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We need to travel to and from Xalapa once a day for Victor’s school. He is attending a dance school, where children are children and teenagers are teenagers. More about this another day.
In Hamilton, the round trip to school was done in our Nissan Leaf, an electric car that Steven Guilbeault would no doubt approve. Even if we don’t approve of him and his current set of colleagues – most MPs – across all parties.
A taxi in Mexico, while cheap compared to those in Canada, can add up over the course of a week. A round trip to Victor’s school in Xalapa would be equivalent to about $25 Canadian a day, or $120 a week, $500 a month. Slightly more than the monthly rent we pay for our three bedroom house and twice what Lucia pays for Victor’s tuition!
While I was still in Canada, Lucia and Victor took a taxi to school in the morning and returned by bus in the evening. While traveling by bus for one of the legs of the trip, reduced the cost, it was still a luxury that would be tough to sustain; given we no longer have my salary. Victor prefers taxis. He is use to them. When I arrived, I explained to him that if we took a bus, we would have more money for toys. He prefers toys more. Sometimes I am clever.
And now for the buses
Taking a bus in Mexico is a complete experience from start to finish. On a recent trip to school, I realized how wonderful the buses were. The first thing that is appealing is the cost. The three of us have been traveling round trip to the school for about $4.25 (56 pesos). Then I discovered that I didn’t need to pay full fare cause I am a “senior”, revered and respected in Mexico. I have a piece of identification called a NAPAM. I show my card when getting on the bus and viola, half price — 6 pesos, sometimes 7 pesos depending on the colour of the bus.
Buses used for public transport, are private businesses licensed by the government. They are generally used by people who don’t own a vehicle or can’t afford a taxis. The buses come in all shapes and sizes and conditions: from hard plastic seats to plush comfortable seats. People jump on and off, sometimes while the vehicle is moving, something that would never be tolerated in Canada. There is no yellow line you have to stand behind, and the bus driver usually doubles as a DJ, with music serenading the passengers as they make their way to their destination. Some days, passengers are treated to talented musicians crooning out some love songs in Spanish. Live music usually means the cost of the trip has just gone up, but well worth it most times.
Merchants come on and off the bus selling snacks, anything from popcorn, to soda pop, to freshly made potato chips. Others get on and describe their desperate situation, before walking the length of the bus and collecting whatever coins come their way from the passengers who cannot afford the solitude offered by a private vehicle. One of the many indicators of Mexican generosity.
Many of those who conduct business on the bus, leave by the front door, offering a fist pump to the driver who sits in his (haven’t met a female driver yet) space decorated with all the items that makes the bus his. The driver’s area is adorned with religious items or his favorite plushies, and sometimes a mix. Always a variety of things to look at, and one would be hard pressed to be looking at the same item on two different buses.
Most buses have a wooden tray with the various coins used in Mexico neatly set out in rolls that the driver uses when collecting fares. The coin holder sits above a stick shift that gets yanked, this way and that, to get the bus up the hills.
Another thing that I marvel at on these bus rides is the way in which seats are given up. In no particular order, women; men or women accompanying children and those who are older, are often the recipients of gallantry. They are offered seats at a far greater frequency than I have witnessed in Hamilton. In Hamilton, it often struck me as a gesture borne out of obligation, whereas on our bus rides it strikes me as a gesture borne out of decency, out of respect.
About that graffiti
And Victor says, “We are seeing this face everywhere. It is kind of freaky.”
We are seeing it everywhere we take the bus. The eyes are level with the mouth, so it can’t be human. It looks more like the front of an older car, radiator between headlights. We don’t know what it represents and why it drawn on walls everywhere.
“In some places, there are faces that look more like turtles.” says Victor.
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