text:
Mbeya

Mbeya is a city in southwestern Tanzania. It is the main transit point for connections to Malawi and Zambia, and the southern access point to Lake Tanganyika.

By bus
Buses run from Dar es Salaam and Iringa several times a day. There are buses from Mbeya going to Sumbawanga. From Sumbawanga you can get a bus to Mpanda and Kigoma.
 * Nane-nane bus station is 10 km from the centre of Mbeya. TSh 400 in a Dalla-dalla.

By minibus
Dalla-dallas (minibuses) and coasters (30-seat buses) run frequently to and from Kyela near the Malawian border and Tunduma on the Zambian border, either ride taking about three hours.

By rail
Train service consists of two Tazara Line "express" trains per week connecting Dar Es Salaam and Kapiri Mposhi, Zambia via Mbeya, and one "regular" weekly service between Mbeya and Dar. The train departs Mbeya going to Kapiri Mposhi every Wednesday at 13:00 and Saturday at 14:00. The trip takes around 24 hours. is about 4 km south of the city centre.

Get around
The city center is compact, but taxis are a better bet to reach the train and bus stations, or after dark. Dalla-dallas also ply the roads, though they will be difficult to negotiate with luggage.

See

Do
Mbeya is at the foot of Loleza Peak and near Mbeya Peak. At 2656 m and 2820 m respectively, both can be fine day hikes, although an experienced guide should be hired. Guides can be found through many of the travel agencies or better hotels in town.

Buy
Jacaranda- Large table set up under the tree at the bottom of the street when you head down from Posta. Ask for Goba, excellent handmade crafts and goods. Mwenjelwa shopping centres- nice options to be found in the weaving back alleys.

Eat
Sombrero Hotel has nice restaurant cross the street from the hotel. There are also some reasonable restaurants along south end of Lupa Way, New Appricourt restaurant being one, just opposite to Gazelle safaris.

Drink

 * Shakesbeer's Garden: take the dalla dalla to Sae and walk down the main road for 3 min. This neighborhood gem will be just off the road to the left. Great bar to people watch and spend an afternoon alone or with a large group. If no food is available just ask- there are plenty places near by that will deliver right to you! Friendly staff, ask for Peter the owner, fluent English speaker.
 * Mbeya Golden City Hotel, Sae: to the left of the Sae dalla dalla stopgreat bar for a special occasion or to watch any major television event. Tasty food.
 * E Point: Sae across the street from the dalla dalla stand amongst smaller bars and shops. Excellent late night spot to dance, much less threatening to a small group than Pamozi, located in city center opposite the post office which is not to be missed but proceed with a little caution and a lot of common sense.
 * Mama 2000: great bandas all the way outside in the back- friendly staff, but be a proactive patron to get what you need, great entertainment some nights, pool tables, and hot soccer watching spot.
 * Weru Spring Garden,wonderful outdoor seating, very private and beautiful setting.
 * Babu Kubwas: sit outside and watch the happenings of Mbeya. Great bites and a well stocked market attached.
 * Peace of Mind: very quiet and quaint bar with limited outdoor seating. Excellent date night spot- make sure you have a lot to talk about because the food is special but time is taken.
 * Continental: sit outside and enjoy a bowl of mtori banana stew with chapati- no better way to cure a Tanzanian hangover than at the Continental Hotel.

Sleep
There are some guesthouses across from the bus station, convenient if you are heading to Malawi the next day. Avoid the travel agencies attached and ignore the many touts in the bus station, as many people have reported scams with transport, and do not trust the bus driver to give you the real destination, but ask other passengers instead.

 * Warsame Guesthouse is the town center, with clean rooms and some clean bathrooms. There is a small restaurant at the corner a minute walk. Room from TSh 15,000 without and TSh 20,000 with bathroom. Hot water is only in theory. (august 2023)
 * Katumba Guest House large rooms with large beds, nets, bathroom with hot shower, about 10 minute walk from center. From TSh 8,000-15,000 (May 2023).
 * New Millenium Inn, Across the main street from the bus station. Very nice and clean rooms, with or without bathroom, hot water could be more hot, no restaurant. Prices start from TSh 20,0000 (Jan 2023).

Stay safe
For those who are travelling through Africa by vehicle, there is a very good garage just out of town on the Zambia road at Mbalizi behind the hospital at Mbalizi vocational training centre, best mechanics in Tanzania according to locals from many towns other than Mbeya, near Utengule Coffee lodge.

There are several bus ticket scams running out of Mbeya. The well-established scam artists attempt to sell tickets into various cities in Malawi. They have various price sheets and other documentation. They will even make phone calls to verify there is availability on the bus. One group even has an office in the Malawi transportation/bus center. They will get the passengers on a dalla-dallas that will just let them off at the border where there is supposed another bus that is waiting. Of course, there isn't.  As of April 2010 there are no buses that go directly from Mbeya to Malawi. The buses only go to the border town of Kyela.

Go next
There is frequent local transport, both 30-seat "coaster" buses and dalla-dallas to Kyela. Double check that the driver can drop you off at the border ("boda-boda"). The border stop is only a 5-10 minute walk from the Songwe River bridge crossing into Malawi. There are bus services on the Malawi side of the border; going to Karonga, Mzuzu and further inland like Matours, Malawi Link and there are also shared taxis to Karonga cost about 1,500.00 Kwacha. For Itungi and Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi), you will need to ride all the way to Kyela and secure additional transport from there.

Local transport also runs to Tunduma on the Zambian border; onward transportation can be arranged on the Zambian side.

If Mbeya is your stop off on entering Tanzania on the way to Dar es Salaam, try to head for Iringa next, an easy 4- to 5-hour bus ride. The district capital, Iringa is a good base for exploring the highlands along the Tanzam road. Buses are also available to Songea to the southeast, Sumbawanga to the northwest, or Tabora to the north, for connections to Kigoma or Mwanza.

title: Mbeya


text:
Mboro

Mboro is a city in the Cap Vert-Thies region of Senegal in the middle of the garden belt outside Dakar, which produces large quantities flowers and vegetables for domestic consumption and export. Men farm the gardens, but women control the sale at all levels, except the export.

Understand
Though discovered by the then colonial Governor of Senegal, Pinet Laprade, in 1862, the community of Mboro was not formalized until 1936 when travelers, carrying goods from the then capital of St. Louis to the port in Dakar, found need for a stopping point long the coast. After land surveys were conducted by the French, a base for fruit and vegetable production was instituted in Mboro and many Senegalese were enticed to move to the coast from Mékhé, Tivaouane, and other surrounding towns. Anyone who made the move received a trunk, a mosquito net, a piece of land, and tools to plant seeds and begin their new lives. Since then, Mboro has been regarded as the premiere source of fruits and vegetables, among cities along the northern coast.

In the 1950s, a new dynamic was added to the economy with the extraction and sale of minerals found in the rich soils. The first neighborhoods were formed by 1954, including the unique neighborhood of Mbaye Mbaye; which today stands as a tribute to Western culture and the first factory managers that built it. The government formally organized the mining industry nation-wide in 1985, with the creation of Idustries Chimiques du Sénégal (ICS), including the factories of Mboro/ Darou Khoudass.

Today a unique blend of Wolof, Pulaar and Sereer ethnicities call this oasis home. Revered for being flush with sea breezes and produce, Mboro is anything but your ordinary travel destination. Tucked quietly by the coast, and a 30 minute ride from the national route, it is a must see sight for those in seek of a truly Senegalese experience.

Respect
The Senegalese are a very friendly and hospitable group of people. In order to continue receiving their hospitality, please follow the actions listed below.

 * Always greet and ask how their day is going.
 * Never use your left hand to shake hands or give something to someone. By doing so, you would be showing a lack of respect towards the locals.
 * Never tell a Senegalese that he/she is lying even if they are.
 * Always ask for permission before taking pictures of the locals.

As a tourist, you will be asked by many people to give out money, and even if you want to, please do not give out money. By giving the locals money, you would be making the locals dependent on foreign aid instead of them working for themselves for their own livelihood. The reason the locals in Senegal always ask tourists for money is because the tourists have done so in the past. In order to break the cycle, tourists should stop giving out money.

