One Bad Border Crossing

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Friday the 16th of January we arrived to Omoa, a town on the coast of Northern Honduras.

After one day on the beach in the rain we decided to move on and headed back to Guatemala.

We have three different maps that cover the border area of Guatemala and Honduras. All three maps are different. We were looking to cross from Honduras to Guatemala at the northern most point accessible by vehicle because our plan was to go from the Honduras coast to Lake Izabal, Guatemala.

According to our guidebooks and two of our maps the problem would be in driving since if there was a road it may be impassable due to flooding during the rainy season and also because we may have to cross a series of rivers.

The road was not a problem; it was there and it was paved and it was not flooded. The rivers were not a problem either since bridges were built to cross them.

Leaving Honduras was not a problem. Same as previous borders; we turned in our vehicle permit and checked out of the country.

Entering Guatemala is where the trouble arose. Each time we cross a border I have the lingering thought in my head that we might get stuck in limbo and this time we did, well, for a while. We checked into Guatemala, well, partially. Our passports were stamped and we were allowed entry, but our vehicle was not. This border crossing did not have the infrastructure entirely in place to admit vehicles. In theory foreigners are expected to leave their vehicle on the roadside and take a taxi (although there were no taxis) half an hour away to Puerto Barrios with a document verifying the vehicle was inspected, pay the entrance fee, receive the completed vehicle documents and window sticker, then return to the border to finish the entry process. Fortunately, theory is not always reality and there are understanding and trusting people in the world. Unfortunately we had only half an hour to do so. It was time to fly; hard to do on winding roads blocked by bicyclists and semi-trucks; Godspeed! We made our way to Puerto Barrios, as did three other foreigners, paid the fees, received the papers and sticker, returned to the border to finish the process, and were on our way.

Like I said in another blog entry; it is a good idea to allow more time than you think you will need.

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