A Creepy Day in Río Lagartos

A small town on the northern tip of the Yucatán peninsula, Río Lagartos is most well-known for the abundant bird life of its lagoon, a protected natural reserve named (confusingly) Ría Lagartos. We spent a day here, though unpleasant weather spoiled any bird-watching plans we might have had. (Which was fine, since we didn’t have any).

After arriving in the evening, we immediately noticed something off in Río Lagartos: an almost complete lack of people. This is a town of around 2000 people, but...