If you really want to donate something to the community, please go to the local schools and give school supplies to the principal who will then distribute the supplies appropriately.

Climate
The travel best season in Mboro and most of Senegal is between the drier months of November through May. This time of year is characterized by relatively little rainfall, low humidity and mild temperatures. Temperatures range in the mid to high seventies during this time. The months of June through October see increased rainfall and rising temperatures, peaking around August through October.

Get in

 * Sept-place (Station wagon that transports up to 7 people) from Gare Routiere in Dakar to Mboro (Tourists on a Budget).

You would take the sept-place that is headed to Thies, and then take another sept-place from Thies to Mboro. You can buy out all the seats or just buy your seat and wait for the car to fill up. Price: 1,400CFA/ passenger Dakar to Thies, 1,000CFA/ passenger Thies to Mboro, 500CFA max. for luggage.

Alternatively, you can take a sept-place from Dakar to Tivaouane for 1,900 CFA/ passenger and then another sept-place from Tivaouane to Mboro for 600CFA/ passenger. Although slightly pricier, this route allows you to skip the traffic of Thies, as it takes a back road around the outside of the city. In addition, the garage in Tivaouane is smaller and the people a bit more friendly.

Get around
Mboro is a small enough town so that walking across town should take no more than 30 minutes. The main road through town is paved, but the rest are dirt and sand.

One can jump into a route taxi from any point to another along the main road for 100CFA/ person. Or a taxi can be ascertained from the road to anywhere in town for 500CFA/ car.

From the garage, you can get a bush taxi to the beach for 200CFA/ person.

See
Mboro is an off the beaten path destination which can meet any adventure tourist's demand. For beach and ocean enthusiasts, there is a pristine, sandy beach where you can rent a rustic house or small boats (pirogues) for fishing excursions. For the nature enthusiasts, the town is surrounded by beautiful forestry and the nearby Pink Lake. For the cultural tourists, there is a chance to visit traditional Wolof villages and partake in their traditional past-times such as: making and drinking Senegalese tea, basket weaving, and more.

 * The beach At 3 kilometers from the town, this is a can't miss destination. A small fishing community decorates the beach with beautifully colored boats. In the evenings, one can see the day's catch - including 4 foot large swordfish- or see the millions of tiny white crabs running in the sand. 3 foot or higher waves provide surfing entertainment at all hours, but swim at your own risk. Occasionally, one can catch a glimse the bioluminescent plankton caught in the waves at night... a truly amazing sight!
 * The market The market is the best place to find what you seek. Everything from meat, produce and cookwares to the latest fabrics and accessories can be found. The unique displays crowd the sidewalks and alleys while the colors distract the eyes.

 * The church The Catholic church is located on the road to Mbaye Mbaye and sports lovely panels of stained glass depictions. The choir at the weekly mass mixes African drum beats with classic hymns. Mass is given in a mixture of French and Wolof.

 * A mosque Three grand mosques are located around Mboro, and are open to men at all hours for visits or priers.
 * Basket making The women weave traditional baskets and trays into delightful artisan products using strips of palm fronds and colorful plastic.
 * Drum circles Popping up sporadically around town, these groups aim to please with their beats. More formal events can be found on the beach in the evenings.

Buy
The national currency of Senegal is the CFA Franc.

A tourist can easily find any toiletry (or substitute) left behind, but what makes Mboro superb is its locally produced quality products sold to the residents themselves. Women's groups, artisans, and craftsmen create everyday products for their families, friends, and neighbors that any tourist would find to be a unique treasure. Some of the best prices in the country can be found in this humble abode when compared to similar goods in Thies, Dakar, or any other tourist destination.

 * Fruits and vegetables[[Image:HPIM1619.JPG|thumb|Fresh Produce]] Buy them fresh or in jelly/ jam preserves, juice concentrates, dried pieces, or precut and preserved in cans(for the vegetables).
 * Cereals Senegalese couscous, millet, etc. sold in small serving sized plastic bags.
 * Leather products shoes, sandals, bags, belts, wallets, or anything else you can dream up, have a picture of, and explain to the skilled workers.
 * Organic Soaps
 * Tie-Dye Products Senegalese clothing, table cloth & napkins, bathrobes, etc.
 * Wood Carvings statues/ figures, Senegalese chairs, traditional mortal & pestle, etc.

Eat
Mboro is littered with food stands serving bean, egg, chicken, or fish sandwiches, meat or fish fatayas, or traditional rice plates such as Maffe (peanut and tomato sauce), Yassa (onion and vinegar sauce), or Ceeb bu Jenn (rice with fish).

For a do-it-yourself approach fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh and dried fish, chicken, beef, sheep, or pork can be located in and around the market. Most boutiques sell pasta, eggs, dairy, canned veggies, tomato paste, oils, spices, and coke products.

For a more formal setting enjoy the daily plate with lunch ranging from 1,000 to 2,500 CFA and dinners from 2,500 to 4,000 CFA at one of the following:
 * Hotel Amaya
 * The Club in Mbaye Mbaye
 * Restaurant Project Jappoo
 * Auberge Waou
 * Victor's Boutique

Drink
Mboro is nearly sub-Saharan territory, so be sure to keep yourself properly hydrated. Though few tourists have issue with the local water (not true in all of Senegal!) stay on the safe side with bottled water, which is prevalent at boutiques. Small plastic bags of purified water are another quick, cheap, and cold alternative and are sold both in boutiques and by local women walking around with baskets.

Slyly hidden in a number of boutiques around town are fridges of cold beer. Senegalese favorites of Flag, Gazelle, and 33 chill alongside a few imports such as Castel or Royal Dutch. In more drink oriented shops, one can find small bottles of liquor or standard table wines.

For a new experience, try a sip of palm wine. Sweet when first tapped, but quick to ferment and taste sour, this unique drink will knock you out if you don't take it slow! To find it you'll need to ask a trusted local to point you in the direction of a vendor. Don't be surprised if you end up in a chair in someone's home, a great experience will be had.

Sleep

 * Rental houses on the beach Mr. Mady Diedhiou, +221 77 432 08 04 or +221 77 674 95 23
 * Rental houses on the beach Mr. Mady Diedhiou, +221 77 432 08 04 or +221 77 674 95 23

Stay safe
Mboro is a relatively safe and secure place because it is a small town in which everyone knows each other. However, crime against tourists in towns such as Dakar and Thies is common, so it is best to use common sense everywhere in Senegal. Keep a close eye on your belongings, watch your pockets in crowded places, women should not walk around alone after dark, try not to wear any outwardly expensive items of clothing or jewelry.

There are many different scams to get money from tourists, so be wary. They have a good police force, many of whom speak French. In case of emergency, there is a police station and several health clinics located in Mboro.

Avoid the beach at night as there fewer people there and even less at night, that could help you in event of a problem. Cell phone service is also limited down there. Taxis stop travelling between the beach and main garage sometime around or after the dinner hour.

Senegal is one of the most governmentally stable countries in West Africa. Overall, though, the Senegalese are an incredibly friendly and hospitable people and you will meet many who are genuinely interested in talking to you and making sure you are having an enjoyable time in Senegal.

Go next
Mboro is located close to many attractive day trip options, satisfying all tourist types:

 * Take a trip to the Pink Lake. At some 20 miles from Dakar, the Pink Lake ('Lac Rose' in French, 'Retba' in Wolof) is a major attraction for tourists. It is shallow, warm and surrounded by white foam. Everything floats on it, because of its very high salinity. During the week, men and mostly women are busy crushing the bottom of the lake, which consists of a thick crust of salt that they gather to sell.
 * Visit Dakar
 * Tour the Reserve Bandia. A fenced natural habitat expanding over 1,000 hectacres affords one an up close, within reason, glimpse some of the most beloved animals in Africa: With the exception of the big carnivores, you will be able to see most of the best-known African animals.
 * Shop in Keur Moussa This quaint village is host to the Abbey Benedictine whose monks oversee the orchards and gardens of produce foreign to Senegal. Cashew wines and goat cheeses can also be purchased.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Mboro


text:
Mbour

Mbour, (M'Bour), is a city in Cap Vert-Thies.

