Our alarm went off about mid-morning. Today, Tuesday, we planned to get breakfast, check out from the Gran Hotel and head to the bus station. I had some butterflies in the tummy, as I had no prior experience with negotiating public transportation between two cities in Mexico before. So when we headed out the door to find the cafe we noticed the evening before, I kind of rushed T along. That's sort of my nature...I kind of stress a little and hurry things up when I know something's coming up that might give me some problems. We located the Café La Habana just a block away from the hotel. I've discovered it is a 24/7 establishment and among other things, sells Cuban cigars. They also sell coffee by the kilo, and I think I recall a large grinder behind glass walls right inside the doors. The doors to the restaurant themselves are unique. They resembled those automatic doors in large stores that slide back and forth. Except this one you have to pull back yourself, and then it slides shut behind you. We found ourselves some seats and in a short period of time a waiter showed up and took our drink orders. I don't recall, but can't imagine I would have a meal at this cafe without ordering a coffee. T and I ordered from the breakfast menu plans...and later we had no complaints. Better than Main Street's desayuno! Don't ask about what we ordered, 'cause we've forgotten!! *pffffbbbbbt!* Back at the hotel, we rolled out our bags to the receptionist desk and settled our account. It was only the two nights in our room and that's it. We had required no special services...I signed the bill, thanked the clerk and led T out of the hotel to the plaza. The taxi stand was right where we had been dropped off on Sunday night. There was no problem getting a cabbie to load up our bags and take us to the bus station. And once again the sage advice: use your seatbelts!!!! And if you have none, brace yourself and hold on for dear life! After a short drive, we were dropped off right next to the glass doors of the ADO main terminal. Paid the cabbie, added a little tip, and headed inside. I had discovered that tickets bus had the schedules for busses running between Merida ADO and Campeche and in advance had determined the cost and time of each scheduled route. Shuttles were leaving more than once per hour and the cost at the time was $113.00 MX per person. Not bad in my estimation. Time of travel was also posted as about 2 hrs and 15 minutes each way. The cashier at the ticket office was very nice and requested our names for the passenger list. She then asked what seats on the bus we wanted to be assigned to. There appeared to be very few left...we would be stuck near the back, it seems. The cashier then said that only mexican pesos were accepted. No credit cards nor american dollars. Luckily, we had enough and I got tickets for the next bus...which just happened to be loading that very minute! I hurried from the ticket window and motioned to T we had move our behinds. She wanted us to be stocked up for the trip, so we bought two bottles of some Cristal water (one flavored) and a couple small bags of chips for just a couple pesos. At the glass doors to the bus staging area, a gentleman glanced at our tickets and waved us through...but I was confused by the numbers...which number was for the bus and which bus had that number? He was gracious enough to point it out, and we were on our way. The line to get on was very short, so I hustled the luggage to the side of the bus where a crew member was loading them and giving receipts for each. The driver seemed to be in a hurry, and came over to check our tickets. We were logged in and then he disappeared somewhere. T barely made it on the bus...I had to haul her up a couple times as those steps are more steep than some at Uxmal! We found our seats near the back and again T gets to have the window seat...except the window in this case is covered on the outside by part of the giant Nike-like "swoosh" the busline has as its trademark. We couldn't see out our window! A young man came on board the bus selling snacks and things. He had a backpack, a heavy apron with pockets full of goodies, and a tray he carried before him with gum and smaller snacks. We waved him away, as we already had bought stuff for the trip. The bus driver boarded and shut the doors. At that moment a male passenger decided he wanted to change seats, so he just moved across the aisle to an empty row. T and I wanted to do the same, and when the dude glanced over at us and saw our questioning faces he motioned to us that there's no problem and we could do the same. So, we got a seat one more row back and across from the on-board WC. That's right. This bus had a restroom, which is a good thing as our particular trip did not include any stops along the way. Now we had an unimpeded view of the outside...and also nothing to obstruct the faint flow of odor (blue water) coming from the comode in the little compartment across the aisle. Se la ve. Small monitors installed every few rows suddenly dropped down and instructed us in Spanish of safety tips while on the trip. Seatbelts, shifting