Monday, Nov. 9, 2009:
OMG…..I have not had the time or I was too tired to get anything written since Friday evening. I only hope that I can reconstruct the past two days, plus today’s activities to fill you in on the wonderful time we are having here in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Saturday…..was the Wedding Day for Eric Needy(the son of my life-long friend from the USAF)…..and his bride Sujeeta Bhatt. We just hung out here at the Riu Vallarta….the huge, beautiful tropical hotel on the beach. Breakfast is always at the Restaurante Don Rafael…..an incredible buffet with soooo many food islands and cooking stations spread around one end of the very, very large restaurante, which spreads out to the piazza of the hotel, but this breakfast area is under a very long roofed area. It is always soooo great to be able to dine outside during these tropical mornings with the soft breezes blowing over this area, the fountains running, and the many birds attempting to steal the sugar packets from each table. You certainly do not want to leave your plate with food there alone….as these very large and VERY loud blackbirds/crackles will surely take your place at the table!!
I believe it was Saturday when I posted the last time, but it could have been Friday night….just not certain. And, as I am sitting here in our room with the sliding doors wide open to the balmy breezes coming in over our balcony…..I cannot get on the internet to check it out. When I posted the one and only time, I begged to use the modem at the front desk….the costs of the internet connection at the Sports Bar just off of the Lobby area are prohibitive for any amount of time that is necessary to get this posted and a few pics uploaded…….and so, a lovely senorita let me borrow an Ethernet cable to hook up to their modem….since the entire wifi system within the hotel has malfunctioned. This IS Latin America….and everything DOES run on Latino Time…….very slowly!!!! Sooooo, who knows when it will be fixed???!!!!!
The wedding was on the beach at 5pm……and we all faced the sun….a wee bit bright at that time of day and shining directly into our sunglassed eyes. But…..the wedding was beautiful, very non-religious….as this was a marriage of two cultures(Christian/Hindu) both of who are not strongly religious in their respective beliefs……and the setting under an arch was lovely. Everyone wore flip-flops even with their wedding outfits and their slacks and sundresses(spectators). …..a very nice touch for a beach wedding.
Finishing around 5:35pm, or so…….the dinner did not begin until 6:45pm in the Flamingo Restarante……an outside restaurant which overlooked the beach and the beautiful large bay with the mountains dropping right down into the water. As we arrived, each guest found their name and table number written on a tiny maraca…..a nice touch since we are in Mexico!!! The meal was very good……choice of the dinner menu from the restaurant…….and accompanied by choice of wines. Following the dinner were the traditional toasts, the cutting of the cake, and the first dance of the new couple.
As you can see……the bride and groom had changed into the wedding clothing of India….and they both were gorgeous in these colorful clothes!!!!! Sujeeta, a beautiful young lady, was just beautiful…as she is all of the time!!! She has her Ph.D in Neurology Science and teaches at Georgetown University in Washington DC. , as well as a consultant for the US Government.
The dance was super……..with soooo many people attending from around the world, it was like a party of the United Nations. What a delight to see soooo many nationalities and races and ethnicities and religions partying and dancing together as one!!!!!! What an amazing example this was, of what the world should really be like……WOW!!!! Why can’t it be like this???????!!!!
Now…..the sad thing for the 1st Lady and myself is that: About 4AM on Saturday morning, she became REALLY, REALLY ill…..the dreaded Montezuma’s Revenge which attacks soooo many here in the Latin countries, as well as like Tut’s Tummy which I experienced two years ago in Egypt. This lasted for about 24 hours, plus she felt really bad most of the day on Sunday. Soooo, needless to say, she was not able to attend the festivities of the day and evening! I was soooo upset FOR her…..as she had really looked forward to this for such a long time. I continued to return to the room to check on her, but by Saturday evening she was just resting and sleeping from these painful bouts of stomach cramps, etc., etc.(which I won’t discuss). She is OK as of this writing…..Monday afternoon.
Here at the Riu Vallarta Hotel, there are sooooo many places to get drinks, which are all FREE at this all-inclusive hotel….and sooooo many places to dance and party. You cannot sit down anywhere on the huge hotel grounds, or inside in the lobby or wherever without being approached by a server asking what you would like to drink. And….out on the plaza at night, it is party time until the wee hours!!!!! It is all tiles on the floor and with various musical groups and styles of music going on until very late……such incredible fun!!!! And…..I was out there following the wedding activities/festivities until very, very late.
SUNDAY, NOV 8, 2009:
Yesterday at breakfast it was a time to bid farewell to many of our friends who had come down for the wedding. My good friends, Bill and Ellen, departed about noon for the airport, as well as many of the wedding guests that we had met, dined with, and had many wonderful conversations over drinks, discussing the affairs of the world from citizens of many nations whom we had met. Love hearing the opinions of the peoples of the world!!!!
