We left Orizaba on Wednesday morning and rode for about three hours before we reached San Juan Bautista Tuxtepec. It is a decent city that serves as a good place to stop for a night on the way to Oaxaca, but doesn’t really contain anything of interest for a visitor. We stayed at the only Best Western in town, which cost us 532 pesos (~36.23 CAD) and was conveniently located across the street from a small strip mall. The only thing we did that day was see Murder on the Orient Express at the cinema in the mall.
The next day, we headed out a bit earlier than usual because we had a four-hour ride to Oaxaca and the day was hot. We took the scenic route that took us through winding mountain roads away from civilization so our lunch was limited to potato chips and cold beer. As we continued along our merry way, Phil noticed that something was wrong with the bike and pulled over. A large nail the size of my forefinger had punctured the rear tire, extending our planned ride of four hours closer to six. What I don’t understand is how did that nail get to the middle of nowhere? There were no stores, no houses, and barely any sign of human life along that route. Maybe the devil did it 😐
The bike has tube tires, so we had to unload everything from the bike and completely remove the tire to change the tube. It is a lot more work than changing a car tire, for those who don’t ride a bike, but our favourite biker took care of it like a champ and got us back on the road before it started getting dark. We were unbelievably tired by the time we got to our accommodation in Oaxaca. We had rented a room through Airbnb for 478 pesos (~32.54 CAD) for two nights.
Somehow, we summoned the courage to leave our room and get some dinner. Luck was on our side because we quickly stumbled upon an Indian restaurant, Mini Taj, and had an incredibly delicious meal that ended our day on a positive note.
Such a beautiful day for a ride… what could possibly go wrong?
Saving the Day
