Puerto Vallarta. In reply, a local smiled and pointed just across
the road from where we were standing.
You might think that we are the
proverbial North American shoppers who can't
stop, but it is so easy to forget something when you are going on a
long trip like this. Bert asked me if we had a bottle of mouthwash
and I was not sure
. We still had one suitcase that had
been unopened. It was half full of
toiletries and the rest were presents for friends and family whom we
were going to meet during this trip. I had a wishful thought and
didn't want to unpack this suitcase in case the cabin fairy gave us
an upgrade to a balcony.
This was our first time in Puerto Vallarta.
From the dock, there are cobbled stone streets that run all the way to the jungle.
Several restaurants lined the coast where you can get cheap cervezas,
margaritas, and tacos. There is a small craft market selling cheap
souvenirs. There are also bars and restaurants overlooking the
marina and the water providing a perfect spot for watching the
afternoon sunset
.
Outside, there were plenty of cabs and locals touting for the tour spots, but it was not
noisy and crowded. One of the places being promoted was the Casa
Kimberly. This is the house that Richard Burton purchased for
Elizabeth Taylor while he was filming the Night of the Iguana. He
also bought the narrow cobbled street and connected the two with a
pink bridge. Apart from this; the beach of course, is the number
one attraction. Several tour companies offer zip lining in the
jungle, kayaking in the lagoons, swimming with the dolphins, and
whale watching.
Together with our friend, Jeff, we hired a cab that took us to the old town for
US$12.00. In Puerto Vallarta, taxi fares between zones are posted on
a big bulletin board at the dock
. The posting of fares is written
in Mexican pesos and the equivalent in US Dollars on a per zone
basis. There is a central square called Plaza de Armas,
where a Star bucks coffee bar attracts locals and tourists alike for
both coffee and wii-fi. The town is full of colonial architecture.
One of the central figures and the religious anchor, is the
cathedral of our Lady of Guadalupe on Calle Hidalgo. It was fully
decorated for Christmas both inside and outside!
Looking at the Malecon, a walkway along the bay, I can see why Canadian
Snowbirds, American Gringos, and European sun lovers flock to this
lovely City. The city is laid back and clean, and the temperature
is perfect. Tequila, margaritas and cervezas are cheap. Seafood is
abundant and reasonable but most of all, people are friendly.
A very interesting sight for us at the Malecon was a very tall metal
pole planted on the beach, higher than the palm trees around it,
but sways like it. It is similar to a May Pole in Europe except that
in this one, each of the four guys climbed all the way to the top.
They are the native Indians of Mexico. They are very short but very
lean. They all wear bright red cotton pants matched with white
shirts which were brightly embroidered on the front. Perhaps you may
have seen something similarly thrilling at the Circus de Soleil or
on America's Got talent. Once on the very top, they tied ropes on
their waist and bound it around their crotch making me think that
their testicles could be as hard as leather boots from El Paso.
Then they turned upside down and with one guy blowing the trumpet,
they started to careen round and round the pole, going ever faster
and faster. While the ropes became longer as they unwrapped from the
pole. Each turn, they made, it was just a bright red blur. It is
like those swing chairs in carnivals that go higher and oh, so fast!
This is the reverse, they go downwards. With their speed, it took a
few minutes before they reached the ground still in that head down
position.
We watched, and we took many pictures. “I sure hope they didn't
eat breakfast!” I exclaimed. We laughed and walked away after
dropping a few dollar bills into their hats as a tip!!
Still at the Malecon, I spotted a group of Mexican Aztec dancers in their
colourful costumes. Their headdresses are made of real bird
feathers. Some of the feathers were more than a meter long. It was
amazing how their colors, and their texture came together as a real
colorful piece of art. “It's a toucan feather, this one,” the
leader said. “It's so beautiful,” I answered admiringly. On the
one hand, it is something that would make Audubon members and bird
lover gag and throw up. To me, everything blended so well from
their body tattoos, to their attire and facial makeup.
