MeXscape

A series of crises kept delaying our departure, but we finally made it on the road at 2:30 pm. Two people, two dogs, and a ton of stuff in (and on) a Ford Explorer – Mazatlan or Bust!

We screwed up our courage and went to Dallas today. We battled Kamikaze drivers, choking smog, and a growing sense of surreality, but for once no one was murdered while we were there, and we made it out alive. Alive, but without visas.

We know that you can get your FMT and Temporary Car Permit at the border, but we wanted to get ours ahead of time. It has been described as couple hour procedure, and we are going to have the dogs with us. That means Chuck goes in and gets his FMT and the car permit while I wait in the car with the dogs. Then when he comes back, I go get my FMT. Ugh.

Coordinating going to the passport office together wasn't going to happen, so I went the office at the nearby sub courthouse and Chuck went to the office downtown during his lunch hour. We both planned to go on a Friday, but when I showed up at the sub courthouse, no one was in the passport office. They only open that office on Mondays and Wednesdays, which I would have known had I bothered to read the additional information available on the passport office location search site.

We just got back from a really great trip to see my Grandmother in California. 1600 miles in two days – twice. There and back. That was a little hard on us, but I was really afraid of how the dogs were going take it. That's right. The dogs. 1600 miles in two days with both dogs in my Dodge Stratus. Yes, we are nuts.