About 3pm, we joined another couple, Ray and Barb, and took a cab into Puerto Vallarta, about a 20 minute ride. Getting out at the Malecon…..the shopping district which lines the “boardwalk” along the beach/bay….and spent the remainder of the afternoon strolling through the shops/boutiques/stalls along that lengthy strip. About time for the sun to set over the bay, we stopped at a wonderful little restaurant, Daiquiri Dick’s……and had a few drinks, some oh-soo-good Tortilla Soup and Bruschetta with Mexican topping….and listened to this Mexican guitar player/singer as the sun dropped into the bay……what….WHAT a beautiful experience sitting out on the patio overlooking the beach and seeing that gorgeous, beautiful, incredible sunset!!!!!!!!! WOW!!!!!! Sooooo hard to top that one! I later talked with the singer…and he told me he was from Mexico City and had been performing for 24 years……it certainly added to the wonderful ambience of the evening.
We then caught a cab back out to the hotel. Do not believe I mentioned that our hotel, as well as many others, are located on the north side of a river, which is actually in another state. Puerto Vallarta is in the state of Jalisco, and our hotel as well as many other huge resorts nearby are located in the state of Nayarit. The cab ride was $18 each way……for one person or as many as they can get into the cab……not bad at all!
We then went to the plaza here at the rear of the hotel, overlooking the very large two pools and fountains, and listened to the music, watched the very, very smooth Latino dancing couples, and sipped a few more drinks to end a wonderful evening!!!
MONDAY, NOV. 9, 2009:
Today….another gorgeous tropical day, we had another delicious breakfast outside, talking with Ray and Barb, two other people whom have met here, and then were joined by Eric and Sujeeta. All of them were flying back to the states this afternoon…..so, once again a morning of farewells, hugs, and kisses as we parted ways.
The 1st Lady and I then took a rather long walk along the beach to the north, past many, many hotel resorts, condos, smaller hotels, and about an hour later we arrived at Buscerias…..a great little town north of the hotel area, but still along the bay. Lots of wonderful art shops/galleries which we visited, as well as the market stalls where a person is always encouraged to “come in” to buy by the owners of these little stalls. Each one always has the same items….haha!!! And……we are always told that everything is “almost Free!!!”. THIS is the place to barter…..but, we were surprised that the prices were not really as low as we had been informed they would be by friends who have visited this great little town!!! Many Americans are here, living in their condos, small homes, etc…..and we did meet several artisans who have taken up residency here in this lovely place. Hmmmmm………lots of thoughts ran through our minds……. I did inquire with the owners of one small art glass shop, Americans, who used to own an RV park down in the south parts of Mexico, but due to political problems/issues had left there. We discussed the problems that we might incur by driving our 39’ 5th wheel down here. IF we stopped north of here, there are several rv parks that we could fit into…..sooo, we are thinking about this…..seriously…….during a winter rather than go to Texas. It is four lane expressway from just south of Nogales, AZ/MX most of the way down…….more research to do!!!
We decided to take a cab back to the Riu Vallarta Hotel…..and the cost was on $7.00.…a much better way to return as the sun was bearing down with no mercy on the beach walkers. We were soon sipping cold drinks as we sat in the breezy, open lobby watching the many people leaving on their tour buses for sights unknown.
Tonight we dined, with reservations made yesterday, at the Nirvana Restaurante, an Asian fusion cuisine being served there. Both of us had heard wonderful remarks about this place, but we felt a bit let down as we continued to sample the various Asian dishes. This, too, was a buffet….another disappointment. The Sushi was just average at best, the Peking duck was a bit below average, and the idea of having to get up to refill our plates…..well, it just destroyed the meal. I suppose we had been spoiled by the wonderful service at Sir George’s Restaurante…….as well as the very good food there.
Following our dinner this evening, we had another drink on the plaza…and then got good seats for the live show in the La Boheme open theater. Shows are given each evening….a different one and style each night of the week. Tonight’s show???? A tribute to Michael Jackson……and, as far as this aging old music teacher goes…..this one was THE best one I have seen since we arrived last Wednesday afternoon!!!!!! Well done, outstanding dancers……just really, really good. Music was very good, and the timing of the show was excellent!!! A great one hour performance!!!
And soooo, another day, or should I perhaps say…..another several days have gone by……and with the fabulous time we are experiencing here in Mexico(a Mexico which we have not seen before)……what more can be said, but……
LIFE IS JUST REALLY INCREDIBLY GREAT!!!!!!!……And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!!!!
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