From Arizona to Panama Canal

It has been a while since I last posted.  In any journey there are always high’s and low’s and this segment is the low.  One could worry that I kidnapped or robbed, but far from the truth and actually more entertaining.  I just hit a three day stretch set aside for driving.  After leaving Oaxaca, I had a little car issue and spent 6-hours at a car repair shop.  It was prudent to bite the bullet in this very small town outside of Oaxaca. I have to say that it was one of the highlights of the trip. It seemed to be a world within itself with people coming and going. A few people actually spoke English, Fabian and Jose; so, I was able to communicate. I watched a team of people doing everything I needed from welding the tailpipe to timing of engine to fixing mirrors, seatbelt, and door. After a $40 bill, I was on my way. I was so happy that the car was in tip-top running condition because the next stretch was a two-lane, winding, and very steep mountain road. As I go further, the roads will only get more surprising and dangerous. After most of the day gone, I pulled into Juchitán de Zaragoza in early evening. To my surprise, the town was in disarray. Apparently, this town was closest to the earthquake in September. Rubble was piled along the side of every street in the city, as I made my way to the AirBNB, I just ran an obstacle course. The place was a room within a beautiful little home, with a courtyard, in the center of the city. The hosts spoke very little English and I only know three to four words of Spanish. Seemingly, I had a problem until google translator made an entrance. After we both pulled out our communication devices, I sat for hours with Jorge and “talked”. He showed me the damage to house and how he was going to fix it. We talked politics, music, and travel. It was such a nice time.  In the morning, I  was given an apple For breakfast and I set out for the border town of Tapachula.  This area of the country is very windy, as the winds come out of the mountains. The Mexican government thought this would be a great area for renewable energy; hence, I passed thousands of beautiful fields of wind turbines, as I fought to stay on the road. After 6 long hours, I arrived in Tapachula in early afternoon and felt like I was in Tijuana. It was just that beautiful of a city with blaring music, stray dogs, dirty and rundown buildings, and all sorts of people. Maybe all border towns are low priority for quality of life? I felt best to go to the room and barricade myself inside. I escaped the next morning at 6:00 am for the Guatemalan border crossing, which lead me on an odyssey. There were several border crossings and after nearly 100-miles up-and-down the border, I found the correct one that allowed autos. The Talisman-El Carmen crossing was an absolute zoo of swarming people “wanting to help” or sell something. They were all over me and I was more than confused at process or lack of process at the crossing. By dumb luck, I met a Canadian (Hector Morales) who helped walk me through the chaos. He was a life saver and I started to think that any Spanish would have been helpful… NO, it would just distract from the adventure. After clearing customs, 6-hours after leaving hotel and a mere 15km from where I started, I was rewarded with 5-hours of the worst roads ever. I am pretty sure I saw some pavement poking out of all the holes in the road. This helped me to be assured that I was still on an actual driving surface. It was just a nightmare of a day, but all part of the adventure. I was so relieved to get to Antigua that I was not “really” bother by it taking me 1-hour to find the AirBNB when I was always within 100 meters of it! Google maps only works IF you give an accurate address, just saying. Just glad to be here and will sightsee for a few days before Rick Staelin arrives.