Each video episode on our website features a different residential neighborhood of this interesting and beautiful city, focusing on a home which exemplifies the best of that neighborhood. We’ll give you lots of great footage and design ideas.
If you would like to savor the details about Cholul and the country house, scroll down for a written summary. And if you would like to post a comment, you can do so at the end of the article.
Now, let’s have a look! Video by our friends at intheyucatan.com:
The sleepy village of Cholul lies beyond the Periferico, Merida’s ring road… less than ten kilometers from the bustling center of Merida, but really feels a world away. Always a village in its own right, Cholul today maintains that feeling of quiet and separateness it’s always had. Today, artists from all over the city, and the country of Mexico, and several foreign countries have built their art studios in Cholul. Finding home prices to be less than in the city of Merida, and also being inspired by other artist neighbors, and having quiet and warm breezes are the big draws to the area.
As quiet and tranquil as it is, today the largest shopping and dining complexes in Merida are just a 5 minute drive away, providing residents with the best of both worlds.
The main square contains the most important element at its physical center, the church. This focused everyone’s attention on the center of the town, and continues to this day to draw locals for daily services.
With Merida so relatively close, Cholul never received the attentions of the very wealthy who were building impressive facades in town, but still, the most important buildings and houses surround the main square and its church.
Like most of Yucatan, there were hennequen plantations/haciendas in this area as well, including at least one that now serves as a luxury hotel. When the Mexican government took control of Spanish held haciendas, the vast tracks of land were divided up between the Mexican people, this is known as Ejido land. Much of it continues to be Ejido land, but there are areas where it is privatized and can be purchased by foreigners.
Our featured house today is less than a kilometer from the Cholul main square, on land that has been privatized. Much of the land nearest to the main square has begun to have single family compounds developed on it, some are modest dwellings and others are large walled private country estates. Our house today is very spacious and open, but is on a street with other homes.
The house is totally walled in for privacy and security, and within the walls are beautiful tropical gardens featuring many species of palm trees, bougainvillea, and flowering plants. A two car garage and wide front porch lead into the entry way. The house itself was built about 20 years ago and the current owner has completely transformed it by opening up the warren of small rooms and really giving the place a nice, more modern open concept throughout. On the main floor are living room, dining room, large kitchen, powder room, and the garage and storage areas. In a separate building behind this are two more self contained bedrooms overlooking the swimming pool and tropical garden.
On the second floor are the large master suite with its own balcony, and a spacious bathroom with bathtub and double Talavera sinks, and a second suite with access to the huge roof patio. This big entertaining patio looks over the gardens and pool as well, and behind the property is visible the vast tracts of raw scrub jungle that define the Yucatan Peninsula.
Click here to see more of Keith’s continuing series featuring the unique homes and neighborhoods of Mérida!
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