One and all,

Just checking in. Our social calendar has been too full. This Mexico deal is almost becoming like work! We are enjoying it, however.

Sunday Polley and I visited Gene and Gay Tennis, a couple that we met last year, from Atlanta. They are delightful and fascinating. Gene, a former Presbyterian minister who found himself in the world of serving as a consultant for fund raising programs for Universities. Classically educated, he is a wealth of knowledge. His wife, Gay, is a university business professor, also mostly retired, I believe. They are staying out at the large Holiday Inn Resort, about 15 minutes north of downtown. Staying on the 7th floor, that have a breathtaking view of the bay and look directly back at downtown Puerto Vallarta. Magnifique! They were kind enough to take us to lunch in a large Palapa beside the pool. A very nice afternoon. About 4 we had to tear ourselves away, as we have out standing reservation at Vitea for Sunday evening.

Monday was, again, a beautiful day. With a little over a month to go, we have now made it a goal to get down to the beach and into the sun regularly. With the earlier limitations because of my back, we are still relatively pale. I am sure when we meet people and they look at our white skin, they assume we have been here for 36 hours, not 5 1/2 weeks! After our regularly scheduled phone call to our friend, Rae,we made it to the beach Monday. We go to a very primitive Mexican bar on the beach, pull the chairs and table out from under the umbrella, into the sun and sip beer and brown for about 45 minutes to an hour. Then it was back to La Fuente for a margarita. However, as we say, the only thing to expect in PV is the unexpected, just as we were getting ready to leave and go home for lunch, other friends, Neal and Judy Higgins arrive at La Fuente prepared to try the food there. We have continually raved about it, so they were going to give it a shot. Suddenly, we had lunch guests and were eating out! We both had some excellent fish tacos and Neal and Judy were suitably impressed. Making food recommendations always carries with some anxiety about what people like. Neal said that he could see himself coming back once a week and working through the menu.

Monday night we met our friends from Salem, George and Pat,out on the Malécon. They were going to introduce us to an Indian restaurant. Called India Gate, it was delicious and had a very nice, quiet, peaceful ambiance. Food was very nice, as Polley had a lamb/spinach curry and I had an Indian wrap along with some intriguing naan bread. A new place to add to our list as we will begin to cycle through our favorite spots in the next month.

Tuesday, the beach again and lunch in. Our various social occasions has left the refrigerator full. We need a break to just eat on our own. However, tonight was not going to afford us that opportunity. We met our friends, Ray and Mary Anne for dinner at Balsamar, a Mexican place that we have visited a couple of times before. Ray and Mary Anne leave on Sunday so we are trying to touch base with them as often as possible in the next few days. We always enjoy their company and Ray is chocked full of jokes and good stories. The live right downtown Victoria B.C. and we hope to get up to visit them sometime this summer or fall.

So there are three days and an equal number of reasons for no blogs. Aside from the various social events, the days have become blessedly routine. Polley feeds her cats




As many as 11 at one time, in the dry wash just outside our gate. She waters her plants


And we continue to work our way through a pile of books. Life remains good and except for a slight cold, we are well. Polley’s eye is much improved. We have been on an every 4 hour routine of putting drops in them (6am, 10 am, 2 pm, 6 pm, 10 pm, 2 am!), but thankfully that all ends today. More news to come, if I can find the time!

A Lovely Friday Afternoon Upriver

One and all,

Last time I wrote, it was all words and no pictures. This entry will be, hopefully, the opposite: more pictures than words.

Yesterday was the first real blue sky we have had in a couple of weeks. Mind you, I am not complaining, but even mornings that started off beautiful, turned cloudy by mid-morning. Yesterday it started clear and remained that way until about 4 in the afternoon. We were pleased, as we had committed to going up to El Rio BBQ, about 3-4 miles up the Rio Cuale from out place.

We met the shuttle that Kurt, the owner, had provided. There was such a good turnout that, in fact, we ended up with two shuttles. We weren’t the only ones who say it was going to be a nice day.

I have talked about Kurt previously. He is a Portlander, who opened a restaurant, Época, about 6 years ago. During the last five years that we have been coming here, we were frequent patrons. Sadly, he lost his lease at the end of last season. In November, he opened El Rio BBQ. It is a completely different place. He is not trying to compete with other moderate to high-end places. He offers a simple, very reasonably priced menu in a beautiful, rual setting, right along the Rio Cuale.






