Logbook: The John Galt Line

A few days ago, I had a delightful -- as always -- conversation with an old friend, client and Voyage sponsor. Among the many topics, we talked about how I was planning to get to San Jose, Costa Rica in time to meet my folks there on the 18th. I described for him an insight I have gained so far on the Voyage regarding the relationship between factors like speed, safety, stress and economy. It strikes me as a somewhat complicated algorithm, but it goes something like this: The faster and farther I move, the more I feel the need to make “arrangements” in advance. I’ll admit that I’m not yet completely comfortable riding all night on a bus, arriving in some strange city and just “looking around” for a place to stay. It would be stressful any time, but it is especially so when one reads about the potential dangers that lurk in one’s destination. In order to be “safe”, I find myself going to the website for the Holiday Inn and picking “good” hotels, any of which, of course, are not the most economical to stay in.

On my “run” to San Jose, the TICA Bus makes overnight stops at San Salvador and Managua -- even the bus doesn’t run at night in this territory. I have read blogs by folks who have done it in three consecutive days and simply “gotten a room” at one of the cheap, run down rooming houses in the neighborhood of the bus stations, but that seems to me to miss the opportunity to do any exploration at all in those cities. I don’t have to be in San Jose in three days, so why not take a couple of days in each city along the way. You probably see my dilemma by now. The longer I take in each city, the more chance I have to “check it out” -- and not totally wear myself out from three consecutive days on the bus! -- but staying in a Holiday Inn in each city for three nights is more expensive than I would normally want to finance on The Voyage. So, my friend and I talked at some length about the balance between going safe, stress-free and expensive or going cheap.

As is his nature, he ended the conversation by saying, “You’re smart. You’ll figure it out.” We said our good-byes and hung up. A few minutes later, while I was still pondering my options, I got an e-mail notification from PayPal that I had received funds. When I checked my account, I found that my friend had sent a rather large sponsorship with a note that simply read, “Go safe.” I was so touched -- and energized -- by his thoughtful support that I e-mailed him right away. I told him that in accord with the sponsorship guidelines of The Voyage his support deserved special recognition. I know him well enough to know that he always wants to remain “anonymous” so I asked if perhaps there was some way I could acknowledge his sponsorship without using his name. His reply: “You’re smart. You’ll figure it out.”

So, in honor of my good friend and excellent sponsor, I have named the run I will make at his expense through the “difficult” parts of Central America after one of our shared heroes: John Galt -- a central character in Ayn Rand’s fabulous book “Atlas Shrugged”. So there you have it. I’m off in the morning along the route you see in the map above. Twelve hours by bus from Tapachula through Guatemala to El Salvador with three nights and two days in the capitol city. Then twelve more hours to Managua, Nicaragua with three nights and two days there. Twelve more hours on the bus will put me in San Jose, Costa Rica on the 15th. I’ve got my ticket for the TICA Bus and I’ve got reservations at Holiday Inns for each stop. The trip will surely be physically demanding, but I will be safe and stress-free. Many, many thanks to my generous sponsor. I look forward to sharing my discoveries along “The John Galt Line” with all of you in the coming days.

Logbook: Tapachula

Tapachula was a very good choice as a place to spend a few days of “recovery” -- from my excellent but very difficult and exhausting time in Mexico City -- and “preparation” -- for my transit of Central America to Costa Rica. A city of about 300,000 people, it can best be described as a “cross-roads commercial city.” Depending on how you look at it, Tapachula is either the last substantial city as you head south out of Mexico or the first as you head north from Central American. Either way, it is a place where business people meet “in the middle” and tourists stop “along the way.” There is some opportunity for cultural exploration, but I honestly haven’t done much of it. For me, it has been a pleasant and serviceable little oasis.

