Buses: Commerce and Boredom

Look out of the window or get a grip. 

 

Vendors come on buses before they depart as well as during transit to sell food, drinks, books, medicine and anything else they can carry.

This man is selling a device to easily thread needles.

Deep fried, thin sliced banana. Think potato chips.

These sellers wait until the bus fills up before going on board.

Two Days Later

I checked in to my hostel in Oaxaca 30 minutes ago (8:30 AM)  and learned that it's Friday. My journey from Antigua began Wednesday morning so I've been traveling for two days. Five buses, two taxis, two microbuses, one overnight in a bed, one overnight in a bus.

Can You Say Quetzaltenango?

 This boy is dirtier than the engine that's wrapped around him, in the chaotic outdoor bus terminal in Xela (pronounced SHAYla) which is easier to say than Quetzaltenango.
I needed to stay overnight in this city because I wouldn't have been able to cross the border before dark.

  

 These girls gave me directions from the terminal to the local bus stop. Each one suggested a different route but they agreed that it was two blocks away, instead of the half-mile that I remembered from last year.

 I decided to take a taxi to the hostel but the first driver gave a price of Q30 (quetzales). I said no,  because I always argue the first price, which prompted him to immediately lower it to Q25. My reply was Q20, but he said no so I walked on even though I realized the price was actually Q25. This is the driver I connected with.

A poor copy of the Parthenon was worthy of a quick picture,  just to make sure that I wasn't hallucinating.

Goodbye Antigua

 The arch at the former Santa Catalina convent, which is now a luxury hotel, with Volcan Agua in the distance.

One more illustration of the number of motorcycles in Antigua, Guatemala. Here, they are everywhere.

Misjudged Travel Time

Five hours in buses and I'm stuck for the night in Xela (also known officially as Quetzaltenango) instead of Tapachula across the border in Chiapas, Mexico.  Buses in Guatemala don't usually travel at night so four hours of buses tomorrow will bring me to my desired destination. Then I'll look for the first-class bus station where,  if I'm lucky, I can buy a reserved seat for the overnight bus to Oaxaca.

Memories

Minding the family business selling pirated DVD movies, this kid has little to do but watch one of his discs.

The main fountain in Antigua's central park is a tourist attraction.







This three-wheel two-seat taxi made in India gave me the impression of a silly kid's toy as I viewed it through a doorway while having breakfast.

My Former Home

My packs are ready to leave my home of three weeks. That's my bed at lower right.