It is a lovely setting and provides a completely different ambiance that being on the beach in PV proper (or perhaps “PV improper” is a better term. As I told someone, based on the turnout yesterday at his new place, losing his lease may be the best break Kurt could have had. You can see him here, in the center, doing his now famous bass refrain to ‘Under the Boardwalk,” always a highlight of the Friday afternoon jam session.


To start off, we had lunch there with our good friends, Gene and Gay Tennis, from Georgia. Polley and I shared (of course) some smoked marlin tostados and some potato salad. Both were excellent, but the potato salad was to die for. Very simple, with potatoes, dill, Italian parsley and capers, just swimming in olive oil. Another PV acquaintance, Ray Sander, had ordered a quarter rack of smoked ribs (smoked stuff is the speciality). He could not finish the huge helping, so I got to taste the ribs as well.

Following lunch, we just enjoyed the beach that Kurt has added. It fronts right up to the river, complete with beach chairs and umbrellas


At three o’clock, the music commenced. Our Scottish friend Bobby on flute and a Mexican, Roberto on guitar, with computer-generated accompaniment.


That is when things got going. Great groups of people literally kicked off their shoes (sandals) and danced the afternoon away




It was like my old memories of American Bandstand. Guys dancing with girls, but also, girls dancing with each other. The music that Roberto and Bobby play is perfect for the age group, all late 60s and early 70s stuff that you can not only dance to, but also can sing along. It was a packed house




A great time was had by all and for most, it has become a weekly Friday excursion.

Strangely, at about 4 p.m., the winds picked up, the clouds came in and I swear the temperature must have dropped 5 degrees in about 3 minutes. About 4:30, Polley and I bugged out, catching a cab back to town. We were completely done in and just stayed in and turned in early. Not used to the fabulous weather, moutains of food and, perhaps, a bit too much to drink.

Buzzing about PV

One and all,

Very little to report, just that we continue well and are enjoying our time in PV. We are at about the halfway point in our stay and are continuing to get out a bit more each day. The weather has not been real cooperative. By Portland standards, one feels remiss in complaining at all, but there has been pretty much a continuous cloud cover for the last couple of weeks. Temperatures continue warm and pleasant and we do get periods of breaks in the overcast, but just clear skies have been absent. A morning will begin clear, but my mid-morning, the clouds move in and remain for the most of the rest of the day.

Our social life continues to be lively. We even begin to feel that it is perhaps too lively. Even when we think we are spending some time on our own, someone we know shows up and the whole nature of the evening shifts. A couple of nights ago after lunching with Phil and LaJule from Chicago, we bid them adieu as they were set to return home yesterday. So, in anticipation of an evening by ourselves, we went to El Patio and, after sitting for about 10 minutes with our glasses of wine, Phil and LaJule show up for their last night in town. As I say, we enjoy them a lot, but we have just come to expect the unexpected in PV and go with the flow.

Tuesday had been a busy day as we lunched with Phil and LaJule and then met Ray and Mary Anne Sander that night to introduce them to El Patio. They knew nothing about it and we love to introduce the place to people for the first time. As I am sure I have said before, El Patio sits behind a sort of Colonial-style wall. You enter by walking up a narrow ramp that reveals nothing about the place. You turn the corner and suddenly the place just opens up to the sky. It is such a warm, pleasant, tranquil environment. Tuesday evening was also one of those crystal clear nights where the clouds had vanished and the stars served as our ceiling.

Wednesday was a sort of break. However, it started in crisis mode! Polley had developed some severe redness in her right eye. By Wednesday morning, it was worse. So, about 8:15 am, we headed to the hospital to an ophthalmologist. In one of the most frightening Mexican cab rides we have ever taken, we were at the fancy, new Premiere Hospital in 10 minutes. I think an ambulance with sirens blaring would have been slower than this cab! Anyway, in 15 minutes Polley was in to see the doctor. For those of you expecting that Mexico would provide a sort of backward, 3rd world level of care, think again! Within minutes, the doctor has computer images of Polley’s eye, had dilated them, given pressure tests, etc. He assured her that it was not a danger and prescribed some drops for her. We caught a cab back to town and were back in an hour. Amazing. At Kaiser, I would still be sitting waiting for my Primary Care Physician to refer me to someone who might actually help.

