Miscellaneous Merida…

I took just over 1,000 pictures on this trip and while I’m certainly not going to post all of them, it’s hard to choose which ones to use.  So, I’ve decided to just do little reports with no real subject matter.  I will do a separate post on doorways because doors are literally and figuratively a HUGE thing in Merida.

I’ll start this report on night time on the square.  Everything is lit up at night and it’s absolutely beautiful.  Tons of people come out and just sit on the many benches and enjoy the beauty.

The Catedral de Merida is simply stunning at night.  This photo does not do it justice.

Earlier that afternoon I checked out the inside.  I feel uncomfortable taking pictures inside churches when people are there, but I quickly took a few shots.  Incredible and humbling at the same time.

I’m guessing this must be the baptismal font??

And this was a little side area off the main church.

A few people sit at the main door…which only seems to accentuate the massiveness of the doors.

This is the doorway to the Iglesia Tercera…another church just a couple of blocks away.  There happened to be a wedding here the evening I walked by.

Talk about an incredible background for a wedding…

And here’s the flower girl…

This is the Palacio de Gobierno on the square.  I don’t know if the Gobierno lives here…

Ice cream on the square…

Lots of colors…

And across from an outdoor art gallery.  Art is a big deal in Merida…there are many artists displaying their works here…

Merida is truly a concrete jungle.  I guess that’s why there are so many little parks that appear every few blocks.  The streets are narrow, the sidewalks are narrow and the traffic is intense during the day downtown.  While this street scene looks pretty quiet, you really have to be attentive to traffic and stepping into the street.  Drivers are not pedestrian friendly, so be careful.

Not to mention there are plenty of these around which just makes things even more congested.  But I did love the sound of the horse hooves clip-clopping on the  cobblestone streets.

All the horses seem very healthy and well cared for…

Just another illustration of how huge the windows and doors are compared to the size of human beings…

I loved the shop windows and doorways…

And everyone is SOOOOO friendly.  I sat down to take a breather from all my waking on a bench on the square.  This fellow sat down next to me and we had a friendly “broken” conversation.  When I wanted to take his picture, he made me wait until he could put his sunglasses on so that he would look cool.  Haha!

I was walking around town and saw this little cutie in front of me who definitely warranted a photo.

The mom happened to be behind me and when she saw that I was taking her daughter’s picture, she called out to her husband who turned around and flashed me this absolutely incredible smile.  Wow…is that totally cool, or what?  They proceeded to tell me how much they loved their hometown of Merida.  How sweet.

As opposed to this little guy who I couldn’t get to smile.

Who reminded me of this little fellow in Nuevo Progreso.  There is such a sadness in their eyes.  What a hard life for these little guys to be out selling things in order to live.

To be continued…