Today, I took another step to becoming a Mazatleca, I took the bus! Finally!
The water level was very high this morning!
I left home at about 7:00 and was to meet my cousin between 8:00 and 8:30 at her hotel, which gave me quite a bit of time to walk to a bus, wait for a bus, and then walk from wherever I ended up to the hotel. I was told to take the Sábalo-Centro route, which essentially goes between the Mercado Piño Suarez and the northernmost tip of Mazatlán, along the Malecón and through the Golden Zone.
It was the same distance to walk from the embarcadero to the mercado or to the Malecón at the fishermen’s monument using Gutiérrez Nájera, so I decided to go the later route, figuring it would be easier to identify a bus going towards the Golden Zone.
I’ve seen a few bus stops in Maz, but not many, and certainly not along the Malecón. It looks like a lot of people just hail them down wherever the bus can safely stop. I walked for a few minutes until I saw a bunch of people loitering around a pole and figured that that had to be a bus stop or, at least, a place where the bus could stop safely. Indeed. The driver was quite put upon to tell me the fare (10 pesos versus up to 120 to take a pulmonía!), so I was glad I didn’t have to rely on him to help me figure out where to get off.
The bus was just like any city bus, only a bit battered with torn seats. The suspension wasn’t great either! 🙂
My first point of reference in the Golden Zone was the Banamex, after which time I kept an eye out in the distance for the overhead pedestrian bridge attached to my cousin’s hotel. It was still quite far off (less than 10 minutes on foot) when a bunch of people got up, so I decided to get off with them, concerned that the bus driver might be a jerk and purposely make me miss my stop and leave me even further from the hotel.
This turned out to be a good plan because it allowed me to pass a Santander bank, which was recommended to me by a reader here (Kathe?). I’d tried before and it wouldn’t take my card, but this time I had no trouble. The fee was only about 30 pesos and, best of all, I got a few small bills!
My cousin’s room is quite deep into the hotel and I was there at 8:05 on the dot. My first Mazatlán bus trip was a success!
Good deal on the bus. My friend Cathy from Canada stays in an RV park on the north end of Maz and uses the bus all the time (the same route you were on). It is cheap, direct and no parking problems.
You do NOT need a car in Maz! I am tempted to fly in next year if I come here!
Probably a good idea to leave the truck at home. Then no one can ask you to pick them up at the airport!
😀 I am not afraid of saying no. If picking up people at the airport was an issue, I would have said so. The first time, I got paid for my gas and needed to go pick up something cumbersome (a computer chair) in town anyway, so it worked out well! The second time, I was meeting my cousin who was coming, in part, to see me!