That afternoon Polley was pampered. Hair coloring, pedicure, the works. Meanwhile, I took myself to the beach for the first real sun time since we arrived her more than 5 weeks ago. I picked up Polley after a couple of hours and we enjoyed a very low-key afternoon, eating both lunch and dinner in our place.

Thursday was back to the beach for some sun, when it decided to break through. We lunched in again and that evening joined Neal and Judy Higgins at their place for drinks before going to dinner a new place, an Italian trattoria called Baccon de Vino. A tiny place, but the food was excellent. Polley and I shared a delicious Niçoise salad. It has all the ingredients of a Niçoise, but was chopped and the flavors were blended; it was fabulous and all for about $5. Also had some meatballs that were fine, but nothing to really rave about. However, Neal and Judy had a Pesto Lasagne that they said was also very good. Prices were reasonable and flavors were memorable. We will return soon.

Today we are back into the social scene. We are taking the shuttle upriver to El Rio BBQ. It will be a nice afternoon of friends, food and some good music. I will try to get some more pictures of the place this time and give you a full report next time.

Good Times and Good Friends

One and all,

The days seem to fly by. Monday, February 20th was the 5th week of our stay. The one positive thing is that we still have more weeks left than we have used up! Weather has been strange. Now that I think of it, how many times and in how many places have I written that! It has been very pleasant here, but the days have been cloudy and it has felt a bit humid. Sun-worshipers have been a little unhappy. But we have done very little beach time so it hasn’t really bothered us. The evenings have been lovely and there has been very little wind. Last night we had a simple evening, just walking down to El Patio for a drink. I did catch this photo of Calle Guerro, the street that leads down to the beach from out place.


I had promised myself that I would take no sunset photos this year, but occasionally Mother Nature lures you in.

We do hope to brown up a little this next week and in the weeks to come. The back continues to get better. I rarely feel a twinge and we rarely take a cab anymore. Once in a while, at the end of the evening, we will give in and take a ride to the top of our hill. Of course, from there, there are still 83 more steps!

We have had a little socializing in the past couple of days, with some more this evening. On Sunday, we were invited to the condominium of our new friends, Phil and LaJule. They are from Chicago and we met at El Patio and, you may remember, ran into Phil, his daughter, Lindsey and her friend, Clare while they were visiting from Chicago. Sunday evening, Phil and LaJule invited us for some wine at their place and then they joined us for our usual Sunday evening at Vitea


We so much enjoyed them and it was nice to be socializing in an atmosphere where you could hear yourself and the people you were with! All backed up by the melodious flute of Bobby. Phil was an advertising executive and LaJule was a teacher. Very bright, funny, charming people.

Monday we took off just for ourselves. We did a little grocery shopping in plans for a simple but elegant dinner at home. I am not sure I have mentioned a place called Mikey’s. It is a sort of gourmet grocery that we discovered in the last couple of years. They have wonderful meats, cheeses, patés, breads and other exotic foods (exotic for Mexico). One nice thing about PV is that you have a large, relatively sophisticated tourist population that has some appreciation for the finer things in life. That is what keeps Mikey’s alive. Of course, there is the cruise ship population that runs onto dry land seeking buckets of Corona beer, rude extra-large T-shirts, bargains on anything as long as you beat the people down to your price. Fascinating world.

This morning we lounged around the house. Finally going down around 11 as Polley wanted to set up a pedicure for tomorrow (that will be my time in the sun!). Then we met Phil and LaJule for lunch at La Fuente. We keep raving about the food and they wanted to give it a go.


I’m not sure they loved it as much as we do. In fact, yesterday we were sitting there and a fellow who had just walked in, came up to us and said, “How’s the food here?” I told him that I thought it was excellent. As we began to leave, the fellow was just finishing his meal, so I went to check on what he thought. He told me he had just had the best salad he may have ever had in his life. It was a seafood salad. That is what Polley and I had for lunch today. I am not sure it was the best, but it was damn good! Anyway, we again enjoyed Phil and LaJule


Following the meal, we bid them a fond adieu and promised each other to stay in touch. I am not sure they will return to PV next year, but we may find ourselves in Chicago at some point. Anyway, these interactions, no matter how brief, are what we treasure about travel. We have another date with a couple this evening. More about that soon.

