The weather has cooled off in the jungle of southern Mexico. The nights are pleasant with no need for air conditioning. We even had some rain which was sorely needed. It is the beginning of the time of year that we anticipate all summer. It reminds us why we live here in a hot, humid jungle.
Our first visit to Bacalar was in December 2012. We stood in the laguna at 12:12pm on 12-12-12 and made the decision to buy the property, upend our lives and move to a small sleepy village on the most beautiful lake in the world, Laguna Bacalar. We were so naïve.
Not in a million years could we have foreseen the changes that have come to this part of Mexico. Every time I try to take pictures of the devastation wrought by the Mayan Train (Tren Maya) I get too upset. We took a ride on Friday out to where the Bacalar station is under construction. The train will pass on the far side of the highway a few miles from our house.
Imagine 76,300 square miles (197,600 square km) of pristine jungle dissected by enormous swaths of train ways. The cost of the project is at 15 billon dollars, seventy percent over budget. Many indigenous and environmental groups have sought to halt construction to no avail. The destruction of the fragile environment, native Mayan villages and archaeological treasures is a crime.
Financed by tourist dollars I have little hope that the train will bring a better life to Yucatecans. Surely there are better ways to improve healthcare and education and provide jobs. Locals that I have spoken with have mixed feelings. They like the job opportunities but fear for the environment. As a wealthy white woman I guess I have no say and no room to complain. As a world citizen I feel helpless to stop this disaster. That horse is out of the barn.
DOS TORTAS
the adventures of dos tortas 
Hope you are doing well! Love your posts!! 😘
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Thank you Jan. I hope to meet up sometime.
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This is beyond upsetting and horrific – how sad how sad ☹
Lorrie Jones
Simple Serenity
simpleserenity.comhttp://simpleserenity.com/
253.312.3117
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We drove through Xul-ha and I lost count of the number of dump trucks full of rocks lining the highway. Must have been thirty in that tiny town.
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I’m so sorry about the Tren Maya coming so close to your lovely casa. When we lived in Chuburna up on the gulf coast, I feared that it would be a disaster in the making, environmentally and financially.
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It’s not so much the proximity as the estimated 8,000 people a day it’s expected to service. There’s no functioning septic system in Bacalar!
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So sorry to hear about the development. The destruction must be heart-wrenching 😦
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This kind of destruction has a global impact. Until we all work together, individual countries with their own interests will have dire consequences.
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Sounds awful. I’m so sorry.
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Our crystal ball was quite unclear looking into this future.
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