Primer Año

     It's funny how milestones make you stop and think about life.  We are quickly approaching one year as official residents of Merida and it is time to renew our visas.
     Our first year in Merida has flown like one of the many soaring green parrots that pass over our house most mornings.  Where are they going so quickly?  Where are WE going?  Time may have flown, but it is also mind-boggling how much has happened in that year.
     We arrived in Merida the end of April 2012.  We immediately began to interview contractors to renovate and build our dream property.  On July 1 our selected contractor and crew began digging foundations for our two new casitas, and we were off and running.

We checked the progress daily, we chose fixtures, appliances, and the thousands of other items needed by our contractor, Luis.  We chose paint colors.  We designed our breakfast terrace.  We arranged for furniture to be made by a carpenter in Temozon; we drove to Ticul to purchase ceramic sconces and wall hangings.  At Xmatkuil we found Mayan wood masks and in Dzitya we picked out the pool fountain cannons and our own shower shelves. In between time we even found time to take Spanish classes.
     Construction was completed on December 11 and on December 12 we welcomed our first guests.  From there it was a whirlwind of guests crossing our thresholds.  We cooked breakfasts, cleaned rooms, fixed air conditioners, did the laundry again and again and again, made beds (again and again and again), cleaned the pool, carried home a couple hundred pineapples, several hundred mangoes, and countless avocados, bananas, melons, strawberries, and any other fruit in season.  
     Then, on May 1, it all stopped.  We spent the month sprucing up, upgrading, and enjoyed being tourists, ourselves.  And here we are, at the end of May, and time to renew our visas.  So we stop and think about where we've been, and where we are going.  Are we still enjoying running our B&B?  Has it been all we expected?  Are we going to continue with this endeavor?  Given the demands and our ages, CAN we continue with this endeavor?
     The answer to all those questions is an emphatic "YES".  We have enjoyed this new life more than we could have expected.  We love meeting our guests, and making them our new friends.  We have fun trying to give them each the best vacation experience.  And we are looking forward to what the next tourist season has to offer.
     We feel extremely fortunate to have landed in Merida.  The people are warm and friendly, the fresh fruits and vegetables are cool and inviting, and the weather is, well, you probably already know.  So here's to another year of new friends, delicious fruit, and my own little paradise - with pool.
     And will we still feel this way next May?  Stay tuned.