Swift Current, Chihuahua

The Copper Canyon Railway is a remarkable feat of engineering. From El Fuerte in the State of Sinaloa to Creel in Chihuahua the train gains over 7000 feet in elevation, passes through 86 tunnels and traverses innumerable trestles.

This 300km journey takes over seven hours – if you take the first class train and pay double, as did we. God knows how long the milk run takes.

I love trains. I wandered car-to-car from engine to caboose. At either end a guy – sub-machine gun cocked – suggested I reverse course.

The dining car was out of an Agatha Christie novel. Cervesa prices were out of this world.

The temperature was 104°F. I chose to forego our air-conditioned coach and instead stood outside for hours listening to the clackety-clack in the stifling air between cars.

April is high season but the train was virtually empty. Mexican tourism has been devastated by a lack of “Nort Americano” visitors, scared off by irrational fear.

Most of our few fellow travelers were Mennonite missionaries. They immigrated to Chihuahua nearly a hundred years ago, fleeing religious persecution in… Canada. These blond-haired, blue-eyed Mexicans live in enclaves named “Swift Current” and “Manitoba”.

A young man dressed in traditional clothing approached me as I looked precariously (and with nausea) out the open half-door of the moving train.

Skipping the small talk he glibly outlined how “the science” just doesn’t back up any suggestion that earth is more than 4,000 years old. He recited a string of facts learned in Bible College classes: biology, chemistry and human history.

Then he went for the jugular. All those who have not accepted J.C. as their Lord and Saviour are “going to Hell”.

I didn’t feel well but I couldn’t resist.

“Does that include the Chinese holy man who has lived and died unaware of the existence of Christendom?” I queried.

After a short pause – internally sourcing his ethics texts I assume – he answered unequivocally, “yes, that guy is ordained for hell fire”.

Before I wandered off to the bar car I suggested to him that Jesus wasn’t the kind of guy to treat people that way.

The next day we read that Bin Laden had shuffled off the mortal coil – bound I assume for the same eternal destiny as that pagan Chinese holy fellow.

Gerry