Hola everyone. We have now just gotten settled here in Merida, after a (very) long road trip down. We figured that we went nearly 2,000 miles in Mexico, down through Texas, to Monterrey, then on to San Luis Potosi, to San Miguel de Allende, to Puebla, to Campeche, and finally to Merida. As many of you know, we drove down with our Black Labrador Fidel and two-year-old daughter Carolina. Before setting out, we had been pretty excited at the thought of a prolonged road trip through Mexico, but by the time we got to Merida, we were really happy to be out of the car. We've come up with a few highlights, low lights, and general observations about a road trip in Mexico, in case any of you ever find yourself behind the wheel of a car for an extended driving trip south of the border.
Cops in Mexico
They are not all as crooked as you might think. But they certainly are not all boy scouts, either. Our batting average was even Steven: 50-50. We were pulled over twice during our road trip -- both within the first 24 hours on the road, right before we got to Monterrey, and as we were trying to leave Monterrey about 17 hours later. (It was a difficult first day, to say the least.)
The first officer said we were speeding; technically, he was right. (We were speeding, but we weren't going as fast as the other cars on the road.) The difference was that our car had a bike and a Yakima box on top, and MN plates. He knew we were easy money. He went through all the motions ... checked the passports, checked our driver's permit, made some small talk about the drive ... and then hit us with the speeding charge. We told him "we'd be happy to pay our fine now rather than wait for a court date," which is the acceptable way of initiating a bribe. He started the bidding at 1,200 pesos -- about $85. We countered at 200 pesos -- about $13. He looked at his partner, they nodded, grabbed our 200-peso note, ran off to the squad car and peeled out.
The next day in Monterrey, we had a bear of a time getting out of the city. Our hotel was in the middle of the city, and at nearly 4 million people, the city is very difficult to navigate. Of course we got lost following the signs out of the city (I think we followed them too literally ... more on that later), and took an (illegal) left turn to try and get turned in the right direction. The next thing we knew, there were sirens sounding and light flashing behind us. We couldn't believe it.
Officer #2 came up to our window and asked for all the same info: passports, driver permit info, but skipped the small talk. All he wanted to discuss was our illegal left turn, and seemed genuinely concerned for our safety, explaining that there are so many accidents in Monterrey, most of them caused by people from other cities (or countries). He then explained to us exactly what we had done wrong, even using a paper and pencil to diagram the nuances of Mexican stoplights. He then suggested we be very careful, as the majority of Mexican policemen are crooked and will, at best, ask for a bribe and, at worst, haul you in. He then asked if we wanted to return to the scene of the crime and watch a few rounds of the stoplight, just to make sure we understood traffic lights. We nodded and agreed up till his final request ... we just couldn’t go back to the scene of our crime if we wanted to make it to our destination, San Luis Potosi, before dark. We pointed to CeCe in her car seat and explained our circumstances. It was, after all, nap time for CeCe, and we had miles to get under our belts.
He agreed; he hadn’t realized we were traveling with an infant. He then did the unfathomable: he offered us a police escort out of town. He told us to follow his flashing lights; he'd bring us to the freeway entrance. We were psyched. A police escort. We’d FOR SURE get to the correct highway. And we did, quickly and without incident. Before we got on the highway, we pulled over and he came up to our car to wish us the best, and to warn us to be careful on the roads. He shook both of our hands, we thanked him profusely, and we were off. No bribe, not even a payment for our police escort out of town ... just one of the best guys in uniform we'd ever met.
Traffic and Roads
When driving in Mexico, you typically have a few options as far as roads are concerned. First, there are the local roads that go town to town, connecting all of the tiny dots of Mexican towns to one another. Mostly these roads are paved and in “fine” condition, but they comprise an insane amount of speed bumps. We quickly learned that speed bumps are the ONLY way to get Mexican drivers to slow down -- otherwise they go as fast as they possibly can. (In the case of a 1960 VW Beetle, that's 50 mph. In the case of a 2009 Porsche, that's 150 mph.) So, if you don't want to stop on average once every 200 meters, you have to pay to drive the swanky toll roads that link all of Mexico's larger cities.
