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Information was the one commodity that had been in very short supply since we landed in Mexico City. Our flight had been scheduled to depart at 5:30 PM. It was now 9:30 PM, and we were tired and still trying to make sense of it all. A bus didn't sound so bad, though I knew the trip would be lengthy. My split-second decision was made. We would follow the AeroMexico lady out of the airport and hopefully onto a bus for a late-night ride to Guanajuato.
Every guidebook I've ever read about Mexico includes a few paragraphs discouraging the reader from ever driving in Mexico at night. They describe numerous pitfalls, and generally imply that the Mexican roads at night are full of banditos, wandering livestock and unmarked detours around collapsing bridges. It sounds as though a large percentage of those who depart for these night-time adventures never return.
But of course we were going to be riding in a bus provided by the airline. Surely this would be safe, right? After a brief and hectic few minutes on the curb at the airport, we were moved next to a row of waiting vans. I had our porter load our bags into the back of one of the vans, and after tipping everyone in sight, we climbed into the van and began to wonder about what the night held in store for us. A few minutes later, it became apparent that we were to be the only passengers in the van. Apparently the Dunns and the other passengers to our destination had filled other vans at the curb, and we seemed to be the overflow. The driver conversed in Spanish with a few people, and I looked around to see no sign of the friendly AeroMexico rep with the red bow in her hair.
Moments later, the driver climbed in and I used my limited Spanish language skills to confirm that we were indeed headed to the Leon/Guanajuato airport. And then, we were off, dodging taxicabs in the lanes of the airport. We stopped at a Pemex fuel station and filled the van, then made a long loop around the airport to a yard full of vans identical to ours, all bearing an AeroMexico logo. We stopped there, and the driver was given some cash, undoubtably for expenses and fuel, as well as some tickets for tolls along the way. Surprisingly to us, we continued back around the airport a second time, and found ourselves again at the Pemex station. I stumbled through a few questions and answers with the driver, and determined that we were waiting for other vans to be refueled, after which we would all depart together, or at least that's what I thought he said.
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