of interest but also because of mistakenly leaving a gap in my hotel reservations. It was good bad luck, since Valladolid is a lovely place; beautiful, historical, elegant in a somewhat old fashioned way. The hotels seemed to be a tad cheaper than in other cities I visited – or maybe the valladolidians are just used to posher environments – so even I could afford one night in a fancy hacienda style hotel by the main square.

Softer hues of Valladolid

I quite enjoyed my hotel's restaurant and its Plato tipico.

Even restaurants around the main square are affordable and, at least the one I stumbled into, very good – even though I found myself sitting on a miniature chair by a miniature table, feeling quite Alice.  And, just like in Wonderland, a parade marched by all of a sudden. A miniature parade.

Right, food. There is a dish called Plato tipico, which translates roughly as Hello, I'm a tourist and can't decide what to eat. I ate that a lot. At its best, it can be haute cuisine symphonic assortment of best dishes of the area – and at its worst a selection of leftovers from previous decades' shoe industry. Ordering a plato tipico is living on the edge, baby. If you're a fan of Finnish Christmas ham, you should also try Cochinita pibil, slow cooked pork.

From the restaurant I spotted what I thought was an art gallery. As there were more than five people in and it was quite late, I suspected a vernissage. In hopes of free win... fresh art I rushed in and to the first floor to find something actually more interesting: Palacio Municipal's great hall with its huge paintings picturing the history of Yucatan. Interesting exhibition, beautiful building, nice view to the main square.

At the time I reached the gallery, the crowd had dissolved

If you'd like to visit a cenote, a sinkhole with fresh water in it, placed in a cave / half in a cave / no affiliation to a cave whatsoever, there's one beautiful half-in-a-cave example handy available in Valladolid's central area, cenote Zaci. As the tourist guides and Instagram constantly remind, you can swim in most of the cenotes and that holds true to Zaci, too. For a second I was sorry I didn't take my swimsuit with me and was too shy for a public skinny dipping, being sober and all. Then I noticed the ominous black, eyeless fish slithering in the water, just waiting to suck my soul to an ancient Mayan Hell, so I didn't feel so bad anymore.

Zaci is quite pretty, and in the mornings peaceful, too

Evil fishfolks, pretending to be harmless

I arrived to the cenote early when it was still closed (opens at 9 am), so I had a walk around the block to kill some time and get me an ice cream. As I happily consumed the smurf-coloured delicacy in one of the area's typical confidant park seats, I noticed a yellow church. As visits to museums and churches are an essential part of my adventurous travels, I headed in. The church was still half closed, but a friendly janitor waved me in anyhow.

St. Anne's turned out to be one of the most beautiful churches I've seen. It is not one of those overtly decorated piggy banks of God the most famous churches tend to be, but simple, even cumbersomely modest building, oozing the devotion of it's builders and users rather than showing off Jesus' wealth (irony intended). The detailed blue hued glass painting of the patron saint high in the wall is a beautiful contrast to the rougher shapes of the rest of the building.

In reality the glass painting is way bluer than my camera thinks

The peace of mind acquired in the church didn't last the trial of the Valladolid ADO bus station, though. About the station: There's one gate to the platforms, which you are not allowed to go through until your bus arrives. The gate area is full of people listening to the officer announcing the incoming buses and people elbowing their way to the just announced departures. I didn't succeed in finding a spot where I could hear the announcements and not be on everybody's way, so I shifted back and forth. I have to admit that I had a minor tourist meltdown after waiting for an hour, then being told my bus had gone already without me hearing the announcement, no money back – insert meltdown here – oh wait, no, there it is now, run! – insert one happy tourist elbowing her way to the bus heading to Mérida here.

Pieces of information

 • Other people exploring Valladolid: Gypsynesters, Charlie on Travel, Goats on the Road, Mangostania (in Finnish)

• Valladolid in Wikitravel

Holbox Dogs Showing Their Best Sides

Holbox Island, Mexico, February 1st to 8th 2018

As mentioned in the previous posting, the variety of stray dogs in Holbox is astonishing. Here are some examples. As also mentioned, there's an animal rescue centre in Holbox, more on the Refugio Animal Holbox in a posting by Jessica Salo and on the centre's FB page. Volunteers needed!

This one has a spare eye

This one is striking poses for a dog food commercial

This one is into legs

This one wants some alone time

These ones decided to try some contact impro

These ones are planning a girls' night out. It's going to be rave!

This one had a girls' night out

This one always finds the most photogenic lighting

This one really, really wanted to be cuddled

This one doesn't give a shit

This one is well grounded

This one wants to be a mermaid

This one wants to have my breakfast pancake. The dog is just passing by.