On our trip, we did the majority of our driving on toll roads. They are great quality roads, and most of them are divided highways. What we didn't realize is how much we would spend on them. For example, the toll road to Cancun from Merida costs $320 pesos, or about $23 for a 200-mile road. Another toll road outside of Ciudad de Carmen on the coast costs about $15 for about 30 miles, but it allowed passage over two enormously long bridges over an ocean inlet -- one was five kilometers long, the other was four. The only nice thing about the steep price is that it keeps the majority of local, slow-moving traffic (say, a horse-drawn carriage or a 1940s beater whose top speed is 35 mph) off the road.
The majority of people who take the toll roads are cross-country truckers and Mexicans with money. Both of these groups of people, we realized quickly, like to drive fast. Really fast. And pass on blind, uphill curves. And ride your bumper within inches, literally inches. But the scariest thing for us were the semi trucks. You see, the majority of trucks in Mexico are double and triple semis. You always end up getting stuck behind them as they can't go very fast up the mountainous roads. But it’s when they get up to normal highway speeds that they are the most dangerous. At any speed over 45 mph, their multiple trailers sway back and forth in opposite directions -- taking up almost both lanes of the two-lane divided highways. Having to drive behind them for any amount of time makes you get religion quick. I probably wondered a thousand times during our road trip what would happen if one of the trailers were to break free and come careening towards us. It's pretty obvious what would've happened; I just kept hoping that John would be able to miss it, somehow.
Traveling with a toddler
A couple of insights here when you go on a really long trip:
Cops in Mexico
They are not all as crooked as you might think. But they certainly are not all boy scouts, either. Our batting average was even Steven: 50-50. We were pulled over twice during our road trip -- both within the first 24 hours on the road, right before we got to Monterrey, and as we were trying to leave Monterrey about 17 hours later. (It was a difficult first day, to say the least.)
The first officer said we were speeding; technically, he was right. (We were speeding, but we weren't going as fast as the other cars on the road.) The difference was that our car had a bike and a Yakima box on top, and MN plates. He knew we were easy money. He went through all the motions ... checked the passports, checked our driver's permit, made some small talk about the drive ... and then hit us with the speeding charge. We told him "we'd be happy to pay our fine now rather than wait for a court date," which is the acceptable way of initiating a bribe. He started the bidding at 1,200 pesos -- about $85. We countered at 200 pesos -- about $13. He looked at his partner, they nodded, grabbed our 200-peso note, ran off to the squad car and peeled out.
The next day in Monterrey, we had a bear of a time getting out of the city. Our hotel was in the middle of the city, and at nearly 4 million people, the city is very difficult to navigate. Of course we got lost following the signs out of the city (I think we followed them too literally ... more on that later), and took an (illegal) left turn to try and get turned in the right direction. The next thing we knew, there were sirens sounding and light flashing behind us. We couldn't believe it.
Officer #2 came up to our window and asked for all the same info: passports, driver permit info, but skipped the small talk. All he wanted to discuss was our illegal left turn, and seemed genuinely concerned for our safety, explaining that there are so many accidents in Monterrey, most of them caused by people from other cities (or countries). He then explained to us exactly what we had done wrong, even using a paper and pencil to diagram the nuances of Mexican stoplights. He then suggested we be very careful, as the majority of Mexican policemen are crooked and will, at best, ask for a bribe and, at worst, haul you in. He then asked if we wanted to return to the scene of the crime and watch a few rounds of the stoplight, just to make sure we understood traffic lights. We nodded and agreed up till his final request ... we just couldn’t go back to the scene of our crime if we wanted to make it to our destination, San Luis Potosi, before dark. We pointed to CeCe in her car seat and explained our circumstances. It was, after all, nap time for CeCe, and we had miles to get under our belts.
He agreed; he hadn’t realized we were traveling with an infant. He then did the unfathomable: he offered us a police escort out of town. He told us to follow his flashing lights; he'd bring us to the freeway entrance. We were psyched. A police escort. We’d FOR SURE get to the correct highway. And we did, quickly and without incident. Before we got on the highway, we pulled over and he came up to our car to wish us the best, and to warn us to be careful on the roads. He shook both of our hands, we thanked him profusely, and we were off. No bribe, not even a payment for our police escort out of town ... just one of the best guys in uniform we'd ever met.
Traffic and Roads
When driving in Mexico, you typically have a few options as far as roads are concerned. First, there are the local roads that go town to town, connecting all of the tiny dots of Mexican towns to one another. Mostly these roads are paved and in “fine” condition, but they comprise an insane amount of speed bumps. We quickly learned that speed bumps are the ONLY way to get Mexican drivers to slow down -- otherwise they go as fast as they possibly can. (In the case of a 1960 VW Beetle, that's 50 mph. In the case of a 2009 Porsche, that's 150 mph.) So, if you don't want to stop on average once every 200 meters, you have to pay to drive the swanky toll roads that link all of Mexico's larger cities.
