Why Reddit Is So Jealous Of A Costco Parking Lot

Costco is nothing if not a place of mystery and wonder. You might enter the wholesale retailer strictly intent on buying a single rotisserie chicken and some carrots, for instance, and leave with a shopping bag full of various bulk sundries you didn't even know you needed. If you're like one recent shopper, you might even find a random child hiding in your cart under a loaf of Wonder Bread. Of course, not all Costco locations across the U.S. and beyond are created equal. One in Utah is the biggest, one in Hawaii is the busiest, and one location played host to the release of "Real Housewife of New Jersey" star Teresa Giudice's raspberry-flavored sparkling wine. 

The award for Most Scenic Costco Parking Lot, however, just might go to an outpost in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. We don't know about the treasures that lie beyond the automatic doors, but thanks to a photo shared on Reddit, we do know that the parking lot is the site of a magical-looking geological occurrence. 

'The only Costco with a cenote in the parking lot'

While strolling by a Costco during a vacation in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, a Redditor stumbled upon a rare sight in the parking lot. No, it wasn't ample space for compact cars; it was a cenote. According to Island Life Mexico, a cenote is a "large sinkhole or cave" formed from sedimentary limestone that collects groundwater and rainwater over time, resembling a magical well of secrets. Cenotes are particularly common in Mexico, where they were once used for both drinking water and sacrificial rituals by the ancient Maya, who believed that they were "gateways" to the underworld of Xibalba (via Culture Trip).

As they often do, Reddit commenters chimed in with a host of fun facts. One user shared the unique backstory of this particular Costco. "This building is a relocation of the original Merida warehouse, and the site had an industrial building on it," they write. "After purchasing the property and preparing to raze the building, contractors found a small hole in the floor into which the previous occupants had been dumping waste chemicals." After spotting the cenote, the contractors decided to change the Costco's layout and had its parking-lot cave "cleaned out and restored," explains the commenter. The Redditor who shared the photo reported that the food court inside was "boring," but hey, one Costco can't have everything.