Our hotel is right on the Pan-American Highway (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-American_Highway), it turns out. With 4 or 5 lanes in each direction, traffic here is truly impressive -- an amazing number of squealing brakes and 18-wheelers honking hourly. Luckily, the hotel itself is very quiet. Or maybe we just don't hear anything over the din...

As it's busy and not very populated, this neighborhood is a difficult one in which to walk Our Dang Dog. You miss the interesting mix of architecture because your eyes are glued to the sidewalk to avoid stepping in one of the hundreds of shards of broken glass. Tough town. Nonetheless, we have noticed some interesting houses -- more like mini-mosques (pictures to follow) than colonial houses. The fanciest ones are in a local version of gated communities: one short street of townhouses all fenced-in together, with a little park in the middle.

Friday was a very big day: we applied for our DCL (DCL = Dedicated Commuter Lane? The website didn't readily provide facts) passes with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. These are muy, muy importante, as they can cut waiting times at the U.S. border by ONE HOUR.

You drive just over the border to apply for them, which requires a long application, fingerprints, and at least $500. While waiting our turn, we got to watch the border patrol in action. They are constantly on the move, walking down the lines of cars (the line was 30 or 40 cars in each of the 4 lanes when we went; took 20 minutes or so to get to the front). They chased off people who were loitering behind some wide poles next to one of the lanes. Hardy souls can walk across the border, passing through turnstiles, but that meant a walk of miles and miles for the folks crossing at the bridge where we were. In total, there are 5 bridges linking Juarez and El Paso. At least one is private, and requires a 35-cent toll.

p.s. Hotel bathroom starting to smell like sewage, too! I should note, however, that when the gritty wind blows, it does at least cut down on the smell outside...

© 2006 http://cjmex.blogspot.com/

I miss American toilets...

So far, the paloma (tequila, lemon soda and lime juice) is an improvement on this hotel's margarita. Thank goodness. We had some of a Corona Familia, a 40-ounce beer, last night. Maybe familia means, "for the whole family to enjoy"?

We saw our first Volvo-destroying pothole the other day on the biggest road in town. It was not wide, but so deep that an SUV hitting it at 30+ miles per hour would have also lost a wheel. Now I'm glad we didn't bring a nimbler, little car.

The dust isn't as bad today. Perhaps it's less windy. However, now that the rain from last week's storm has completely dried, a distinct sewage smell has crept into the neighborhood. It is also emanating from our friends' toilet and shower...

© 2006 http://cjmex.blogspot.com/

Ay, chihuahua! (They really say that) It's so dusty today. Walking around the block, you get grit in the corners of your eyes. There is a visible dust cloud hovering over town. Makes breathing unpleasant, because I bet it traps the vehicle/maquiladora pollution. And I could swear that my laptop -- which hasn't left the hotel room since we arrived -- has dust on the keyboard. It must be coming in through the a/c, since I wash my hands often (TRAVEL TIP), a good way for gringos to avoid getting sick. Can you tell that the air quality here is freaking us out more than a little?

But other than that the weather is great. The low temp last night was in the mid-50s (F), so this morning was nice and freezing cold. Highs this week are supposed to be in the mid-80s (F). No humidity anywhere in the forecast.

© 2006 http://cjmex.blogspot.com/

Had my first margarita yesterday. It was very disappointing, too watery. Also met my first Mexican who worked in the U.S. illegally. He spoke excellent English.

Typical breakfast: fresh pineapple or fresh papaya with lime juice, fresh orange juice, mango yogurt, and either an omelette with green chiles or something more Mexican, like chilaquiles with salsa verde. I've seen lots of pig parts and beef things on offer for breakfast, as well as a soup called menudo (tripe soup -- thanks for the translation, Helene!). For lunch, I've been having either tortilla soup (with avocado bits on top and a whole chipotle pepper laying in the bottom of the bowl) or a "waffled sandwich." (grilled ham & cheese with mayo)

Typical traffic stories: the outer fence around the compound where K works has been hit by cars 11 times in 1 year. The cars have to travel more than 10' of sidewalk to reach the fence. Nonetheless, 11 drivers accomplished such a feat. Second, a colleague of K's hit a pothole with his car and the front grill fell off. Finally, the city has such poor drainage, you have to change lanes to avoid standing water when it rains really hard. You have to avoid the water because you never know how deep potholes underneath will be. This week's "El Diario" had a picture of a Bluebird-type bus sitting in a giant pool of water, with its nose submerged.

© 2006 http://cjmex.blogspot.com/

Our first day in Mexico:

"15 Sep 2006 --
Ciudad Juarez is a mess! All diesel fumes, dust and traffic. Pretty standard for a city of 1.7 million, I suppose. But the people are open and nice, a good change from our last place. The weather is good, not too hot, but the sun is pretty strong -- probably because we're at 4,300 feet in altitude."

The night before, in El Paso, TX:

"We arrived in EP this afternoon, to spend the night before crossing the border. We were really surprised by the scenery since Pecos, TX. It was all mountains west of there. Huge mountains, one peak 8,200 feet high. I never knew that West Texas was anything but flat & boring. We were in 2 spots in the mountains where there was only 1 station on the radio, near Van Horn, one town in the movie, "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada." Sadly, there are mosquitos in a place as empty and dry as that, as we discovered at one rest stop. (Texas has wireless internet at all its rest stops, and fire hydrants or posts for male dogs)

El Paso and Ciudad Juarez sit on a huge plateau ringed by tall mountains. The combined population is 2.5 million. Traffic was awful in EP where we spent the night, and there's no place to walk the dog. Hopefully, the rest of the city isn't as bad."

© 2006 http://cjmex.blogspot.com/