Post-Birthday Activities

One and all,

Well, how do I explain the lack of contact? Too many social obligations is all I can offer. This last week has been crazy! Of course, we started the week with our dinner with José and his wife. Then is was Polley’s birthday, which we all know can go on for days. Actually, there is some truth to that. I had arranged for three musicians to play at La Fuente for her birthday. These “three amigos” come through the restaurant every day, offering to play. I had been putting them off ever since we arrived, but promising to hire them on the old girl’s day. So, come Valentine’s Day, we go down at the regular time - - and they don’t show up. We assumed that their regular rotation was slowed down because it was Valentine’s Day and more than the usual number of people were requesting “Musica!” However, Wednesday passed and then Thursday and still no appearance. Yesterday, they show up.
PHOTO HERE

So I am on the hook for 3 songs, Romantica, Fast, and Romantica. It was lovely. They play well, have beautifully matched voices and perfect harmonies. So, as you can see, the birthday continued.




The night before we had met our dancing couple friends, Ray and Mary Anne Sander. They had suggested getting together at a place called Le Bistro, which is a restaurant/Jazz Club conveniently located just down the hill from us. Polley and I used to stop in regularly in the early years in PV, but had, somehow, moved on to other places. The once had jazz/dance music every night, but had cut back to just three nights a week. So, at about 7 we met Ray and Mary Anne, along with Gene and Gay from Atlanta and another couple, from Minnesota, who we met for the first time. That is part of the problem down here. You just keep meeting new folks


At 8, the music began. It was a jazz combo, consisting of electric piano, drums, bass guitar and saxophone. It was fine. The musicians were good, but so much of what they played, wonderful old standards, plodded along at the same tempo that it felt as though you were in a 1950s dream state. Not only did the tempos lacked variation, the volume was at only one level, loud. We were sitting maybe 6 feet away and it was deafening! However, I did get this nice picture of Mary Anne and Polley during a music ear-break


Polley and I escaped the cacophony around 9 and decided to stop in for “quiet” drink at El Patio es mi Casa. However, we arrived to a musical group, nearly as loud and not nearly as talented! The place was packed with apparently tone-deaf young Mexicans who were grooving on the sound. We were about to leave, as there was really no place to sit (despite the darling waitresses willingness to set up a place just for us), when we came across our new friend, Phil, from Chicago. We had met he and his wife, LaJule, at El Patio a few days earlier. Phil was there with his daughter and a good friend of hers, both from Chicago. So, we had a place to sit! We had a great time talking with the girls. Bright, charming, funny, it was great. Phil and LaJule are lovely people, so it was hardly surprising that their daughter and her friend were much the same. We spent about an hour shouting at each other and then bid them adieu, with the plan to have dinner with Phil and LaJule after the girls fly home on Sunday (today – and, in fact, we are dining with them tonight). As we walked up the hill to home, we commented that you the only thing you can expect in PV is the unexpected.

That was exactly what Friday night handed us. Our landlord, Fred, had invited us to join him and his girlfriend (nearly wife), Elli for an evening of Mariachi. At 200 pesos per person, we assumed this was going to be a kind of Mexican Fiesta with a buffet dinner and lots of tequila. Wrong! It was an actual sit down and listen, Mariachi concert. Held in the auditorium at the Puerto Vallarta campus of the University of Guadalajara, the evening featured 3 professional Mariachi bands. It was incredible! Each band was very individual in terms of costume and the size varied a bit. It seems, however, that a mariachi band must consist of two guitar, one standard size and one small, a bass, at least two trumpets and about 5 violins.






Each group played for about 25 minutes. The versatility of the performers was impressive. While some of the selections were slow and romantic, much of the evening was very lively and dramatic. Almost every musician sang as well as played. The high point of the evening was at the end when two of the three bands played together.
PHOTO

PHOTO
A fabulous, and as I say, unexpected evening. You just go with the flow!

Saturday evening we were out again. It was Mardi Gras evening in PV. It ends up being more like a Gay Pride Parade, but nevertheless it was fun. We met with Ray and Mary Anne at Nacho Daddy’s.