Understand
Mbour is located in the middle of the Petite Cote region, only 80 miles south of Dakar. Supporting a population of around 200,000, its Senegal's fifth largest city and one of the country's fastest growing. Bursting at the seams, many of the outlying cartiers are miles from a paved road, and half built houses can be seen everywhere, especially if you venture into the outlying areas. A visit to the market, or the fishing port will give one a sense of what the cities' main economic activities are. For the traveler, Mbour gives you a more authentic taste of Senegal and Africa in comparison to the prefabricated mass tourism feel of Saly Portugal.

A great base in which to explore the region, Mbour is located less than a day trip away from many other interesting sites on the Petite cote and the nearby Sine Saloum Delta. One can visit Mbour, see the beaches, visit the market, but then have an opportunity to visit, for example, nearby Joal Fadiouth, Park de Bandia, La Somone or Popenguine.

As a large city, Mbour contains a melange of all of the countries' ethnic groups and languages. While wolof is spoken widely throughout the city, and is the main form of communication among the Senegalese, one will also hear Sereer (as it is the second most dominant ethnic group in the city), and at times, Pulaar, French etc.

Due to its place as a large city expanding rapidly, Mbour suffers from the high employment that is endemic to many cities in Senegal and around Africa. Many young Senegalese have left their villages and smaller towns in search of better opportunities in the tourist economy of Mbour and Saly. Finding work hard to find, they end up turning to the sex trade or hassling tourists. Try to understand in any bad exchanges with the Senegalese that they stem from a disaffection with the government and system that provides much less opportunities compared to the west.

Get in
From Airport:

Taxi from Dakar to Mbour: 15,000 CFA

Taxi from Airport to Gare Routier Pompiers: 2,000 CFA

From Garage Pompiers: Take a Sept Place (Station Wagon that fits 7 People) to Mbour: 1,500 CFA & Pay only up to 500 CFA in Baggage. (You will see signs in the garage or someone in the garage will direct you there)

Take a Ndiage Ndiaye (Big white mercedes bus, stops many times to pick up and drop off passengers) To Mbour: 700 CFA

Take a mini-car (Smaller version of the Ndiage Ndiaye that fits around 16 people) To Mbour: 1100 CFA Baggage costs are also cheaper: Around 100-200 CFA

Get around
Once in Mbour: Taxis are relatively cheap, from 500-800 CFA depending on the length of the trip and the time of day.

A cheaper option is to take a clando taxi/route taxi once in Mbour:

Route taxis constantly go up and down the Rue National in Mbour. To find one, just hail a car and tell the driver where you are going. From the North side of town, there are either clando's that go to the large market or straight ahead towards the mayor's office. From the road that turns towards Grand Mbour, you should pay 100 CFA (If you go to the end of the route past the mayors office, you will pay 125 CFA)

There is also a clando that goes from Mbour to Saly. Hail any car on the main road going north towards Saly and ask for the final destination: Cost: 200 CFA

At the road that goes to Grand Mbour, (Intersection between supermarket Holidays and the supermarket Avalanche at the north side of town)

You can take a clando that goes to the hospital, (Also close to hotels Blue Africa, Auberge Ndaali and Tama Lodge) where the beaches are the nicest and cleanest in the city.

Tell someone near the large group of cars that you want to go to the collective. cost: 100 CFA

Between the Hospital and the intersection with the Rue Nationale, there is a road that parallels the Rue Nationale where you can take either a clando or a charette to the market. Clando: 100 CFA Charette: 50 CFA

Sleep
Mbour, being so close to Saly, has a few good lodging options from small family style campements to a hotel with a pool.

Blue Africa Right on the beach, the campement has a great lounging area right on the ocean under a beautiful setting of palm trees. The rooms, simple and clean, are great for the mid-range traveler visiting Mbour.

Capacity 17 rooms 20,000 CFA plus breakfast includes air conditioning, hot water, bathroom (w/ western toilet), fan, and wifi throughout the campement

2 Houses 110,000 Includes two beds (one big and one small) and can hold 3-4 people and the other amenities mentioned

Phone number: 00221 76 689 36 34

Restaurant The restaurant has a price range between 2,500-4,000 serving fish, meat and various senegalese dishes.

Auberge Ndaali Ndaali feels like a peaceful garden of eden among craziness of Mbour. Each room is a two story hut with a loft, fan, hot water, full western bathroom and wifi throughout the campement. The restaurant has a large variety and good food, and the views of the ocean are great. Not to mention that the owner, Aziz, is a great guy and the executive director of the eco-tourism association ONITS.

Capacity 6 huts with each hut housing from 1-4 people Price: 17,500 1 person (with breakfast included) 25,500 2 people (with breakfast included)

Restaurant Dishes range between 2,500 and up, serving seafood, meat, pasta, and traditional senegalese fare.

Contact Phone: 33 957 47 24 Email: contact@ndaali.com www.ndaali.com

title: Mbour


text:
Máncora

Máncora is a small beach town on the Costanera Norte at the Peruvian Northern coast.

During holidays, Peruvians come all the way from Lima to spend their holidays at the beach. It turns into a real party town with an overcrowded beach and bars competing for the loudest music day and night.

Get in
Due to its location on the Costanera Norte, it's easy to take a bus from as far south as Lima and north from Tumbes or even from Guayaquil in Ecuador.

Most buses stop a couple of blocks north of the main tourist area. You can walk or take a mototaxi for S/1.

EPPO has several buses (ca 20 times per day) from Piura, Sullana, Talara, El Alto and Los Órganos.

Cruz Del Sur has daily connections from Lima (20 hours).

For surfers, ITTSA has frequent buses from Sullana, Piura and Chiclayo to Trujillo. Buses leave Trujillo for Huanchaco frequently, and Trujillo's Santa Cruz terminal for Puerto Malabrigo (aka Puerto Chicama) every 2 hours.

LCPerú and LAN have regular flights from Lima to Talara.

There are several bus companies that run between Ecuador and Máncora including Civa, Cruz Del Sur and CIFA.

CIFA is offered from a range of locations such as Montañita, Baños and Quito, whereas other companies only offer fares from Guayaquil. This being said, CIFA has less luxury service and can include several bus changes not mentioned when buying the ticket. Their buses also do not wait for you at the border when you stop for immigration.

Bus from Cuenca to Máncora: Direct buses run through Super Semeria or Azuay, US$15. Departing at 22:00 and 21:30 respectively, this service will provide you with paperwork for the border, the driver will enter the immigration building with you and wait for everybody to process. The same bus will then take you to Máncora. Travel time, including the border process, is about 7 hours, so make sure you have accommodation with 24-hr reception/staffing. Most hostels are pretty good about letting you wait in the common area until you're beach-ready.

Get around
Most of the bars, restaurants and hotels are clustered on two blocks along the PanAmericana. Mototaxis are everywhere but the town is small enough for walking.

See
The beach. In addition to tanned bodies, you might spot some pelicans and crabs there. At certain times of the year humpback whales and dolphins can be seen from the shore.

Do

 * Huge waves break along the beach during December and January, making for good surfing. Some surfshops won't rent out boards during this time, afraid it won't come back as one part.
 * Also popular is kitesurfing. You can rent a kite in a few places. For first timers, a 3-day course is recommended.
 * Enjoy the sun and take a swim at the beach.
 * Enjoy the sun and take a swim at the beach.

Buy
There are many stalls set up near the main road, touristy items can be obtained here.

Eat
There are a lot of restaurants, most of them serving fresh seafood. Service is generally very slow but the seafood is fresh, cheap, and delicious.

On the beach, restaurants will bring a mini-tent, table, chairs, menus, and food to the sand for you. The main road is lined with restaurants but for the cheapest meals (S/5), go to the road leading to the beach.

