Thursday 8 April 2010

Beetle Mania and Premium Class Travel

It was on my taxi ride to the bus station this morning that I realised just how many Beetles there are in this country. In the space of just 2 minutes I had counted 10 of them, and when I arrived in Mexico City there were even more. I have seen hundreds today! No I don't mean the hard skinned creepy-crawly type, nor do I mean the shaggy-haired 60s pop stars (because then I'd have spelt it wrong!). No I mean the car. And I don't mean the ugly remake. I mean the proper clapped-out original. I've never seen so many of the thing in my life. What a great place to play the Beetle-Box game! It begs the question: Is Mexico where Beetles go to die, or is it were they live forever?

Apart from my car spotting, I've had a fun day. Resisting the desire to fly from San Luis Potosi to the capital, I went for the cheaper bus option. Now I've read good things about the bus service in Mexico, but I was bowled away by just how amazing bus transport is here. After paying for my taxi (which incidentally cost about £3 for a 2 mile trip across town - I can't remember paying that little for a taxi since our days in Limerick when as students we begrudgingly payed that much between 3 or 4 of us), I entered what looked more like an airport terminal than a bus station. I can't get over how clean, tidy and safe it looked. Before boarding the bus, we were given a complementary drink and ham sandwich. And what luxury awaited when boarding the bus. There were only 24 seats on a bus the size of a normal 52 seat coach, plenty of space, a nice footrest, and 2 toilets, neither of which smelled like a bus toilet, and a tv. Oh, and the 5 1/2 hour journey only cost about £25. Bargain!

The journey flew by too. The scenery was amazing and the roads are first class. We even arrived at the final destination half an hour early. The place is huge, but much nicer than I expected. I'm staying in a really nice hotel, just on the edge of Bosque de Chapultepec, a huge park on the western edge of the city. English is a little more widespread than it was in San Luis and best of all, I had pasta for the first time in 9 days (Spaghetti Bolagnese never tasted so good!).

Well that's all from me for a few days. I have an essay to write in the next 48 hours, and I plan on spending the weekend exploring the city and surrounds. Until next week, Chau

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