Here is a brief recap of the past few days: After leaving Greg at the airport in Mexico City last Thursday, Miguel and I went to his favorite place for lunch then did a little more generic sightseeing. After that, he dropped me off at the bus station where I caught my ride south. The bus left promptly at 6pm and I spent the next 18 hours in relative comfort on the “executive” bus, watching video and listening to podcasts -- Have I told you how much I love my iPods! -- and getting a reasonable amount of sleep. After rolling into the Tapachula bus station at noon on Friday morning, I went to the ticket counter to reserve my place on the famous “TICA Bus” that will take me further south. After about 20 minutes of going back and forth with the woman at the counter -- including ample pointing to my map and calendar -- she handed me a clipboard with pages that vaguely resembled the seating chart for a bus and had me write my name in a box on a page marked with the date of my desired departure. She seemed rather unfriendly and disinclined to be helpful, so I figured that was as good as it was going to get. I grabbed a cab to the Hotel Loma Real -- a pleasant “resort” on a hill overlooking the city -- and checked in. A shower and lunch later, I took a little nap then went for a brief walk around the grounds. It was hot and muggy, but at least it wasn’t polluted! I went to bed early and slept like a log.

Saturday was a very leisurely day of on-line connection and general recovery. On Sunday I was a bit more productive, editing and posting a lot of website content. In two days, I never left the Loma Real compound. Yesterday was “chore day” and I went into town to drop off my laundry, get my hair cut and shop for supplies in a pretty good sized mall. Not feeling confident about my TICA Bus situation, I had arranged with Paulina -- a nice young woman who works at the Loma Real and has excellent English -- to meet me at the bus station and negotiate on my behalf. After about 10 minutes of rapid-fire Spanish and quite a bit of what seemed like heated debate, Paulina explained to me that I was “on the list” and could just show up the morning of my departure, pay my fare and get on the bus. As we walked out, I thanked her and told her that I had found the ticket woman to be rather difficult. Paulina’s response was classic: “She is -- how do you say it -- a bitch!” We both laughed then I treated her to dinner at a nice little restaurant before parting ways.

Today I have been doing some “other work” and generally preparing to head south. Tomorrow I will collect my laundry, pack up my gear and finish getting ready for the TICA bus run -- aka “The John Galt Line” -- through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua to Costa Rica. I will also take time to tell you what that is all about! Stand by!

Haircut Chronicle: #2 - Tapachula, Mexico

#2 - November 6, 2006, Tapachula, Mexico. It’s hot down here and I’m heading further south. Time for a trim! I have no idea what her name is -- and we had practically no ability to communicate -- but she was game to give it a try! Don’t be fooled by the look on her face. We were both pretty happy with the results. Cost: 80 Pesos ($8)

Musing: Sigma Iotia Mexico

One of my favorite episodes from the original Star Trek series is entitled “A Piece of the Action” which has a plot that goes something like this: Kirk and the crew beam down to the planet Sigma Iotia II and find themselves in an Earth-like 1920s era gangster culture. The people dress, talk and act like gangsters, but the crew finds that the food tastes wrong, the smells are off and the feel of things is inaccurate. They come to discover that a hundred years earlier a Federation vessel had accidentally left a book about gangsters behind on the planet, and the imaginative and intelligent inhabitants had built their culture around what they read and saw in the book. They got the sound and look right from the words and pictures, but they did not -- could not -- get the right taste, smell and feel from the book. This episode of Star Trek came to mind recently because it is an allegory of how I have come to view Mexico. Don’t get me wrong, I mean no disrespect. I have grown quite fond of Mexico, especially the warm, friendly, hard working and good natured people. The way things are, though, has an aspect of “looks right, works wrong.”

A few examples: In most of the hotels I have stayed in, there is a little receptacle by the door into which you put your card key when you enter the room. This activates the electricity, air, etc. The idea, of course, is that one should not waste energy when the room is empty. The problem is that ALL the electricity goes off, including the outlet into which the fancy clock radio is plugged. As a result, you have to reset the clock every time you re-enter the room. In two places so far, the outlet for the clock radio has been on the same circuit as the light switch, rendering it useless either as a clock at night or as an alarm in the morning. Unless, of course, you sleep with the lights on. Another example is that the ATM machines dispense very large bills, generally as large as possible to require the fewest bills to meet the amount of your withdrawal. The problem is that nobody -- including your hotel -- is readily willing or able to change them into smaller bills. As a result, you have to wait on a long line at the bank to change the big bills you just got from their ATM machine. The technology is in place and works as far as it goes, but the system breaks down in the context of the larger reality. My favorite example is in the Mexico City subway system where the hi-tech turnstiles accept little paper tickets with a magnetic stripe on them to speed you through and on your way. The problem is that the turnstiles accept only these paper tickets. You cannot use coins. Where do you get the paper tickets? Perhaps at an automated dispenser that accepts coins? No, because there are none. You have to wait in a line and buy the paper tickets from a person who tears them off a roll that is designed to be used in an automated dispenser!

