Puerto Vallarta

So for those who didn't follow Michael's daily postings on FaceBook, here's a recap of our trip to P.V.

We broke the drive down into two days each way with a stop in Guadalajara each way.  Our friend's mother (who lives there) had been in San Miguel for a spell, so we were also taking her back and a cat - who meowed constantly for the first hour of the trip before subsiding into occasional vocalizations.

The first night of vacation we spent at Mom's condo in Guadalajara.  For dinner we opted for the new mall (anchored by a Liverpool) and dinner at Casa Italianito.  Pretty darn good Italian food and a free pizza appetizer to the waiting groups! (I could have made a dinner at the check-in desk....)

The next morning after breakfast we were off to P.V.  There are two ways to PV: through the mountains on a good highway (a toll road) or skipping the mountains (and curves) on a lesser road (a local or 'free' road).  We chose the mountain highway that passed by Tequila in the distance.  Lovely landscape views from the cuota (toll road). You  - well, I - wanted to just get off the road (can't be done) and stay there.

After a tedious passage down out of the mountains (road works on-and-off every few kilometers) to the beach, we arrived in Puerto Vallarta and found our way to the condo Michael had reserved for us.

The condo was lovely: recently bought and redecorated for our landlord's parents-in-law (who had yet to stay there), it had been enlarged a bit and updated.  The balcony had been made a part of the living area, new fittings and furnishings, et cetera.  We really quite enjoyed ourselves there.

Although there were some disappointments (the restaurant for the last night in town was closed for two weeks; our favorite beach restaurant - where we planned on hanging out during beach days - was closed; our last night in town garnered a tremendous storm) we had a great time.  The beach was only a three-block walk from the condo - what could be wrong?

It rained nearly every day, but the rain was usually early in the morning or during the night, so nothing stopped us from being beach bums every day.  I'm sure we supported the restaurants that featured beach service quite well during our time there!  "Joven, tres margaritas más, por favor!"

After four days of sunning, eating, and drinking, we gathered ourselves up and made our way northward, stopping in Guadalajara again.  On the way to Guadalajara, another big storm hit us, making driving a bit of a chore through the mountains.  We had slowed for an off-the-road accident with an ambulance in attendance when a dark Altima whipped past us and rounded the next curve at speed.  As we picked up speed and rounded the next curve, there was the Altima - upside down and spread across most of the lanes of the highway.  Even in the hard rain, we managed to miss the other car that had stopped to assist - right in front of the wreck, limiting the space for us to squeeze past, once we managed to stop without hitting them.  The rest of the trip was a bit drier and calmer.

After a stop at Mom's condo, the New York-style deli, New York, New York, again provided a tasty breakfast and we were headed home with a stop in Léon to drop our friend's mother off at a cousin's for a birthday celebration.

Arrived back in San Miguel in time to be inundated with horseback riders returning from some of the weekend festivities downtown - and an evening storm that had some of the most powerful lightning and thunder that we'd yet experienced.  The thunder set off car alarms and rattled windows throughout town.

But now we're back and it's almost like we never left.  Puerto Vallarta is just a memory - and a dream as we plan our next escape to the beach!  (Maybe Spring?) We get the dogs back on Tuesday from their vacation at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm (Maria's Pet B&B).  Hope they escaped the force of the storm which we found threatening, ourselves - they don't do well with thunder and lightning....