Drink
If you don't mind loud music there should be enough bars to still your thirst.

Sleep
During holidays it can be hard if not impossible to find accommodations. Most of the accommodations are located next the bars, making them very noisy.

There are several hotels along the beach where to stay. Some are very basic while others offer more comfort. The nicest hotel in Mancora was used by world famous writer Mario Vargas Llosa's daughter - Morgana - for her wedding.

 * The Buena Vista is a very beautiful hotel located just a little bit north of the main beach area. It has its own direct beach access, and the rooms are excellent. For about US$50 a night they have simple rooms with double beds, private baths. No hot water, but during the day the water is pretty tolerable, it's hardly cold even in the colder season. It's a very nice resort, but the service is a little strange. You have to purchase toilet paper at S/2 per roll, and to rent a beach towel costs S/8. Also towels for bathrooms have to be requested. And one traveler reported receiving a surcharge when the handle to the shower faucet broke quite easily. Has a pool and jacuzzi, and friendly staff.
 * The Buena Vista is a very beautiful hotel located just a little bit north of the main beach area. It has its own direct beach access, and the rooms are excellent. For about US$50 a night they have simple rooms with double beds, private baths. No hot water, but during the day the water is pretty tolerable, it's hardly cold even in the colder season. It's a very nice resort, but the service is a little strange. You have to purchase toilet paper at S/2 per roll, and to rent a beach towel costs S/8. Also towels for bathrooms have to be requested. And one traveler reported receiving a surcharge when the handle to the shower faucet broke quite easily. Has a pool and jacuzzi, and friendly staff.
 * The Buena Vista is a very beautiful hotel located just a little bit north of the main beach area. It has its own direct beach access, and the rooms are excellent. For about US$50 a night they have simple rooms with double beds, private baths. No hot water, but during the day the water is pretty tolerable, it's hardly cold even in the colder season. It's a very nice resort, but the service is a little strange. You have to purchase toilet paper at S/2 per roll, and to rent a beach towel costs S/8. Also towels for bathrooms have to be requested. And one traveler reported receiving a surcharge when the handle to the shower faucet broke quite easily. Has a pool and jacuzzi, and friendly staff.

Stay safe
The usual recommendations :

Always respect the ocean, observe and learn about the local characteristics of the sea before jumping in. Have extra care, especially under the influence of drugs, alcohol and, or fatigue and lack of sleep. Calm seas can hide strong currents, or seasonably develop dangerous tides and currents.

Stay within busy areas of the beach and town, preferably in good company, observing drug and alcohol intake especially when partying. Don't become an easy prey to predators of any kind. Don't flash any valuable stuff when taking a moto-taxi as long as some of the riders might be thieves. Be aware specially if you're carrying a bag with you.

Good idea to stay away from illegal drugs in this town, as the dealers and police have been known to work together and will extort a hefty bribe if they even suspect something.

Use skin protectors, sun glasses and hats.

Go next

 * Los Organos is an upscale beach town 15 minutes away from Mancora. It is great if you are looking for a quieter town and a lonely beach. You can also practice some water sports like surf, kitesurf, deep sea fishing and scuba diving. The food is cheaper than in Mancora, but the accommodations are a little bit more expensive, with a large variety of four and five star hotels and restaurants. If you don't mind the cold water, you can find a cheaper place to stay.

title: Máncora


text:
Mátészalka

Mátészalka is a small town in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county, in north-eastern Hungary. It is the second largest town in the county, after Nyíregyháza. Despite being frequently overlooked by foreign travellers and by Hungarians from other regions, it is a charming place steeped with early 20th-century Jewish history, and Eastern European influences from Soviet times.

Understand

Modern Mátészalka is a fusion of four smaller settlements, which existed in one form or the other since the Middle Ages. The city contains architecture from various time periods: late 19th- and early 20th-century bourgeois and Jewish houses in Kossuth Lajos street complete with a famous Synagogue, an East Berlin-esque Stalinist city center from Soviet times, a quiet, suburban area in the outer parts of the town with houses dating from the 1930s to modern times, and the new high-tech railway station, indoor swimming pool, and Tesco supermarket from the globalized era.

Language
Hungarian is the official language, spoken by everyone. It doesn't hurt to learn a few phrases, it will be of tremendous help this far away from the cosmopolitan Budapest. Younger people speak either English or German to varying degrees, older people may speak Russian or German.

Priests, doctors and pharmacists may speak some Latin even if they don't know any other living language than Hungarian.

On the flea-market, Russian, Ukrainian, and Romanian can be used to communicate with some vendors if you know these languages better than Hungarian.

Some old people may know some Yiddish.

Mátészalka has got various cultural connections to France, through one of its schools and its tradition-propagating institutions, so some people may know some French.

By train

From Budapest, Mátészalka can most easily be reached by train. There is a daily InterCity train in the afternoon which goes from Budapest-Nyugati to Mátészalka in about 4 hours, and goes back to Budapest the following day in the early morning. During the day, various InterCity trains go from Budapest to Debrecen. From Debrecen, you can easily catch a regional train to Mátészalka. On the regional train you will have the opportunity to get a taste of "real Hungary" and not the sanitized, artificial version usually put before a traveller.

Mátészalka is also directly connected by train to Carei, Romania.

By bus
From Nyíregyháza, the easiest way to go to Mátészalka is by bus. There is a train connection but it's painfully slow.

By car
By car, the easiest way to get to Mátészalka from Budapest is to drive to Nyíregyháza on the M3 freeway, then get to the Rohod-junction on route 41, then turn right and follow route 49 through Vaja, Őr, and Jármi to Mátészalka.

From Debrecen, follow route 471 through various small villages.

By bicycle
If you're not totally new to bicycles it's not that dangerous to ride a bike between Mátészalka and various smaller villages in the region, like Jármi, Ópályi, Kocsord, Nyírmeggyes and Nyírcsaholy. Exercise caution with lorry drivers and youngsters with a fresh driving license in sports cars.

Mátészalka is also connected, mostly to the east and the north, by dirt roads to various villages. These are safer, although watch out for stray dogs that may attack the fast moving bicycle or hares and pheasants which might jump in your path. If you sprain your ankle or knee you may be left there for good. In rainy weather, these dirt roads are mostly unpassable.

By hitchhiking
The car is the main method of transport in this area with an infrequent bus network and a rail network which only touches a fraction of the settlements.

Only some locals can afford a car, the others rely mostly on their car-owning acquaintances to take them to other places. If you try hitchhiking you may get picked up.

Get around
Mátészalka is not too big, you can easily get around on foot, or by bicycle.

By bus
There is a local bus service mainly consisting of regional buses which also have stops in Mátészalka, but it's pretty irregular.

A free bus service is operated by the Tesco supermarket. It starts from Tesco, goes around in a loop through Southeast, East, East-Central and Northeast Mátészalka, arriving back at Tesco.

On foot
If you don't have a problem with long walks, you can reach any point from any other point in the town with a long, healthy walk.

By bicycle
There isn't too much traffic and the paved roads are in good condition. Don't ride a bike on Alkotmány street, and exercise caution on Jármi street, Meggyesi street and Ipari street.

By car
The car is the main method of transport that the locals use. There isn't much traffic, most intersections have traffic lights. It's quite easy and quick to get around by car.

By hitchhiking
The flea market is quite a distance away from the city center. If you don't want to take a long walk, ride a bike on a busy road, or try to get here with the infrequent bus connection, try to hitch a ride to the market from the junction of Jármi street and Ipari street.

By taxi
There are some taxis waiting at the railway station.

