Exploring Mexico

Our day started out with a nice relaxing brunch on our terrace.

We met our new found friends Cliff & Helen last summer through a long time mutual friend and turns out they live about just minutes away from our summer place. Cliff has been coming to Puerto Vallarta for about 18 years now so he’s very knowledgeable about the area.

With no destination in mind we headed south and stopped for some awesome views of Banderas Bay coastline.

As luck would have it we found this place:

and were treated to our very own personal tour guide. He was very informative and personable.

While checking out the next few photos you’ll see that we became quite personable as well . . .

We had no idea they made so many different flavors of tequila. We tasted coffee, chocolate, almond  . . . and several combinations of those.

My favorite was ‘Peanut butter’ . . . sooooo smooth & creamy!

Night of The Iguana movie site marker:

“Before John Huston’s 1964 film, The Night of the Iguana, Puerto Vallarta was a just sleepy fishing village on the Pacific Coast where the states of Jalisco and Nayarit meet. But Liz Taylor came to keep an eye on her lover Richard Burton while he was filming with the voluptuous Ava Gardner. The publicity buzz about Burton and Liz’s torrid affair and the movie put Vallarta on the tourist map.”

Cliff is an excellent tour guide although there were times we questioned that . . .

That is in fact, water you see above the dash of the vehicle. Brings a whole new meaning to ‘off roadin’ wouldn’t you say?

A recently closed outdoor restaurant with beautiful landscaped grounds in a jungle-like setting. Serenity!

Further down the road to a sleepy little village at the mouth of the river.

Difficult to see but there’s a guy up there harvesting the coconuts  . . . with a machete!

Just some photos of the area while the tide is coming in. This area of Mexico pleasantly surprises us with it’s diversity.

From humble shacks to massive mansions . . .

This shot is a close up of the place in the upper left corner above.

One of our last stops for the day was Conchos Chinos where the wealthier tourists choose to stay. There are also a lot of large beautiful permanent residences on this very elite hillside village. 

This shot was taken from the penthouse of a neighboring complex where we were invited for a very personal tour . . . Our tour didn’t end here but the battery life in my camera did!

Back to PV to enjoy a wonderful dinner at Joe Jack’s Fish Shack. Replenished our bodies and the battery in my camera we headed back down to The Malecon to enjoy the Friday night dancers:

We had an awesome day making amazing memories with a great couple! Thanks Cliff & Helen!