Adventures in Bill-Paying

Yesterday I wrote that the city office where I usually pay the water bill is closed due to earthquake damage.  On the window there was a sign with three other offices listed.  After looking at Google Maps I found that one of those offices is accessible by Metrobus.  Line 2 of the Metrobus runs eastward.  If I get off at the bus stop near the corner of Rio Churubusco Avenue it is only a four block walk up that thoroughfare to reach the office.

So this morning I went to board the Metrobus.   But there was one problem... none of the buses listed as its destination the end of the line.  I am not familiar with all the stops along this route, so I had no idea if they were going far enough or not.  Finally I got on one of the buses to see where it would take me.

There was a reason why the buses were not listing the end of the line.  Somewhere along that route there was a protest march, and the buses could not get through.  We reached a stop where everyone had to get off. 

This was as far as I could go.

Fortunately it was only one stop away from where I needed to get off.  The area was not the greatest neighborhood... as a "gringo" I certainly stuck out like a sore thumb.  One of the other passengers who got off of the bus, a gray-haired fellow, started conversing with me.  He asked me where I was from.  I told him, and explained why I was in this neighborhood far from the tourist track.  He sort of took me under his wing and asked a couple of people to make sure that the office I was seeking was indeed nearby on Rio Churubusco Avenue.

When we reached that avenue, he pointed me in the right direction and said good-bye.

I found the office without any problem, paid the bill, walked back to the bus stop, and finally made it back to the familiarity of my neighborhood.