The bum and the tourist

All’s well that ends well, and tonight at least, we’re staying at the Hotel Mante. After a walk about the town and a quick dinner, we’re relaxing for the evening before an early start tomorrow. I wanted to take a quick moment to comment on my travel down here so far.

The bum and the tourist

Our appearance traveling today was more than a little comical for all who witnessed it. Mel was taking down a bunch of equipment (binoculars, bird guides translated in spanish, and T-shirts) for some of the work he’s doing with local communities here in Tamaulipas. He had so much stuff, and it was so heavy, that he opted to carry it all on top of a baby stroller (complete with front-wheel suspension). Adding to his logic was his desire to give the stroller to a friend who recently had a baby. I on the other hand had a bag around my shoulder, and a very large rolling suitcase. Together, the two of us walked across the Rio Grande (a first for me) into Mexico to catch a series of buses to our destination. The high curbs along the streets made walking suprisingly difficult with our current arrangement. We decided that Mel looked like a bum and I looked like a tourist. So far, the trip was off to a great start.

Mexican buses - the way to travel

Despite the slower speed than being in a car, I was very impressed with the buses that we took in Mexico. They put any airplane to shame with the amount of leg room and the degree to which the seat leaned back. I’ve never slept so well! They also played one movie after another during the trip. First up was a horid flick called The Speading Ground, in english with spanish subtitles. The only interesting thing is that it featured Leslie Hope (Jack Bauer’s wife in 24, season 1). Next up was Antwone Fisher, which looked really good. Only problem was that it was dubbed in spanish, and seeing as my spanish isn’t any better than The Spreading Ground, I was left reading facial expressions and generally being clueless as to what was going on. One interesting note for me was that the movie starts off with a scene featuring Malcolm David Kelley, Walt from television’s Lost. So back to back, both movies featured actors in two television shows I’m addicted to. Finally, late in the day, we watched Jacob the Liar. It was in english, but barely loud enough to hear over the bus. Nothing like a movie about the holocost to lift your spirits.

So Mel has connections

Upon arriving in Cuidad Victoria, we needed to go visit a friend of Mel’s (the lady who was to be the recipient of the baby stroller), and then come back to the station to catch a bus to Cuidad Mante. Turns out, Mel knows people with TransPais. After talking to a couple of guys from their corporate office, one of them recommend and then drove us out to a restaurant for lunch. After a while, another person from TransPais picked us up, and took us a good ways to this friend’s house that was to receive the stroller, after which, he took us back to the station. To put this in perspective, imagine taking Greyhound somewhere and expecting any favors once you get off the bus… Just wouldn’t happen.

Well, I think that will about do it for your Day 1 recap. I’m being a little long winded mainly cause there’s not much else to do. Although today is El Dia del Muerte (Day of the Dead), Mante doesn’t seem to be as festive as Victoria, and needless to say, I don’t feel the need to wander the streets and get involved in a cultural tradition of which I have no knowledge. I’d probably make someone mad and end up in trouble.

I’ll post when I can. Get ready for some highly bird focused material.