To make up for the fact that I have little to write about concerning things I've done today, I have been making a mental list of facts to know about Merida that I've been picking up as I go. Here's some of those things
#1 About the bus system
- Every bus ride is $6 pesos (essentially less than $1 American dollar), and you can't get a bus transfer ticket unlike the buses I'm familiar with in Utah.
- Unlike U.S. buses, you don't have to have exact change to get on a bus. You just give them whatever peso coins/bills you have and they'll give you back change.
- It's a bumpy experience to be on; rarely am I able to do homework or writing or anything similar while riding one of these automobiles.
- Typically you have to flag down the bus you need by sticking out your arm towards the road so the driver can see you and stop. There are actually very few stops with a sign by them that say, "Paso de Camion" ("Bus Stop").
- There are a few different buses/bus companies around, so you have to have a map and learn which ones will take you which way. All the buses except one go to and pass through el centro.
#2: About marketplaces and stores
- There are both tiendas (stores) and vendedores ambulantes (walking salespeople) in el centro. In other marketplace areas there are people that have set up little stalls to display items for sale.
- The vendedores ambulantes tend to sell homemade items like jewelry, bags, belts, shoes, etc., and since this is Mayan area, they do look quite lovely.
- Stores tend to have set prices, although with some of them you can talk them into lowering the price. You can almost always barter to lower the price with the walking salespeople and those that have stalls set up. Bartering is MUCH easier to do when you're buying more than one item from them.
- Usually the woven goods, especially hammocks, are lower quality buying one from a vendedor ambulante than from a specialty store like La Poblana (which is in el centro) or La Casa de Artesianas.
- There are a lot of 24-hour stores set up around Merida; the primary one is OXXO (pronounced OHX-oh), and it's essentially like Wal-Greens but more readily found.
- A company called "telcel" essentially has a monopoly on the cell phone business, so I got a temporary cell phone from there since a) telcel buildings are everywhere and b) they have the best deals.
#3: About food in Merida
- Surprisingly, Merida food isn't quite as spicy as I thought it would be. The spiciest things I've had here are a couple types of salsa (which were really mild and didn't bother me much) and mole (pronounced MOL-ay, and it's super spicy).
- Sour cream isn't whipped and stuck into tubs like it is in the U.S. Rather, it's more liquid and packaged in tiny boxes so you can pour the cream onto a taco or quesadilla or whatever you want. I also think it tastes better than U.S. sour cream.
- Typically lunch is the biggest meal of the day with breakfast and dinner being smaller, which is rather the opposite of the U.S. Because of this I tend to eat more traditional Mexican food during lunchtime than at breakfast or dinner.
#4: About pesos and the peso-dollar exchange rate
- The symbol to designate pesos is the same as it is for U.S. dollars ($). It took about a day for me to get that down, since it was kind of confusing at first.
- $1 U.S. dollar is worth about $7-$10 pesos, relatively (I personally remember $10 to make the math easier for myself).
- Things like technological devices, CDs and regular clothes tend to be cheaper down here than at home. Other things like museum entrance fees and eating out at restaurants cost about the same as they do in the U.S.
- For changing U.S. dollars to pesos, it's best to do so at a bank AND a passport is needed to be able to do so.
That's what I've got for now as a list, and maybe I'll do more of these in the future.
Hasta la vista, ya'll!
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