Now, these kinds of things do not really annoy me. To the contrary, I find them rather endearing and a source of constant amusement. I would, however, offer an opinion and spotlight an opportunity: Mexico has the potential to be a world class country. It has natural resources, hard working people and a wonderful location. What it doesn’t seem to have is “the rest of the picture.” Like Sigma Iotia II from Star Trek, it has “some of it right” but not “all of it right.” The intelligent and imaginative people of Mexico have built aspects of their culture around what they have seen elsewhere in pictures, books and movies, but they have not -- can not -- get the whole thing right without complete, actual experience of how can be. The opportunity is simple: An enterprising individual could, I believe, make a pretty good living out of providing the exchange of experience by spending time in Mexico and pointing out the “disconnects” to those who stand to profit -- especially in the lucrative tourist market -- from improving the “look and feel.” Even better, I think there is a strong market opportunity for a business that would allow Mexicans to experience a “fully functioning environment.” If a “Kidzania” can give the children of Mexico an experience of proper commerce, why couldn’t a “Ritzania” give their working parents -- especially in the lucrative tourist industry -- an experience of proper accommodation. If they actually experience “all of it right” I believe they would “make it all right.” The potential benefits to them and their economy are enormous.

Logbook: Cinco Dias En Mexico

I have a lot of great media of the five days “Los Viajeros” have spent in Mexico City which I will soon edit into a Report. Meanwhile, here is a recap: After getting a much needed good night’s sleep on Friday night -- in our cool, quiet, mosquito-free room at the fabulous Gran Hotel -- we decided to make Saturday an “overview” day. So, after breakfast and a brief walk around Zocalo we got on the “Turibus” -- the typical red, double-decker, open air bus that most major cities have for tourists -- and had a four hour tour around the major highlights of the city. The many famous buildings and monuments were interesting, of course, but what was most amazing is the city’s sheer mass of humanity... and traffic! With over 20 million people -- and a comparable number of vehicles -- Mexico City is the world’s second most populous city. One is constantly surrounded by people and suffocated by exhaust, smog and pollution. At one point, when we got off the bus to take a break, Greg had no problem doing his usual routine of getting his picture taken with local girls. With his disarming smile and infectious positive energy, he always seems to bring out the “fun” in people. My role as “straight man” involves saying, “Lo siento, mi tio es muy loco!” which always clinches the deal. The Mexican people are very warm, friendly and happy, which is somehow in stark contrast to the very difficult living conditions of the city.

After a little “recovery” time in our room, we had dinner and hit the rack. On Sunday morning we met with Miguel -- a professional tour guide with a wonderful sense of humor and excellent English -- for a full day of sightseeing. We drove south through the city, stopped at a number of interesting places where we enjoyed Miguel’s insightful “esplanations” and good humor, then went to a local professional soccer game. What an experience! The cheering, chanting and singing never stopped during the entire game, and by the time it was over we were fast friends with many of the fans. After the game we drove to the floating gardens for an enjoyable “barge ride.” This experience is impossible to describe, so you will have to wait to see it in the Report. The day pretty much wore us out, so we did our routine of rest, eat and sleep.

On Monday, I had an “inside day” to make some arrangements for the Voyage going forward and to do some “other work” which included several excellent telecons on my beloved Skype -- Have I mentioned it’s free! Greg headed out for a day of exploration, returning completely exhausted in the afternoon -- it is impossible to express how the oppressive conditions in this city will wear you out -- ready for a nap, dinner and sleep. Yesterday, we headed out together for a day of exploration that centered around experiencing the city’s subway system. We were very impressed with the Metro, and would recommend it to any visitor as a way to get around. The trains run frequently, swiftly and all over the city, carrying more than five million people a day. Greg had heard that “old” people get to ride for free, so he made a comedy routine out of getting the turnstile guards to let him through without paying. The video of this is priceless! At one point, we got off at a station where we were told there was a “Museum of Torture” -- something we just had to see -- and spent an hour trying to get directions from local folks. We finally gave up and returned to Zocalo, only to find out that the museum was within walking distance of our hotel! After touring the exhibit -- which was positively ghastly -- we returned to our hotel for -- you guessed it -- rest, dinner and sleep!

