Warning: Dr. Donna Starita: A Healing Place

I am posting this in the hope that any dealing with Dr. Donna Starita be very careful in terms of billing and conditions. We recently contacted her regarding a very sick cat. We had previously had successwith regarding another cat. However, in discussing the sick cat, she lured us into casually discussing the cured cat. The next thing we knew we had an unauthorized bill for $215.00 for a cat that was perfectly healthy. She, of course rejects our contention that all was above board. The reality will never be clarified, but I offer a warning to all to be very clear, take careful notes and approve all intended costs.

Posted with Blogsy

Parting Shots!

One and all,

I did not intend to do a blog on the morning we are packing to come home. However, last night we had one of the best sunsets we have every witnessed in PV. So, here is T.M.G.P.V.S: The most gorgeous Puerto Vallarta Sunset. These had not been tampered with in any way. Enjoy!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Blog Extra!

One and all,

 

After posting the blog, I took my morning walk and low and behold, came across

the Blue Footed Booby! Quite amazing, just standing out on the pier. For more entertainment, go to You Tube and search "Mating Dance of the Blue Footed Booby." Talk about "dirty dancing!

 

Posted with Blogsy

The End of the Line - El Ultimo Día

One and all,

Good things must, alas, come to an end, but as hard as it may be to believe, we are anxious to get home for awhile. I am sure that will wear off in a couple of days, but right now, we are ready!

As I have said previously, we are just enjoying the last of our days by going through our usual routine. There was a nice surprise yesterday, as we met up with Reg Bartel. He is a wheat/canola farmer from Mantiboa. A truly wonderful fellow and it was so great to sit on the beach and catch up. We will be looking forward to more time with Reg the first of the year.

We did wander through the park yesterday and found a few more of the 50+ cats that live there

It is quite exciting as there seems to be a cat or 2 or four behind every turn

They have even taken over an empty restaurant that is in the park

If you look carefully beyond the coffee table cat, two more in the background are bellied-up to the bar

We have been lunching regularly at La Fuente and enjoying their excellent kitchen. We had a divine fish ceviche on Tuesday and settled for simple quesadillas yesterday. Have yet to be disappointed in a meal yet.

For the last two nights it has been down to Roberto's for sunset and a small bottle of wine. Somehow we make it last for a couple of hours. Last night we managed a moment to catch Polley with our two favorite waiters there, Bruno (left) and Nasario (right).

They are great examples of the generosity, kindness and sincerity that we find so much a part of the Mexican culture.

While there we also managed to catch a pretty dramatic sunset

Nearly no place that can top PV for sunsets

It has been a great 7 weeks. Polley suggested it may have been her favorite time here. Partly, it was just us, no US or Canadian social obligations. I also think that we have grown comfortable with our life style here. We are truly no longer tourists, but just residents who enjoy the rhythms and simple pleasures of this place. We are anxious to come home, but I know we will look forward to resuming our lives here come January. Thanks to all of you for following our journey, albeit, we didn't, over the course of the weeks, travel very far. Best to all for holidays. It is our hope to see each and everyone of you in person at some point before 2013 draws to a close.

 

Ed and Polley Bowen

 

Posted with Blogsy

Three Days and Counting - Really!

One and all,

Well, we are down to the last 3 full days and the pace is picking up a bit. We are having final meals and drinks and favorite places. Sunday evening our landlord, Alfred and his lovely partner, Ellie, joined us at Vitea. It was, as always, a good meal, lively conversation and great Mexican vibes from the crowds of people strolling along on the Malécon.

Last night we ventured up into El Coloso, a very Mexican section of town just across the Rio Cuale from us and slightly east of the main part of town. We join our friends, Pat and George, two fellows we met our first year down here and who have remained good friends since. They have 3 homes: Salem: June and July; Las Vegas: August, September, April and May; Puerto Vallarta: October- March. Not bad! We went to a classic old PV restaurant, The Red Cabbage. We had been there years ago and thought it had closed. Not so. It still seems to be thriving. Very nice evening and it was so good to catch up on things with Pat and Goerge as they were not in PV a great deal last year.

There are always things going on in PV. In the main plaza this weekend, the city officials blocked off a section of the square for artists to do colored chalk art works. Some were quite amazing.

In the midst of my morning walk, I snaped a few of the finest examples

They are very bright and colorful

and, of course, will last until the next rain

This last one, I think, was my favorite

Of course, in Portland, such an event would be washed from our memories within 10 minutes!

