Starting Our Second Leg

We crossed the border from Mexico into Guatemala the morning of Sunday, January 4th.


We stayed the night before at a Pemex station about half an hour drive from the Mexico-Guatemala border. Many Pemex stations will grant travelers permission to pass the night in their parking area, without charge. We always fill our tank with gas at the station we are staying before requesting permission to pass the night in their lot. All the stations we have been to have bathrooms, some have showers, and most have convenience stores that sell drinks and snacks. Passing the night at a Pemex station is definitely not like a Hilton, but the cost of “zero dollars” is unbeatable and the stations are well lit and well guarded; much safer than the rest areas along US highways.


We arrived to the border at about 8 o’clock in the morning. Leaving Mexico was easy. I explained we were leaving for about a month and then returning. Our passports were stamped and we were on our way to Guatemala.


I couldn’t help but wonder, as we drove into Guatemala, if it was possible to be stuck in limbo between the countries being denied entry to both and end up like Tom Hanks in the Airport movie.


On the Guatemala side we found someone (actually he found us) right away to exchange some dollars for quetzals. Next our vehicle was sprayed (with insecticide, fungicide, or some other spray killer). After being sprayed we went to the migration office to check into Guatemala, which took a few minutes longer than it should have because I thought I was asked where we were from and I responded United States. In fact, I was asked where we were going and so the official (obviously) could not find us in the system to check us “out” of the country. Once we (me and the migration official) determined we were entering (and not leaving) Guatemala, we were on our way. The last procedure to enter the country was to acquire a permit for our vehicle. We needed to show our title, passports, and paperwork from Mexico. We paid the fees (about $12 USD), forms were filled in and copies were made.


When all was said and done we entered Guatemala and avoided limbo in less than an hour.

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