THE WAITING GAME

20-25 JULY. Stepping off the bus in Veracruz at 5:30 p.m., we were immediately hit by a wall of hot, thick, sticky air. I’m guessing it was 35°C+, although it felt considerably hotter. Ordered an Uber to our hotel, an older, tall purple building right across from the sea. The unimpressive outside matched the lobby and rooms. Unfortunately, the hotel room photos had clearly been taken on a very good day. Happy there were no cockroaches or bed bugs. We had a bed, air conditioning and were a step closer to the truck.

And then we waited.

Three nights in that hotel room gave us plenty of time to perfect the art of doing absolutely nothing. There were lots of games of DOG, movies, writing and trying not to go stir crazy. It was simply too hot to spend much time outside.

Though one evening, we ventured out for a walk along the malecón. It was busy, lively… and, unfortunately, pretty stinky. Looking for dinner, and not wanting to spend large at a restaurant, our options for anything healthy were slim. Not even a taco stand, so fast food it was. The next 2 nights Tim & I walked to Costco, where a chicken Caesar salad made for much healthier dinners.

AND WAITED

Without a fixed port release date, we had to move. This time, our apartment was very big, modern, comfortable and right in the heart of the historic centre. We all wished we’d spent the entire time here. But we were reluctant to book longer than necessary, as the truck could be released any day.

The frustrating part was that every day the truck remained in the port meant another day of hotel costs, food, taxis and the general expense of moving four people around without our home on wheels. All while waiting for the wheels of bureaucracy to slowly turn. Our broker was doing all they could, but couldn’t tell us exactly when Bruce would be released.

Tomorrow? Saturday? Monday?

Nobody knew.

Charley & I went for a walk around the historic centre, the nicest part of the city, and down to the old fort.

Then came the inspection call for Thursday at 3 p.m.

Once more, Tim had to empty the truck for the Mexican anti-narcotics and food inspectors. This involved nearly emptying the entire truck in the middle of the day, wearing long pants and boots in the Veracruz heat.

They did discover an opened bottle of alcohol we had been enjoying, along with a gifted bottle for a friend. Which I’m pretty sure they drank rather than disposed of. 😂 But they didn’t find my stash of vanilla beans, unopened spices or the Peruvian rock salt I’d hidden elsewhere. I was happier to lose the alcohol. No photos because of strict security protocols.

Now we just had to wait for the paperwork to be processed and the vehicle released.

Yesterday, we checked out of our hotel at 11 a.m. Unfortunately the apartment wasn’t available for another night, so we spent the entire afternoon sitting in the closed bar on the rooftop of our apartment building, trying to find an affordable room to stay that night. Not knowing if we should we book one or three nights.

We had no idea when the truck would be released, so we took a gamble and booked just one. Back down the far end of town to a newer hotel, where we had two king-size beds in a large, cool room.

Perfect for the night. It paid off.

LIBERATION DAY

At around 3 p.m. on Friday, we finally got the message we’d been waiting for: Bruce could be collected at 10 a.m. the next morning!

Saturday morning, Bruce was released from the port. Which was still a two-hour process to actually get out, involving two X-rays and two separate rounds of paperwork and inspections.

But finally, at 1:30 p.m., we were rolling!

After a quick grocery shop to restock our empty cupboards, just as we were about to pull out, a lovely Mexican woman approached us. Pulling up beside us in her Audi with her husband, they loved our truck and all that we were doing.

Honestly, within 2–3 minutes of chatting, she had offered us the use of her house and swimming pool in her gated community for as long as we liked!!

You would never get this kind of welcome in Canada or the USA, or anywhere really. Spontaneous generosity has happened to us again and again during our travels, and it never fails to amaze us. Complete strangers opening their homes, offering help and making us feel welcome.

We are going to miss this wonderful Mexican hospitality.

But for now, the waiting is over.

Bruce is back.

And we’re on the road north.