This morning, we met up with Miguel and drove out of the city to see the famous pyramids at Teotehuican. We again had the benefit of Miguel’s vast knowledge, informative “esplain you everything” and wonderfully dry wit. Because we had both been feeling so badly as a result of Mexico City’s altitude, pollution, etc., we were initially unsure about our ability to climb the Sun Pyramid. Taking our time, however, we successfully scaled the structure and were rewarded with a wonderful vista. If you ever visit Mexico City, the pyramids are a “must.” Not only is it a very interesting archeological site, it is also a great escape from the oppressive conditions of the city. Upon our return to the hotel, we had a rest then went out to have our last dinner together and our last immersion into the insanity of Zocalo -- which was on overdrive due to “Day of the Dead” festivities!

Tomorrow we will pack up, check out and head our separate ways. Greg has an afternoon flight back to Seattle, and I will catch an overnight bus south to Tapachula where I will spend a few days in the state of Chiapas before embarking on my “Central America Sprints” through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua on my way to Costa Rica. In closing, I want to express my thanks to Greg for joining me on The Voyage this past week. I simply could not have had as good a time in Mexico City without him. The conditions here are so difficult that I might have left without experiencing all the good and interesting things that the city has to offer. We always have a good time together, but this time I was enriched and reinforced by his presence. Muchas gracias, Pumito!

(PS - Greg says to tell everyone what a great time he had as well. He also encourages everyone to join The Voyage of Macgellan somewhere. He says, “It’s great! Macgellan does all the scouting and logistics. All you have to do is catch a flight and be ready for spontaneous adventure! Don’t miss this once in a lifetime opportunity!”... Macgellan agrees! See you soon?)

Logbook: Plan B

It's been a trying 48 hours. Here's a recap: After posting the logbook entry Wednesday night, I edited the Kidzania Report, pushed the "publish" button at about 2 in the morning and went to bed. Since the Majestic Hotel has no air conditioning, the noise from Zocalo came through my open window unabated. I slept poorly -- for only about 4 hours -- and got up yesterday morning to face two problems: 1) the altitude, heat, noise, pollution and lack of sleep had conspired to beat me down a little and 2) the Kidzania Report I'd published the night before was "busted" and stuck on "The Big Blue Q." I decided to stay in and tackle the web problem which ended up taking almost the entire day to isolate and fix -- thanks to a nasty little bug in a recent update to third-party (Non-Mac!) video software program I use.

With that finally resolved, I went for a brief walk around Zocalo, had dinner and went to bed early with hopes of a good night's sleep. No such luck. Last night was the worst so far on The Voyage. I had to keep the windows open to keep from suffocating, and while my earplugs did a reasonably good job against the noise there was nothing to be done to combat the swarm of huge mosquitos that invaded my room! I was up most of the night, swearing that I would not stay another night in the Majestic, no matter how "authentic" it is. This morning I felt like I'd been whipped. The oppressive altitude and pollution of Mexico City combined with two nights of very little sleep had me pretty knocked down, but at least I was on a mission to find another abode. I walked yet another block south and found that the Grand Hotel -- a truly elegant old-style place that must have been featured in many movies -- had a room available for the duration of my stay in Mexico City and for only a few bucks more than the Majestic!

Especially with my friend Greg on his way -- I would not subject anyone to the Majestic -- I happily made the deal and set in motion my move to the Grand Hotel. I went back to the Majestic, went online for messages and the like, then packed my gear and checked out at one o'clock. I walked the block to the Grand, did the paperwork and was told that my room would be ready at 3 o'clock. Excellent! I left my gear with the bell man, had some lunch then headed to the airport. I arrived just before Greg's flight, positioned myself right in front of the arrival gate and got my camera ready to record his entrance. After a half hour, I started to wonder if I'd missed him and began looking around. After an hour, I wondered whether he had arrived at another gate and started searching the concourse. After two hours, I figured something had gone wrong and decided to go with "Plan B" which, of course, I had arranged with Greg as follows: "If all else fails, get a cab to the Majestic and I'll meet you there."