Listened to a bit of Reggae music – talk about redundant! If I ever find myself in the Caribbean, it will be for no more than TWO DAYS – the music would drive me mad.! We mostly just sat and talked and waited for the parade, which was to begin at 9. Unfortunately we were apparently at the end of the parade, because by 10 we had seen no sign of it. My back was bothering me a bit as I had walked quite a bit on Saturday, so Polley and I decided to pass up this year’s festivities. A wonderfully cabbie used his experience and ingenuity to quickly and efficiently get us around the parade and to our place. We had bought some paté and artichoke-jalapeña dip and were anxious for our own, quiet festivity. So, all-in-all, a very noisy and busy week, with more on the way!

75 and Counting

One and all,

Well, the big day is over. Polley’s birthday, otherwise known to some of you as Valentine’s Day, was a busy and nice way to celebrate Polley’s ¾ of a century on earth. In fact, it dawned on me yesterday, that Polley and I, on this anniversary, have been together longer, that she was alive previous to meeting me (before really LIVING!). She was 37 when we met and yesterday marked the 38th year of the commencing of our relationship.

Before getting to yesterday’s activities, let me go back to Monday. The weather has been pretty overcast the last few days. We had a terrific rainstorm on Sunday morning, but it did not ruin our weekly dinner at Vitea restaurant, down on the Malécon, where our friends know they can find us each Sunday evening.

Monday I was up and walking. Have gotten up to about 2 miles now, but did have a bit of a setback after the Tuesday am jaunt. So, I am going to back off a bit and see if things settle down. May have thought I was better than I really am. Don’t know what caused the nerve issue, so I don’t want to do anything that could set it off again.

Anyway, Monday was a pretty typical day. But that evening we had invited José, the waiter from LaFuente and his wife to go to dinner with us. See him her with Polley and Aurora, the manager of La Fuente, on Polly’s birthday yesterday.


José has been so nice to us over the years that we wanted to have an opportunity to thank him and to get to know him a little better. We had never met his wife and while José had quite good English, we were not anticipating that his wife had English. We were correct. However, we had a delightful evening. We ate at a place on the Malécon called The Blue Shrimp. I must admit that taking a waiter, and a very good one, to a restaurant is interesting. José was not impressed (actually, waiter or not, none of us was impressed with the level of service or the food. The company was terrific and even Esperanza, despite the lack of English, seemed to have a wonderful time. It was a lovely evening, a disappointing meal, but the very sort of relationship we so treasure on our travels. Now if could only remember to take a photo of such events!

Of course, yesterday was the birthday. I gave Polley a card, which was, naturally, in Spanish. We spent a bit of the morning on Google Translator determining exactly what wishes I had made. Fortunately nothing too embarrassing.

We the went down to La Fuente, where, as they have for the last 5 years, had a special celebration for Polley. To accompany our margaritas, we had a chocolate dessert and, of course, some flowers. See the above photo.

Each waiter had to offer a special birthday wish. Here is Raphael with Polley.


After that gathering we went back up the hill to our place for lunch. When we arrived, we found a beautiful bouquet from Polley’s middle son, Terry.


Terry, regardless of where we are, manages to get flowers to mom. Based on where we live, this time must have been a real challenge! But arrive they did.

Finally, last night, we celebrated year number 75 with 5 friends, all from Oregon, at Vitea. It was a lovely evening.


George and Pat, at the far end of the table next to Polley, Molly, with the short white hair and her husband, John, seated next to me and their next door neighbor, Dorothy, who happened to be down here on a visit. A fun group that loves good food, drink and conversation. Polley and I completed the day with a stop at El Patio es mi Casa (the old Candela) for a nightcap before finishing off a pretty exhaustingbut memorable day.

Some Rain in the Forecast

One and all,

Not a lot to report, but since it is pouring down rain at the moment, it seemed a good time to touch base. The weather actually turned gray yesterday and we decided not to go up river as we planned. We had anticipated a day at the river at Kurt Sinner’s place, El Rio BBQ, but, while it was not really raining, it also was far from sunny. So, we decided to save it for another day.

Thursday, the big outing was Polley and I walking all the way to Lay’s grocery store. Maybe going to market does not seem a big deal, but as it was my longest journey since we arrived (a month ago next Thursday, it was a landmark event. It is really the first time we have done any serious grocery shopping. We did wimp-out by taking a cab back, but I am now moving almost naturally and most likely could have made it back.

