Año Viejo: New Year’s Tradition in Yucatan

For New Years, we once again went to the fishing village of Chabihau in the state of Yucatan to visit Jorge’s family. This year there was even a wedding! Jorge’s cousin Yeni (pronounced like “Jenny”) got married to her long-time beau, Armando.

We also did some crocodile watching out on Chabihau's salt lagoon

I’d heard before about a special tradition in the Yucatan known as “Año Viejo” (“Old Year”), but this year was the first time I got to see it. On our ride from Cancun to Chabihau, we passed through several villages that had dummies set out by the front gate of the homes. These dummies are known as “Años Viejos“, and they’re filled with rockets and fireworks.

Read that again… rockets and fireworks.

On December 31, the Año Viejo dummies are set out by the front door, and at midnight they’re ignited in the street to represent the end of the “Old Year”. Make sure to keep your distance! It can get pretty loud.

An "Año Viejo" in the town of Cansahcab, Yucatan

From what I could gather from Jorge’s family, it seems Año Viejo is a popular tradition throughout the Yucatan Peninsula, as well as in the state of Veracruz.

Since I was at the wedding at midnight, I didn’t get to see the Año Viejo lit up this year, even though we did have some regular fireworks and sparklers. Oh well, there’s always next year!

What did you do for New Year’s?

Yucatan’s Fishing Villages Are Making Money

Set on the Gulf of Mexico, Yucatan’s northern coast is filled with small towns and fishing villages, each with their own charm and natural beauty. In this region, you’ll find brightly-colored salt lagoons, refreshing cenotes, palm tree forests, small Mayan ruins, tiny restaurants serving freshly caught seafood, relaxing beaches and even migrating herds of flamingos in the summertime. Several of Mexico’s most popular celebrities have even built luxurious homes in this secluded and tranquil area.

The local villages are home to hard-working fishermen as well as vacation homes owned mostly by tourists from the nearby colonial city of Merida. In the past couple of years, however, this breathtaking area has fallen under the eye of home buyers and tourists from other parts of Mexico and the world.

The town of San Crisanto has begun to take full advantage of its stunning natural attractions, opening a new tourist center where guests can explore the salt lagoon and purchase tickets for a fascinating mangrove and cenote tour.

San Crisanto's new tourist center

Dzonot Tzik cenote in San Crisanto

In the neighboring village of Chabihau, foreign travelers have begun to use local builders to construct immense vacation homes right by the beach, drawn to the area by the charming, friendly and quiet atmosphere. These homes also help to create permanent jobs, as most owners hire locals from Chabihau as caretakers for the property while they’re gone.

This beautiful compound-style home has been recently built, with several buildings set around a sand-filled courtyard.

A new beachside vacation home under construction

This multi-level beach home caught my eye, with several open-air terraces, palapas and pergolas.

As a frequent visitor to this area, I’m excited to see that others are finally beginning to discover it and help the economy grow. The Gulf coast of the state of Yucatan is filled with fascinating attractions that the locals are thrilled to share with anyone passing through.

Where would you build your dream vacation home?

Disclosure:  I am being compensated for my work in creating and managing content as a Community Manager for the Mexico Today Program.  All stories, opinions and passion for all things Mexico shared here are completely my own.

Father’s Day in Chabihau

**Note: If I normally follow you and I haven’t commented on your blog in a few weeks, it’s because about 1/3 of the blogs I follow have been strangely blocked on this computer. Trying to figure out what’s going on…**

Ok, I am a horrible blogger! But it’s been a pretty busy month, which is awesome. I still haven’t shared my photos from my trip to Chabihau, Yucatan with you, and that was almost TWO WEEKS AGO. For shame. We went to the towns of Chabihau and Yobain for Father’s Day to visit Jorge’s family, and it was relaxing as usual!

The best tamales I ever had!

Jorge in his natural habitat… in front of the table.

Happy dogs!

flamingos 🙂 That's as close as they get, though.

Arrow!

"chilpachole de langosta" with lobster Jorge's uncle caught that morning... HUGE!!

A new beach house in Chabihau... I'm going to steal it.

Just Thursday

Just Thursday again!

Outside my window.. 80 degrees and sunny! Beautiful 🙂 Hope this weather holds up over the weekend!

Today I feel.. tired because I stayed up until 2 am last night watching Survivor and Glee.

