After a strong coffee in the room, we went out and caught a green bus into central San Jose. I asked the driver, in broken Spanish, which I am sure was tainted by Italian and a lousy English accent, "a la estacion de autobus al centro de Walmart?" He looked a little puzzled, but smiled, collected our $18 peso, and we set off. Bumping and winding down the road, dodging the drifted sand and sqeezing into non-existent third lanes, we picked up and dropped off people until he stopped in the middle of a block.
"Senior. Walmart."
I didn't even see it; oh there it is on the other side.
"Gracias. Centro estacion?"
Si. He pointed with his thumb over his shoulder.
OK then, we hopped off, dodged cars to cross the street, and picked up a water at OXXO. Gail calls the store " hug-kiss-kiss-hug." We got to the bus station just as the 8:00 bus to La Paz pulled out. Two tickets on the 9:00 bus set us back $480P (about $32 USD) which I thought was a great bargain for a three hour trip on a nice bus. The company is Aguila, and the blue and white bus even has a bathroom (for emergency use) which would have been nice this summer in Albania.
While we waited for the bus, we talked with an ex-pat American from Michigan. He came to visit La Paz in 1985 and just never left. Raised his family here and all. He loves living here, and is just recovering from a stroke. Mexican health care? Cost is $259.00 (yes, two hundred fifty nine dollars) a year, and it covers everything. Is it good care? Well, he is recovering nicely from his stroke, and said he was treated well.
So, here we are, sans car, but moving along towards La Paz at 9:16. After a stop in Todos Santos I figure we will arrive around noon. So our "vacation is starting a little later than anticipated, but the adventure has already begun.
And now we have learned, through experience, how to get from the airport to La Paz on public transport. Not bad, really; as usual we just had to ask around.
Cruising along the coast here is real different than in the Yucatan. It is very rocky, deserty, with lots of those cartoon type saguaro cacti. The coastline juts in and out, with lots of little pocket beaches tucked in. The highway is pretty nice, wide and fast, and the blue Volvo bus is smooth, with comfortable seats. There are only eight other passengers on board this full sized bus.
When we got to Cabo, to get to the bus station, the bus made a left-handed U-turn out of the far right lane... in traffic. Now I know why every bus and every station has a little shrine to the Virgin Mary. I like this about taking public transportation: you meet people, see the neighborhoods, and learn quirky little details about every day life.
We loaded up with people at the Cabo bus stop, then headed out. We had to back out and in three times, then let an arriving bus enter before we could get out of the station. Another right lane, left U-turn and we were on our way. They are showing a dubbed US movie as we drive, but I am busy writing and looking out at the weird, cacti-desert coastline. Here and there are nice homes and one hectare lots for sale.
After a quick bathroom break in Todos we headed inland across the desert peninsula to finally arrive at La Paz.
We grab a taxi and $50P and ten minutes later we are at our guest house. We ring the bell and are ushered in to a little paradise, complete with pool, palm trees, and lots of hammocks and little hide-away places. We settle in to our charming little room, meet the hosts (Richard insists on taking up the fight with Hertz so I can just go relax.) and head out to town.
We are an easy and interesting mile off the main waterfront, the "Malecon." It is a walkway that stretches three miles, lined with stores and restaurants, but no high rise hotels or condos.
We head a block up a side street (Marquez de Leon) to a Asadero, or restaurant/grill called Rancho Viejo.
By now it has been 25 hours since our last meal at SFO. But... The food here was pretty damn good. I had shrimp tacos, wrapped in a corn tortilla with cheese and bittersweet sauce. They gave me a carousel of stuff like fried peppers, pico de gallo, cheese and limes to put on them. Gail had chili rellenos (could have had them stuffed with fresh marlin... but no, cheese instead) and we shared a huge serving of guacamole with chips (served like salsa and chips in the US, before the meal). That, with our beers, could have been a meal by itself. We wrapped it all up with two margaritas before stumbling off, down the water front.
As we eat, a few friends settle into the table behind us. One has a guitar, and soon they are singing softly. Not great singing, but nice anyway. The best news is that, unlike other places in Mexico, they are not asking for money. They are just friends, singing for the hell of it.
$20 USD out the door! Oh yea!
Our vacay has started.
Well, it was getting near sunset when we finished, so we headed out on the Malecon, and walked about two miles along the ocean, watching the sunset, people, and looking at the Christmas lights.
About 10 we got back to our room, and relaxed.
So far Hertz has not responded to my email, and they have just given Richard the run around.