On our trip, we did the majority of our driving on toll roads. They are great quality roads, and most of them are divided highways. What we didn't realize is how much we would spend on them. For example, the toll road to Cancun from Merida costs $320 pesos, or about $23 for a 200-mile road. Another toll road outside of Ciudad de Carmen on the coast costs about $15 for about 30 miles, but it allowed passage over two enormously long bridges over an ocean inlet -- one was five kilometers long, the other was four. The only nice thing about the steep price is that it keeps the majority of local, slow-moving traffic (say, a horse-drawn carriage or a 1940s beater whose top speed is 35 mph) off the road.
The majority of people who take the toll roads are cross-country truckers and Mexicans with money. Both of these groups of people, we realized quickly, like to drive fast. Really fast. And pass on blind, uphill curves. And ride your bumper within inches, literally inches. But the scariest thing for us were the semi trucks. You see, the majority of trucks in Mexico are double and triple semis. You always end up getting stuck behind them as they can't go very fast up the mountainous roads. But it’s when they get up to normal highway speeds that they are the most dangerous. At any speed over 45 mph, their multiple trailers sway back and forth in opposite directions -- taking up almost both lanes of the two-lane divided highways. Having to drive behind them for any amount of time makes you get religion quick. I probably wondered a thousand times during our road trip what would happen if one of the trailers were to break free and come careening towards us. It's pretty obvious what would've happened; I just kept hoping that John would be able to miss it, somehow.
Traveling with a toddler
A couple of insights here when you go on a really long trip:
1. Get the built-in DVD player. As maddening as listening to Dora songs are, your alternative is a screaming baby for hours. All of a sudden, "Turn the Wheel, Isa" isn't such an annoying song.
2. Junk food, especially when eaten instead of lunch, can actually appease a toddler.
3. Drive over nap times. Like, duh.
4. Threats work, and they don't even have to be legit. For instance, you can say "If you don't stop crying, you will not be able to go swimming when we get to the hotel" even if a) you don't know where you will be staying, and b) if that nameless, faceless hotel even HAS a pool.
5. Don’t underestimate the power of “yes.” As in “yes” you can have that cookie; “yes” you can listen to your CD; “yes” I’ll read you a book; and “yes” I’ll do just about anything to avoid a screaming baby.
Signage in Mexico
1. The signage in Mexico is fairly nonexistent. Especially, say, if you are in the middle of a city of four million, with hundreds of cars honking and roaring past you, and the street you are on suddenly breaks into six offshoots in different directions. In that case, my friend, you are completely on your own. None of those offshoots will have signage. And god help you if you are on that road in the dark. Better just to pull over on the shoulder and sleep there for the night.
2. If a sign in the aforementioned huge city (or any city for that matter) says to go "straight" you might actually need to navigate multiple turns, some hard turns, as part of that "straight" route.
3. Many times, distance signs are wrong. For example, you'll see a kilometer distance sign, and drive for 15, 20, even 30 minutes. You’ll come up upon another kilometer distance marker, but strangely, it says there are MORE kilometers to your destination than the previous sign. By the way, this phenomenon might bring you to tears after a 7-hour day in the car.
4. Painted lane markers mean nothing. Two theories behind their existence: they are merely a way to use up extra paint in Mexico, or to provide jobs to people who need work. And if you were wondering, painted shoulder lines don't mean anything either.
5. Signs tend to fade out in Mexico ... and they never are replaced. Especially the signs that fade out at the juncture of three major highways in the middle of a very busy city.
6. If there is a "No Bicycle" sign on the highway you will see a bicycle once every couple of minutes.
Our conclusion after doing this road trip?
Fly. Do not take a 2,000-mile road trip in Mexico with a two-year-old and a dog.
2 comments:
This was incredibly well written and had me empathizing with your experience with each new sentence. Huge props for enduring what will remain and unforgettable experience!
Well, I guess there's the answer to my repeated wonderings of late -- "I wonder how those four are doing on the long, leisurely trip down to Merida?" Wow. A great read, but I'm glad you are safe & sound with feet firmly on earth. Looking forward to your ongoing updates.
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