La Paz – Donde esta mi shock? Not here!

I’m starting to get bored of Baja. Even La Paz with its beautiful beaches, palm lined waterfront “Malecon” and laid back setting, I feel stuck. There are scant signs of La Paz’s colonial period, but it’s a prosperous town that seems ready to explode. I imagine that this is what Cabo San Lucas looked like 30 years before the massive resorts, gringo clubs and golf courses.

Attracting sport fisherman, kayakers and scuba unlike other “cities” in Baja, I’m not seeing too many tourists. Of course, that’s probably because it’s still too hot and the season won’t pick up until later this month.

I arrived in La Paz Friday night after making the 4+ ride down from Loreto. On a limping motorcycle it’s just not possible nor smart to try to make time. Thinking it would take me a long time to navigate the city to find not only the DHL office, but some sort of motorcycle repair shop that’d help me with my new shock. But as luck would have it on the main drag going into town from the highway I spotted a Honda dealer. And just a block away I found the DHL office. Amazing.

I pull into DHL expecting to pick up my package but was greeted with an unwelcome surprise. No package. Quick research turned up that my package wasn’t shipped via DHL with instructions to hold at this office. No. It was shipped UPS to my attention to the DHL office in La Paz, Mexico. I can’t fault Pierre at Works for this insane change of fortune. He did everything he could to get the shock ready, boxed and shipped in a few hours. They only have a UPS account and creating the airbill, customs declarations and other international paperwork was easy. And according to UPS my shock still should have arrived today.

Making friends with the spanish-only speaking personnel at DHL we all laughed about my predicament but they agreed they would accept and sign for the UPS package. I would simply pick it up there anyway.

Further research and a tracking number showed the package in Mexico City. Simple enough, I figured this must be a hub of sorts of UPS and that the package would be shot out to La Paz that evening or tomorrow.

I then cruised over to Motos Baja, the Honda dealer, and arranged with Luis to have them work on my shock on Saturday, if the package arrived in the morning or Monday if it arrived too late.

The next morning, Saturday, I showed up at DHL and no package. We tracked the package with UPS and discovered it was back in Louisville, Kentucky — in the United States. Good god. There’s no phone number for UPS in La Paz, Cabo or even Ensenada. Calling Mexico City resulted in a recording announcing a closed office. And there was no way for me to call UPS in the States because the only numbers I could find were toll free 800 – impossible to dial from Mexico.

I was lost. Beaten again. Pissed.

A friend in the states made the calls for me. Seems UPS screwed up and apologized, but promised that the package would be delivered by the end of the day Wednesday, October 5th.

Good god. That means 5 more days in La Paz — maybe more.