(type: funny ... a first person account)

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After a month of travelling throughout mainland Mexico with two buddies (both of whom have close ties to Cousin It), curious examinations became the norm. Walking down one street in a small mountain town, a screaming baby was silenced by our presence. The crying prompty resumed as we turned the corner. We realized our kind was a rare occurance in these parts and the puzzled looks were justified.

After a month of spooked babies and giggling teenagers, it was time to head home. To our surprise, in the Manzanillo Airport, among fellow American travelers, we were receiving the same expressions. Not bothered, we boarded the plane and pulled out the deck of cards. After a few rounds of "go fish" the plane still hadn't moved, we were behind schedule and the curious faces were still pointed in our direction. When the captain came down the isle and knelt down beside our seats we knew something was up. First-class upgrade? A tour of the cockpit? Some kind of random award? Why was he talking to us? Now with every eye on the plane focused on us the captain asks, "Have you guys been camping this trip?" It was amazing -- how did he know we had been camping the whole time? He proceeded to ask questions about the locations of showers near these camp sites and the availability of soap. In the end he gave us two options: 1) get off the plane, and 2) get off the plane, take a shower in the airport bathroom, and re-board. We opted for number two.

As we were doing our best with powdered soap and a sink, the captain entered the bathroom with a plastic bag and said, "alright boys, put your dirty clothes in here and lets get going." Dirty clothes? I had been saving that shirt throughout the trip for the plane ride home. When we told him that these were our "nice" travel outfits he left the bathroom only to return with his personal duffel bag. He proceeded to hand us his own clothes in exchange for the contaminants. We thought he was just trying to be funny, but he sealed the bag up and stored it with the cargo underneath. Upon returning to the plane, my buddies and I apologized to the crowd, then took shelter in our seats. After an extremely awkward flight back to LA, the captain told us that we could keep his clothes and that our clothes would be with the luggage. I still wear his shirt sometimes.