Invasion of the Body Snatchers...beaches of the dead… trapped tourists in fantasy land.. more musings from Canada's 11th province/4t territory

Leaving Puerto Vallarta, we headed north to Sayulita. Surf was up and the town busy on   this section of the coast. They had just wrapped up a 4-day festival of surf, music and art. Again, finding a room took some time. Most places were booked, people were helpful with suggestions about where to stay. Found one by accident when Y looked up at a building and noticed a sign partially hidden behind the leaves.. Rooms for Rent.  We found someone who could show us a room and took it. Only a block off the beach, was in a perfect location.



                            Look south towards Sayulita


                                 Looking north from Sayulita

 Did find a quieter beach, Playa Los Muertes (beach of the dead) named because the only access to it is by walking through a very old cemetery in the jungle. Yoga camps, yoga hotels, dreads, loose dogs, big dogs, little dogs, campers on the beach..Sayulita! Did meet some wonderful people, inspiring older travelers at this and Rincon beaches...    some of whom have joined our email list.




    Shrimp on a skewer and beer, on the beach... how good is that!

Just an aside about safety in Mexico. ..many people we come across get quite concerned for our safety when they find out we've travelled for nearly 3 months in this country. As per the course, media ramp up the fear and worry factor. One needs to have a critical attitude to those reports. We have never had an issue. Not to dismiss the issues this country has and should deal with, for the average tourist traveling with some common sense, getting around Mexico is an enjoyable adventure.

Leaving Sayulita, we took the local bus north for about 30 min to the town of Rincon de Guayabitos. Getting a bus there/or anywhere is pretty simple....just get to the highway (as some buses do not come into some towns), flag the bus down, pay the driver and away you go. Rincon is a pretty clean town in a large bay that has two islands off shore.  It is totally and completely devoted to tourists. Many stay for months in self-contained apts, escaping winter up north.  Most tourists seem to come from western Canada and there are a lot of them!!!


              View of the beach from our hotel one block away. 


                                    Pineapple vendor on beach.

So, we walked into a bar....(sounds like the opening line of a joke...). Anyway, we walk into this restaurant,  a pretty busy place with a pretty good singer. Between songs the performer says into his mike..."Hi Shayne!  Isn't it funny how you can run into people from your home town?"

We turn -  it's Rick Hayworth whom we've known for 30 years. He lives here for a lot of the winter and performs 3 x a week!  A few minutes later a random guy approached us after he'd heard Grand Forks mentioned...."do you know MG?" Another very good friend from home!!! It truly is a small world after all (can you hum that tune now? ) - just can't rip off a shirt anywhere anymore - so sad!

Looking for a quieter, less hectic beach, we took a collectivo to the next bay and the town of Los Ayala.  


Saw this harmless jellyfish... and rooster at a more isolated beach a few minutes walk away.



Just before we headed back we stopped at a beach bar.  A Mexican family party was going on right beside us on the beach. They waved Yvonne to join in the dancing and eventually waved Shayne down.  

Danced away for about an hour! Only downside was an uncle/grandfather who'd had too much tequila and wasn't happy with Shayne dancing with the ladies - he tried several times to start a fight with S. Family got him back to his room and into bed each time. Each time he came back, like a woozy boxer getting off the canvas. Final try ended when he tripped on the beach stairs coming down to S and drove his head into those thick, solid palapa poles. Down for that count. He was TKO'd. Luckily he was OK!! It sure was fun trying to learn the dance steps and the hip movements. Husband of one of the ladies just laughed about it all. Dressed in a black bandana, black pants, he watched over the goings on and insisted we stay. See the pic of my new friend - he saved my bacon that day!

The stretch of coast from PV to Rincon has been way different than the far southern part we traveled in Nov/Dec. Hordes of North Americans (Invasion of Body Snatchers - they just snatch space, rooms etc etc) and very little of the feel of Mexico. Beaches overall aren't really as spectacular as the ones way down south. Locals flock to Rincon on the weekends -  can't imagine what Spring Break is like here; esp  this year as it ties into Easter!

Rincon waters are not very clear and not great for snorkeling. Possibly water conditions improve later in year? We've been surprised how few of the longterm tourists that have been coming to this region for 10 - 20 - 30 years have ventured anywhere beyond where they are staying...it is just so easy to hop on a bus, collectivo, take a taxi and go! Locals are friendly, kind and willing to help. Rincon is like being in a giant, all-inclusive resort. And staying in an All Inclusive there provides an additional insulation factor...nicked by a thousand tourists..