The Majestic! Too bad I wasn't there anymore. I could just see Greg walking into the place, asking for me and being told I had checked out! As you can imagine, I hurried to the Majestic in hopes of finding him waiting there, but, alas, no such luck. I ran over to the Grand, checked in, got to my room, went online and -- you guessed it --picked up a voicemail from Greg saying that his flights had gotten screwed up and would be arriving at -- you guessed it again -- just about the time I had given up and left the airport! To make it all more ironic, he had left the voicemail just ten minutes after I'd logged off and left the Majestic!

Anyway, I knew I wouldn't be able to get back to the airport before he too figured the connection was busted and got in a cab, so I went with "Plan B" as well. I walked back over to the Majestic and waited outside the front door. Sure enough, about 45 minutes later, a cab pulled up and I saw Greg's smiling face in the window. We hugged and high-fived then walked to the Grand, dumped his stuff in the room and went to dinner. We cracked ourselves up sharing the stories of our screwed up day, but decided that's just the way it goes some days in the expedition business and all's well that ends well. We both look forward to a good night's sleep in our cool, quiet room and to whatever tomorrow brings. Stay tuned! Ole!

Logbook: Zocalo Mexico City

The overnight bus from Monterrey to Mexico City last Sunday night was pretty good. Imagine a first class flight and you will pretty much have the picture. Add in some hefty turbulence to account for the road conditions and you will really have it. Also, since I am at least a few inches taller than the average Mexican, the fully reclining seat was a bit short for me. No matter, getting the very best bus you can -- and there are many, many classes of bus in Mexico -- is certainly worth the small added cost. Of course, 12 hours on any vehicle is a pain, so I was happy when we arrived in this immense city. As usual, I got on the taxi ticket line and paid my fare to Zocalo -- the center of the historic area where I had made arrangements at the local Holiday Inn -- and got a memorable taxi ride through what is some of the worst traffic I have ever experienced.

After a smooth check in, I will confess that I took a nap. Not a long one, but a good and much needed hour or so. Then, since I’d only arranged two nights at the Holiday Inn -- and, frankly, since it was overpriced and not very friendly -- I hit the streets to find another hotel. The Hotel Majestic, right around the corner, has a very nice “authentic” ambiance for less money, so I booked a room for the duration of my stay here in Mexico City. After that, I wandered around the area for a while, taking in the sights and sounds of this very busy area and found a Starbucks where I treated myself to a “familiar” cup of coffee. By early evening, sensory overload had set in so I had a simple dinner at a decent local restaurant, went back to my room and crashed.

Yesterday was an olio of activity. I spent some quality time having on-line conversations with friends and family, did some research on what to do in Mexico city, did a little preliminary scouting of my options for continuing south toward Costa Rica and wandered the neighborhood. All in all, I am growing fond of the area. It is way more congested, busy, noisy and dirty than I would like, but it is a vibrant place. Again, by the end of the day I was “full” and appreciated the joy of going to my room, bolting the door and hanging out in my peaceful little cocoon. I spent some time online this morning, then packed up my gear, checked out of the Holiday Inn and walked around the block to the Majestic where I am now happier to be. Taking advantage of my increasing city stamina, I packed up my laundry and tried to find a laundromat. There may be one in the area, but I couldn’t find it. What I did find was a little shop where I was able to figure out that a nice young woman would do my laundry for me. The price she quoted is about a buck more than if I did it myself someplace, so I handed her the bag and was rewarded with a receipt and the assurance that it would be ready tomorrow after ten. I was a bit disappointed that I would not have the experience of doing my own laundry in Mexico, but I was also happy not to have to deal with it.

You have probably noticed that in 48 hours in Mexico City I have done exactly zero sightseeing or exploration. There is a good reason for this: On Friday, my good friend Greg -- the Hi-Line Road Trip Greg -- will be arriving to join me for a week on The Voyage. With this in mind, I am holding off on doing any real exploration so that we will be discovering the area together. Also, knowing that we will be going non-stop once he gets here, I am making sure that all my “stuff” -- gear, correspondence, accounts, etc. -- is in order so that there will be nothing to get in the way of our adventures! I am really looking forward to having his company -- and enjoying his wild, crazy energy! Ole!

