Merida, Mexico: A Definitive Guide (Part 2)
The beautiful hostess in traditional Mayan dress at La Chaya Maya in Merida, Mexcio
Life in the Yucatan
MORE EXPLORATION OF MERIDA, MEXICO
A popular destination for Expat travel, it took us a bit to get a handle on the things to do in Merida, Mexico. This is Part 2 in our series of tips to help you navigate this little jewel of the Yucatan State!
A DAY FOR A MAYAN LUNCH AND GALLERY HOPPING
One of the typical Mayan restaurants that was recommended to us over and over again was La Chaya Maya located on Calle 55. Since the location put us pretty near the main art gallery hubs I had my eye on we decided to make it a day.
It was a great decision as the food was fabulous! Very traditional in styling and plating and so colorful, fresh and good. We would refer to a little place like this as a hole in the wall in the US but sometimes they really surprise you and you will know how good they are by the lines standing outside to get in.
We all started with a bowl of sopa lima (lime soup) which was sublime. Than we each ordered a different dish for tasting purposes: pork cochinita, chicken pibil and tikin xic. The pork dish was fork tender after being marinated in achiote and sour oranges and cooked for hours in banana leaves.
Chicken pibil had tomatoes, onions and sweet peppers with Mayan spices and was also baked in banana leaves. The Tikin was a traditional seafood mix of fresh fish, shrimp, squid and clams. Everything was just delicious!
I would recommend this place hands down and our lunch for three ran us about $20 with drinks, chips and guacamole to start. I mean really???
GALLERY ROW IN MERIDA
There is a little circuit of galleries map floating around Merida that I picked up in a real estate office. It was very helpful for our day of gallery hopping as we chose an area where five different places were located.
Nahualli, La Sala, Soho, Galeria Terracota and Galeria Resataurante were within a four block walking
distance of each other and we spent the rest of the day after lunch in the first three. It was awesome to get an idea of what the local artists were producing, clients purchasing in the area and seeing a lot of beautiful paintings and sculpture.
MUSEUMS, FOOD AND MUSIC ON PASEO de MONTEJO
The Paseo de Montejo is a notable avenue designed after the French boulevard in Merida. It is named after Francisco de Montejo, the Spanish conquistador who founded the city in 1542.
It is where many of the most iconic buildings and monuments of the city are located. The wide avenue is flanked by trees and has several stunning stone roundabouts along its course. Many beautiful mansions were built along the avenue by wealthy Yucatecans.
CASA MUSEO MONTES MOLINA
One of those homes, Casa Museo Montes Molina, was opened to the public for social celebrations, gatherings, tours and meetings in 2003 by the descendants of owner Don Avelino Montes Linaje. The granddaughter Josefina, has tried to keep it in it’s original state from when the family lived there.
We loved this museum as it had a lovely gift shop where we picked up some contemporary stainless steel jewelry for myself and some pretty gift items for lucky friends very inexpensively.
The house is beautiful with original furniture, chandeliers and family possessions. It is open 9-5 Monday through Saturday and with a guided tour it cost us about $4 a ticket to get in. We hitched a ride in a carriage for about $4 for a quick tour of the Paseo and a drop off at the museum on a pretty day.
ROSAS & XOCOLATE THE BEST BOUTIQUE HOTEL IN MERIDA
In walking the wide avenues of the Paseo, we passed a little hotel called Rosas & Xocolate. We ducked in to see what it was all about and I fell in love! This is where we wished we had stayed and will do so on any future trips back to Merida.
Not only was it well located but also a little quirky with different places to be steps away from each other. Indoor and outdoor spaces work seamlessly and provide many ways to relax and/or retreat.
It offers a fantastic spa and Friday night jazz up on the roof top. You know me and jazz; we go way back and this place did not disappoint us for our Friday evening out in Merida.
Dinner was wonderful with an interesting fusion style menu in this award winning restaurant and the musical group on offer was hot hot hot! The weather was fantastic and I felt like I was in Havana for the evening!
We stopped in for a quick lunch another day as well. Don’t leave this place off your itinerary even if you don’t stay there! You just might fall in love too!
A FEW LAST THOUGHTS AND THE GRAND PLAZA
The Grand Plaza is a wonderful way to spend a Sunday in Merida. It is pretty much pedestrians rule and the sidewalks are filled with pop up shops for finding all manner of goodies.
I found some uber awesome custom designed t-shirts for nieces and nephews for about $5 a pop. I also found some beautiful small pieces of Mayan inspired art to bring back to a travel guest blogger of mine. Street foods are delicious to munch on as you make walkabout and no worries about getting sick.
Early morning fresh flower carts seen everywhere in Merida
Merida is super safe in almost every way and we saw a constant presence of vigilant police officers to prove it. We also ate and drank pretty much as we pleased with no tummy problems at all to complain about.
I hope you have enjoyed this second visit to our itinerary in Merida. You might want to read some additional blogs from Explore the World. Hey, don’t be a stranger! Let me hear from you on any Mexico plans you got or any questions you might have about Merida. Happy to talk with you about it! Look for the last in this series where we head to beach for a little sun and fun-coming soon! Until next time…
Cheers,
ArtsyChowRoamer
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