See

 * Synagogue, Kossuth Lajos street 37. An early 20th-century synagogue in what was the Jewish District before the Holocaust.
 * The first electric street light in Hungary, a streetlight-pole made of iron near the synagogue on Kossuth Lajos street. Mátészalka was the first settlement in Hungary to get electric street lighting. Electric lighting was established in 1888, the same time as in New York.
 * Szatmár Museum, Kossuth Lajos street 5. A modern museum about traditional life and art in the region. Features an extensive carriage collection from every part of Hungary.
 * The "meteorite", in the garden of the Reformed Church. Near the fence, easily visible from the street, Kossuth square. A strange darkish rock slab. No scientific examinations have been made on it yet, but rumored by some locals to have extraterrestrial origins.
 * Kraszna River, a small river east of the town. Cycle eastwards on Fekeszegi street. After a while, the paved road will veer off left, the straight path will turn into dirt road. Continue on the dirt road and you will arrive at the bridge. Don't follow the paved road after it turns left, it leads to a sewage works patrolled by attack dogs! At the bridge, there are various trees on which yellow plums grow. They are smaller and more sour than typical plums, but are very tasty. They can be safely eaten off the tree. In folk language they are jokingly called "diarrhea-plums" as eating large amounts at once can cause diarrhea.
 * The "egg" in front of the Kraszna Áruház, There used to be a big swamp south of Mátészalka called "the Ecsedi Láp" which was drained. This statue commemorates it with various reptiles and amphibians climbing up the egg-shaped rock on which a huge eagle sits.
 * Various statues and memorials in the city centre, about famous people in Hungarian and European history. Mátészalka has got the nickname "the city of statues" because it has so many of them.
 * The Soviet-style city center, if you're interested in life behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War, take a walk around the city centre. Few has changed since 1989, except there are now advertisements and there are less Trabants and Ladas and more Western cars!

 * The steam locomotive, a beautiful locomotive preserved from old times. It stands on a small length of rail tracks in front of the railway station.
 * The Spring Rally Race usually held on a makeshift racetrack near the flea-market sometime in April or May. Among usual converted European and Japanese race cars, it features American race cars imported from the USA and old East-Block cars like Trabants converted to rally racing.

Do

 * Visit the flea market, in the southwest part of the city, at the junction of Ipari street and Meggyesi street. This is more than a simple market, this is a central hub in the town's social life. While nowadays fewer people come here for shopping because this Eastern-style market is overshadowed by the Western-style Tesco, it is still a pretty good place with various kinds of vendors, small buffets offering local versions of fast food and loud party music blasting through loudspeakers on poles from Kesha, Lady Gaga, etc. If you have kids, bring them here, they'll love it!

Things to look for on the market:
 * Fast food vendors offering Lángos, a traditional Hungarian fast-food, Palacsinta, 1980s-style communist hamburgers and hot-dogs which are markedly different from McDonald's, grilled open-face sandwiches made like a pizza, gyros, soft drinks, not just Coca Cola but also Traubisoda, Márka and other Hungarian soft drinks.
 * Ukrainian candies and chocolates. Very cheap, good quality and tasty. The kids'll think it's Halloween!
 * Beauty care products, soap, diapers, etc. Very cheap.
 * Electronic equipment from Eastern Europe, China, sometimes Western products. Interesting items ranging from small portable radios to large home stereos to pirate Nintendos with yellow cartridges.
 * Kitchen equipment, dishes, knives, appliances.
 * Car parts.
 * Toys. Eastern European, Chinese or Western. Doesn't matter, all are very cheap. The kids'll think they're in Disneyland!
 * More expensive but special items from the East, like pomegranate juice.
 * Antique items like old clocks, chess sets, soviet souvenirs, porcelain figures.
 * Live animals. Chickens, ducks, turkeys.
 * Fruits and vegetables.

If you hear good music through the loudspeakers, start dancing to your heart's content! If someone doesn't like it, it's their problem!

Don't buy gasoline from the Romanian vendors who walk around the place with a jerrycan in their hands. It is mostly poor-quality gasoline heavily mixed with water. While it will run Dacias and Ladas with a somewhat clunky performance, a Western car could be irreparably damaged by it. (Think of Back to the Future part 3.)
 * Visit the farmers'-market A bit north of the town center. While not as big and bustling as the flea-market it's still a unique place of Eastern European culture.
 * Visit the indoor swimming-pool and thermal healing bath. Southeast, near the Tesco. Hungary is famous for its thermal baths and spas. Mátészalka also has one. Alkotmány u. 2.,
 * Visit the Tesco Some Westerners might find it comforting that a little piece of home has also gained a foodhold in this faraway and strange place in the East. Alkotmány út 1/A.
 * Visit a local tavern An important part of Hungarian culture. Here, far from Budapest, it's almost totally free of international influences. Be sure to try Pálinka!
 * Buy watermelon off a horse-drawn cart when it's in season. The cart mostly circles the north-eastern suburban area (around Mátyás Király street), it's very cheap, refreshing in the summer heat, and usually, they carve a leak into the melon you want to buy, so you can taste whether it's good or bad. Sometimes the watermelon is transported in an old Lada or Dacia car that is driven slowly through the suburban streets, and the car announces its presence by loud honking.
 * Buy cheap ice cream and other frozen products from the ice-cream van in the summer. It mostly circles the area of Mátyás Király street and Csokonai street. The Mátyás Király street area is served by a yellow ice cream van offering Family Frost products, the Csokonai street area is served by a blue ice cream van offering Nestlé or Algida products. Passionate verbal warfare is fought among the neighborhood kids over which ice cream van offers tastier ice cream.
 * Take a walk through the calm, suburban areas of the town. If you're from a suburban area yourself, but from a different place, like Western Europe or the USA, take note of the similarities and the differences.

Buy
Most of the shopping unique to this area can be concluded at the Flea Market. There is a Tescoin the southeast, and smaller stores in the city center.

There is an American-style small local supermarket complete with a small food court called Luca in the west. It tried to bring The West into the town before Tesco arrived. Jármi út 10.

There is another western-style supermarket called Profi, near the Tesco. Alkotmány u. 2/a.

There is Alfi-ker a kind of transition between an East-block grocery store and a western supermarket, established in the late 1990s. Jármi út 6. +36-44-500-591

Eat
There are many restaurants in the city center and the streets leading up to the railway station.

Fast food can be obtained in the Tesco and on the flea-market.

You can also try a very cheap and very Eastern concept of "fast food": Go into a store, buy some rolls, cheese and sausage, and eat them! Down it with Hungarian beer!

 * Kékfrankos Restaurant, Kölcsey utca 8., +36-44-300-369. A restaurant near the railway station, offering traditional Hungarian and Central-European dishes and quality wine.
 * Nefelejcs Csárda, Kórház utca 5. A csárda (traditional Hungarian guesthouse) offering typical Hungarian fare.
 * Szatmár Restaurant, Kölcsey u. 46.
 * Kristály Hotel and Restaurant, Eötvös u. 17, +36-44-312-036
 * Provolone Pizzeria, Kölcsey u. 37., +36-44-418-814
 * Provolone Vendéglő és Terasz, Kölcsey u. 35., +36-44-310-736
 * Borostyán Restaurant Rió Mulató, Hősök tere 8., +36-44-311-429
 * Flamingó Restaurant and Pizzeria, Hősök tere 4. +36-44-310-421
 * Chinese Restaurant, Kölcsey u. 36.

In the winter, a Disznóvágás (pig-butchering) takes place in some households, which is similar to the Sautanz of Burgenland,Austria but using less advanced technology. Take note though, that here, it is usually a private party of sorts between family and close friends and there are no restaurants and buffets which sell the products of the Disznóvágás to strangers. One reason for this is that nowadays, pig-butcherings are sporadic, except in smaller villages in the region, and because of this, there arent't enough Disznóvágás products available at once to host such eateries.

Another rural and suburban partylike-event connected to eating is Szalonnasütés (literally: bacon-roasting), which is enjoyed by many people.

It is similar to the Anglo-American tradition of sitting around the campfire and roasting marshmallows, but here, instead of marshmallows, a thick slab of Hungarian bacon (more fatty than what Westerners might think of when they think of bacon) is roasted over the fire until it starts dripping fat, then it is quickly held over a slice of white bread and the fat drips onto the bread. This is repeated until the bread is well-spread with the dripped fat. After this, the fatty bread is sprinkled with Hungarian paprika, topped with onions and eaten. If the bacon is not burnt too much, it is eaten too. Nowadays, jacket potatoes, slices of meat, sausage, and corn on the cob is also sometimes roasted in the fire, and sometimes even marshmallows, as Hungary becomes more globalized.

