We got back last Friday from a trip to Guatemala. Our tourist passes must be renewed every six months which means a trip outside of Mexico. Guatemala is half the distance to the US so we decided to test out a trip to Guatemala. We left the house at 5:30 in the morning and arrived close to the border about 5:30 in the evening. Tuxtla Chico is where we planned to spend the night but alas another group protesting wanted to make their voices heard by blocking the freeway. Not sure why the Mexican Government allows this. It happens all the time in Oaxaca. Semi-trailers are usually used to block the road. And it is often main roads that they are blocking. Most of the time it's unions that do the blocking. It appears Unions in Mexico are just as selfish to ignore the damage they do to their economy as American Unions are. Any way it's a real pain in the ass when it happens. Immediate change of plans. So we spent the night farther away from the border than we wanted. That night we worried that we wouldn't be able to pass in the morning. Sometimes these things go on for days! It's real frustrating when small interest groups hogtie the rest of a country. You know, the way they do in the US all the time.
The drive from Tlacolula to the turnoff before Tehuantepec is torturous. Average speed for the four hours is thirty miles an hour. I don't believe there is a single stretch of road that is straight for more than a half a mile on this leg of the trip. There is a new freeway being built that will drasticly cut driving time to the coast when completed.
The main thing I would say about Chiapas is that it is simply beautiful. It's almost jungle like. It has to be the lushest area that I have ever been to. The highway from Tehuantepec to Guatemala is pretty flat and is in very good shape. We must of passed at least fifteen or twenty rivers. The price of the lush greenery is a climate that is more humid than anywhere that I have ever been. That saying "it's a nice place to visit but wouldn't want to live there" fits the coastal area of Chiapas perfectly. We were told that inland is much different. From inside of our air conditioned truck the drive was amazing! There were many areas where the trees on both sides of the road formed a tunnel over the road. Lots of cattle grazing over acres and acres of thick grassland.
A surprise was the existance of windmills. On both sides of the Chiapas and Oaxaca border in a long valley are hundreds of windmills. They are of course quite large and turn at different rates. I'm not sure where the electricity goes but it was astounding to see this kind of technology in Southern Mexico.
We stopped at a store to buy coffee and the cashier had a name tag that read "Kenia" which is Spanish for Kenya. A conversation insued over her name and we learned that her last name was Chun. Her ancestory included folks from China. Talk about diversity.
We ended up spending the first night about twenty miles from the border. We arrived the next morning at the border at about 7:15 only to find out that we had to drive back about thirty miles to cancel our permit for our truck. When we returned with a canceled permit there was no reason to drive across so we walked across to Guatemala. There is no way to describe the abundance of scams along the border on both sides. We were literally accosted by men who insisted on helping us through the process. They claimed to know all the shortcuts while others had wads of money to exchange for our pesos. Thank God we have a little command of Spanish now. I eventually had to become quite aggressive and take control of the situation. We cancelled our personal permits in Mexico before entering Guatemala. Ends up we paid the government of Guatemala about seventy dollars for the privilege of entering and immediately leaving their country. We had heard a rumor that Guatemala required a waiting time between stamping your passport entering the country and exiting of three days. Maybe the lady at the window took pity on us as there we at least fifteen men around us trying to get into our pockets. I must say concerning these men on both sides of the border that they were in no way threatening. I never felt like I was going to be physically harmed. They were pushy and of course it was confusing. Next time we'll zip right through the process!!!!!
Normally Mexico requires you to leave their country for twenty four hours to apply for a new tourist permit. We were fortunate that the immigration let us renew our personal permits as soon as we re-entered Mexico. I must add here that the woman that canceled and renewed our personal permits was a real sweetheart. I told her that she was the most kind and helpful person that we had ever encountered.
We then drove back to where our permit for the truck had been canceled and requested a new one. Much to our surprise he gave it to us. No waiting!
Our initial plan was to take three days for the trip. One day to Guatemala, twenty four hours in Guatemala, then drive home the next day. We gained a day by not having to stay in Guatemala so we decided to take two days for the drive home. Felipe and Alejandra were watching our home so there was a little pressure to get back.
Stopping along the drive is always a special part of a trip for Beth and I. Even a chat while filling up with gas can lead to wonderful insights. The majority of people in Mexico are hardworking honest people. They like to talk as much as we do and are as curious about us as we are them. Driving in Mexico is a lot like driving in the US in the fifties. There are many interesting stores and shops along the highway. It's a little slower than driving on mega freeways but you don't miss the contact with the people.
We were stopped at checkpoints seven times coming back. Mexico seems a whole lot more serious about controlling who enters their country than the US.
As we were in a bit of a hurry on our trip I didn't take many photos but I would suggest that you do a Google image search for Chiapas. You'll be amazed at it's beauty.
We are going to begin the process of acquring a different status here that will elliminate having to leave the country every six months.
Anyone traveling from Mexico to Guatemala for the first time is welcome to email us for more specific details on crossing the border.
Back here at home the rainy season is beginning. The 18th will mark one year for us. As we are settled in now we'd like to invite friends and family to come down and see Oaxaca.