SF Gate Article on Merida
Perusing the web on a totally different mission and found this article in the San Francisco Gate from 2001. Not much that the author mentions in the article has changed... Casa del Balam is still a nice hotel, Portico del Peregrino is still a great place to eat (with the best pork chops or chuletas in all of the Yucatan!) and it's still a healing experience to sit in the sun on the zocalo, drink fresh orange juice and watch the world go by.
Check it out!