Please Pass the Guacamole

For the past two or three weeks Nettl and I have been tossing around an idea to go to Mérida, Mexico for a year. Because housing is dirt cheap and the currency rate is about 10 cents to the peso, we could invest a little money here, then live in the Yucatan to allow it to grow. In a year's time our move to Vienna would be a lot easier. Besides that, it would give us a year to lay back and heal after all of the traumae and crises we've been through over the past decade.

Imagine lying in a hammock during siesta, shopping in the local mercados, dancing in the streets on Sunday and being only 45 minutes from Cancún. Imagine a house whose entire back wall opens to the scent of Jasmine, citrus and wisteria.

Imagine the knife sharpener who steers his pushcart through your street every week, telling you he's there by playing a penny whistle, and who sharpens your knives right outside your front door.

Imagine the feel of cool, hand-painted pasta tiles beneath your feet and of year-round average temperatures of 87º.

Imagine living in an 150 year-old Spanish Colonial with Cuban doors that allow air circulation when closed and shutters that keep out the heat while allowing filtered light to paint the stucco walls with the tropical light.

Imagine a culture that is a lazy blending of Mexican, Caribbean and European.

Imagine a place that is GLBT friendly, where we are not only tolerated but welcomed with open arms, a place that celebrates the arts (especially classical music) and claims a large enclave of expat artists. If you want to know more, watch House Hunters International on Monday the 21st at 10:00pm (CST) on HGTV.

Winter being my favorite season, I couldn't live in paradise forever, but a year wouldn't suck!