Mérida, Yucatán, México | 2nd Safest City in the Western Hemisphere? Expats Seem to Like It
Channel: latamliving
Date: 2020-06-18

Mérida, Yucatán, México is the capital of the state of Yucatán in southeast México. It's increasingly becoming popular with expats from the rest of North America. Americans, Canadians, as well as others from Europe, Australia/Oceania, and Asia are becoming more aware of the former Maya capital known as T'hó which the Spanish Conquistadors changed to Mérida in 1542 named after the town of Mérida in Extremadura, Spain. There are 4 cities named Mérida in the world, all named by the Spanish. The other 3 are in Philippines, Spain and Venezuela.

60% of the population of Mérida and the state of Yucatán are of Maya decent. The city of Mérida has a population of roughly 1 million people, although it has a much more subdued suburban feel than that of a capital city. Its main avenue, Paseo de Montejo is a point of pride for the people of Mérida. It's one of the cleanest, nicest boulevards in the world and features a prominent sculpture titled "Monumento de la Patria" as Paseo de Montejo turns into "Prolongación de Paseo de Montejo" or Paseo de Montejo Extension. This fine sculpture was created by Colombian sculptor Rómulo Rozo back in 1956.

The city is a magnificent fusion of old historic buildings in the center of town and mansions along Paseo de Montejo mixed with a flair for the modern, up to date world in the northern section of the city. Catedral de San Ildefonso de Yucatán is the oldest cathedral in the continental Americas, superseded only by the oldest in the Western Hemisphere which is Catedral de Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. 

The same fusion of old and new goes for its amazing cuisine as well. You can go from Panuchos, Papadzules, Poc Chuc, Queso Relleno, Relleno Negro (de Pavo or de Pollo), Salbutes, Sopa de Lima, Sopes, Tacos (al Pastor, Cochinita Pibil, Pollo y Mas!) to Cheeseburgers (and fries of course), Chinese Food, Pizza, Ribs, Sandwiches, Sushi, Thai Food, Wings, and well known American chain restaurants and fast food joints.

The city has Costco, Home Depot, Office Depot, Office Max, Petco, Sam's Club, Walmart and more yet it maintains true to its Maya roots. It has two high-end malls, one decent but rather small mall with an ice skating rink in the middle and also has some older, yet still popular malls. Unlike the United States, malls are not dead in México. Only 60% of Mexicans have a bank account. Mexicans are used to going to the malls. Although, Amazon recently struck a deal with FEMSA (the conglomerate that owns 18,000 OXXO convenience stores), internet shopping hasn't quite caught on yet in México. There's even a Sears here! 

Mérida was ranked by CEO World Magazine as the 2nd safest city in the entire Western Hemisphere after Quebec City, Canada; Mérida ranked 21st worldwide. This comes as a shock to many people who have been led to believe that all of México is filled with narcos and violence; not so in the Yucatán. I must admit that I'm skeptical of any list in general as they can be bought or used to satisfy some organization's agenda. Also reliable statistics aren't readily available in all countries. Also many crimes simply don't get reported, especially in Latin America. In the United States people are more apt to report a petty theft like their bicycle being stolen. Nobody in Latin America would waste their time reporting such an incident to the police, as it's well-known that police in Latin American wouldn't do a damn thing about a stolen bicycle report. I can't speak for all police in every Latin country but that's the general consensus. So if a crime, of any type, goes unreported then it only "improves" the perceived safety of that country. 

In any event, I can vouch for the fact that Mérida feels very safe and has a family oriented vibe.

The Yucatán peninsula has an estimated 6,000 cenotes which are basically natures swimming pools created by an asteroid that hit the earth 66 million years ago right on the Yucatán coast in a small seaside town called Chicxulub. A widely accepted theory is that worldwide climate disruption from the event caused the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction. It's believed that 75% of animal and plant species on Earth became extinct, after the impact, including all non-avian dinosaurs.

I mentioned before that Mérida is a family oriented city. People don't seem to be in the rat-race and it's a welcoming feeling. I believe that's what attracts many Americans and Canadians to Mérida. From what I've seen, most of the Expats that come to Mérida seem to treat it with the respect it deserves and truly enjoy being part of it.

Mérida is extremely hot, I mean brutal and many literally can't stand the heat. I guess every rose has its thorn.

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Attribution:
Artist: Anjulie
Music Title: "TheFatRat - Fly Away feat. Anjulie (VAVO Remix) [Trap]" 
Music promoted by BreakingCopyright: http://bit.ly/TheFatRat-VavoRemix
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