Continuing our story from yesterday: As we made our way to the little pueblo of Chila, 16 kilometers or about 10 miles from La Punta, this being our third trip of the day, it was becoming pretty apparent that restitution for hitting our parked car from Agua Marina Water Company was not likely to happen.

Like watching a bad movie, we decided to ride it out to the finish.

As we pulled up towards the facility we could see a number of water trucks and a small crowd of employees in the yard. We parked outside the entry gates.

The first thing one notices as you enter the property is a shrine of the Madonna prominently displayed. Beyond this we counted 7 water trucks lined up like Mussolini’s tanks. Opposite the row of trucks was a single truck literally surrounded by hombres. The stage was set.

The workers started to gather around Anita and I. It was like the dock scene in the film “On the Water Front”. The confrontation with the longshoreman and Marlin Brando’s character develops into a vicious brawl. Brando attempting to fight corruption is beaten badly, but through it all held his head high.

Here we were surrounded by short little madreadors  (hired thugs). There was a lot of giggling and talking amongst the group as they stared us down. It was mostly laughable, but as desired, a little intimidating. We held our ground.

Now two black shirted boys approached, one declaring in English his Aunt is the owner, another bleated out he was the supervisor. They walked over to our car just outside the gates. We broke past the circled hombres to follow.

Both these two spoke English. One was pointing out that their truck could not have hit our car as the streaked, now paint-less, lines were too low. I came back asking how that could be determined here as our car was pulled over and tilted up slightly on an embankment (mostly off the actual roadway); and the road actually dipped inward toward the car. We would have to make such a determination at the scene of the accident.

Chalk one up for the Calypsos.

Standing their ground, one of them ran a finger along one of the car’s damage streaks. He displayed the tip of his finger showing (perhaps) some rust, suggesting this was old damage. Anita jumps in affirming it could be rust as the edge of the Agua Marina truck that hit our car was a rusty corner of some welded bars. “We have photos!” she declared.

Ignoring this – the other one chimes in, “How do we know this was done by us?” Obviously this was going nowhere. But, I filled in the gap by asking if we were being accused of lying after we had seen the truck pulling away from our car and the driver having already admitted he hit the car – but of course the driver was nowhere to be seen at this moment.

The true meaning of this scene was tucked between lines. I said, “Look, we are wasting time here. You are either going to help us resolve this or not.” One replied, “You will have to do something else. We are not going to help.”

We left the scene. As we were heading the few blocks out of Chila to rejoin the main coastal highway leading back to Puerto we spotted an Agua Marina truck coming from the opposite direction. The driver was the one that hit our car. Apparently he had been radioed in with an “All clear.” The perils of interrogation and in-depth analysis of the actual accident had been avoided. The staged scene from “On the Water Front” played out to Mexican perfection. The vulnerability of the actual driver had been masked via the machismo collective.

Justice and fair play were not served this day. Be forewarned the chances of a foreigner coming out the other side of a traffic accident equitably are nil. It will be a dicey experience. Some that persevere will succeed, but not without great effort. In this case it became a waste of time to continue.  In the history of Mexico as perceived today lies the past that overshadows the present and continues to shape the future.

Final thoughts are this could have happened in the United States, even Canada. There are bullies, liars and cheaters everywhere.

Karmic justice has its own process.

We are safe and happy. Last night was spent with family and friends under joyous weather conditions. This morning the sun is up, the waves are pounding in the background in front of a blue sea as I gaze up from my monitor at that and swaying palm trees. It doesn’t get much better than this. Viva Mexico! Stay Tuned!