A Couple of Days In

Gene

We are finally rested a bit after the wild adventure getting to Merida.  We have settled in and started to develop a little bit of a routine. This morning I went to the mercado (market) and got some mangoes, tomatoes and avocados.  These are all locally grown and delicious.

Since the two local markets do not have real butter I took a combi (a mini-van type of taxi service) into town and got a "barra" of real butter. The "barra" is a bit more than two regular sticks of the butter here. I also bought a quart of plain yogurt for me and some cheeses. I am sorry but I didn't take a picture of the groceries I got in town.  I did take a couple of pictures of the combi.   My driver had his name badge hanging on the mirror.  I was the first one on and I took the "shotgun" seat because I enjoy watching where I am going.
So here is a picture of his ID badge showing that he is licensed and a part of the union (I think.)

I did block out his last name- because it felt like the right thing to do.
In front of us as we were waiting to pull out into traffic was another combi, going to a different location.

The sidewalks at the combi stops and bus stops are often lined with people waiting to get on and ride.  The standard fare is 8 pesos which is about 45 or 50 cents - and well worth it in my humble opinion.  The driver was very nice, as most of them are.  When I saw that we were nearing where I wanted to get off I told him the street number - and yes I did say it in Spanish.  He stopped right on the corner and let me off with a smile.
You may notice on the combi in the last photo that it says "Paradas Continuas" that means "frequent stops."  I remember on one of our earlier trips how we laughed and called it "The Continuous Parade."  And it does seem like you see the combis and buses everywhere.
This evening I took a walk to our favorite restaurant and got supper to go.  I chose Puerco Empanizado - which is a breaded fried pork. One dish from this place is enough for two easily.

The pork is in the front right and is three layers of meat.  To the front left is a salad of lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Back left is standard white rice. In the bag there are plenty of delicious black beans. I really wish I knew how he seasons them.  There was also six flour tortillas to go with it all.  We plated it up and both of us ate our fill.  I washed the dishes just before a thunderstorm struck.   It is the "rainy season" here and rain is possible daily.  The nice part is that the rain cools everything and then the evening breezes soothe your soul.