A serious case of the Mondays

Its been a while...but thankfully, I have another lovely adventure to share.  This past weekend I travelled north to visit friends in Yo Creek and Orange Walk.  The idea was that I would stay Saturday night and head back to Belmopan Sunday afternoon.  Well, that was the plan.  Instead, Sunday turned into my marathon recovery session and I decided against a bus ride.  I think it was the right choice as I dont think anyone would have appreciated me on the bus that day.

So, instead I stayed another night and decided that I would accompany my friend, Emily to Chetumal, Mexico on Monday morning.  I mean, I was soooo close and I'd already missed one day of buses...what was a few more hours?!  If only I'd known...

We woke up early and ate a delicious breakfast made by Christen (where we had stayed Sunday) and took a little walking tour of OW on our way to return a bicycle and check out the House of Culture there.

An hour or so behind schedule, we boarded our bus headed for the border.  Mind you, neither one of us had been to Mexico and the directions our friends had given us weren't exactly stuck in our heads.
A perfect example is our arrival.  When crossing the border, you have to get off the bus and go through Belizean immigration. check. Then you get back on the bus and ride a few minutes to the Mexican border.  In between is the free zone where you may purchase alcohol cheaply!  We got off the bus and were about to head into the free zone, when we decided to do so on the way out...that way we wouldn't have to carry our alcohol all over Chetumal.  BUT, in the time it took us to make this decision, our bus was gone.  So we went through the Mexican immigration and hailed a taxi to the mall.

I believe all I could say was a repetition of this feels bizarre.  The mall was like stepping into America.  Air conditioning, nicely tiled floors and storefronts galore.  It had a food court and even those massage chairs that you pay a dollar to sit in for 10min. - Craig, I know you get how amazing that is - We walked around with our jaws to the floor.  Didn't buy a THING...it was just too overwhelming (although we did grab lunch at the food court).  We headed across the street to the Mexican version of Sam's club and I got a few things for my house really cheap.

Looking at the time, I realized that I needed to start the journey back to Belmopan - it was a good 6 hour trip and I was already starting to feel tired.  Being the amazing friend that she is, Emily got me a taxi headed in the right direction with her brilliant Spanish skills.  I hopped in, said my goodbyes,and gave a silent prayer that I would actually arrive at the correct bus terminal. And I did.

The hour and a half bus ride back to OW took a little over 2, but I had just enough time to grab a drink and pick up t-shirts from Christen that she wanted placed in mailboxes back in Belmopan before the bus to Belize City departed.  It was an express bus and I have never been as excited to pay extra for air conditioning.  The bus was sparsely occupied and we reached Belize quickly.  Mind you, I had now spent 6 hours on a bus...shopped in Mexico...and crossed a border twice.  I was tired.Exhausted even.

So, you can all imagine my reaction when about 5 min after arriving at a bus terminal, a NON-STOP to Belmopan arrived.  YES...those are the quickest buses of all!  I climbed on, paid my $4 and put on my music.  Home was an hour and a half a way.  RIGHT....my trips never do seem to end that nicely.

About 40min into the trip, the bus pulls over.  I, of course, am internally irate! WHY?!?!!? is the non-stop bus pulling over. I can feel the anger boiling up over my exaustion to the point that I see smoke.  Oh wait, thats not me...thats the bus.  Immediately, all the windows in the bus are put down as far as they will go.  Doesn't help...in fact, there's more smoke pouring in and people are coughing and choking as they try to grab their things.  We all quickly grab our belongings and file off the bus as its engine catches fire.  PERFECT. We aren't near any village and its completely pitch black.

After about 15 min...the police arrive and ask if the bus is alright. Clearly not...but I love that they were gracious enough to ask. Sweet, really...they even turned on sirens (which is a first since I've been here). We stand around for another 15 min or so....all of us knowing that our options are to hitch or hope for another bus.  Luckily, the bus came first and our bus load piled into a full bus.  I would say that it was unsafe to pile soo many people in one bus, but seeing that the last bus I was riding caught fire...I think its a mute point. 

So, finally I reach Belmopan...safe, tired, and so excited to be walking distance from home.  After all, the worst part of the day is over and I'm finished with the long bus rides...can't wait to unlock my door, shower and crawl into bed.  But I think karma has a way of completely entertaining itself on my behalf....because no sooner had I started walking through the park, when it started to rain...then pour. Having no umbrella, I simply hung my head and took it....squishing my steps all the way home. It was then that I realized I'd forgotten to grab my cheap bottle of alcohol in the free zone...and man, I could really have used a drink.

Ah.  I love Mondays....really.