Logbook: Publish Error

Late last night, after celebrating my great day of learning, I got back to my room and went on-line to finish the updates to this website and “publish” the domain. For those of you who don’t know about these things, iWeb is a fabulous Mac program that lets one create websites like this one without having to know anything about HTML code, Java, CSS, RSS or any other techie stuff. Like most Mac programs, you just have fun using an intuitive, graphic interface to create whatever you want. When the site looks like you want it to, you just press the “Publish” button and iWeb does everything else. For months, I have been using iWeb to develop this site and have never had any problem.

Then, last thing last night when I pushed the “Publish” button, I got the error you see above. Like any experienced Mac user, I clicked “OK” and hit “Publish” again. Same error. For the briefest moment, a sense of dread and terror shot through me. Could this mean that my iWeb was busted? Could my website be busted? Had my Mac let me down? Then, again like any experienced Mac user, I took a moment, took a deep breath and said to myself, “It can’t be my Mac’s fault. It’s never my Mac’s fault!” Given the late hour, I decided to get some sleep and try again in the morning. To my dismay, I got the same error this morning. A little bit of Googling led me to some user comments that even when everything else -- like browsing, mail, etc. -- may work fine, some of the more complicated internet operations -- like how iWeb publishes my domain to the Mac servers -- may not work. Something about incompatible or unsupported “proxies.”

Well, I don’t know about tech stuff like that. I am, after all, a Mac user! Now assuming that the problem was with the hotel’s server and not with my Mac, I packed up my beloved Macbook Pro and hit the streets of Monterrey in search of alternative internet connections. After trying three nearby hotels that have wi-fi in their lobbies -- but who require you to be a guest to use it -- and three internet shops that only offer access using their machines, I was getting a little worn out and headed back to my hotel. I stopped by to talk to a bellboy whom I have discovered is the hotel’s “go to” guy for internet problems -- and who also speaks pretty good English -- and told him my sad tale of woe. He smiled and said, “It’s a proxy problem with the hotel’s server. Go to Carl’s Jr. and use their wi-fi. It is very good.” Now why didn’t I think of that? Go to one of the local burger joints and use their wi-fi! Go figure!

With some degree of incredulity, I have to admit, I walked two blocks to the nearest Carl’s Jr. and got a Diet Coke. I sat down, opened up my Mac and -- Shazaam! -- I had wi-fi! I spooled up my browser, checked the connection and was delighted to find I was on a good, stable, moderately fast internet connection. I hopefully hit the “Publish” button and was rewarded with a very agreeable result! As I write this, I am still at the Carl’s Jr. burger joint, ready to publish this update. Although I hadn’t intended to spend most of the day working around internet problems, I can’t say that the day has been a waste. I’ve learned some important and useful lessons about being on The Voyage: 1) All internet is not the same 2) Internet connection is surprisingly ubiquitous and 3) You can find wi-fi in unexpected places. The thing I already knew? Macs Rule!

Logbook: Learning Curve

Today was a great day on the very steep learning curve that is The Voyage! First thing this morning, I decided to make my travel arrangements to Mexico City. I went to get some help contacting a bus company from the hotel’s concierge, but her Spanish was so rapid-fire that I couldn’t make any sense of it. Since I can read Spanish much better than I can understand it, I decided to try to book my bus trip on-line. From previous research, I knew that Senda has excellent “executive” buses, so I went to their website and was feeling very proud of myself for making great progress with the booking process when I ran into some language I couldn’t figure out. Undaunted, I grabbed my Mac, went back down to the concierge, logged onto the hotel’s wi-fi and got her help with completing my booking. Success!

Then, just as we finished, I was thrilled to get a video Skype call from my good friend Mark. I wish you could have seen the look on the concierge’s face when Mark’s image came up on my screen and we started talking! Anyway, I thanked her for her help and proceeded to have a wonderful wireless chat with Mark while walking around the hotel lobby and showing him all that there is to see. I have always liked Skype, but being able to see and talk with friends from anywhere in the world -- for free! -- makes me just love it!