Drink
Various taverns, clubs, discos. The town is pretty small, dare to explore!

 * St. Patrick tavern, on the corner of Széchenyi street and Mátyás Király street. A typical Hungarian tavern. Pool table in the back, ask the bartender and he will show you the way.
 * Tóparti Koccintó, another small tavern at Halastó, a small sandy area surrounded by Mátyás Király street, Csokonai street and Csokonai lane. It has a television.
 * Red Rock tavern and music pub, Erkel Ferenc u. 70.
 * Desperado Pub, Hősök tere 8., +36-44-310-428
 * Desperado Pub, Hősök tere 8., +36-44-310-428

A famous local (albeit non-alcoholic) drink is homemade elderflower syrup diluted with water. Since this is a homemade drink not sold in stores, trying it will be a challenge. Your best bet will be looking for it in the small farmers' market near the city center where sometimes old ladies will sell the syrup, which you can dilute with water to make the drink yourself, or getting invited to a home (usually one with an old granny or an industrious housewife) which may have the drink available if you ask for it.

Some people keep small vineyards, from which they can produce a few bottles of homemade wine. Since so little can be produced and the taste is usually very unique, being served homemade wine is considered a generous gesture and receiving a whole bottle of it is a very special gift.

Sleep

 * Nefelejcs Panzió, Ipari út. 53. +36-44-312-349, a smaller hotel on Ipari street about halfway between Jármi street and Meggyesi street.
 * Kristály Hotel and Restaurant, Eötvös u. 17, +36-44-312-036
 * Nefelejcs Panzió, Ipari út. 53. +36-44-312-349, a smaller hotel on Ipari street about halfway between Jármi street and Meggyesi street.
 * Kristály Hotel and Restaurant, Eötvös u. 17, +36-44-312-036

Connect
Free Wi-Fi available in many locations in the city center. (Though this might be unintentional)

The telephone area code of the Mátészalka Area is 44. Phone numbers here consist of 6 numbers.

Payphones are widespread, although some might not work because of vandalism (someone ripped off the handset, stuffed chewing gum in the coin slot, etc.)

Internet access is also available in the library.

Internet access is not as widespread as in the more urbanized areas of the country, so some institutions that have computers connected to the internet, such as schools, might allow you to use the internet there if you ask for it.

There are some post offices in the town. The one near the police station in the city centre is the largest.

Contact by telephone is still more important in this part of the country than the internet, so more services and establishments have a phone number that you can call, and then ask about the service/establishment than a website.

Stay safe
Mátészalka is a pretty safe town. During the day, areas outside the city center and the flea-market are pretty deserted and at night, Mátészalka is a ghost town.

During the day, avoid troublemakers at the flea-market. At night, you may hear shouting from the taverns. If you hear it, avoid the place until the situation resolves.

Avoid seedy characters at the railway station.

Watch out for stray dogs in suburban areas near the town's outskirts and the Kraszna River area. They are not particularly dangerous, but if you see one, it's best to pretend you didn't notice it, then most likely the dog will walk away and leave you alone.

Stay healthy
Mátészalka has a hospital. Kórház u. 2-4., +36-44-501-501,, igazgatas@szalkakorhaz.hu

There are various pharmacies in town, the two biggest are in the city center and near the hospital. As it was mentioned above, if all else fails because of the language barrier, the pharmacist might understand Latin.

If a stray dog bites you, it's best to get a diagnosis for rabies and get a shot, just to be safe. "Rabies" in Hungarian is "Veszettség" (Veh-set-shayg), "stray dog" is "Kóborkutya" (Koh-bohr-koo-tyah) and "it bit me" is "megharapott" (megh-hah-rah-pott)

Local fruits and vegetables can be eaten off the plant (if they aren't sprayed with pesticides of course), and tap water is safe. Unpasteurized milk should be avoided. If you see a fruit tree on the street full of delicious cherries, plums or other fruits, you can safely eat off the tree.

Respect
It's best to avoid conversations about politics, both Hungarian and international, and if some local brings the topic up himself/herself maintain a neutral point of view. Political jokes and stereotypes about the USA, the EU, Jews, Roma, and the surrounding countries are common, don't be offended.

The local Roma, as in everywhere else in Hungary wishes to be called "Roma" and not "Cigány", the traditional Hungarian word for them.

Jokes about being devotedly religious are also common. Don't be offended. Even if some local calls himself/herself religious they most likely profess a pretty liberal form of Christianity. Religion in Hungary, like elsewhere in Europe, isn't taken too seriously.

Law enforcement
There is a small police station in the city center, the staff may know English or maybe they can provide an interpreter. You may have better luck using German. József Attila út 1-3.

Various international organizations both secular and religious have bases in Mátészalka, for example Rotary Club, various Christian churches (Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic, Reformed) and a synagogue.

Go next
Visit Túristvándi and it's water mill.
 * Debrecen
 * Nyíregyháza

Visit the Bukógát (Spillover) near Tiszakóród. It's an industrial flood gate used to regulate the flowing of the Túr river into the Tisza river at the Ukrainian border, but it's a beautiful artificial waterfall used by locals as a place to swim and have fun in the water. Look for ropes on the trees on the riverbank some distance before the river reaches the spillover. These are there to swing on them, then jump into the water like Tarzan! Don't miss the fun! When the Túr spills into the Tisza, don't swim across to the other bank of the Tisza! That's Ukraine there, and you're crossing an international border without a passport!

Visit the aquapark in Vásárosnamény, if you prefer a more Western kind of aquatic entertainment than the Bukógát.

Mátészalka is a good starting place for day-trips to Romania and Ukraine.

Visit Tákos and Csaroda two small villages to the east. Tákos has an interesting reformed church from the 18th century called "The barefoot Notre Dame" and Csaroda has a very old church from the Middle Ages. Carefully inspect the old wooden furniture of the church, there are carvings in the wood made by 19th-century vandals!

Visit the Old Swamp of Bátorliget south of Mátészalka, near the Romanian border. There is an interesting museum there about local biology and ecology.

Visit Vaja west of Mátészalka on route 49. It has an old castle and a popular lake.

Visit the Lake of Terem near Bátorliget and Terem, south of Mátészalka. Another popular lake in the region.

Visit the home-made nuclear fallout shelter in Kocsord, the next village to the east of Mátészalka. A local, Fogarassy Árpád, thought in the 1980s that nuclear war between the USA and USSR is imminent and built a large concrete bunker in his backyard. The bunker is incomplete and the backyard is in ruins, but it's an interesting piece of local Cold War history, nonetheless. In 2009, a tragicomedic Hungarian film, called "Bunkerember" (the Bunker-man) was made, loosely based on this event.

Visit Szatmárcseke northeast of Mátészalka. It has a very interesting cemetery in which rather than headstones and Christian crosses, upright wooden boats mark the graves, based on Old Hungarian traditions.

Visit Tarpa and its animal-powered mill.

Visit Nyírbátor southwest of Mátészalka. It has many interesting sights.

title: Mátészalka


text:
Märsta

Märsta is with its 27,000 inhabitants the largest city in Sigtuna Municipality in Stockholm County in Sweden. It is located between the capital Stockholm, some 35 km to the south, and Sweden's fourth largest city Uppsala, some 30 km to the north, and some 4 km from Stockholm-Arlanda Airport.

Understand
Märsta has historically been an important postal stop on the route between Stockholm and Uppsala. As a railway opened between these cities in 1866 and Märsta became one of the railway stops. In 1960 Stockholm-Arlanda Airport opened only a few kilometres from Märsta, and the city grew from some 2,900 inhabitants in 1960 to 16,400 in 1970. When the city was constructed it was intended to cover four hills; Valsta, Pinbacken, Brista and Norrbacka. However, as Arlanda expanded it was deemed that Pinbacken and Brista were too close to the airport, wherefore only Valsta and Norrbacka where settled. As a consequence of this the economic and cultural centre of Märsta is actually located in the geographical outskirts of the city.

