Into Mexico

Laredo to Monterrey

Almost 12,000 km later (and about 100 of those driven by Marion!), we finally made it into Mexico. But does the adventure stop there? Oh no! Of course not.

We get into Nuevo Laredo around 9:30am, but ended up waiting till 1pm for everyone's paperwork to finally finish. The process itself wasn't too bad, but you can't go to a developing country and expect everything to be smooth :). So, we paid 440 pesos ($44 American) for tourist visas, then we had to copy our car papers at the official Mexican government copy place, then pay for a temporary car permit (including a 300 peso deposit that is now on our credit card... not sure when or if we'll ever get that back!). Unfortunately, one of the girls forgot to bring her original car ownership papers, and of course, "photocopies would never do!" She had to go back to the US to get a Texan ownership. Combined with this was the other unfortunate aspect that it was "tax-free weekend" in Laredo, so cars were lined up for miles to get into the US. So she had to WALK back over the border, buy her ownership, and walk all the way back.

The rest of us hung out at whatever this place was, then took a little tour of Nuevo Laredo. It was definitely Mexican, and I can see why some people might think it was a little dangerous.

Some of the new foreign teachers.

We finally left and continued our way along some roads with beautiful scenery. However, amidst the gorgeous mountains, there were also several semi accidents, including one petrol semi with a pick-up jabbed into its side. We stepped on the gas as we drove past it... Sometimes Mexican laws puzzle me... one of the reasons it was still there for us to see is because any car accident must be left "as is". So even if a possible explosion was to occur, the number one priority is to not move or touch anything!

After about a two-hour drive, we made it into Monterrey. It's a huge city - set among gorgeous mountains. More about it in the next blog!

Along the way to Monterrey...