As we walked along the Malécon, we did come across this “living statue;” he is an angel, but the amazing thing is that he floats in the air with no visible means of support!


This is the new take on this statue idea, which you now see in tourists places the world over. There is another guy in town who appears to be a waiter carrying a tray of glasses and bottles on a tray, falling backwards, with nothing holding him up. I will try to get a photo of that as well.

After our daily visit to La Fuente, we headed up the hill to enjoy the fruits of our trip. Lay’s has a wonderful Mexican deli (is that an oxymoran?) with a great selection and we loaded up on guacamole and shrimp ceviche. Delicous. The daily siesta was next and that evening we headed out, we believed, to meet our friends for our weekly music and beer session at Nacho Daddy’s. It turned out that a new acquaintance, Reg, from Winnipeg, was the only one to show up. Did have a nice visit with him. Fascinating fellow, who at 60 or so, has been single all his life. Comes down by himself every year and just bounces around town for 5 months before returning to his wheat and canola fields in Canada. The fact that it was just him, allowed us to get to know him a bit better. We have run into him a couple of times down town. So we are becoming pretty close, but only as close as a determined bachelor will allow one to get. After listening to our friend, Bobby, so his set, another band came on. It was a unique collection of instruments, featuring a sitar! This is not a very good photo, but the light was not great in Nacho Daddy’s.


Apparently this group of musicians, from all around the Americas, get together 3 times a year and this was their opening concert. Besides the sitar, there was one of Mexico’s best clarinet players, a renowned bass player from Argentina, a electric keyboard player and drums. Surprisingly, it was a very satisfying blend of instruments and it was amazing what popular music lent it self to the sitar, especially. Polley and I followed the music up with dinner down the street at Bistro Balsamar. It is a relativlely new place, but the food is good. We had a stuffed Poblano pepper with pork, chicken and sort of Middle Eastern spices covered in goat cheese cream sauce. It was all served with a side of perfectly cooked vegetables at room temperature and was delicious. Home for the night, but a quite satisfying day out of one that did not look that promising.

Yesterday, it was still rather bleak. We stayed in all morning as it commenced to drizzle, occasionally quite seriously. So we managed to make it just down the hill for a couple of beers during Happy Hour. If I have failed to mention it, it is always Happy Hour somewhere in PV. We had not planned on having lunch, but as we always enjoy the food at La Fuente, we decided to put this Mexican restaurant to the ultimate test: we ordered a Hamburger! While we always enjoy their food and believe they have the best calamari we have every had, our expectations for the most American of meals was not very high. After all, at least once a month we have a burger at the T-Room and little can beat that! Well, I am here to report that La Fuente’s Hamburgesa was fabulous! It is was not the same as an American burger, but it was delicious. The addition of some flavorful grilled onions did not hurt one bit. It will now have to go into our regular rotation of offerings there.

The afternoon, of course, was siesta and reading. I am reading Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Marriage Plot and thoroughly enjoying it. We loved his Virgin Suicides and Middlesex and I think this one is every bit as good. Despite the threat of rain, we did manage to tear ourselves away and make it down the hill to El Patio, our other favorite haunt. We were just going for a glass of wine, but ended up with four glasses of wine and a bowl of wonderful olives as we got into a conversation of a delightful couple, Phil and LeJule Gant, from Chicago. They were really fun and, after exchanging e-mail addresses, we hope to get together with them before they go home on 23 February. About 9 we staggered home and had a homemade dinner and read until nearly 11.

It rained most of the night, however, and continues to pour down this morning, Saturday, February 11. So, I think, as our social calendar is empty today, we will not be straying very far. More later.

The Cane Mutiny!

One and all,

Well I realize you just heard from us, I must report that yesterday I went the whole day withOUT the cane! A red letter day for sure. It has been a life-saver, but you do get tired of carrying it around. One sign that I was healing, was that I begin to forget it in restaurants. A clear sign that was no longer dependent upon it. I had targets Polley’s birthday for my recovery and, I hesitate to say that we may come close to that date. It, of course, will have been 7 weeks tomorrow since I awoke to find myself crippled, from what cause, I still have no idea.