Beyond our wandering around and looking at some art, dining with friends, and touching up our tans, little else has been happening. We did manage to wander through the park at the bottom of the White Bridge yesterday and after about 15 shots, did manage to get one fairly decent photo of this intriguing mixed-breed cat

Very funny face, but some of the sleekest, silkiest fur we have ever run our hands over. When we return in January, I will continue to try and capture photos of some of the fascinating felines living in this park.

From there, let me just finish out by giving you this example set by the dog that lives down the hill.

Life Goes On!

 

Posted with Blogsy

More of the Same or What is 2 Times Nothing?

One and all,

Just sort of checking in. Very little has happened. The weather continues to improve. The nights are lovely and the days are just hot, not humid, just hot! Yesterday I got down to the beach and it was a real scorcher.

In these last days, we are trying to enjoy our favorite spots and favorite foods one last time. Polley continues her devotion to her cats. We have on that is not far from domestication. He continues to come in and eat and last night even crawled under the kitchen table and snoozed for a half hour or so. Our live-in cats, Kira and Lucie, are not real keen on him, but all seem to have reached a certain level of toleration, as this picture of Lucie might suggest.

We have been splitting our evenings between Roberto's and Langosta Loca, enjoying the sunsets at both.

This one was particularly unique, as you might notice the shadow-like vertical lines to the left of the sun; it was very unique. It is one of the reasons we make a real effort to get to the beach for the nightly display. It is not always a winner, but there are very few real disappointments.

Last night we made it to Langosta and as we talked in, just outside the tent structure that protects one from the direct sun, was a fellow slicing up a swordfish.

It was a kind of grisly scene, but I have not seen a fish that size that wasn't mounted on someone's wall. He told me that if I wanted one for my own, he had two more waiting to be gutted. I declined.

Tonight we are scheduled at Vitea and will be joined by our landlord and his partner. Should be a good time. Otherwise, we are just lazing about. Cocktails, some excellent books (I just finished "The Shining Girls," an intriguing kind of time travel/serial killer tale and Polley polished off "We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves and "The Time Keeper: both winners. I am just starting Donna Tartt's "The Goldfinch," a critics' rave.

We are beginning to turn our thoughts to heading home. Much of what we have her we will just store as we are back on January 2nd and from the looks of things in Oregon my swinsuit and sandals should be safe down here! More on Tuesday.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Getting off our hill

Sam,

 

Just sending a series of photos that show the progression leading out of our apartment, so you can begin the trek down the hill into PV

Coming out the apartment door

This leads quite naturally to the front gate

Just be sure to lock it securely going out and coming in. Also lock so key access is facing up. It is a pain when others leave it facing down. Then it is down 38 steps

At the bottom, you have two options: the jungle path to the right

This will take you to the street from which you just follow the winding cobblestones down the Malècon or by taking the first left, you will come to Insurgentes Street, the ATM machine and our favorite hangout, La Fuente del Puente (the Fountain by the Bridge), and you can head into Old Town. Or you can continue straight after the 38 steps and go down 20 more steps

To that same street, but there is a new white bridge that will take you down into a cat-filled park. Go right at the nd of the bridge and you can walk through the park that runs along the Rio Cuale river and at the end of the park you will, again, be at Insurgentes. You can cross the street and continue through the park, fighting you way through various vendors until you come to the mouth of the Cuale as it goes into the sea.

Just wanted to give you a beginning context. More as I think of them

 

Posted with Blogsy

Nada por Nada

One and all,

Very little to report. This photo may sum up our current existence

Just sort of hunkered down, enjoying the ever improving weather. Two nights ago was just lovely and while yesterday was quite humid, the evening down on the beach was bordering on cool. Very tropical sea breeze blowing.

While there about 15 different strolling musicians wandered by. They are nearly as ubiquitous here as guys asking for a dollar at freeway entrances are in Portland. Some are pretty good and some are just horrible. We managed to catch this father and son on guitar and harp.

They were wonderful with their rendition of "Perfidio." The son has a very nice voice and, in fact, told us that the two of them play nightly at Casa Isabel. This was there night off, so they were strolling (trolling) the beach. I am so glad we caught them.

Otherwise it has been sun and "TWM": tequila, wine and margaritas! Life is good.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Dramatic Skies and Pleasant Nights

One and all,

As we begin to approach our last week here, we have been enjoying the simple beauty of PV. Our days have been mostly uneventful. We are working feverishly to put the final touches on our tans. We want to be prepared for some serious, but understated gloating at the gym and in Pilates!

I did manage in our time sitting around to finish the Booker award winner, "The Luminaries," all 800 pages! I enjoyed 75% of it a great deal, but the ending (the other 25%) both Polley and I found very disappointing. Still it is quite an amazing accomplishment for someone who must have been about 23 when she started it. I have now switched to the 2nd Harry Potter book for a little relaxation. Polley is reading Gillian Flynn's "Gone Girl," which she is really enjoying.

