Merida

November 26, 2021

After three months in Mexico, Leigh eventually got around to having a Tequila Sunrise for her sundowner yesterday evening. Although it had its origins as a twist on the Singapore Sling at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in the 1930s and was later popularized by the Rolling Stones while recording "Exile on Main Street" in San Francisco in the 1970s, the name suggest one should try it somewhere in Mexico.

It is amazing how quickly things can change. Last night we read of the Omicron variant that has been discovered in Botswana on Tuesday and then South Africa on Wednesday. The South African health authorities presented the depressing news on Thursday (yesterday) so by the time we started cycling this morning our minds had already drifted back to March last year and the six weeks that it took for us to get back home.

After thirty three kilometers we arrived at and intersection from which we may have been able to ride a road marked on Google as private to Xuux Eek. I chatted to a man who was standing at the intersection and he wasn't sure whether we could or not.

At this point our worry genes kicked in and we decided that it might be prudent to get to Cancun as soon as possible in case we ended up in the situation where borders would be closed and flights prohibited. So we struck out for Merida from where we would be able to bus to Cancun, the closest airport from where we can get flights to South Africa.

If there is one fault that Mexico has, it is the habit of dumping litter along the roadsides. The worst items are plastic bottles and disposable nappies (diapers to you folk on the other side of the ditch). Clearly the possibility of a heavy fine isn't a deterrent.

Despite Uman being an ugly industrial town, its main church was quite eye catching.

Once again we had to contend with a headwind but we had a strong and mildly enjoyable ride along the 261 until the dreary industrial town of Uman. Here we stopped for a plastic sandwhich from an OXXO for lunch before arriving in the historical center of Merida mid afternoon. The Hotel Gobernador had been advertising all along the route into the city so that is where we have ended up. Tomorrow we will head to the ADO bus terminal and catch a bus to Cancun from where we hope to be able to fly back to South Africa as soon as possible..

Today's ride: 78 km (48 miles)
Total: 2,699 km (1,676 miles)

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Andrea BrownI immediately thought of you two when we heard the news on Friday about the Omicron variant. Many kudos to the South African scientists that first identified it. Let's hope it is neither more virulent, infectious, or virus-resistant. Good luck!
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2 years ago

Jean-Marc StrydomTo Andrea BrownThanks Andrea. We're a bit frazzled and rather tired at the moment after a restless night. But when we think of the poor folk stuck in Belarus trying to get into Poland we realise how insignificant our "problem" really is. Hopefully we will get new from Lufthansa tomorrow as to whether we can fly back to SA or not.
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2 years ago

Andrea BrownTo Jean-Marc StrydomThat really puts it into perspective, doesn't it? I hope all goes well for you. There are worse places to be stuck in than the Yucatan but it's better if it's by choice rather than necessity. We left Thailand in late January of 2020 and it felt like gates closing behind us all the way home, an unsettling feeling. Of course we had no idea at the time the scale this pandemic would take. Knock on wood we've stayed healthy so far, and I hope you two will also.
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2 years ago

Scott AndersonLike Andrea, I too immediately thought of you two when they started announcing travel bans. Good luck!
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2 years ago

Jean-Marc StrydomTo Scott AndersonThanks Scott.
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2 years ago

Steve Miller/GrampiesOh damn. This likely means we will not get to meet you in Cancun for Christmas. Too bad, we were quite looking forward to a CycleBlaze meetup. Hope your flights home are smoothly arranged and you find the omicron to be less problematic than feared. Perhaps our paths will cross again sometime soon.
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2 years ago

Jean-Marc StrydomHi Steve. Flights confirmed for Friday so we have a long wait here in Cancun. Will try and do some tourist stuff in between boxing bikes etc. It's a real pity we have missed one another. Perhaps another time and place ? Travel safely.
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2 years ago