I am thinking.. about whether Boston Rob will finally win this time. His tribe is just so clueless…

I am thankful.. that I finally found dill pickles here in Mexico. God bless you, Walmart.

Tomorrow I am going.. to do laundry at my in-laws house. Exciting, right?

I am wearing.. my work uniform.

I wish.. that I didn’t have to work today. It feels like it should be the weekend already!

My schedule this week includes.. gym today, packing tonight then watching Amazing Race with Jorge, sending 2 of the dogs to the groomers tomorrow, then doing laundry tomorrow night.

I need to start.. dieting a little better. I’ve been going to the gym and eating a little better, but it’s very slow going. Still, in 1 and a half months my measurements have gone down!

Chest and back: 2.5 cm

Waist: 0.5 cm

Abs: 0 cm

Hips: 3 cm

Thigh: 3 cm

Arms: 3 cm

I am reading.. The Ugly American by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer. A coworker found a 1960s edition of the book, IN SPANISH. Time to step up my vocabulary 🙂 Here’s a picture of the book… the fact that it’s old makes me feel smarter.

I am working on.. translations for work.

Yesterday I.. went to the gym, watched Dr. Phil, went to Walmart and Sams Club to buy our dispensa, then watched Survivor and Glee.

I am hoping.. to have a productive day at work today. I really need it!

I bet you didn’t know.. Ok, remember the post from last week about finances? Well, we had YET ANOTHER unexpected expense this month. Turns out now that I’m married I have to upgrade my visa to an FM2 status… which costs $280. Luckily this is something I knew I had to pay for in July… but I wasn’t expecting to pay it in March! Again, we’re lucky to have the money, but GRRRRR this is frustrating!

This weekend.. we’re taking a bunch of our friends to Chabihau to celebrate our civil wedding! A whole weekend of the beach, hammocks, the lagoon, the breeze and tons of fresh seafood. Can’t wait!

Pinatas on New Years

During our trip to Yucatan last weekend to visit Jorge’s family, I learned that pinatas aren’t just for birthday parties! Turns out they’re also popular at New Years.

On New Years Eve, around 2 am, there was a pinata at Jorge’s Uncle Mike’s house. Sorry about all the blurriness… I was still getting used to my new camera and action shots aren’t my forte.

On New Years Day, the cousins all got to participate in yet another pinata in the beach town of Chabihau.

Jorge might have grabbed some candy off the ground and hidden it in my purse. Cheater.

Yucatan Seafood on New Years Day (not for the squeamish… you’ve been warned)

Well, I had a very busy but very fun New Years weekend! Jorge and I went to visit his family in the towns of Chabihau and Yobain (near Merida, Yucatan) for a few days.

My first meal of 2011 was filled with traditional Yucatan cuisine, made mostly with fresh seafood caught by Jorge’s uncles and cousins in the beach town of Chabihau.

For my first meal of the new year, I had "Chilpachole", a soup made with shrimp and "jaiba" (a Mexican crab). I also got to try the jaiba meat straight from the shell. This is one of my favorite soups!

fresh local "jaiba"

Jorge's uncle shows me the "tikinxic" (Yucatecan dish with enormous grilled fish) before going on the grill. It's split open and covered in bright red achiote sauce.

Tikinxic on the outdoor grill

Tikinxic... ready to eat!

Would anyone like to venture a guess as to what this is? It's a mass of fish eggs! Roe! Yummy...

Jorge's family gathered around for a meal of tikinxic, chilpachole, and frijoles charros (Mexican version of pork and beans)

And just so we can end this post on a non-queasy note, here are some photos of Chabihau on New Years Day, 2011…

What did you have to eat/drink for New Years?

Chabihau Beach at Sunset

*A few of my commenters mentioned yesterday that they’d never heard of Chabihau. It’s not really a spot for international tourists. However, many people who live in Merida own vacation houses there. So, if you’ve never lived near Merida, you’ve probably never heard of it! 🙂 Population is just under 400 people. My mother-in-law grew up there.*

Right after we went searching for flamingos in Chabihau, Jorge and I drove down the coast a little bit with his parents and his two little cousins, Naivi and Naomi.

We stopped by a pretty beach that was covered in tiny shells. Right across the road was the lagoon.

Ocean on left, freshwater lagoon on right

Same lagoon I showed you yesterday, a few miles further east

Jorge's dad looking for shells

What’s your favorite trip you’ve made to the beach?