This one wanted to be a cow, but being a dog is fine I guess

This one has a sudden existential crisis

This one knows he has the better ass

Crazy Dog Lady from Bulvania Doing Nothing

Holbox Island, Mexico, February 1st–8th 2018

Holbox is an island and a village in the north shore of Yucatan, approximately two hours west from Cancun. It's pretty perfect place for a not so active holiday. Sportsters and other pervs, go somewhere else!

Art meets life

The melangé of population of Holbox is nicely evened out between locals, local tourists and tourists. No nationality of visitors is overwhelming as to change the place to, let's say, Little Monaco. Once in the hotel breakfast room I realised I was the only non-Swedish there, though, but being a Finn, I didn't join in the merry chat in Swedish (which I do speak quarter fluently), but as usual, let everyone believe I'm from Bulvania.

In addition to overwhelming turistica, Holbox also lacks cars, except some maintenance vehicles. The village is easily walked from one end to another and motorized transport is taken care of by golf carts, available both as taxis and for rent – and in oh so many customized incarnations! Bicycle is a viable transport option, too, especially if your lodging is off center.

Being accustomed to the Nordic price of things, the restaurants were not  at all too expensive. Still, as a rule of thumb: the less designed the interior, the better money for value ratio – not that the food is actually bad anywhere. Especially if you appreciate the healthy diet of flour, salt and fat, as I do. For example, the empanadas with cheese in La Sirenita, quesadillas with an overwhelming dose of my favourite spice, carsinogen, in Abominable Maria and anything with chorizo in it at La Chilanguita are highly recommended. 

What's there to see? Luckily, not much. I hear there are flamingos around, but not close enough to walk or bike to. I preferred Google Images and Oh My Gobernador the flamingos are beautiful! There is also a famous-for-some-reason beach called Punta Coco nearby and if you like sunlight with no trees for shadow and lying in ankle deep water, you should go.

I found the electrical boards of Holbox quite interesting

Holbox has its share of lovely bright coloured houses

I think the main thing here is just to be, and for that, there are plenty of places. The beach and its cafés and restaurants are the easiest choice. If you enjoy hammocking as much as I do, I recommend staying in one of the beachfront hotels, even if they are a bit pricey. Most of them have hammocks available and/or trees or poles to hang your own to. Yes, it's perfectly normal to travel with one's own hammock.

The central square is sprinkled with benches and just enough folks for people watching. There's a stage, too, if you feel a sudden strike of thespianism. Note the murals of the stage and their night time lighting, too! There must be a light artists in the village, since the trees of the square are lit quite psychedelically in the evenings. The hysterically yelling birds give a Bad Trip by Hitchcock -soundtrack to the whole thing. Quite otherworldly, to say the least.

There are plenty of roof top and terrace bars and restaurants around the square, too. I had my morning coffees in Amaranta, a small terrace cafe in the corner of the square. It's vegetarian, too, which is proved by all the chorizos in the menu, hidden in haste with black pencil strokes. 

The highest location must be Arena hotel's bar, where I was lured to by a yellow, glowing trash bin. Obviously. Just as obviously there was a swimming pool on roof top, with a gigantic rubber duck. How could I not love the place? I went there spending my last night in Holbox and it was pretty hard to leave, but I'm sure it was just because my chair was really comfortable and low.

Observing the rush hour from Amaranta

Observing the central square from the terrace of Arena hotel

The duck in the pool observing other customers

Holbox has a superb population of stray dogs. Or, maybe, they're just running free. I'd like to believe that, since most of them seem quite well taken care of. On the other hand, there is a dog rescue center, too. Anyhow, there are a lot of them and they are the cutest, best behaving and most varied bunch of running free dogs I've seen. When I mentioned to my friends in Finland about the cutest canines, they demanded pictures. I obeyed to the detail and now I might be known in Holbox as the Crazy Green Haired Dog Stalking Lady.

The closest I got to flamingos.

Pieces of information

• A lot of useful information about hotels, restaurants and and getting to and from Holbox is found in the.holboxeno.com
• Holbox in Wikitravel

• Holbox in Tripadvisor
• Other people exploring Holbox: Emily Luxton, Delightful Travellers, Vicki's Travel Diary, Vilma P. (in Finnish)

The ferry from Chicuila runs once or twice per hour and the trip takes about half an hour. Check the last ferry before booking an evening flight. There are two ferry companies which are pretty similar. 

There is a shuttle bus from Cancun airport to Chicuila port, see Holboxeno above for details. A lot of hotels offer a ready set transportation, including taxi from airport, ferry ticket and a golf cart taxi from the ferry to the hotel, but that is a tad expensive, at least when travelling alone.

In case you continue with a bus from Holbox: the stop is about 50 m to the right from the pier. There is not a ticket booth, but a person selling tickets for the next bus, starting as soon as  the previous bus has left. You can't buy tickets from ADO bus company's website with an foreign credit card.