February13_2010

Botanical Glossary - Home - References Cited

Next stop, Vancouver BC, then by Bus to Laredo Mexico Via Greyhound (walking across the border into Nuevo Laredo Mexico) then from Nuevo Laredo Mexico to Oaxaca City, Oaxaca. This is a trip that I made several years ago when you could go anywhere Greyhound travels for a hundred dollars. These days, you can go to Laredo Texas for $109.45 (but you have to book 21 days in advance. You need a valid Passport and a lot of patience because it is a 7 day, 6 night, non-stop trip. I enjoyed the trip, apart from the obvious discomforts of sitting for days in the seated position (it isn't for the feint of heart) but the trip over land gives you an appreciation for the size and grandeur of USA Mexico. Although several years old, most of these photos have never seen the light of day. I feel that it is high time that they received their just due.

Photos - L-R - Prickly Pear Cactus at Laredo This is the first sign that we aren't in Canada any more - the bus doesn't stop for any more than a few minutes at any given time, it is therefor extremely difficult to get outside the bus and picture anything of consequence.

Leaving Vancouver at the Greyhound Terminal in the Pacific Central Bus/Train depot on Station Street and Terminal Avenue in East Vancouver. Notice the size of my baggage on the cement (in front of the US Greyhound sign). If you keep your baggage down to a minimum so that you can carry it on with you, there is less hassle with connecting busses and you can keep an eye on everything - the baggage doesn't get lost unless you loose it.

Walking across the bridge from Laredo Texas to Nuevo Laredo Mexico, looking west along the Rio Grande. There isn't anything fancy here, just a toll booth were you throw a couple of coins in (keep a few USA quarters for the toll). I was fortunate to meet a Mexican lady on the bus that spoke a bit of English and she was able to help me to find the bus station in Nuevo Laredo and get a ticket to Mexico City.

Photos - I only had a few hours in Mexico City before I hopped a bus to the City of Oaxaca so there wasn't an opportunity to do any photos, especially at night. Notice the Volkswagen Taxis in center frame. Volkswagen Beetles are still manufactured in Mexico and are one of the most popular and easy to maintain and repair vehicles. Chances are, if you are driving through Mexico in a beetle Volkswagen and break down, no matter where you are you can get it repaired. This is Central de Autobuses del Norte - Av Eje Centro La Zero, 07760 Cuidad De Mexico, Distrito Federal Mexico. Buses from USA/Canada or South/Central America to Mexico City, make connections to major border cities, from which Mexican bus lines depart often to many other cities.
When you come from another town in Mexico, the bus is the best alternative: highly reliable and safe (most cases), comfortable and not expensive.
If you plan stopovers on route, make sure that your ticket is written up in advance.

Mexico City has four long-distance bus terminals located close to Metro (subway) stations, the cheapest and most efficient method of transport between them and the city if you have little or no luggage.
All stations also offer services as restaurants, money-exchange booths or banks (ATMs), post offices, luggage storage, and long-distance telephone booths where you can also send a fax.

Photos - L-R - Arrival in Oaxaca is during the day and I'm feeling numb from all of the bus riding. One thing I would like to mention though if you are riding the bus. Ride First Class - the 1st Class busses are way better in Mexico than in Canada or USA and they treat you like a king with onboard movies and special stops to sample local cuisine.

The scenes you see here are from down town Oaxaca - the buildings have a lot more history here than what I'm used to photographing in Canada - hundreds of years older in many cases. Most building materials in the down town area are adobe brick, cement, or stone.

Center frame: Palm Trees on Ninos Heros de Chapultepec outside the Ado first class Bus Depot in Centro Oaxaca Mexico.

Click here for more photos of Oaxaca Mexico for this day.