We were all happy to leave the Emerald Coast and head for higher and drier ground.  However, we still had to wait an extra day for lower humidity because Jack wasn’t ready to leave until after 12.  The cardinal rule, when travelling in Latin America is to leave early and find a stopping place for the night early because you absolutely do not want to drive when it’s dark.  The trucks and heavier traffic come out in full force in the afternoon.  There are animals along side the road and in the road, there’s rarely a shoulder on the roads, and it’s hard enough driving in the daytime.  We had high mountains that we definitely wanted to be across well before evening so as a result we only drove 54 miles to Poza Rica where we stayed the night on the grounds of the posh Hotel Poza Rica Resort.  Still rainy and very humid but at least it was secure.  After we got settled, the four of us took a taxi across the busy city to a Sorianno store which is somewhat like a Super Walmart.  We decided to meet up in an hour outside the store.  While we were shopping, a young couple approached Steve and me, asking if we were Americans.  They are from Missouri and were headed for Queretaro to a 7th Day Adventist convention.  I told them Chris was also this religion and she was in the store somewhere.  To make a long story short, they found her and told her about the convention. Chris was ecstatic and decided to go also.

 The shrine above was in the wall on the side of a gas station. There are shrines everywhere.