Letting the day take us where it will
- Melissa Herrera: Not Waiting for Friday
- October 22, 2023
- 1700
This morning the waves are loudly rushing the shore in Acapulco Bay, a place I never thought we were coming to on this trip. I’m sitting inside a room on the eighth floor of the Holiday Inn Resort listening as I ponder morning coffee. We have entered the third week of our absence from home, the refilling of our cups, as I like to call it.
We do not usually plan ahead when traveling. I know this gives many of you the shivers, but it’s who we are. I can see George lying in bed entirely relaxed, and to me that’s everything. Yesterday felt like the most free I’d been in several years.
We got up with a start Monday morning and decided to catch a bus into CDMX, then head to the airport and fly to Huatulco, that area we love so much on the coast of Oaxaca. I had checked prices the week before but didn’t reserve tickets.
When we were young and lived in Mexico, preparing all the papers George needed to live in the states, we’d often catch a very early bus into the city to go to whatever square, nondescript building we needed to receive whatever stamp we needed on a piece of paper. It seemed endless.
Catching that bus early morning hurtled me back in time. I looked at him sitting next to me, nothing on our agenda but where we were going, and I couldn’t help but smile. We reached the Central del Norte (Northern Bus Station) and stopped for coffees and to check plane tickets.
As I perused prices while sipping bus station coffee, I realized the prices were outrageous. George looked at me and said, “Let’s catch a bus to Acapulco.”
And my friends, we ran to the Costa Line ticket counter and got bus tickets on a luxury bus liner for $40 apiece. It was already boarding, and we got on, waters in hand, and nestled into the top section of the bus. Yes, it was a double decker. It felt like I was sitting in my recliner watching the scenery change as we headed south.
Hours later we got off the bus, backpacks securely fastened, and had a taxi drop us off at a waterfront restaurant where we supped on cóctel de camarón (shrimp cocktail) and fresh filete de pescado (fish filet). I threw my head back and let the flavors mingle.
I had reserved a room for a song at this small beach club (we may stay another night), and for the first time in two weeks, I took a hot shower. We fell asleep in our king bed listening to the ocean right outside our window.
Today I plan to sit by the small pool right next to the ocean and drink cocktails. Tomorrow? We’re not sure. We will probably catch another bus and head further down the coast, eventually landing in Huatulco at some point this week.
For now, we will see what the day brings. For now, I will feel young and carefree.
Melissa Herrera is a published author and opinion columnist. She is a curator of vintage mugs and all things spooky, and her book, “TOÑO LIVES,” can be found at www.tinyurl.com/Tonolives. For inquiries, to purchase her book or anything else on your mind, email her at junkbabe68@gmail.com or find her in the thrift aisles.