Casa Cielo - my home for the next few months

I am grateful to have found this housing through previous Fulbrighter who stayed in Mérida.

While I was not used the noisy urban streets at first, I have grown accustomed to it and quite like this place.

The house owner Rossana is super responsive -- she'll take care of anything the house needs, from bed sheets to shower curtains. I also have a diverse group of housemates. There are 5 rooms in total and we have people from USA, México, Spain, and Peru. In the past, there were also people from France and other European and Latin American countries.

Here's a picture of my bed. You can see more detailed photos of the room and neighborhood HERE :)

My bed... and open closet

The best part, which I only began to take advantage of after the 1st week is the balcony outside my room. Here, I enjoy the afternoon breeze and also watch the moon and stars at night. The yellow building in front of Casa Cielo is an art gallery which I have yet to check out.

A view from my balcony at sunset

As the first to arrive, I think I picked the best room in the house, but there are many other good rooms. Below is a little bit more about the house and things that come with it. Rossana saw this "Vyoleta en Mérida" blog and was interested in having me do one for Casa Cielo so I might as well start a draft here.

Again, more detailed photos of the room and neighborhood HERE :)

LOCATION - very close to many stores and restaurants

- 2 minutes walk from el mercado

- 15-20 minutes walk or quick bus ride to el Centro

COST - affordable (and actually quite good for the location and all the features that come with the house)

$2300 pesos / per month per room

$1500 pesos per person if sharing a room

UTILITIES (included)

- Housemaid cleaning every Tuesday

- Electricity

- Cable TV

- WiFi

- Running water (but never to drink directly of course, like everywhere else in México)

- Washing machine

- Drying lines

ROOM each room comes with the following basic features:

- Personal bathroom

- Bed and pillows

- Bedsheets

- Desk

- Chair(s)

- Mirror(s)

- Closet, drawers, and/or cabinets

- Hangers

- Hammock hooks

- Small table

- Fluorescent light (some rooms have lamps in addition)

- Ceiling fan

- Window(s) and curtains

- Additional features specific to certain rooms: balcony, lamp, hanging artwork.

There are 5 rooms in total. A couple of the rooms have 2 beds so one can share if desired.

LIVING ROOM & DINING ROOM comes with the following:

- TV

- Blue sofa and couches (some tearing)

- Cabinet

- Fluorescent lights

- Ceiling fans

- 2 small round tables

- 2 electricical AC/fans

- 6 white plastic chairs

- 2 wooden chairs

- 2 large square tables

KITCHEN- functional and clean kitchen comes with the following:

- Sink

- Refridgerator

- Microwave

- Stove and oven

- Toaster

- Pots and pans

- Dishes, bowls, and cups

- Silverwares and knives

- Some cooking sauces and spices

EXTRA COMMON SPACE comes with the following

- Tall table

- 3 wooden chairs

- Wall fan

CONS

- Paying for our own trash collection. The place is pretty far by bus so we're going to ask if we can pay Rossana to do this for us since she has a car.

- No AC, but very hot here in general so one should get used to the heat. There are days where I slept on the floor rather than my bed because it was so hot. Working on getting a hammock to take advantage of the built in hammock hooks in the room. With that and the fan, I think I am good.

#CasaCielo #housing #August