| |
A Modern-Day Ferry Taleby
Maggie Van Ostrand | |
The
sun was shining, the breeze was gentle and Mark Alvarez was in a really good mood.
"People call me all day when it starts raining," he said, "but not today." They
call when it rains because they need to find out if they'll be able to get to
work that day; the Los Ebanos
Ferry Mark Alvarez operates doesn't run in heavy winds and rain.
Mark
is the operator of the only
international ferry connecting the United States and Mexico
at the Texas-Mexico border. No cell-phone holding, Hummer-driving, Gulfstream
jet-flying big shots are involved. Bill Gates and Donald Trump have nothing at
all to do with it. Not even Oprah Winfrey is interested in the goings-on of this
relaxing mode of transportation. There's a reason for their lack of interest.
|
The
steel ferry, which shuttles three cars and a dozen or so people over muddy waters,
is operated by five men heaving hand over hand on a rope and pulley. They may
not be captains of industry, but they get the job done. And since they're in the
waters of the Rio Grande and not the Caribbean, it's not likely they'll ever be
taken over by Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow.
Like the Little Engine That
Could, The Los Ebanos Ferry
doesn't have it easy. She has to answer to the U.S. Coast Guard since, technically,
it operates in international waters, no matter how short the distance which in
this case is a mere 25 yards.
"It's almost as if time has stood still,
and it continues to operate and function," said Mark Alvarez's uncle, Ed Reyna
Jr., the son of the farmer and local politician who started the ferry in 1950.
Like everything else connected with the southern border of the U.S., there
has been a lot of talk by politicians who want people to think they're going to
make things better. When it comes to this historic
ferry, they want to replace it with a bridge. However, we won't have to worry
about losing all that charm, not to mention hunky men pulling on a big rope. Remember
that it's politicians -- all talk and no action.
Locals on both sides
of the river also enjoy talking about replacing the ferry with something else,
but they have no plans to do anything about it either. They're pretty happy, all
things considered, with the slow pace of life there so why should the way they
travel across the river be changed?
In the meantime, five men haul that
rope every single day from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., except in heavy winds and rain.
In such weather, pedestrians (with or without three cars) have to drive to Rio
Grande City to cross.
These days, if there's no waiting line, and the
crew isn't on their 15-minute lunch break, it takes roughly 8 minutes to cross
this narrow place, costing 50 cents for pedestrians and $2.50 USD per car. Long
ago in this very spot, Spanish explorers exported salt, Mexican soldiers crossed
to fight the U.S. and in the Roaring Twenties, booze worked its way over via enterprising
smugglers.
Mr. Reyna's philosophy is probably too logical for U.S. politicians
to understand. He says the key to the ferry's
continual operation is simple: "People use it."
Copyright Maggie Van
Ostrand
"A Balloon In Cactus"
December 13
, 2008 column
Related Stories:
Los
Ebanos - Home of the last hand-operated ferry on the Rio Grande
Los
Ebanos
Last
Ride on the Ferry
Area
Hotels - Book Your Hotel Here & Save
| |
|
