Manuel, hammock seller in Merida, Yucatan

Manuel sells handmade hammocks for living on the streets of Merida. He explained to me how there are different types of hammocks and how the best hammocks in the world are made in here. After all Merida is the capital of Hammocks. Manuel says he makes the hammocks himself and then sells them on street. The cost of a sigle hammock was around 800 pesos but the prices vary depending of the quality, the size and your negotiation skills.

Manuel told how times have changed. Tourists are taken on tours of the city but the guides just take them from store to store to buy things. Guides get commission from the shops so all they think about is money.

He claimed that his hammocks were partly made of a local plant that keeps the mosquitos away and indeed to hammocks had a strange smell that might keeps the insects away. Was that claim just a story since the staff at my hostel said that no hammocks are made of that mystical material anymore and they recommended buying cotton or nylon hammocks which prices start from 250 pesos. Was the old man telling the truth or just trying to sell another hammock by lying? It’s hard to know who to trust here.

It was time for Manuel to continue his work. He stood up and headed towards a crowd of German tourists.