Rosersberg is a small settlement between Märsta and Stockholm's northern suburbs, notable for the two palaces Rosersberg and Skånelaholm, and the beautiful lake Frysingen.

By plane
is by far the largest airport in Sweden, and is 4 km north east of Märsta. The terminals are numbered 2, 3, 4 and 5. The airport is clean, safe and well-functioning. Seating is scarce, especially landside. Shopping and dining are concentrated to the landside transit mall Sky City. Dining and drinking at the airport is a bit overpriced; be prepared to pay around 100 kr for a simple meal, and 75 kr for a glass of beer. There are several means of transport between Arlanda and Stockholm: airport coach, express train, commuter train and regional train.

By public transit
is a stop on the railway between Stockholm and Uppsala. The rail road is operated by two operators; the Stockholm County Commuter train (SL) and the national operator SJ. SL tickets are cheaper compared to SJ tickets, but SL trains are also slower as their trains stops more frequently.

By car
The highway E4 carry traffic between Stockholm and Uppsala and pass Märsta some 3 km east of the city.

Get around
Märsta is really small and walkable. Unless you intend to leave the city for the surrounding countryside you will not need any vehicle.

Do

 * Several beaches for open-water swimming. Hiking, cycling, fishing and bathing during summer. Ice-skating and cross-country skiing during winter.

Go next

 * Sigtuna - Was once the capital of Sweden. The contemporary town was built as a nationalist project in the 1910s.
 * Stockholm - The current capital of Sweden. By far the largest and most influential city in the area.
 * Stockholm Arlanda Airport - The largest airport in Sweden. Has a large shopping and recreational area called "Sky City" outside of the transit zone.
 * Uppsala - The fourth city in Sweden by population. Once a centre of Viking activity, it is today a religious and academic centre.

title: Märsta


text:
Mérida

There is more than one place called Mérida:

Mexico

 * Mérida (Mexico) - The capital of the state of Yucatan in Mexico.

Spain

 * Mérida (Spain) - A town in the Extremadura region of Spain.

Venezuela

 * Mérida (city, Venezuela) - The capital of Mérida (state) in Venezuela.
 * Mérida (state, Venezuela) - A state in Venezuela.

title: Mérida


text:
Mérida (city, Venezuela)

Mérida the capital of Mérida State, is located in Venezuela, at the foot of the Andes, 15 kilometers from Venezuela's highest point. It is the centre for outdoor activities in Venezuela.

By plane

Alternatively, the  in El Vigía is not too far away, and you can take a long taxi ride from there in case of emergency.

By car
The road from Valera will take you over the highest asphalted road in Venezuela. The Pico Aquila is 4118m high. The roads are of reasonable quality and can easily be driven with a small car. On the way, you will have great views over the mountains and valleys. Try to drive this route in the morning, in the afternoon is usually gets clouded and foggy.

By bus
The bus terminal is a few kilometers out of the center.

There are daily connections to Barinas, Maracay, Caracas and several other destinations in Venezuela. If you want to go across to Ciudad Bolivar and avoid going north to Caracas or Valencia, then take the bus to Barinas (about 3.5 hours) and then the overnight bus, leaving at 10PM, to Ciudad Bolivar (11 hours).

On departure a departure tax is collected.

You can catch a bus to the center across the street from the bus terminal.

Get around
The city has a straight-forward street grid with numbered Calles crossed by numbered Avenidas. The streets do not always have signs, but the city center is easily navigable. Plaza Bolívar, between Avenidas 3/4 and Calles 22/23, is a focal point for the center.

There are busetas going just about everywhere. In the center, many of them stop on Avenida 25 between Calles 2/3.

See
There are several small Andean towns in the region which are quite scenic and easy to visit, such as Jají, Mucuchies, Apartaderos, and Santo Domingo.

Do

 * Adventure activities are offered by several tour agents. Mountain-biking, paragliding, white-water rafting, bungee jumping, and canyoning are all available in Mérida. Four tour agents are Arassari Trek, Calle 24 No 8-301, 0274-252-5879, Jakera, Calle 24 no 8-205 0 274 2529577 and Gravity Tours. Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations, Av 3 entre calles 17 y 18, 0274-2513115.
 * Spanish Language Schools. Mérida is a good location to learn Spanish. Jakera has a few programs.
 * Spanish Language Schools. Mérida is a good location to learn Spanish. Jakera has a few programs.

Eat

 * La Montaña Calle 24 6-47. Excellent meals for a reasonable price. Try the chicken in orange sauce and the lemon pie.
 * Delicias Mexicanas Calle 25 7-48. To satisfy your cravings for Mexican food.
 * Heladeria Coromoto Avenida 3 28-75. Has an entry in the Guinness Book of Records for being the icecream parlour with the most flavours. It has around 800 flavours including hamburger or rice-flavoured ice cream. But on any given day it only serves around 100 different flavours.
 * La Abadia, Av. 3 between calles 17 and 18, is a restaurant/cafe/cybercafe with excellent fresh fruit drinks, trout dishes and coffees/desserts. Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations: llanos, paramo, paragliding, Canaima. Info: http://www.grupoabadia.com
 * Areperia Dona Flor Nearby to Cafe Calypso/Centro Commercial El Viaducto, this is the queen of all arepa (corn-flour pita or pupusa like object) restaurants, with stuffings from the mundane shredded pork to pickled eggs and more.
 * Calle Burgers At night small hamburger/hotdog stands appear near all the major nightclubs. Shady though they may look, their burgers are second to none with toppings including fried eggs, ham, shoestring potato fries and more.
 * ¡Date! Con Rolando, Avenida Urdaneta and Calle 49, is another one of these excellent nocturnal hamburger stands, with a variety of meats and cheeses available for your burger, as well as patacones, in which crispy, mashed and fried plantains substitute for the bun. Established in 1985, ¡Date! has become so popular that Rolando has found it necessary to open locations in Barinas and Maracaibo.
 * Pizzeria Da Enzo The best pizzas of Mérida, with the secret recipe of an Italian family. Andres Bello Avenue Centro Comercial San Cristobal, Mérida City.
 * Pizzería El Sabor de los 4 Quesos  Best pizza in town, Avenue 2 between 13 and 14 No 13-66, in front of Plaza Milla.
 * Café Ático, Near the Plaza de las Heroinas, this small coffeehouse/bar is a popular counterculture scene
 * Café Ático, Near the Plaza de las Heroinas, this small coffeehouse/bar is a popular counterculture scene

Drink
Mérida is a college town full of fantastic bars and discos playing salsa and international pop music well into the morning, fueled by cheap Polar beer and strong cai pirinhas.
 * Cafe Calypso: (excellent cai pirinhas) in the Centro Commercial El Viaducto is a top spot to begin the night, conveniently near to the popular dance club,
 * El Bodegón de Pancho: (Centro Comercial Mamayeya) You can see the lit-up sign for blocks around, El Bodegón is the place to finish the night and dance until the early morning.
 * Alfredo's: (Av.4 Bolívar. Esquina De La Calle 21) features cheap set-ups of rum - you can buy a bottle and some mixers with a group of friends. Cheapest beers in town.
 * El Balcon: (Av. 2 con Calle 26) Balcony views, cheap Polar beer.
 * Hoyo Queque: (Av. 4 Bolívar. Esquina De La Calle 21) is a tiny bar with good often live music
 * Birosca: (Av. 2 Lora Con Calle 24 C.C. Los Tapiales) with famous "Bombas" drinks and a maze like interior from its colonial heritage to explore. A good place to escape from Reggaeton.
 * Gradas Sports Bar: (Av. 4 Bolívar. Esquina De La Calle 21 - caddycorner from Oyo) A fancy bar with lots of screens to watch futbol on
 * The Clover: (Av. 4 Bolívar entre calles 14 y 15) - best place to get a non-Polar beer in town.
 * Habana Kawy: (Av. Principal De Los Chorros De Milla) dance club focusing more on disco than salsa/merengue.
 * La Cucaracha: (c.c. Las Tapias, Nivel Estacionamiento.) Inside the Las Tapias mall, this is the quintessential Mérida dance club. Unfortunately, the bouncers are sometimes racist.

