[Above: Chanda Baggarly caps a day of driving with some Internet catchup in Oaxaca.]

Journal by Justin Mounts

Hello again, everyone. I hope you’re enjoying reading about our LONGITUDE expedition. We have just completed the first three weeks, and are rapidly approaching the Guatamalan border. The last few days have been very busy, and they have taken their toll on the team. We could all use a chance to catch up on some sleep and laundry.

Today, our route takes us approximately 240 miles from Cuernevaca (just south of Mexico City) to the cultural center of Oaxaca, Mexico in the southeastern region of Mexico. As we descend further toward the equator, we’ve been fortunate to have some beautiful days for driving. Ample sunlight radiates in our cars as we continue counting down the miles toward Colon, Panama where we will catch a ferry to Ecuador. At the same time, everyone is still conscious of our friends and families back home, as well as the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. So, on Thursday, if you have room, think of us and eat just a little extra turkey.

Before talking about today, I should mention that Cuernevaca, where we stayed last night, seemed like a really nice city. We were fortunate enough to stay as guests at the home of our third Take Me With You! guest. Several members of our team decided to soak up some of the local culture in Cuernevaca by attending a nightclub to dance with some local Oaxacans. The rest of the team decided to entertain themselves by creating a somewhat silly game with a tennis ball. As they played catch in the living room, they began charade-like antics where each person would reenact some projectile-type behavior to act as the catalyst for passing the ball to another team member. I sat outside in the cool night air and enjoyed watching the team and their antics.

We had an early call today (the time when someone goes around to wake everyone up -- usually me) at 6:30 so we could get started driving around 8:00 am today. Anytime we have a high-mileage day planned, we try to get an early start to allow enough daylight driving hours. One of the hardest things about the expedition are the times when we have to convoy around at night. On the whole, it taxes everyone’s endurance more than normal daytime driving, plus there are numerous hazards that are on the road. It seems that all Mexican highways are full of “topes” or speed bumps. They tend to pop up out of nowhere, and there’s absolutely no consistency to their size or frequency. There are other things to look out for as well -- pedestrians (even on freeways), bicyclists, dogs, cows, donkeys, and other drivers.

We loaded into the vehicles and made a quick stop at a convenience store to grab Bimbo donuts, muffins and some coffee for breakfast before heading for the highway to Oaxaca. Shortly after we left Cuernevaca, we were able to see the Volcan Popocatepetl, one of the highest points in Mexico. It would’ve made for a beautiful photo, but the morning sky was very hazy and made it difficult to fully take in the beauty of the mountain. From there, we continued onward with the Sierra Madre range flanking us on the right most of the way to Oaxaca. Along the way, we passed some very curious looking cacti. At the base, they looked like regular trees. However, they didn’t have any arms. Each cactus pointed straight up into the sky with no arms. Very different than the cacti I’m used to seeing. They were so remarkable, we pulled off to the side of the road to take some photos by them and film the team chatting with a local hombre and his donkey. The donkey didn’t have much to say, as I understand it.

After the photo session was completed, we continued into Oaxaca and arrived around 7:00 pm at our hotel. After checking in, the team was off to the Internet café to take care of business. A few people went their own way for dinner, myself included. I wandered down to the zocalo via the Alameda de Leon. Just past the majestic main cathedral, I found a hot dog vendor. Dinner was served. I treated myself to two bacon-wrapped dogs covered in chilies, tomatoes, and onions with a little bit of mustard, catsup, and mayo. Man, they were delicious. As I sat on a little park bench, I was able to soak up a little of Oaxaca as night took over. Dozens of street vendors were packing up their wares for another day, while on a bench to my right, a young Mexican couple sat kissing. The square was full of teenagers enjoying their Saturday night out while Tejano rock ballads played in the distance. The air was cool, but refreshing. It was a perfect Mexican night. It was exactly what I needed to unwind from the day and get ready for the next adventure.

I hope you all are well. Talk to you in a week.

Logbook for November 22nd
Start: Cuernavaca, Mexico
Finish: Oaxaca, Mexico
Mileage: 240

Help support our cause: Drive Around the World aims to raise money for Parkinson’s Disease research by taking four certified pre-owned Land Rover Discoverys around the globe following lines of longitude. Readers are encouraged to pledge small amounts of money per expedition-mile via a pledge form that can be found on our Parkinson’s page by clicking here. Everyone making a pledge of $10 or more to raise money for the Parkinson’s Institute will be put in a raffle to win an expedition-style Land Rover.