Day 8
Another beautiful sunrise yawned to greet us, and as the morning matured so did the heat and for the first time in three days, the complete lack of wind. A perfect day for snorkelling around the coral reefs except that we didn’t have a single snorkel and only one solitary pair of goggles between us. Vinicio called breakfast and we all shuffled out into the sunlight and filled our bowls with yet more grapefruit, which was now replacing beans as our staple diet. But there was a welcome change, an almond and jalapeno hot chocolate which was simply divine.
After lengthy farewells with Geoff and his family and one last look at the progress of our two days of hard labour we felt a sense of accomplishment, indeed Geoff was delighted with our contribution. Did we leave on time? Probably not…
But we cleaned the bus and packed up efficiently enough.
Navigating the dodgy roads out of El Cardinal was an eye-opener, we all realised how dangerous it was the other night when we were sleep-driving our way from La Paz. We came to a part of the road that had fallen away leaving a gap roughly the size of our bus! … Hopefully the size of our bus?!
Patricia crept forward, with all of us on the edge of our seats, and thankfully she squeezed through the narrow gap to the relative safety of the bumpy Mexican road ahead.
4 hours of plaiting ourselves around the mountains and we arrived in the port of La Paz. Leaving Baja, our peninsula home for the last 8 days, most of it admittedly spent bus-bound but none the less a beautiful ride. From Tijuana to La Paz, some 1000 miles of desert and mountains, relentless sun and small pockets of isolated beauty, like the irresistible beach at El Coyote.
As Ryan and Ulises negotiated our bus fare, we slipped off to sample some delicious fish tacos, with the exception of Tony who feasted on meat tortas! As the bus drove into the belly of the boat there was a sense of excitement and we bounded up onto the top deck in the early evening sun.
Here followed a creative hour of handstands and cartwheels, clown exercises and acro-balance and scribbled journal entries; as a group at ease with one another in the dying of the light and the coastline of Baja receding further before our eyes; we connected on many levels, it felt as though the first hurdle of our journey was complete and the harmony of the group was incredible.
And as the sun sank into the sea and the moon rose like the changing of the guard, and us all huddled around blankets under the stars, having an ‘expectations’ meeting, I felt a great bond between us, and we throw our expectations away and embraced the road ahead with clearer minds… and then Vinicio, such a strong and inspiring individual, taught us a clearance exercise which was another wonderful way of bonding together and refocusing ourselves… The energy in this group is electric and for the first time we really felt the possibilities ahead and the difference we can make, not only to the communities we touch, but to ourselves…
And as the boat docked in Los Mochis we left the ship as foot passengers all huddled together like a flock of sheep as Patricia eased up beside us… and onwards… her engine burping into life, she stumbled on her 12 hour night-drive to Tepic…
Yawn… and rise with the sun. . .
Morgan Val Baker
