Crossing Over - Part 1

Good Morning all,

So by blogosphere standards I must be considered clinically dead; nevertheless, I live on - a more or less bedraggled version of myself. No complaints about my zoo keeping job though, today I explain our big adventure to McAllen. Last weekend, we decided enough was enough, and it was high time we escaped Vanity Fair for a couple days and head for the good 'ol USA. Trepidation was high as this weekend contained the infamous "black Friday," but with our course set we plunged recklessly onward toward the quaint little car rental place in downtown Monterrey. Interesting way of doing business at this joint, you have to call their posted cell number in order to alert the proprietor to show up at their office, which she did -- eventually. After we received our luxurious white dodge (memories of the intrepid mom?), it was smooth sailing out of town.

This was my first time driving in Mexico, but honestly despite all my misgivings from the pedestrian point of view, behind the wheel there is an eery logic to their mass of traffic circles and ramps. That, or the euphoria of not getting lost in the first ten minutes, is still clouding my judgment. Of course, as the car was given to us with about a quarter tank, we had to fill 'er up and soon. Most gas stations are full service; however, most attendants thankfully understand the English expression 'fill 'er up'. So, after some quick snacks we were on the road again.

Now came decision time:
Two roads diverged in a desolate landscape,
One bore tolls of many pesos, the other did not,
The one with the tolls was smooth and clean
The one that was free looked aged and mean,
Therefore, we paid our way (the road most traveled by SUV)
And that, as Frost would say, made all the difference.

The road to McAllen was fairly uneventful, but soon we were heading through border towns and into the border itself...