Monday December 30 continued from yesterday… We decided to head into the closest city, called Tapachula, which was about a half-hour away. We loaded into the car and headed inland towards the mountains.

Along the highway between Puerto Madero and Tapachula, we passed a lot of farmland and what looked like produce packing houses, the airport, a large sports complex that looked new, a university, and an assortment of commercial and industrial buildings. In the outskirts of the city were big strip malls with stores like Home Depot, Office Depot, and Walmart, along with some residential developments. 

We hadn’t planned an itinerary in Tapachula, which was a mistake. Once we got into the city, we had no idea where to go. We drove around aimlessly for a few minutes. From what we could see, Tapachula was a typical Mexican city, consisting primarily of low, blocky buildings set close together.

We hadn’t had dessert after lunch, so Eric decided to find an ice cream shop. We are grateful for modern technology. 15-years ago, we wouldn’t have had any clue where to find an ice cream store. Thanks to our phones, we were at an ice cream shop in minutes.

The ice cream store was called MYTA. Inside, there was a play area for small children. Given that it was such a hot day, ice cream really hit the spot! Christi and Keith had both gotten cappuccino flavor, and the ice cream had real beans in it. 

On Monday, December 30, Eric was feeling antsy to get out of the marina. The other cruisers had told us the public transit for the area were mini-vans called Collectivos that followed a route. The route had no set stops or scheduled times; people just waited for it somewhere along the route and waved it down when they saw it. And apparently you indicated when you wanted it to stop to let you off. We were told that the Collectivos can get quite crowded. 

Eric wasn’t thrilled about trying the collectivo on a holiday week, so he called a taxi to take him to the airport (about a 15-minute drive) and rented a car. He went back to the marina to pick up Christi and Eric and they set out to do some exploring. 

From the marina, we followed the main highway north for a few miles. The building belching smoke was indeed the closest one to the marina. We later found out it was an instant-coffee factory.  We passed several industrial looking compounds, including an area that had big fuel storage tanks and an area under construction. We later found out they were building a train line.  

We turned west onto the cross-road that led into Puerto Madero and followed it to the ocean. From what we could see, Puerto Madero was a typical small Mexican town.