How to Survive a Bus Robbery in Southern Mexico

Summary

The article recounts a harrowing experience of surviving a bus robbery in Southern Mexico, emphasizing the unpredictability and danger of travel in the region.

Abstract

The narrative details an incident where a group of travelers, including the author and a British backpacker, face a bus robbery while traveling from the Yucatan Peninsula to Chiapas. Despite the initial shock and fear, the passengers adapt to the situation, with some, like the British backpacker, taking risks to save their belongings. The article contrasts the perceived danger in the North of Mexico with the lawless "Wild West" nature of the South, highlighting the stoic response of locals and the resilience of travelers in the face of adversity.

Opinions

The author suggests that Southern Mexico is less predictable than the North, likening it to the "Wild West."
The author expresses admiration for the local bus driver's calm and practical decision to spend the night in a town following a robbery ahead.
The British backpacker's decision to hide his iPod is portrayed as both brave and foolhardy, with fellow passengers reacting with disbelief.
The author implies that the robbers' efficiency and limited time prevented them from conducting thorough searches, which in some cases worked to the passengers' advantage.
The author lightly mocks the idea that the back of the bus is reserved for "cool kids," adding a touch of humor to the tense situation.
The article subtly promotes Medium membership through a personalized referral link, suggesting that readers who enjoy the story might consider supporting the platform.

And then some

Being denied entry onto a plane is one thing. Being denied exit from a bus unless you relinquish all your valuables is quite another.

The adjective “Southern” is in the title because the North is mainly where the cartel action is and the South is more of a Wild West. Don’t believe me? Let’s hope you never find out.

Long-distance buses in Mexico are freezing. Despite this, we were able to fall asleep.

After some time, the bus jolted us awake. It was the middle of the night. We were traveling from the Yucatan Peninsula to Chiapas, more specifically from Merida to San Cristobal de las Casas.

“What’s going on?” my newly made Dutch friend asked a local. He was a PhD candidate doing fieldwork in Guatemala. His Spanish was better than mine.

“The bus some kilometers ahead of us got robbed. The driver says we should stay the night in the closest town.” Such stoicism.

We were completely down with the driver’s suggestion.

When we got to our hostel in San Cristobal de las Casas the next morning, we were met with a surprise: One of the backpackers who had checked in along with us had been on the bus that got robbed. He was younger than me and British. Spoke with a bit of a swagger. That’s about all I remember of him. Except for what he told us.

Before the men with guns boarded the bus, our British buddy hid his iPod in a hidden pocket of his backpack. Systematically yet quickly, the armed robbers relieved all the passengers of their valuables. Our Brit sat all the way in the back (wasn’t the back of the bus reserved only for cool kids in high school?).

When it was his turn, he handed over all the cash he had from the front pocket of his shorts. When interrogated, he claimed he possessed nothing else of any monetary worth. He, um, probably didn’t use those exact words. In either language.

The robbers left, the bus kept trucking along, and our gutsy rider whipped out his iPod, stuffed the headphones back into his ears, and proceeded to listen to music. Probably the same song that stopped in midplay when the bus had been stopped.

But not before the surrounding passengers gawked at him and called him crazy for even thinking about pulling something like that.

His reasoning was that the robbers did not have time to search everyone thoroughly. In his case, this thought process paid off.

Would you try it, though?

Dash Ip slept surprisingly well that night the bus pulled over to the closest town.

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