A Day in Chicxulub

Yesterday I spent the day in Chicxulub, a nondescript little town on the gulf coast north of Mérida.  Its greatest claim to fame is that eons ago the meteor that may have resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs slammed into earth here.  All along the coast there are beach houses and condominiums that are owned by well-to-do residents of Mérida.  Since the locals consider the winter months too cold for going to the beach, they rent out their properties to snowbirds from the north, especially from Canada.

Friends of mine, Joyce and Dave, have been renting one of those condos during the winter for the last eleven years.  They are the only ones from the United States in their condo building; everyone else is from Canada.  

Joyce is also a retired Spanish teacher.  She and I taught in different school districts, but we met years ago while attending summer courses.  Whenever I am in Mérida, we try to spend a day together, either in Mérida or in Chicxulub.

In the morning I took the bus from Mérida to Progreso, the major port of the state of Yucatán. It's about a fifty minute bus ride.  Dave and Joyce were there at the bus station to meet me.  It was "cruise ship day" (Carnival Cruise Lines use Progreso as a port of call).  The city was a madhouse, so we hightailed it out of Progreso, and drove to a village called Chelem were we had lunch at a little restaurant owned by Canadians.  We then went to Chicxulub and spent some time at their beachfront condo, and walked around the town.

The pier at Chicxulub is a nice place for looking out at the emerald green waters of the gulf and watching the sea gulls, pelicans and cormorants that flock around the pier.

 Dave and Joyce on the pier

(photo by Joyce)

Yours truly on the pier

Sunset at Chicxulub

As always, it was great to see Joyce and Dave and to spend some time with them!