Musings from and about living in Mexico
When Life Gets in the Way
My brother-in-law and his partner managed to get out of town without the interview we had scheduled. It seems like they were here for a matter of days (a fact actually).
Summing up their drive down from Las Vegas to Xico it can be said they had vehicle troubles that might have been lessened were it not for the fact they had bought both the truck and the trailer mere weeks before heading down here.
They were reasonably prepared for the encounters at the border and the first check point 40 kilometers beyond. They did pay some mordida. However it should be noted that they brought all their worldly possessions crammed in the truck and trailer. The sheer volume would indicate there would be fees. Duty and mordida were not outrageous.
Shortly before making the trip they purchased a Garmin GPS which was some help with the Mexico maps. When I asked my BIL if he thought the GPS helped he was sure it had. I asked why they got off the track so badly and ended up in Perote and at altitudes exceeding 8200′? His answer was he did not pay attention to the GPS or our direction advisement of plugging Cardel in to the GPS as a destination – overriding its and our instructions based on some road signs.
We have used the GPS enough to recommend paying close heed to its suggested routes. This morning for example we took the two to the main Xalapa bus terminal at 4:30 AM. Our GPS got us right to the ADO terminal entrance by 5 AM. They are on a bus to Mexico City, and will stay in a hotel tonight and tomorrow morning fly off to Germany for a couple of months to visit family.
Having only been to Xalapa’s main bus terminal once several years ago, and that by cab, we were unsure where it is or even if we could find it. We were prepared to find a cab in Xalapa to get them to the terminal somewhere in Xalapa. But, Rhoda, our Garmin GPS, came through with flying colors. We were back home within an hour. At that time of morning Coatepec and Xalapa are virtual ghost towns – the driving was swift and unimpeded save for a police roadblock – they asked for us to turn on an interior light in the Jetta – apparently they were looking for a specific individual(s)?
When the happy travelers return from Germany in September we will carpool it down to Puerto Escondido where they will scout out the possibility of living there.
We had a good time with them, albeit very abbreviated. We made a few scooter trips. They brought their Kawasaki Vulcan 500 CC motorcycle. Their new cycle was a recent purchase as well – part of the plan for Mexican transportation.
We pull over to look at some eagles flying over a vast ravine.
While we missed the interview about the trip down, we did manage to get in a ride down to Teocelo, Indepencia, Monte Blanco and Llano Grande. Monte Blanco is bamboo furniture central. Anita and I ordered some bamboo light fixtures for our Casita kitchen project. We also managed to get a kitchen sink-setup constructed while they were here.
On the Road to Monte Blanco – That’s Anita and I up ahead.
So busy times spent catching-up, talking about their future life in Mexico and the impending European trip. While they are in Germany we will watch over their possessions waiting to continue the 500 miles to Puerto in the fall. In the meantime we are here. Stay Tuned!
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ivan