With a sense of victory and glee, I went back to my room and was finishing up some emails when one of my RSS news feeds offered a link about a thing called Kidzania that has just opened in Japan. It looked very interesting, so I followed the links to the company’s web page and found out that one of three Kidzania’s in the world is right here in Monterrey! I almost couldn’t believe it, but it was true! Seeing this as an omen, I copied a map to the place onto my PDA, grabbed my camera, went back downstairs and showed the map to the guy at the door. Within minutes I was in a taxi, then standing in front of Kidzania Monterrey. (For the moment, what you need to know is that Kidzania is a kind of “commerce-based theme park” for kids. Instead of rides and the like, kids get to do little jobs, earn “Kidzos” -- the internal money -- and then spend it on things and activities they like.)

I tried to buy a ticket to get into the place but was refused because I was a guy without kids wanting to get into an establishment for kids. I appreciated this security, but I still wanted to get inside! So, I handed the attendant one of my cards and said “internet journalist.” She said, “uno momento” and in moments I was escorted up to an office where my card was given to a woman in a cubicle. She did something on her computer -- which I later learned was check my website -- and came out to meet me. Her name is Ana Gabriela, and for the next 90 minutes I had a personal guided tour of the facility! I took a ton of video of this truly remarkable business and will look forward to sharing a Report as soon as I can edit it. Until then, I can only say that it has been a long, long time since I have been so impressed with a business model or with a representative like Ana Gabriela. If I could, I would buy the company.

Anyway, though it may not sound like much, my day was full of “living by my wits” and a lot of learning. Making travel arrangements on-line in Spanish, having a video conference in the lobby, the serendipitous discovery of an amazing local business, using my credentials to open an otherwise closed door and capturing tons of video for what I know will be a great Report has made this one of the best days I’ve had in a while. I am happily exhausted, ready for my celebratory dram of Scotch and looking forward to a good meal and a good night’s sleep in anticipation of whatever tomorrow has to offer on The Voyage of Macgellan!

Logbook: On To Monterrey

I don’t mean to belabor my first border crossing and foreign destination, but they strike me significant enough to deserve a little more special mention. I have to admit that just about as soon as I woke up this morning and got myself sorted out, I began feeling a bit apprehensive. In some moderately profound sort of way, I had a kind of visceral sense of what my mind wrote just five days ago about moving into the unknown. I took a walk and had a little talk with myself, to remember all that I already know about travel in foreign lands and to remind myself that I’m pretty good at figuring things out. With that exercise behind me, I had some lunch and caught a ride back into Laredo. The bridge crossing was identical to the one I made yesterday, with two small exceptions: I had all my gear with me and I stopped to take the “last look” photo you see above. For the first time in my life, different from all other travel I have ever done, I was leaving the US with no idea of when I would be returning. I had a sense of “expatriation” that I took a few minutes mid-bridge to experience. It is a feeling that is very difficult to describe, so I will just say that I am sure it is one of the moments I will remember for the rest of my life.

In due course, I completed my bridge walk, passed through the Mexican gateway and proceeded to the bus ticket office as instructed yesterday. The nice man who sold me my ticket was there, led me a half block to his car and drove me to the bus station. There, I went inside, checked in at the desk and was told to have a seat and wait for the bus to be called in about half an hour. Just like clockwork, the announcement was made, I walked to the “gate” and stowed my gear under a bus that is comparable to a good Greyhound. About a dozen passengers loaded up and off we went for our three hour ride to Monterrey. As usual, I fired up my iPod and began watching episodes of my favorite TV shows -- The Daily Show and The Colbert Report (which I download from the iTunes Music Store thanks to a thoughtful birthday present from my brother).

Almost before I knew it, we were pulling into the very large, bustling city that is Monterrey. Once off the bus, I bought a taxi ticket -- which is priced based on the zone of your destination and is done, I suspect, to prevent visitors from being ripped off right at the start -- and got a taxi to the Holiday Inn where I had made arrangements to stay for my brief time here. After checking in, I took a walk around the area and found the Macro Plaza -- an outdoor pedestrian shopping mall -- which is shown in the small photo above and where I found a simple, tidy place to have some dinner. And that’s about it! In retrospect, the whole experience was such a no-brainer that I almost can’t believe I had any trepidation about it at all. Then again, I remind myself that being alert is a good thing in the expedition business and give myself a break. My special thanks to all of you who used Skype and iChat to call me this afternoon and evening. It was wonderful to connect with people I know and love in a strange place. I really appreciate the calls and look forward to sharing many, many more in the future. Now, buenos noches from The Voyage!