Tracker Arrives

Our little Tracker buddy "in jail".

Peggy, our agent and, of course, the Tracker outside of the port

After confirming the shipping/arrival date of the Tracker from Panama City, FL to Progreso, we took the first class (no stops) ADO bus from Playa del Carmen to Merida. ADO buses are clean, new, with bathrooms and movies! There were lighted signs on the front of the bus indicating whether the male and female bathrooms were "occupado" or not. Just like an airplane. We enjoyed the Disney movie "The World's Greatest Game" in English. It made the 4 1/2 hour trip go pretty quickly. We checked into the del Gobenador Hotel in downtown Merida which was close to our agent's office. A bit of shopping at the tiny shop of our favorite vendor in Merida, 75 year old Estaquio.  A nice walk around this beautiful city with pocket parks and old, old churches topped with a great meal at the Chaya Maya resturant. It felt as if we were back with an old friend!  Next morning we were picked up at 9:30 by our agent for the 30 minute drive to the port city of Progreso. We went to the shipping company's office and picked up all the documentation. That went smoothly. Then a trip to Banjercito to pay our temporary import deposit. That did not go so smoothly, as the bank had recently gotten a new machine to process deposits and it had to be "reprogrammed". It took several telephone calls to Mexico City and a wait of about 1 3/4 hours! As with most things in Mexico, it may take awhile longer but it usually gets done. Finally we were off to the port to retrieve the Tracker. The waters off Progreso are very very shallow and the pier extends out 4 1/2 miles to water deep enough for container ships. At the end of the pier, there was the Tracker! It looked pretty lonely sitting behind a chain link fence with only a couple of vehicles keeping it company. More paper work and some time, but well worth it.  It survived its first and probably last ocean voyage in good shape. No damage. Just lots of stickers on its windows, indicating its destination, the ship's name, customs inspections, etc.  Back down the 4 1/2 mile pier to check out. Finally- "Free at last, free at last!" We filled up with gas at the Pemex station and we were off on our 4 day Tracker Yucatan Adventure!