One of the shorter guys blew a conch shell as a signal to begin their dance.
Once they started dancing, I was
mesmerized not just by the colors of the flumes but their rhythm as
well. It was like watching an Aztec street dance minus the boobs
and the bums. With that, it was a series of click, click, click
from my camera. Sometimes I would switch between taking video and
still shots because I did not want to miss the “real action”.
About a dozen bronze sculptures were present and strategically
located at the Malecon for everyone to admire. A few are so popular
that one has to line up for a chance to have their photo taken with
the sculpture. Alongside these beautiful whimsical bronze sculptures
were sand sculptures ranging from giant iguanas to festive Christmas
trees, and a few popular cartoon characters.
Once in a while, the waves came crashing and plumes of water sprayed down
on people and on the sand sculptures.
From the Malecon, our next stop was Wall-Mart to get our must- buy mouth wash,
and from there we went to the small market near the dock. It was
filled with all kinds of vendors selling silver trinkets, pottery,
leather, and woven goods. There were lots of charming things to look
out.
The entrance to the port now had become crowded. Bus loads of ship passengers were now being dropped off from their day tours. Local people sat and stared,
waiting for the sun to set. The cloud was a deep purple haze and the
sun was a giant orange glow.
Hand in hand we joined the crowd and waited for the moment everybody was waiting for. This is where I began to think that our life has been so beautiful and
blessed. In an afternoon like this, I may not have the diamonds that
Elizabeth Taylor received from Richard Burton; but we certainly have
had so many precious journeys together. The memories of those
journeys for the past seventeen years including this one are
priceless!
Seconds and minutes slip by,
and after the sunset, we decided to hurry back to the ship. There
was no pink bridge linking the ships gangplank to our cabin. But you
bet, we are happy we got that mouth wash.....
I told Bert that a Mexican band was playing mariachi at the Terrace Grill on deck 8th.
He didn't seem to hear!
the road from where we were standing.
You might think that we are the
proverbial North American shoppers who can't
stop, but it is so easy to forget something when you are going on a
long trip like this. Bert asked me if we had a bottle of mouthwash
and I was not sure
. We still had one suitcase that had
been unopened. It was half full of
toiletries and the rest were presents for friends and family whom we
were going to meet during this trip. I had a wishful thought and
didn't want to unpack this suitcase in case the cabin fairy gave us
an upgrade to a balcony.
This was our first time in Puerto Vallarta.
From the dock, there are cobbled stone streets that run all the way to the jungle.
Several restaurants lined the coast where you can get cheap cervezas,
margaritas, and tacos. There is a small craft market selling cheap
souvenirs. There are also bars and restaurants overlooking the
marina and the water providing a perfect spot for watching the
afternoon sunset
.
Outside, there were plenty of cabs and locals touting for the tour spots, but it was not
noisy and crowded. One of the places being promoted was the Casa
Kimberly. This is the house that Richard Burton purchased for
Elizabeth Taylor while he was filming the Night of the Iguana. He
also bought the narrow cobbled street and connected the two with a
pink bridge. Apart from this; the beach of course, is the number
one attraction. Several tour companies offer zip lining in the
jungle, kayaking in the lagoons, swimming with the dolphins, and
whale watching.
Together with our friend, Jeff, we hired a cab that took us to the old town for
US$12.00. In Puerto Vallarta, taxi fares between zones are posted on
a big bulletin board at the dock
. The posting of fares is written
in Mexican pesos and the equivalent in US Dollars on a per zone
basis. There is a central square called Plaza de Armas,
where a Star bucks coffee bar attracts locals and tourists alike for
both coffee and wii-fi. The town is full of colonial architecture.
One of the central figures and the religious anchor, is the
cathedral of our Lady of Guadalupe on Calle Hidalgo. It was fully
decorated for Christmas both inside and outside!
