Finally, we have our Ben back! Now we can start into our continuation of the adventure overlanding in Central and South America. We honestly had to earn the receipt of our camper Ben.

After a short stopover in Cancún, supposedly to shorten the waiting time in Veracruz, we arrive in Veracruz at the same time as the scheduled arrival of the cargo ship on which our camper crossed the Atlantic. It is a great advantage that today there are online tools on which the ships on the oceans can be tracked. So, we are always up to date, where the ship is at the moment. And this is where the big wait for Ben begins.
Every day we check again where the ship is. For some reason it just can’t enter the port in Veracruz. We are in contact with the shipping agency, but unfortunately, they don’t know more either. It could happen that the ships cannot enter the port because of too much freight traffic.

Receiving positive news, but the wait continues

After a long 10 days of waiting, we finally receive the positive news: The ship enters the harbor! It’s a Thursday and Paddy doesn’t miss the chance to watch from the beach as the huge car carrier slowly glides into the harbor. According to our imagination, the whole temporary importation process could go forward pretty fast now. Well, we have not yet reckoned with the Mexican coziness.

The next day, Friday, we visit the customs agency in Veracruz. Here our documents are copied, but we can’t do much more. We wait for the release of the cargo, so that we can take the further steps to get our camper out of the port of Veracruz. On Monday we are supposed to come back to solve the temporary import permit. This is needed in advance to be able to clear the car in the port. This went smoothly in the Mexican manner. A few hours later we bring the required document to the customs agency. But it is funny: The State Bank of Mexico would like to have a card payment for the fees of the temporary import permit. So far so good. But when we go there, the terminal is dead, because it was unplugged by mistake, then we have to wait about 2.5 h until the card terminal is recharged and set up again. But still, we can pay on the same day – accordingly, it is a successful Monday despite the long wait. By the way, according to the lady at the bank, paying in cash should take even longer, for whatever reason.

From here on, we can’t do anything to support the acceleration of the process. We only know: In the best case our camper will already be out of the port next Thursday. Nothing happens and we have to look for an answer from the customs agency again. It will probably be Friday. On Friday it means, yes we get the release paper to finally get Ben out of the port. However, it will be 18.00 o’clock, too late to drive him out of the port – regulated working hours for their employees. And already a working week is over and we still don’t have Ben. At least we were promised that we can expect our camper on Monday morning.

Of course, we only ever booked a hotel room until the next possible date to receive Ben. So now we have to book a hotel room again last minute on Friday afternoon – because first there was no answer from the customs agency – in order not to have to spend the weekend on the road.

And then finally: We have our camper Ben back!

On Monday, after exactly three weeks of waiting since the scheduled arrival date of the ship in Veracruz, we finally have our camper back in our care. We are relieved: Fortunately, nothing is missing from the inventory and also the condition is in general the same as we handed it over in Emden for the shipment. Now we can finally start our adventure overlanding through Central and South America!