Wow! This morning we were enjoying chilliquilles looking out over the Pacific Ocean from Roberto's Bistro in Troncones and tonight we were being chauffered around Villahermosa in a little red Fiat by our new friend Alberto. Yep...nosotros muy suerte!! There is a story here I promise but before I jump right into that I'll provide you with a little of the background....
After a tranquillo morning in Troncones it was off to the airport in Zihuatanejo where Lynda dropped me off with our bags while she returned our car to our friend Ruben (yes...LOL...we have a lot of friends...) All was good with the car....but....it was a close call this morning just prior to our arrival at the airport. Lynda has been doing so well with finding her way around and she is always so careful that it was a shock this morning when we almost "bumped" with another car on the highway. It was one of those crazy moments when there is a little car in your blind spot and it isn't until you've checked both mirrors and are into your third shoulder check that he moves into your line of vision. It all turned out good in the end though and she saw him in time to avoid the "bump" so returning the car was much easier than it would have otherwise been. John, if you're reading this....you'll appreciate what we would have had to do to avoid any penalties at the return desk! LOL!!
Our plane was scheduled to leave ZIH at 1:11 pm but by the time we were boarding the plane it was a full hour later than that. The flight had trouble getting out of Mexico City due to heavy air traffic and so our flight was delayed. The good news is that we still had time to make our connection in Mexico City and so right on schedule we arrived in Villahermosa just before 6:00 pm.
My seat mate on the flight from DF (Mexico City) to Villahermosa was an interesting man who lives in Vera Cruz and who was en route back to work in the Gulf. He works 15 days on and 15 days off. His job is as an electronic engineer working as support for the compressors that drive the engines used on a platform oil rig in the Gulf. After he got off the plane in Villahermosa he had a 70 minute drive to a village on the coast where he would then board a boat that would carry him out to the platform where he will spend the next 15 days. If he's lucky...that boat ride will take just 5-6 hours but there have been times when it has taken as much as 12 hours for the boat to get them there! That does NOT sound like fun to me!!! All I can think of is how sea sick I would be if I had to be out in rough seas for 12 hours!!!
Lynda's seat mate on that same flight spent the first hour of sleeping but once he awoke she made short work of making friends and within minutes Alberto was insisting that he and his brother would drive us to a hotel that would not be as expensive and that would be better located that the one we had seen online. Alberto grew up in Villahermosa and although he lives with his wife and 8 year old son in Mexico City, his business is still based out of Villahermosa. He owns his business and works in sales of all types of paper. Everything from copy paper to napkins and his region covers four states in the Yucatan region so he is a busy guy! He spends one week at home in DF and then returns to Villahermosa where he begins his month of work travelling around his region in his little red Fiat.
Now this is where the story starts to get a little more interesting...Alberto was bound and determined that we would not take a taxi into the Central part of the city but rather that he would drive us and since his brother was picking him up in his little red Fiat...his brother Antonio would in fact be the one who would be driving us. We tried to dissuade him from his mission but he would hear none of it. We followed him out of the airport and as his brother pulled up the look on Antonio's face was worth a million pesos! I'm sure he thought...."what has Alberto done now and why does he have two grandmas with him?!" Within minutes Alberto had the TINY car open and one of the two rolled mattress pads Antonio had in there was stuffed into the even tinier hatch back along with Lynda's purse and her backpack. My pack and my purse were stuffed into the space under the mattress pad that was still in the back seat. Lynda and I were also stuffed into the back seat (she half on top of me and half out the window). Alberto was the worst off though as he moved the passenger front seat as far forward as it would go (and Alberto is not a small man!!) and stuffed his 6+ foot frame into the space. It meant his knees were up around his ears (literally) and then to make matters worse, he took both mine and Lynda's carry on suitcases and held them on his lap. In truth, I don't know how he did it and I can only imagine what any passers by must have thought of us as we drove by. When we finally stopped I am certain we must have looked like a clown car....you know the kind at the circus that opens and clowns just keep piling out...
Antonio and Alberto dropped us at the Mision Express Hotel right in the heart of the old part of the city (the Centro area). We were able to negotiate a rate of $985 for the night and made our way up to our 4th floor room that was very comfortable and as promised...right in the middle of all the action of the Centro. We made a date to take the brothers out for dinner at 9:00 and set off to explore the Centro district until it was time to meet them back at our hotel.
During the 2 hours we had to explore we located the central zocalo, Lynda found some REALLY good corn in a cup (made and dressed the way its supposed to be), we hiked across a foot bridge that is massive and spans the Black Lagoon (one of 2 lagoons and 3 rivers that are in the city), we talked to strangers about the possibility of getting a ride is a little tuk tuk type taxi to no avail, and we crossed back over the Black Lagoon on a foot passenger barge that runs back and forth as needed for 1 peso per person. Yes folks...that is right....less than 10 cents per person! How much do we pay for the little ferry that takes us from Granville Island to the other side? I think it's a little more than 10 cents!
Anyway...at 9:00 on the dot, Albero arrived at our hotel to pick us up. His brother Antonio was not able to join us so the three of us set off for a driving tour of the city. Alberto had wanted to take us on a walking tour of the most interesting section where there is a park filled with birds but as it turned out the skies opened and the rain poured down right at the same moment as we were getting out of his car so the plan changed and it became a driving tour instead. Villahermosa is a city of about 400,000 people and it really is quite lovely. We saw the rich sections and the not so rich section, we drove through the business district and past the parks, we saw a pizza delivery boy on a motorike in the rain and are certain the pizza he is delivering is not only cold but wet as well, we felt the humidity that comes with 80 degrees + temps and tropical rains, and we loved it all.
At the end of our "tour" our hero Alberto stopped at a great spot for street food and we all enjoyed tacos pastor carved right off the spit along with bottles of sweet rice water. It was delicious and in no time we were all full.
Our intuition was telling us that Alberto had had his fill of touring grandmas around and so the time had come to say adios....oh ya....did I mention that Alberto and his brother are totally spanish speaking? Yep....it was an interesting evening!
Before we said adios, Alberto gave us all the info we would need to get the best bus out of Villahermosa en route to Ciudad del Carmen tomorrow (a 2 hour trip). Our breakfast is included with our hotel so once that is behind us tomorrow, we will call a taxi and for just 30 pesos head to the ADO bus station where we will purchase a ticket on the superior bus (larger seats and better service) for just a few pesos more.
Hasta luego amigos...our adventure is well underway,
L & L
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