Everything started out normally at 5:45 when I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock bidding me good morning and announcing that it was the start of my travel day. I can’t say that it went downhill from there but I should have known something unexpected was going to happen.
I got myself ready and walked out to the beach. The camping family wasn’t up yet and I had bus information for the next part of their trip. They were all safe and sound in their camping hammocks under the sea grape trees. Their plans are pretty fluid and included stops in Placencia and Punta Gorda (PG), both south of Hopkins and Kismet. They would be up soon enough, packing, and I’d pass my info to them. We did have plans to walk to the 7am Hopkins bus stop, just 3 lanes down from Kismet. They aren’t more than a footnote here though.
Tricia had the kitchen open so I went up to see what was going on. The table was set for breakfast and the pot of coffee was sitting on the table. She regally swept in and we exchanged morning pleasantries As always she was a whirling dervish of energy, cleaning, moving things, etc. In seconds she had the coffee pot turned on it’s side, draining into one of the empty breakfast plates. Back on it base in seconds and the area cleaned in seconds.
Robert moseyed in, yep he’s a mossier, Matt next, and then Conan, who’s been acting rather oddly lately, was almost right behind him. The past couple of days has seem Conan waking up much earlier than he has almost since he arrive in late November. It could be that he wants his baby back into the water and underway, it may be something else. No matter. He did say he was going to be up to see me off, and he was. Again, pleasantries all around. Out of the corner of my eye I saw one of the camper girls walking toward the kitchen steps so I met her half way. Her sister came from the direction of the shower too so I told them the info on the bus and about going to Placencia by boat from Independence, the town on the way to PG. I also asked if they were feeling better after having spent the previous day trying for news of family and friends back in tornado revenged Joplin, MO. (Thankfully they learned everyone was fine.) and they said a good night’s sleep is what they needed and got. So, off to my final packing. Six-thirty came and I said my goodbyes to goodbyes to everyone, got plenty of hugs, and headed for the parking lot to start walking to the bus stop. Robert offered us a ride and we were saved from a much longer walk because of it. He got us to the stop just as the bus was backing out into the street. If we’d have walked we’d have missed it and had to walk the much longer distance to the middle of the village. I mentioned that it was hot already at 7am so we would have been sweat drenched by the time we got there, having dragged all of out luggage. The ride through Hopkins and out to the 2 junctions was normal. The campers got off at the Hopkins Road junction and we waved a final goodbye. I got off at the Southern Hwy and Hummingbird Highways for my trip west and north. The bus came. I got on, and that was the start of my adventure.
I boarded the chicken bus to Belize City and it was standing room only. The buses used for intra-Belize travel are Bluebird school buses. They hold about 50 kids and haven’t been modified for larger adults so foot and knee space is at a premium. There were probably 20 people standing in the aisle. Since I was the last on from the 6 Mile junction I chose to stay right near the door. The buses are not air conditioned and at 8am it was already near 90. The windows and front entry door are always left open to allow for the 55mph airflow to make the heat more tolerable. I chose to sit on the plastic engine cover right next to the driver and toll taker, who stands in the door. At least I had a seat of sorts. Now here’s where things get interesting! The plastic engine cover was pretty slippery so I was holding onto anything I could hook my fingers on. And to make matters worse it got hot. After about 45 minutes my butt and boy parts had been slow roasted. I started formulating a plan to boycott Planters Peanut because now I know what happens when they slow roast their nuts. I don’t ever want to hear of a nut having to be put through that because it burns (if you get my drift)! But I endured it and was pleasantly rewarded for my tribulation. After passing through the Mayan Mountains the driver came up on a stalled truck rather suddenly and had to slam on the brakes. I was rewarded, although it was a rescue attempt, by a dark haired American girl who was thrown forward onto me, and I grabbed her to keep her from slamming into the windshield, straddling my thighs with her hers, which landed her left breast right smack into my face. Well actually both of them were there but I had a better feel for the left one at first. Her continued slid actually dragged both of them across my face until she finally came to rest. I was a bit surprised but being a guy…I was in heaven. I haven’t been that friendly with a woman in some time! It took her a bit to get herself half way off of me and she started apologizing. I certainly didn’t need an apology, and barely heard it anyway because I was staring at a very nice set of…well, you know what! And I certainly needed/wanted more of what just happened. I told her not to worry about it, that it was the best thing that’s happened to me in a very long time. She chuckled and then…her headlights came on! She noticed it right away and man did she turn red! That did it for me! I was way past heaven now and she was still straddling me. She finally was able to stand up but gave me a kiss on the lips and a thank you for keeping her from getting hurt. The God’s are kind to the Fatboy every once in a while… At that point I found out that the conductor, who was standing in the open door, was slammed forward into the door and ejected out of the bus. Lucky for him the ground he landed on was soft and all he got was a few scrapes and bruises. Me, I got face breasted so I was the lucky of us. Anyway, her name is Callie and she is from NJ and was headed for San Ignacio for a week. We talked for the rest of the ride and she apologized again and I said that I was happy for “the way she ended up”. More laughs. The bus makes a stop in Belmopan and because it’s against the law for the bus to have passengers standing they stopped 2 blocks short of the terminal and asked everyone who was getting out in Belmopan to get off and walk in. Luckily no one was burdened with a lot of luggage. The bus pulled in, added more passengers, then headed for Belize City.
I got out at the Belize City bus stop and into a cab for the Caye Caulker Water Taxi where I was going to buy my ADO (Mexican) bus ticket to Cancun. Now I’d seen on their website that the bus left from there but that was old info. Now you take the chicken bus to Chetumal MX and get on the 1st class bus from there. So I buys me ticket and gets back into the cab. I told the driver what happened and he offered to drive me across the border into Mexico for $75 Belize ($37.50 US) and said he’d make it in under 2 hours. SOLD!!! Off we went. After that the trip turned normal. We crossed the border. I had absolutely no trouble with either crossing. I got on a local shuttle for at the border that took me to the ADO terminal for 10 Pesos (about 90 cents). Thirty minutes later I was on the air conditioned 1st class bus and headed north. With the 1 hour time advance in MX we arrived at around 9pm in downtown Cancun. The only bad thing about that ride was that I left my computer mouse in the seat and the bus pulled right out and headed somewhere else. (I’m using a mouse the hotel clerk lent me.) I told a taxi driver I wanted a cheap but nice hotel near the airport so I am safely in bed in a really nice Comfort Inn (with full breakfast and free airport shuttle) for US$60. I asked the desk clerk about something to eat and she pointed me toward the 7-11 and a Burger King because everything else was closed. I made the Burger King by 5 minutes. Any later and I’d have been dining on chips or something.
So that’s the 1st part of my travel tale. Hopefully the rest of my trip will be quiet. By the way, Matt and Angie left today too and are probably safely home in Chattanooga TN by now. They were flying out of Dangriga to Belize International and then Delta to Atlanta and Chattanooga. They had a great time while they were at Kismet and promised to come back again.
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