Sleep
Heaps of cheap backpacker posadas with shared bathrooms (generally) are clustered around Plaza Las Heroínas. A few blocks further northeast, in La Plaza Milla, are a few nicer posadas

Budget

 * Paty's, Calle 24, Ave 8, A good choice for low budget travellers. There is also a laundry service in house. Several of the other posadas listed here are for group parties that sign up for their tours as well, and therefore do not cater to individual backpackers. Go all the way to the end of Calle 24 towards the teleferico, and you will find it next to some exercise bars.

Splurge
Keep in mind that the beds in many hotels (mostly up to the mid-range levels) are nothing more than mattresses on concrete slabs that resemble box springs. Depending on what your sleep preference is, they may not be the most comfortable for you. Something for you to consider when looking for a hotel to stay at.

Connect
Venezuela's cheapest internet shops can be found in Mérida. There are dozens and cost around US$0.50 per hour or less.

Cope
Remember to wear your sunscreen and be careful about over-exerting yourself - you're at reasonably high altitudes, and close to the equator.

Los Nevados
A trek you can do on your own is to Los Nevados. Take the teleférico to station Loma Redonda, make sure you don't pay the full amount for the teleférico. From there follow the trail. It's a beautiful 4 to 5 hour walk to Los Nevados. Mules will carry you. In Los Nevados there are several posades where you can sleep, and have dinner and breakfast. The next morning jeeps will leave for Mérida at 9AM. It's a 4½-hour ride along a narrow road.

If you do it the other way around you might save the teleférico entrance and the Inparque tax, but you have to race from Los Nevados to Loma Redonda to catch the last cablecar down. If you want go to Los Nevados call to Abadia Tours Travel & Destinations: Av 3 entre calles 17 y 18 Mérida

An alternative route when the cable car is not running is to start at Mérida and take a jeep to Los Nevados. Jeeps leave at Plaza las Heroinas from 7AM (travel time 4-5 hours). At Los Nevados you can stay at a number of posadas:

Posada Bella Vista - Incredible views from the terrace. Call +58 274 6580146 or +58 274 5113956 for a reservation.

Posada Guamanchi - Excellent food! Go to Guamanchi Tours at Calle 24 to book this posada.

In Los Nevados you can make some beautiful hikes for a couple of hours. Ask the owners of the posadas for information.

The next day, it is possible to walk to the house of Pedro Peña (tel: +58 416 0877510 - only Spanish - call in advance to make sure he is there and has space available). Pedro is the grandson of the first person to reach the top of Pico Bolivar. He has excellent stories and a game of domino always makes for a good night. To get to Pedro's, it is best to rent a guide (and mule). Ask at the posada for arranging this. The 3rd day, walk down to La Cruz and take a bus back to Mérida (1 hour).

El Paramo
Explore the cold high plains full of frailejones, lagoons and cold winds.

Aguas Termales del Musui
Take a bus towards Musui and (with a guide, or at least someone who's been before) hike up to the hot springs. Bring camping supplies, you'll want to spend at least one night soaking while you watch the stars overhead.

Los Aleros
Los Aleros is a theme park located in Mérida, Venezuela. It depicts a typical andean town in the 1930s. It was created by Alexis Montilla in 1984. An absolutely breath-takingly beautiful place to visit but beware of creepy ghouls that will jump out of dark corners to scare you. Fun for the whole family.

Montaña de los Sueños
About a 45 minute drive from downtown Mérida this theme park is all about the old time movies. There are a lot of classic cars, jukeboxes, movie scenes, and other general 1930-1960 movie, radio, and music memorabilia. It's a pretty interesting place if you love seeing some of the history of movies in Venezuela. The cost is around US$15 per adult. The theme park does not open until later in the day and is best at night. Telephone: +58 274 262-1557 or +58 274 263-9757

La Mucuy
Popular picnic destination reasonably close to the city. Bring a lunch and a few bottles, go swimming and commune with nature amongst the throngs of Merideño families on weekends. Catch a bus to Tabay from the center, then take a jeep to La Mucuy. (~1 hr total)

title: Mérida (city, Venezuela)


text:
Mérida (Spain)

Mérida is the capital of the Extremadura region in Spain. Founded in 25 BC, Mérida was once the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania. The city of 59,000 people (2018) still has numerous well-preserved Roman ruins, the group of which were declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993.

History
Emerita Augusta was founded as a Roman colony in 25 AD under the order of the emperor Augustus to serve as a retreat the veteran soldiers (emeritus). The city, one of the most important in Roman Hispania, was endowed with all the comforts of a large Roman city and served as capital of the Roman province of Lusitania from its founding and as the capital of the entire Diocese of Hispania during the fourth century. Following invasions by the Visigoths, Mérida remained an important city of the Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania in the 6th century.

In the 713, the city was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate, and remained under Muslim rule. The Mozarabic people of the island rebelled repeatedly against the Caliphate authorities in the 9th century and the city began a slow decline. Mérida was seized by Alfonso IX of León in 1230.

Climate
The winters are mild, with minimum temperature rarely below 0 °C (32 °F), and summers are hot with maximum temperatures occasionally exceeding 40 °C (104 °F).

By train
The RENFE station in Mérida is on Calle Cardero. There are four trains from Cáceres (trip time: 1 hr), five trains from Madrid (4½-6 hours, €18.45-27 one-way), one from Seville (3 hr), and seven from Badajoz (1 hr).

By bus
The, is at Ave La Libertad s/n across the bridge (Puente Lusitania) from the central part of town with the following companies:

There are fewer buses to Madrid, but connections to Seville (6-8 busses per day) are much better.

By car
The N-V superhighway passes through Mérida from Madrid or Lisbon.

Roman ruins
Roman ruins in Mérida are a mixture of ticketed and free sites.

At the ticket booth of the sites that require paid entry, there is a combo ticket for €15, which is generally only slightly more expensive than the entry to just one site. With that said, the theater-amphitheater duo site seems to draw the bulk of the crowds, and it may be better to start at a smaller site, which avoids waiting in long lines to buy the combo ticket. You will also be given a map to the sites (both free and paid) around the city. The combo ticket does not include the notable Roman Art Museum across the street from the amphitheater. The Roman Art Museum is only €3.

 * and The star attraction of the Roman sites in Mérida. The theater (used for plays) and amphitheater (used for gladiator fights and spectacles) are next to each other, and both are excellently preserved. During the summer the theater is still used for flamenco and other shows. Ticket required.

Medieval and modern sites
The central Plaza de España has the Mérida Palace Hotel, which is a well-preserved historical building now hosting a 5-star hotel. Additionally, this plaza has the modern art "Palácio de la China", which is a visual riot and not at all Chinese.

Eat
Look for Torta del Casar, served at most restaurants.

Some places also make stuffed red peppers with a variety of fillings like fish, cornmeal, and lamb.

There is a variety of cheese made with paprika, but there are numerous names for it.

Also of note is the local red wine "Ribera del Guadiana".

Sleep

 * Hotel Rambla Emerita A 2 star modern hotel in the town centre.

title: Mérida (Spain)


text:
Mérida (state, Venezuela)

Mérida state is in the middle of Andes region of Venezuela.

Cities

 * Alberto Adriani Municipality
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají
 * Jají

Get in
By plane to the airport at El Vigia, or direct to Merida city. The latter involves some impressive landing, the airport being tucked into the valley between steep mountains.

By bus from most main cities in Venezuela.

By car following some spectacular windy roads through the foothills of the Andes.

Stay safe
Merida is relatively safe compared to other places in Venezuela. The people are welcoming of tourists, there are a lot of Posadas with friendly helpful staff, lots of restaurants and of course the tallest cable car in the world.

title: Mérida (state, Venezuela)