Why Do Expats Choose This Part of Mexico?

"There is a lightness of being that comes from living in the Chicxulub Crater," my new friend Pablo says.

I nod my head, take a sip of wine, and think about this. I intuitively know what he means but don't know if I can put it into words.

For those who don't know what the Chicxulub Crater is, it's the spot where--about 65 million years ago--a giant asteroid, comet, or meteorite smashed into and literally rocked the Earth. The massive impact, just a few miles east of Progreso at the town of Chicxulub on Mexico's Flamingo Coast, created a more powerful impact than any the world has ever known--releasing 2 million times more energy than the most powerful man-made explosive device. Most experts now believe this event led to the extinction of most of the dinosaurs that roamed the earth at that time. And eventually, with the big old bad dinosaurs out of the way, mammals were able to persevere…and voilà, here I am, writing this…

Although I know it is not technically true, I think of this as the place where the world ended…and where the world began.

It wasn't until 1978, when a geophysicist named Glen Penfield conducted a magnetic survey and pinpointed the village of Puerto Chicxulub as the crater's center point, that scientists began to concur as to where the asteroid hit.

Flying over it in a plane, you can't see the crater…but half of the massive circular indentation extends into the Gulf of Mexico and the other half extends inland about 50 miles into Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. Pablo and I, and about 1.5 million other people, live within the circle.

This part of Mexico is the heart of the former Mayan empire and well known for the Mayan culture that still pervades. Many ruins can be explored here, including two of the most legendary of all the Mayan cities: Chichen Itza and Uxmal (which you can see in this video). The magical, mysterious Maya were master astronomers, mathematicians, city planners, architects, builders, farmers, traders…and their descendants are everywhere you look here in the Chicxulub Crater.

Today's Maya are still mysterious…at least to me. I have never seen people wave as much or smile as much as they do in this part of Mexico. It's part of this "lightness of being" that Pablo talks about--and is the reason I am not surprised at the answer I get when I ask expats why they have chosen this part of Mexico. To a person, they all say it is "because of the people."

These descendants of the Maya have a noble heritage and a "lightness" all their own. They are proud, slow-paced, gentle, witty, kind, and spiritual. Many of the women continue to wear the huipil, the typical mestizo dress embroidered with vivid colors. Mayan is still commonly spoken and ancient Maya traditions are still practiced. The Maya are generous to a fault. As another friend says, "If you are in their home and all they have is a few tacos, they will insist you take half of them."

Whatever the influence…whether it is an indigenous cultural influence handed down from generation to generation or some leftover gas still emanating from the impact of a giant asteroid crash, there is a "lightness of being" here in the Yucatán. And I am happy to be in the inner circle.

Suzan Haskins
Latin America Insider, International Living

P.S. Don't forget--for the rest of this week, you can try a subscription to Mexico Insider for just one dollar. I had a tough time convincing IL's marketing director, Matt Broad, to go along with this ("you want me to charge readers PRACTICALLY NOTHING?" was his first--and lasting--reaction), and to be honest, I don't think he'll do it again…so, if you want to try Mexico for $1, this is your only chance.

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