(post 177 of 263 — I have been back dating posts, so scroll down to make sure you didn’t miss any!)

Before the pandemic, I had started to take the cinema for granted despite having a luxury one within walking distance. Now that it’s closed, probably for good, I realised that the adage is true that you don’t appreciate something until it’s gone. I’m pretty sure I’ve been to the cinema more since December than I had in total my three years here pre-pandemic. My first post-pandemic film was “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which I timed perfectly to see in a nearly empty theatre. I so regretted seeing “Black Widow” on a small screen, so I was thrilled to see Spider-Man at a theatre!

The next movie I saw was an impulse, the first time in ages that I thought, gosh, I’ve been cooped up at home for ages, wonder if there’s a good movie on! So I checked the listings and realised I had just enough time to take a walk (about 40 minutes) to Plaza Las Americas to catch a showing of “Marry Me.” It was a week night, so the cinema was pretty empty as well.

Then, I saw “The Batman,” and despite going during the week, the theatre was packed, which made it difficult to relax and enjoy the show, but I’m still happy I saw it on the big screen.

Finally, today I went to see “Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” but of course! There were a few more people than when I went to see Spider-Man, but nowhere near as many as for Batman.

I like to pair my planned cinema outings with a good meal. For all but “Marry Me” I ended up at Galerías, which only has two good restaurants, Sushi Roll or Chili’s. The last two outings, I did ribs with the margarita of the month at Chili’s, and I’d like to make that a monthly thing! I’m not a fan of regular margaritas, but their monthly offerings are so creative! The one I had before Batman had tamarind in it, the one after Dr. Strange had Granny Smith apple.

Yucatán is now fully reopen, with only an indoor mask mandate to remind us that we are coming out of a pandemic. This feels very right as we were locked down so tightly that our current numbers are super low and we haven’t had any COVID deaths in weeks. I thought I’d have a hard time reengaging with the world, but it’s happened so gradually that the transition has been easy. It feels amazing to go out for meals, shop in person without entering a store being a huge procedure, and, of course, to freeze for a few hours (why do I always forget to bring a blanket to the cinema!) while watching an entertaining tale on the big screen. But you know what I appreciate most about going to the movies? Cinema mode, so a blissful two to three hours free of notifications. I need to start implementing that kind of break in my daily life!