Blake and Deborah in Mexico: Merida

For a city of nearly a million people Mérida doesn't really have the kind of big city problems you'd expect. Sure, there's traffic and it can be noisy, but it's clean, there's very little graffiti and it is uncommonly safe. I know, I know, Mexico equals drug cartels shooting it out and beheaded bodies piled in the streets. Well, Mexico is a big country and not every place is like Tijuana or Ciudad Jaurez. Not by a long shot. The Yucatan peninsula in general is a safe region, and Mérida is thankfully one of those rare cities where you can let your guard down and just relax. We feel it ourselves and have had it confirmed by many expats who live here, including single women who have no qualms about walking home alone late at night.

And Mérida feels not just safe but downright, dare I say, wholesome. The young men don't try to look and act like gangsters; the young woman don't try to look trashy. The close families and respect for the elderly that the Mexicans are known for is well in evidence here. This past Sunday we walked up to the Paseo de Montejo – the grand boulevard which is lined with the former opulent residences of Sisal merchants – where the street had been closed off (as it is most Sundays) to allow families to ride their bicycles. Young people in orange vests were acting as crossing guards. Tables were set up on the sidewalks for kids to do arts and crafts. At the park near our apartment there was a live band playing and elderly couples were dancing up on stage, as vendors set up small booths to sell clothing and baskets. A few blocks away the main plaza had its adjacent streets closed to traffic and was filled with families, couples, street performers, clowns, food and craft vendors. A band was accompanying a troupe of traditional Yucatecan dancers as they demonstrated a wedding ceremony and celebration. The latter was just one of literally dozens of events that are put on for free every month at various venues around the city, anything from contemporary music to brass bands to salsa dancing to theatrical productions. Culture is something you expect from a large city, but Mérida outperforms on that front, and puts it all in a family-friendly package.

Riding Bikes on Paseo de Montejo

Dancing at the park. The couple on the left shows that love knows no height differential; nor does it mind having a purse hang embarrassingly around your neck.