Monday, April 06, 2009

Some Rumors Are True

One hears so many rumors here on the island that it is hard to tell which are true and which are just wishful thinking. I had heard a while back that the Ultramar ferry was going to demolish their old wooden dock and build another cement one. Why this is necessary is beyond me.

I guess the rumor was confirmed for me last week when we took our friend D to the ferry. (we always hang around until we are sure he is on it and it is far enough away from the dock so he can't jump off and swim back! Just kidding D!)

So there were these three boys, hardly what I would call men, working on tearing the old wooden one apart.





Although it looks like it could be, that is not a shark swimming by the big tire in the picture above. Trust me, I looked very carefully! Note that the guy on the right in the white tee shirt is all bent over. Wanna see what he was doing?







Yup. He had that big chainsaw between his legs, cutting out one of the side support bars. Gave me shudders just to watch him. He must have been the one with either a)the most experience or b)the least amount of seniority on the crew.

Here he is in the water. It was his job to work that pulley to pull the supports out of the sand. Not an easy job. The guy with his legs spread kept kicking at it to help loosen it. The other lad is lending moral support.






Not a job I would have liked to do, for various reasons. The major one that day was because the wind was blowing, churning up the water into big swells even by shore and it was cold! I would bet money that he had wrinkles all over his body from being in the water so long. And he probably looked like George Kastanza when he got out too!

So I guess it's true about the new dock. At least the tearing out of the old one is anyway.

10 comments:

Scottozoid said...

I was at the ferry dock last week and I observed this operation going on...as a warehouse supervisor in "real life" I was appalled at the disregard for common sense and/or safety but then again, I knew "hey it's Mexico"

And this reminds me of a bad joke I made up:

Q: How do you say "OSHA" in Spanish?

A: You don't.

Isla Deb said...

Well, I for one liked the old dock and miss the the "clickety-clack" noise of suitcase wheels. But I guess that's progress. :-(

Islagringo said...

Scottozoid: If you really want a treat, take a look at the workers on those high rises they are putting up on Bonampak. No nets or safety harnesses for those guys!

Deb: Since I switched to a back pack long ago, I forgot about that sound! Remember how it would almost break your wrist when your wheel got caught and sent your suitcase spiraling!

Anonymous said...

i wonder how many people would know what you were talking about when you mentioned george kastanza. i'm a seinfeld fan so i know exactly what you meant and it cracked me up. thanks, i needed a good laugh to start my day ;-)

teresa in lake stevens (steve, cynthia and mike's blog buddy-it was great meeting them last week)

Calypso said...

Looks kind of like the guy sawing a the tree limb he is sitting.

We have all discussed the lack of safety exhibited by so many Mexican laborers - at least these hombres aren't working for you today ;-)

Babs said...

I too remember the George story. It too made me laugh.
I guess I've been in Mexioc too long to think of the "way it's done in the States" anymore. I'm just awed by how hard they work and in the end they have a good result.
Gosh that water is so beautiful!

Islagringo said...

teresa: glad I could get your day started right!

calypso: LOL! He sure does! I can't wait to read the saga of your wall!

Babs: I knew a few people would catch that reference! They do work hard but sometimes I question the result. Keep watching if you want to see blue water this week!

Jackie said...

Here’s my conspiracy theory on the new cement docks. They are being built for the “new” Isla tourist. You know the ones that need haute cuisine restaurants and AI hotels. The old wooden ones were/are treacherous for the fancy schamzy women wearing high heels because the heels can get caught in between the planks. I know I LMAO when I saw this happen. Sitting on top of the ferry once with two couples that really looked like they belonged at an AI in Cancun I wondered how the women would be able to walk on the uneven cobblestone. One of them never made it off the dock before she almost fell on her ass when her heel went in between the planks. I kid you not!

Anonymous said...

Yikes. I'll be in Isla on saturday with my wife. I'm a little scared of the George Kastanza......"issue." :)

Arizona Kelly said...

I think its funny that someone besides me enjoyed the "click click click click" of suitcase wheels going across that pier. Both my happiest and saddest sound, depending on which direction my suitcase was headed.