Another Sunset

Hello from. . . Mexico?



Two days after Santa Maria, I jumped on a chicken bus and headed for Mexico - I left Xela at 5AM and shortly after noon was sitting on the beach in Puerto Chiapas (fomerly Madero) Mexico. Why sis I go to Mexico, you might ask. Well, having seen the sunrise on the Carribbean Sea in Belize on the west coast of Central America, I thought it would be cool to see it set on the Pacific East coast.



Not a bad idea, but an interesting experience. I do not have a guide of this part of Mexico, and couldn't find any information on the internet - so I was basically flying blind as soon as I crossed the border. Chiapas is Mexico's poorest state - which is definately saying something, but when you cross the border the difference between Mexico and Guatemala is immediately visible, well paved roads connect even these far flung port towns, and huge plantations stretch as far as the eye can see. Bananas, Plantains, Mangoes and Tobacco were the most prevalent, and the tropical landscape is dotted with huge trees, the shade of which would cover the entirety of most properties in Canada.



I got to Puerto Chiapas fairly easily, but was led off to eat quite a way out of town (everybody wants to lead you smewhere) but hailed a pickup back after walking for only a short distance - which was good, because it was crazy hot and I had EVRYTHING to carry. So I got back to town and encountered a bit of a snag - Puerto Chiapas doesn't have a bank, so everybody uses the ABM at the corner store, unfortunately the machine had been broken for a while. So that left me with two options - say "okay, I saw the ocean at least" and head back to Guatemala, or go to Tapachula in a taxi and try my luck there. I went for option number two.



I have never been so happy to see an HSBC in my life. I got more pesos and jumped back in the cab, returned to Puero Chiapas and booked into a hotel for the night. I went out later and sat and watched the sun go down as the waves crashed against the shore, and felt a sense of accomplishment at having accomplished my goal.



Puerto Chiapas, I must say, was not as happy to have me as I was to be there - the town serves cruise ships on their way south, and I guess one person was not what they were used to. The entire time I never saw another traveller, and the locals in town (with a couple exceptions) were less than welcoming. So, the next morning I rose early and went by to Guatemala by a different border crossing, and nine hours later was in Panajachel, Lago Atitlan - which is where I have stayed.



So, a fun little adventure - in total I was in Mexico for less than 24 hours (which suprisingly did not seem strange to immigration) and was very happy to get back into Guatemala.



For Gwen, if you look into the left corner of the photo above you will see a couple stray dogs who were also enjoying the sunset and the surf.