11/04/2020
Please share!
Hundreds of thousands of jobs have been lost, and that's only here in Cancun. Millions nation wide. One of the biggest losers in this pandemic unfortunately is tourism. And that's globally. As you know Mexico does well with tourism -- better than most countries. The weather is nice, the culture is rich, the cuisine is extraordinary, the hospitality is first class and there's plenty to do. I'm not writing this so you can feel sympathetic, I'm writing this because I am proud to be Mexican. You see this is not the first time we've taken a blow. The swine flu H1N1 in 2009 left us jobless for months. Hotels were shut down, cruise ships were not allowed to sail even within 5 miles of Mexican borders. Restaurants, night clubs, parks, excursions, hotels, flights were completely shut down for the months of May and June in 2009. And even though it was open officially, the entire Summer of '09 was close to a standstill. People were afraid to come. I remember, I was here. It took roughly 5 months to recover fully. Billions lost...................again. Another 5 months were lost in October of 2005 (three months after Katrina hitNew Orleans), the State of Quintana Roo had an unwelcomed visitor by the name of hurricane Wilma. A meteorological phenomenon. Not only was it a category 5 (that's catastrophic proportions), it hit a cold front and literally hovered on top of Cancun / Mayan Riviera for close to 60 hours. In it's wake the destruction was devastating. It was as if a nuclear bomb detonated. And wouldn't you believe, of close to 2 million residents between Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum only a handful lost there lives. That's another thing Mexico is really good at. The very next day after Wilma left us without power, without roads, without stores, without an airport, without electricity, there were literally hundreds of thousands of workers -- like ants, cleaning up, starting the rebuild. Government trucks were in the outskirts of the city ready with food, water, supplies, and medical attention. Hardly a soul was left behind. It was so remarkable the U.N. decided to adopt Mexico's format on how to handle disaters. You see, Mexico's greatest resource is it's people. And that's what makes me proud. We fall down, we get up, we make sure we're all okay, and we do what needs to be done. No pointing fingers, no blame, only an acceptance of how to move onward as best we can. Yes, with all the geniune warmth flowing through our veins, we're still tough as nails. During these troubling times we will switch our champagne for beer, and our beer for water. We will abstain from our fancy eateries and make our own Mexican delicacies. If we run out of gas, we'll embrace cold showers and linger around a grill with hot charcoal as we make whatever it is we found in our freezers. Friendly neighbors will check if we're okay and visa versa. We'll laugh with tales of the good times, and we'll cry alone with worry of the unknown. We will take our lumps and we will prevail like we have time and time again. No my friends, no sympathy is needed -- only a weighty promise that you will, in due time, come back and visit the place you seem to love the most -- Mexico! We will be here as resilient as the mighty Yucatan jungle, ready with open arms and an undeniable friendliness. And even though we're proud, tough, and seemingly indifferent -- deep down we need your subsistence. Somehow we've been fused with a common enthusiasm to embrace one another......................only now at a safe distance of course.
