traveled before. You will probably be able to find expat online forums where people in Merida post. There is a wealth of information to be found.

My boss at the Embassy used to bike to work, but the roads in the historic district of Mexico City where the Embassy is located are some of the best roads I ever saw in Mexico. Very similar to what you'd find in the U.S.

I lived in Cuernavaca for 10 years. The roads were awful. Drainage is seriously lacking, so any heavy rain will cause minor flooding. There are pot holes everywhere because whenever they re-pave, they do a poor job of it with shoddy materials. Usually the patches will hold until the rainy season starts, and then the roads start to resemble the surface of the moon. There was a pot hole near my house there when we moved in. 10 years later when we moved out, it was still there, only bigger. Many times they just fill in holes with dirt. Or if the hole gets too big ,someone will put a tire or something else in it to warn people not to drive over it. One time, there was a hole so deep that someone put there xmas tree in it after the holidays were over.

I lived in San Miguel de Allende for almost 3 years. The roads there were in much better shape in general, but a lot of them were cobblestone, and I don't mean fairly uniform colonial williamsburg cobblestone. I mean it can hurt your ankles to walk on it type of cobblestone. I can't imagine biking on that, especially with a road bike. Maybe a mountain bike would fair better.

What you'll quickly find about Mexico is that one street can vary in quality and condition from the one that is right next to it. Even the same street can become drastically better or worse as you go up or down it.

I do feel the need to say again that I would not advise anyone to retire to Mexico, especially now. I've seen too many people with too many problems. I get the desire to live in the colonial atmosphere with the small streets and friendly people, but here's my experience. When someone is 65 or so, just retired, still fairly healthy, it makes perfect sense. Sell my home in the States and buy something in Mexico and live off my Social Security. Totally different story 10-15 years later when health issues start to creep up. Healthcare is far from free in Mexico, and Medicare won't cover anything there. I've seen people end up with massive hospital bills, with hospitals refusing to continue care or refusing to let someone leave until the bill is paid. The Embassy won't pay medical bills. The Embassy won't pay for a medical evacuation flight if it's needed. Even if someone is so well off that money is of no concern, for those that make it into their 80's, 90's and beyond, family and friends in the States may pass away, then the expat retiree finds themselves all alone with no one back home to help anymore. I'm not talking about money. Some people end up with dementia or just health issues so severe that it is clear that the end is near, and they are completely alone. I saw too many people in dire straits with absolutely no one to call on for help.

And once again, the general situation in Mexico is just not good. There's a reason people want to come here. I became increasingly depressed at the thought of spending the rest of my life there when I knew that I was lucky enough to be born in the greatest country on Earth. Despite it's issues, the U.S. is on a completely different level that Mexico. We talk about the 1% having all the wealth here. There, it's the .001%, and the rest are the have nots. My home was broken into while we slept. On another occasion, my car that was behind a locked gate and 6 foot wall was left on cinderblocks. Yet another time, my water meter was stolen because it was made of bronze, leaving water pouring into the street from the pipes the meter used to be connected to. People I knew well were kidnapped. I had former students murdered. What I'm trying to say is, if the plan is to live in or retire to Mexico, think on it long and hard. Mexico has been a big part of my life, but I do not miss it at all.