Each evening of the last couple of days has consisted of trips to the Malécon or down on the beach. The nights are really turning lovely. It is beginning to feel more like January and February. You can also tell that it is changing because some of the regular "snow birds" from the US and Canada are showing up. There are certain people you come to recognize over the years and I am beginning to see their faces.

The night skies and sunsets have been very dramatic of late.

Two nights ago, there were even a few rain drops as some dramatic clouds move in

However, it soon cleared off and there was, to quote Tennessee Williams, "a tiny silver slipper of a moon."

Lst evening we were at Roberto's and Mother Nature, again, did not disappoint.

It started with this intense golden ball of fire forcing its way between the clouds, and then grew in color across the whole sky

Fabulous!

One of the other things we enjoy about sitting right along the Malécon, is that eventually you will see everyone you know pass by. Last night Ricardo, one of our wait-friends at Langosta, wandered by with his wife and new baby.

We were here last March when she was born, but had not captured her on camera

Very cute! There are so many cute Mexican children. Anyway, it was a great couple of nights doing very little, but enjoying it to the MAX!

 

Posted with Blogsy

The Living Dead

One and all,

Well El Día de Los Muertos has come and gone and I must admit, that for us, there was little visible celebration apart from the shrines that were scattered about the town. I will admit that we tend to "die" earlier than most, so there may have been late night activities that we missed. With sunset now arriving about 6:30 in the evening, we find that by 9 we are ready to trudge up the hill to our humble, but airy abode.

I did manage to capture these little goblins on Saturday evening,

They were fluttering up and down the Malécon with their parents trying to keep up. The mothers were nice enough to let me capture the group. Very cute!

The days here have been very hot. The humidity continues to recede, now it is just hot. Yesterday we were at the beach and it was an intense 90-degrees. Taking the sun ("Tomar del Sol") comes in very small doses and one never strays further than 10 feet from one's Corona! That was pretty much the weekend. Some sun, a siesta and retiring to Roberto's for a half bottle of vino.

Last night, Sunday evening is normally our night at Vitea. We had enjoyed a substantial lunch of Shrimp Ceviche in the apartment adn by the time we went down for sunset, realized that we were still not hungry. It was a disappointing sunset, but we managed to drown our sorrows in a bottle of wine, cancelling our reservation at Vitea and just sitting and watching the activity on the Malécon.

We had promised our musician friends that we would let them seranade us at Vitea and, of course, when we weren't there, they came looking for us. We allowed them to entertain us with a couple of songs, one happy and the other romantico.

Our befriending of various musicians has become a rather expensive proposition. At this point I am supporting strolling two trios and a mirimba player. "Familiarity breeds increased tipping!"

That really is it for now. We are in our final two weeks and we are simply trying to soak up the sun and the atmosphere. It truly is relaxing and we don't want to make any effort to disturb that devine state!

 

Posted with Blogsy

El Día de Los Muertos

One and all,

It is "The Day of the Dead" in Mexico. We are not exactly sure what that will mean in terms of activities here in PV, but historically it is a day in which families remember those who have passed on. Some build shrines

to those they wish to remember. Yesterday, while on my walk, I saw a number of public displays at the city hall.

They traditionally have a photo of the person to be remembered, there is a traditional cake

and other foods along with symbols of death.

Here you see the cattle skulls in the foreground along with skulls on display further up the shrine. Day of the Dead skeletons are everywhere and some people even paint the skeleton mask on their faces. I will give you an update of what other things occur as we witness this occasion.

One unique thing that I did come across was actually right here in our own backyard, so to speak. One of the renters here has three (very annoying) dogs which she walks a couple of times each day. She also has a cat. When she walks the dogs, all on leashes, the cat simply follows along. Here she is headed up the hill to our place

It is quite a sight to witness.

Otherwise, we have just been enjoying the change in the weather. Nights and early mornings are very comfortable, with lovely sea breezes replacing the humidity of the past month. Days are warm and the sun is very intense, but again, it is just heat and not humidity.

Polley and I had a lovely dinner last night. A place not far from the beach that we had never tried before, was featuring a fixed price dinner of mussels. It was a feast. A huge pile of them along with an equally sizeable portion of frites (fries). They also served a nice dry white wine which we allowed ourselves to over indulge (so unlike us), so that it was a bit of an unsteady walk up the hill. Still, very nice and very memorable. Home in less than two weeks and beginning to count the days. Nothing like time away, to make you appreciate the old homestead.

 

Posted with Blogsy