luggage, yadda-yadda... After the presentation, the monitors slowly closed up again. The bus slowly backed away from the terminal and then drove out into the street. Before long, we were heading south along a familiar road. It was the same as the one we took the day before to Uxmal and Kabah. The difference came when we started following the "Campeche" roadsigns...and then lots of country road driving. Shortly after we exited the city, the overhead monitors opened again, and we were treated to "The Aviator". In my humble opinion Leonardo DiCaprio always looks like "Jack" from Titanic no matter what film he's in...except for that recent one where he co-stars with Jack Nicholson. Small volume buttons on our seats didn't work that well, so I couldn't catch all the dialogue...not that it mattered much, as it was all in Spanish. I could catch the plot, though, and was able to follow it all the way until we arrived at Campeche. My bro and I originally had planned to see Campeche as part of our brief "trek" around the Yucatan. It is the capital of the Mexican state of the same name, and due to its historical, architectural, and cultural significance has been named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Campecheans are proud of this distinction and have done their best to create an atmosphere to encourage tourism. Campeche was formerly known as the Mayan village of Ah Kin Pech. It was here that the first Mass was conducted on the American continent (or so the story goes). It was here that the Mayans routed the first incursion of Spanish conquistadores before succombing to succesive invasions. The Spaniards made this town into an important port for the ships transporting raw material from the peninsula to Europe and other areas of the kingdom of Nueva Espana. Due to its importance and the riches passing through that city, it became the target of just about every pirate that roamed the Caribbean. I read somewhere that one could make a who's-who list of assailants, including Sir Francis Drake, Blackbeard, and Peg Leg. Campeche was even occupied for a few years by the pirates and became known as a "pirate town" or a base from which they would launch assaults on other parts of the New World. The people of the area eventually became tired of being hosts to such unwelcome guests and forcibly "evicted" them. A city wall was erected (perhaps before the pirates took the town), and later two forts were built in the hills to the north and south of town to discourage further attacks. When I was searching for deals in Campeche, it was somewhat difficult. There is a nearby hacienda or two which have been converted to boutique hotels, which definitely cater to peeps with a higher salary then myself, but offer all the amenities you could Desire including escorted tours of the nearby tourist attractions. But one particular deal I spotted I seriously considered. Yucatan Today reports that ADO bus company offered a package deal for Campeche, including roundtrip busfare from/to Merida and two nights in a 4-star hotel for $1165 pesos. Not too shabby in my own estimation at the time. I called the bus company and in broken English and Spanish understood from the customer service rep that the Del Mar hotel across the seaside drive. Good location...but not exactly where I wanted to be. Since I had expected T to peter out more quickly than most when walking around I wanted some place to stay within the historical district, within the city walls. After much consideration, I chose the Francis Drake Hotel: On a map, this hotel is only within a couple blocks from one of the battlements/barracks or "baluartes" of the city wall to the south, and a couple more blocks from the central plaza to the west. The exterior of the hotel was kind of blends in with the other edifices in the town...colorful and authentic. And it had a restaurant on site, in case we didn't feel like walking anywhere for a meal. There were other hotels perhaps closer to the city plaza, but none appeared to have the same authentic appearance nor even were located within the walls (I needed to be behind that wall...I WANTED to be behind that wall...). I arranged our stay over the internet and got a rate for $690 pesos/night for a double room. This did not include breakfast, but I was satisfied with the room rate and so did not worry about it. With the movie playing and my constant study of the maps, info pages, and guides I had printed out, that bus trip didn't take very long. Near to the end of the ride we found ourselves driving among some low hills. I had been aware that there was a "range" of these extending along the Yucatan's western side, and that Campeche was built at the foot of these next to the coast. We were almost there! The bus pulled into a station just outside the main part of the city. In moments we all shuffled to the front of the bus, where I had to help T down each step all the way. I presented our stubs to collect our bags and then we rolled them into the terminal, through to the other side. Taxi!!!
Great job Michael, I really enjoy reading all the details of your adventure. Waiting for more....patiently..... :cdncat:
