North-side Gaucho – Houston

Hermes, International, Panamerican, Travel with a Pet
Houston stop over
Cheers! Thanks to the Sliger’s for their hospitality

We did reach Houston safely and as expected. Without a speed bump or two what would this be?  TOO EASY and not us!  I mean to be honest, in the preceding months our must do logistics came together so easily and quickly that the train was on the track and rolling before we were ready or willing to do anything about it – and, besides who are we but a couple to just ride the ride… That being said, the puzzle pieces laid out in a jumbled picture, we would be naive not to expect a few hitches, snags, stumbles, hiccups, or whatever word comes to mind, along the way – Practice gloves off cause we’re on the road and this shit is real.

Uptown Houston, TX
Uptown view from Sliger’s

 

We’re lucky enough to have our old friend Anthony, who was wooed back stateside from Oz by his new bride Rachel, living in Houston and they graciously invited us to stay with them and ‘save some pesos’ before we took flight. It was a perfect opportunity to spend an evening getting acquainted with Rachel, Val and Moe (the cats) before the work week started and our countdown continued. We were also pleasantly surprised that Scott and Kim along with their son Cooper, whom we enjoyed spending time with at the February wedding, had recently moved back from Australia and were there to help with the send off as well.

An amazing launching pad and thankful we were able to help ease those kitties into this dog eat dog world – or wait, do kitties really rule?!?!?!?  It was a good canine feline introduction where one really observes the bitch V pussy showdown.  Both with their strengths and weaknesses – why don’t you want to play ball?!?  The best part about it is that sometimes it’s hard to tell which is which.  Almost like that silly skiing vs. snowboarding feud.

With so much unknown we’re not quite sure what we are or aren’t ready for but there were a few must dos that need immediate attention. Shipping the truck was priority and has been the most evasive logistic to date.  Preparing the truck for the container required removing all articles out the cab, off the top and ensuring it was secured inside the bed of the truck.  That includes everything inside as well as the cargo rack with all its pieces. The silver lining being that with everything stacked and the monstrous spare tire front and center it may deter any sort of customs search on either side of the border.  Officials have full right to confiscate anything they deem as prohibited and customs regulations are subject to change at any time.  We can confirm this as things tend to change on a whim depending on what day it is or who we talk to.  Again, shipping has been the most elusive, complicated and costly logistic.

Our shipping agent has been courteous, responsive and fairly informative but as a middleman simply coordinating logistics like the wizard behind the curtain fear of the flying monkeys set in when we pulled up to the dodgy receiving location.  Chad walked out of the office and firmly said “I hope this isn’t the right place, they know nothing about us dropping the off truck.” An immediate call to our agent who reassuringly said to give him 15 minutes he’d have it straightened out and apologized for the lack of information.  Just like he said, 15 minutes later out they walked with a camera and what looked like a scrap piece of paper with a bunch of incorrect information scribbled out and they asked us to write the contact information of our shipping agent. SKETCHY!  They began to take pictures, note the condition of the truck and somewhat inventory the contents  – I looked straight at the guy and said ‘Don’t lose our truck’!

So, that was it.  The truck was gone and all we can do is hope it shows up in Buenos Aires with all it’s contents as we expect.