We had a lovely day yesterday. We walked about two miles along the Malécon. They have closed off traffic completely there now and it is a wonderful pedestrian walk way. We strolled back to La Fuente for some margaritas (a fitting Mexican drink of celebration) and lunch. Then up the hill.

As we were heading up to our place, I came across these two fierce defenders of private property.


These are the two newest members of the canine family down the hill from us. The other dog, who is heading away from the camera is one that we call “the fierce dog.” He used to act fierce, but his bark is not only bigger than his bite, it is bigger than any part of him. He has been around since we started coming down 5 years ago. Sadly, the years have taken their toll as he is nearly blind and, I think, totally deaf. He still, in his own way, continues to patrol the property.

About 3 in the afternoon, we took a cab (still not up to walking clear across town, cane or no cane) for a visit with our friends, Ray and Mary Anne Sander, affectionately known as “the Dancing Couple.”


They had invited us to their lovely apartment in the Zona Romantica. And lovely it was, with a rooftop pool and gym with a stunning view of the bay. Their one bed room apartment was also very nice, a slight step up from ours. Of course, as Ray told us, they are paying $2800 a month and we pay $550. One might expect a difference. Nevertheless, we enjoy our place and the price allows us to stay for extended periods of time .

From the apartment, we walked to a place they enjoy for Happy Hour. It is the Coco Tropical. Polley and I knew of the place, but had never been there. It is a nice setting and now that we no longer have Época for our nightly sunset fix, Coco Tropical may become our new evening watering hole. We had drinks and some nice conversation. We have decided that Ray and Mary Anne are collectors of people (they collected us, didn’t they?). Last night we met a new friend, Hank.


This is not a very good photo of him as they sun was streaming in. However, Hank, who is now from New Hampshire is a fascinating guy. Born in Germany just after the war, he then lived in Poland before coming to the US at about 4 years of age. His parents worked hard in manual labor, but managed to raise the family, put the kids through school and motivate them to be successful. Nice man and I hope we run into him again.

Anyway, it was a good day, especially san cane! I will still take it slowly, but I am hopeful. I will probably continue the Ibuprofen through the weekend and then try weaning myself off of that. Time will tell, but it is encouraging. More later.

And So It Goes

One and all,

I have been out of touch for a couple of days. It is a sign that little has been happening. We are settling into a routine although as I continue to improve, we have added a daily walk of about 45 minutes to an hour. Both Sunday and yesterday we walked about a mile and a half. We took some breaks, but there is certainly signs of progress. Sunday evening we walked down to Restaurante Vitea, our regular Sunday night spot, and I felt good on even our second trip of the day. Yesterday was also good, but did not feel quite as strong.

We now have eliminated one cab ride a day as we walk for the allotted time, but end our walk at La Fuente del Puente, our regular noontime (two for one) haunt. As I have said before, it is a kind of tourist place, but the people who run it, Jose, Rafael, Alejandro, Fabiola, Aurora, and Arturo are just great. And the food is excellent! We have taken to eating lunch there almost daily. We have limited access to grocery stores because of my back, so we have worked our way through the menu. Yesterday, we shared a bowl of their tortilla soup which we had not ever had. It was fantastic. It was seasoned perfectly. For those of you who know me, I add salt and pepper to almost everything. NOt this! I enjoyed it just as it came.

We also very much enjoy the view from there. This is a photo of one of the loveliest and mst colorful streets in Vallarta:


Last night we did catch a cab to La Palapa, one of the loveliest restaurants in PV. Beautiful setting on the beach, but also a wonderful ambiance with the straw and thatch highlighted by amber lighting. It is like inhabiting a warm hearth! Our Scots friend and very accomplished musician friend, Bobby, who we had just enjoyed the night before at Vitea was playing with a guitarist and a bongo drummer. Each place Bobby plays is a different setting and a different musical style. We hope to see him with a reggae band on Wednesday. I will report.

Today we are planning our walk (it is also laundry day), lunch and then we will travel up to our friends, Ray and Mary Anne (the dancing couple) for drinks at their place and then to Coca Tropical for their famous Happy Hour. Tune-in in a day or two for that report. Weather continues lovely and we are continuing to roam further and further. Best to all

Beginning To Step Out

One and all,

I'll try to keep the medical report (or as friends of ours down here refer to it, my "organ recital") to a minimum. Each day I get a bit stronger. Thursday was the 6th week since I was struck. I am walking a bit further each day and yesterday was able to walk from our apartment all the way to the beach with no stopping.We, again, strolled the north end of the Malécon, about half a mile with minimum stops. The day before we had gone south on the Malécon and joined some friends on the beach for a couple of beers before catching a cab back for lunch. As soon as I able to get around fully, the cab business in PV will go into the tank.

