Dare To Drive In Mexico
Well, it’s taken me six months to get back to Mexico, but I finally did get back. This time planning to travel from my home in northeast Texas to Laredo, down to Mexico City and then go to the east coast and reenter the states through McAllen. Should be a fun trip. However, since I’m writing this blog a few months after the fact, I know that it WAS in fact a fun trip, and also totally unlike the trip I’d planned.
After talking to a few friends who’d traveled to Mexico, plus the experience we’d gathered driving a rental car in Mexico last fall, we decided to throw caution to the winds and drive our own car in Mexico (you only live once, eh?)…
Well, actually we didn’t drive our good car; we drove our work car; if anything were to happen to it, well… c’est la vie. Before leaving we bought Mexican auto insurance from Lewis and Lewis http://www.mexicanautoinsurance.com/ which cost around $250 but it was worth it for full coverage and liability. As it turned out we didn’t need it, but… you know how that goes.
After a layover in a marginal hotel in Laredo, on the American side, we woke up and headed straight for Mexico; crossing the border at the old bridge. As we crossed into Mexico it divided into two lanes “I have something to declare”, and “nothing to delcare”. We had no idea whether we did or not, so we just went to the “nothing” lane and prepared to explain to someone. We were rather surprised to find that there was no customs building on the Mexican side of the bridge; the bridge just ended and we were in Mexico.
Bear in mind now, that we had no idea what we were doing, we’d never traveled into Mexico by car before, and as soon as we crossed the bridge the street promptly ended in a T. So we slowed down, I leaned out the window and asked someone what we were doing (and I hadn’t spoken spanish in six months so I was a bit unsure of myself at this point too). Well, I finally figured out that to get our car permits we had to drive a ways this way, and a ways that way, and finally wound up back around under the bridge at the immigration office.
Two of us went in, leaving my Dad in the car, brought his passport with us and the car’s paperwork. Again, expecting a hassle after all we’d heard about Mexico and driving. But we were in and out within a half-hour, despite my marginal spanish and having absolutely NO idea what we were doing. But the funny thing was, they stamped Dad’s passport without ever seeing him! And they gave us the car permit without ever seeing the car!
So since this was so easy, we were convinced that the 25 mile checkpoint would be the rigorous inspection we’d heard so much about. But meanwhile we went shopping in Nuevo Laredo for some Mexican produce. The fruits, even just across the border, taste SO much better than their American counterparts. Not to mention being a third the price.
We had noticed it clouding up a bit, but didn’t think too much about it until, as we were shopping away, thunder clapped and the out went the lights! Fully expecting to be unable to continue shopping, we nonetheless meandered towards the checkout; soon battery backup came online and checkout was a snap. No problem, right? That’s what we thought too…
But what we weren’t prepared for, was the fact that every traffic light in Nuevo Laredo wasn’t working due to the power outage! Now people in Mexico drive… well… insanely on a good day. Now imagine flooded streets, crazy drivers, and NO SIGNALS! It was total chaos. Only Mexico would choose this way to say “Hello”!
Next post I’ll pick up the story at the 25 mile checkpoint; don’t touch that dial! (Actually, it occurs to me that that expression only made sense when TV’s HAD dials, but… oh, who cares! It still sounds so dramatic!)
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Posted on June 24th, 2007 by Natnee and filed under Mexico |