Looking at the Malecon, a walkway along the bay, I can see why Canadian
Snowbirds, American Gringos, and European sun lovers flock to this
lovely City. The city is laid back and clean, and the temperature
is perfect. Tequila, margaritas and cervezas are cheap. Seafood is
abundant and reasonable but most of all, people are friendly.
A very interesting sight for us at the Malecon was a very tall metal
pole planted on the beach, higher than the palm trees around it,
but sways like it. It is similar to a May Pole in Europe except that
in this one, each of the four guys climbed all the way to the top.
They are the native Indians of Mexico. They are very short but very
lean. They all wear bright red cotton pants matched with white
shirts which were brightly embroidered on the front. Perhaps you may
have seen something similarly thrilling at the Circus de Soleil or
on America's Got talent. Once on the very top, they tied ropes on
their waist and bound it around their crotch making me think that
their testicles could be as hard as leather boots from El Paso.
Then they turned upside down and with one guy blowing the trumpet,
they started to careen round and round the pole, going ever faster
and faster. While the ropes became longer as they unwrapped from the
pole. Each turn, they made, it was just a bright red blur. It is
like those swing chairs in carnivals that go higher and oh, so fast!
This is the reverse, they go downwards. With their speed, it took a
few minutes before they reached the ground still in that head down
position.
We watched, and we took many pictures. “I sure hope they didn't
eat breakfast!” I exclaimed. We laughed and walked away after
dropping a few dollar bills into their hats as a tip!!
Still at the Malecon, I spotted a group of Mexican Aztec dancers in their
colourful costumes. Their headdresses are made of real bird
feathers. Some of the feathers were more than a meter long. It was
amazing how their colors, and their texture came together as a real
colorful piece of art. “It's a toucan feather, this one,” the
leader said. “It's so beautiful,” I answered admiringly. On the
one hand, it is something that would make Audubon members and bird
lover gag and throw up. To me, everything blended so well from
their body tattoos, to their attire and facial makeup.
One of the shorter guys blew a conch shell as a signal to begin their dance.
Once they started dancing, I was
mesmerized not just by the colors of the flumes but their rhythm as
well. It was like watching an Aztec street dance minus the boobs
and the bums. With that, it was a series of click, click, click
from my camera. Sometimes I would switch between taking video and
still shots because I did not want to miss the “real action”.
About a dozen bronze sculptures were present and strategically
located at the Malecon for everyone to admire. A few are so popular
that one has to line up for a chance to have their photo taken with
the sculpture. Alongside these beautiful whimsical bronze sculptures
were sand sculptures ranging from giant iguanas to festive Christmas
trees, and a few popular cartoon characters.
Once in a while, the waves came crashing and plumes of water sprayed down
on people and on the sand sculptures.
From the Malecon, our next stop was Wall-Mart to get our must- buy mouth wash,
and from there we went to the small market near the dock. It was
filled with all kinds of vendors selling silver trinkets, pottery,
leather, and woven goods. There were lots of charming things to look
out.
The entrance to the port now had become crowded. Bus loads of ship passengers were now being dropped off from their day tours. Local people sat and stared,
waiting for the sun to set. The cloud was a deep purple haze and the
sun was a giant orange glow.
Hand in hand we joined the crowd and waited for the moment everybody was waiting for. This is where I began to think that our life has been so beautiful and
blessed. In an afternoon like this, I may not have the diamonds that
Elizabeth Taylor received from Richard Burton; but we certainly have
had so many precious journeys together. The memories of those
journeys for the past seventeen years including this one are
priceless!
Seconds and minutes slip by,
and after the sunset, we decided to hurry back to the ship. There
was no pink bridge linking the ships gangplank to our cabin. But you
bet, we are happy we got that mouth wash.....
I told Bert that a Mexican band was playing mariachi at the Terrace Grill on deck 8th.
He didn't seem to hear!
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