Days continue to be pretty simple. We spend the morning in the apartment reading and catching up with e-mail and the news of the world. We are now getting in a substantial walk each day. That, I think is most important. I have series of morning exercises and then the walk. Beause of our limitation in getting to a grocery store, we have eaten lunch out most days. We just join Jose, Raphael and the gang at the bottom of the hill. Really nice people and it is a fun and active atmosphere.

Wednesday night we joined Neal and Judy Higgins for dinner at a new place called Bistro Balsamar. Good Mexican food. We hit Nacho Daddy's on Thursday night for a drink with our Victoria B.C. friends and some music. We were supposed to join them again yesterday and go up the river to El Rio BBQ, but Polley and I had had so much socializing that the prospect of meeting a couple of groups of friends yesterday just seemed more than we could handle. So, we took the afternoon off before joining our Oregon friends, George, Pat, John and Molly and I new spot called Uncommon Grounds.


It has been there for years, but we had just never managed to stop in. It is a very unique place. While the name might lead to believe it was an Oregon coffee shack, it's decore is a strange mixture of East Indian, Asian, and Middle Eastern. You can sit on cushions and have drinks, some delectable desserts or for those of you into Aroma Therapy(!), they can accommodate you as well. It is run by two women from New Jersey and their menu is just what you might expect. From their Mama's pasta recipes to wraps and salads, the food is good although the titles of the dishes are little "woo-woo" for me: Atlantis Salad, Aurora Wrap, Tibetan Tang, with all sorts of herby teas. Actually, Polley and I shared the Atlantis Shrimp Salad. It was a presentation to behold.


It was excellent. We finished it off with a fancy dessert and just as the 6 of us strolled out the door, promising to return soon, a cab arrived for Polley and me, almost as if we ordered it. Lovely evening and soon I see Polley and I strolling home without the aid of a cane or a taxi. More soon.

Step by Step

One and all,

Little or nothing to report except that progress is being made and I am straying further and further from home. Yesterday, on our way to lunch, I made it all the way down the hill and beyond with no stopping. Once there, I did rest and then Polley and I strolled around the block. Doesn't sound like much, but it was the best day yet. Today, we are planning a walk down the Malécon. Our first venture near the sea. There are lots of places to stop and sit so it seems a good place to explore the boundaries.

I have not mentioned our full-time, live-in squatter. She is a very old, yellow tabby named Kirrah. She discovered us our first week here and now spends about 23 1/2 hours in our place. As you can see here, she was certainly a comfort in my early stages of convalescing.


Lately she has taken her place on the very top shelf of our apartment where she discovered an old blanket that just happens to enhance her coloring.


AS you can see, she doesn't seem to have a tense bone in her body.


She really is a very sweet cat, but has horrible gum disease so her breath is less than sweet and she is a first-class drooler! We love her anyway and Polley has been feeding her some good, soft food and she has seemed to gain strength and liveliness, although you can tell from these pictures. Actually, the fact that she is now able to jump to the top shelf provides some proof of resurection.

Last night we headed out for a different restaurant, but the cab driver did not know where it was and I had failed to note the address, so after drifting a bit, we got him to take us back to Pomodoro and Basilico (Tomatoes and Basil). We first had a glass of wine at a martini bar, The Twisted Palm, just above the restaurant. It was a lovely rooftop setting, but the atmosphere was ruined by the fact that they were running a silly movie on the far wall. It's terrible. You don't want to watch it, but it keeps imposing itself.

Then, it was downstairs to the restaurant. We had the most wonderful pizza I may have ever had. It was a red sauce with onions, artichoke hearts, Parma ham and black olives. Fabulous. The other half will be lunch today. I can hardly wait!

So here we are, about to walk a bit before lunch. Tonight we are meeting our Portland friends, Neal and Judy for dinner at another new restaurant. Life becomes busier as I begin to get around. MOre soon.