In 1996, I visited Izamal and was won over by the small village with the large convent of Friar Diego De Landa. Driving into Izamal, there were beautiful Na Huts with beautiful gardens, while the town itself was built of stucco and cement.
A young man rode his bike down the open dusty streets, with a large icecube strapped onto a dolly, behind. Another young man enticed us to eat at a restaurant he was selling. We met him at Kiniche temple, which at that time, was not fenced. Our meal that day, made all of us feel a bit sick,,,,heavy grease, in a backyard setting, with Henecken ropes spun around the beams that held the palapa roof up.
In 2007, Leanne and I stayed in Izamal, and enjoyed it so much I would recommend it for anyone coming to the area. Visiting isn't the same as staying here. It's little wonder that in 2002 Izamal was added to Mexico's official list of "Magical Cities."
Izamal is an amazing village. The people are very proud of their town. In fact, the monastery here was restored and painted before the Papal visit of Juan Pablo II in 1993. The town of Izamal was so honoured to have him in Izamal, they painted their pride about the village, covering the buildings in yellow paint, just like the famous Convent.
This Franciscan convent is famous, as it was founded by Friar Diego de Landa, who is remembered for burning the Mayan scripts. After being sent back to Spain in exile, de Landa was ordered to write down everything he could about the Maya. As he had studied them extensively, he was able to document a lot of information in an interesting book called "An Account of things in Yucatan." It's ironic to think the man responsible for burning the Maya scripts is also the same man who provided the "Mayan Rosetta," as even Mayan scholars claim were it not for his book, we would know very little about the calendar today. He was allowed to return to Yucatan later in his life.
The convent was built from and atop what may have been one of the largest pyramids in the area. If you look at the walls of the convent, you can see maize patterns, as well the columns that hold up the arches look quite similar to the square columns one sees at Chichen Itza.
Since 1000 BC, Izamal has been a pilgramage site for Mayans who pay homage to Kinichkakmo.....Itzam Na was a deity of healing and resurrection, creator of arts, and Izamal was still inhabited during the conquest....therefore, there is the Church, which was built from, and atop, the great pyramid of Izamal. If you really investigate the convent, you will find evidence of the Mayan stones that were used to build the church....Maize patterns, and also, the square blocks that base the arches....
We didn't see any tourist shops in Izamal, which was a welcome change for us. When I was in Playa del Carmen in 1996, the groceria looked much like this store - but one would be hard pressed to find anything like this in Playa now. I find these stores and the local market interesting, while the grocery stores now in Playa and Tulum are boring.
Nothing gets wasted here. Many people cringe when they see this photograph, yet they eat meat! I think it's amazing to see a local meat market in Mexico, and wish we saw more of these in Canada. It might change our wasteful habits if we were face to face with reality more often.
I've been in a couple of meat markets, the worst of which was in Mexico City, - so this market was a nice surprise. It's a giant fridge, so nothing smelled - and it was fairly new and very clean. That said, a dog did wander on through...
This market was so clean compared to the Lucas de Galvez in Merida. I don't remember whether or not it was here in 1996, but there was a tortilla factory down the street, so I assume this was not here then. Everything was organized, and all the electrical meters were on one wall at the back of the market, as opposed to stuck onto the wall just anywhere.
Leanne is a Registered Nurse, so she started collecting supplies from the hospital months before our trip. The hospital where she works has a policy that if something has been in a patient's room, even if it is still sealed, it's deemed contaminated. Instead of throwing the supplies away, they save them for employees going travelling to developing countries. This worked out well for me too, as I fell two hours before boarding the plane, and got 8 stitches across my knee....The hospital was really pleased with all the supplies she brought for them, and she was happy to find a public clinic in a small town, as so many of the clinics were private. 
One thing to warn, is since NAFTA, plastic has become an enemy of air quality in Mexico. Most locals burn their garbage, and it seemed by 7PM, every family was out on the street, burning their plastics and compostables. The stench was awful, to the point that I looked it up online, upon returning home. Izamal was the village that taught me about the ill-ramnifications of NAFTA, for Mexico: A country that does not boast huge recycling plants, therefore, the locals burn it with all else.
In 1996, most of the houses were Na huts, but by 2007, cement and stucco homes lines the streets of Izamal. This is on the road leading away from the magical little town, and even still - everything is painted yellow!
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