Rincon's pelican population kept us entertained. If they weren't trying to scarf a free meal from a beach side vendor, they were off shore fishing constantly. Searching above the waters, they instantly plunge like a rock into the water to catch a fish. On and on as dozens of pelicans took a bite out of a school fish.

                    Shayne lining up for food just like the pelicans!!

La Penita, the next town to RinCon is separated by a river, It is the working, nontouristy flip side to Rincon. While some tourists stay there, the beach at LA Penita isn't that clean. Took a collectivo there and got stuck behind a garbage truck making the rounds. Phew.. That sums up our trip in a nutshell to La Penita.

Finally...... found paradise north of the dashboard and stop lights of Rincon at the beach town of Chacala,.....got there by waving down the highway bus, (but not before a collectivo van decided we should be picked up -problem was the van was in the outside lane with traffic going by at a 100km. Van moved over a lane, slowed down, which caused the speeding car behind it to hit its brakes and avoid crashing into the back end).

Bus dropped us off 9 kms from  Chacala...while waiting for a collectivo to take us into Chacala, some Americans heading that way stopped and offered us a lift in. Nice offer! Walked around Chacala and looked at a bunch of rooms. Found one for 300 pesos just off the beach. Simple room and (we discover upon returning from a day on the beach) located next to the fish store....smell something fishy.

Chacala is one of those small, slightly disorganized Mexican beach towns with a few services for tourists. Quiet on the beach, easy on the eyes, sailboats moored in the bay, little kids just lost in the joy of playing tag with the waves, cold beer, independent and free travelers....,.it is the place lots of us look for but never find.

Bring a crib board, backgammon or dice. Get a cold drink and spend time with someone close. Beach is wonderful, surf is up and pounds in - not sure how good surfing is here?? Water is clean and you are able to swim for a workout. There's even a hike up the far end of the bay to an old volcano, who knew? ( Or so the locals tell us- will try to check it out. ) And, finally, sunsets to die for...directly west and into the ocean!! 

So, to those looking for something local -  Chacala should be checked out. It's about 2 hours north of PV.

Will wrap up for now. Adios for now...let us know how you are doing. And the recent warm spell north of the 49th // must be playing havoc with the ski hills.

Shayne & Yvonne

PS ...will send another email with pics, as not everyone is on FB... Remember to drop us a note to let us know what is going on in your neck of the woods!

ON the Road Again...... January 19, 2015

Welcome back - it's Mexico part 2.



What, can we say...we enjoyed our 1st road trip so much we decided to come back down again.,.What? We can hear some of you say,... You guys are on the road again? That's right after a month home we are south again. The kick start to it all was a birthday celebration in LA. Why bother heading back to cold, snowy Canada. So, we booked one-way tickets to Puerto Vallarta and plan to explore the area.  Not sure where'll we end up on this trip, but we are sure the journey will be fun!  So, happy reading......

To all our family, old friends and the new friends we've already made so far - we are both well after our first 10 days away. Our 4 day stopover in Los Angeles was very special as we helped our 90 year old cousin celebrate her milestone birthday with close family and friends. It was terrific reconnecting with all of them!  Once the celebrations were over we spent a day exploring Universal Studios. The Shrek 3D show was awesome and, well the Tranformer ride....that was fun too!! Took an Uber car service across LA to the airport. With a promotional sign up, only cost us $19 and the car came with a driver.

After leaving LA, we have been exploring Puerto Vallarta city and surrounding beaches of Yelapa, Mismaloya, Las Animas and Boca Tomatlan.  All of these beaches are either a windy bus ride away or a 15-35 minute boat ride away.  

They are all small bays with a handful of residents residents...beautiful!! Yelapa has tons of places to stay and fairly easy to get to... From the airport it's a .75 peso ride to Old PV centro..,from there hop on the Boca Tomatlan bus for .80 pesos and get a water taxi for 70 pesos to Yelapa. And in less than 90 min from the airport and for 95 pesos (or abt $8 Can) you can be in a pretty remote spot away from the hustle and noise of PV.  A river empties into the bay, and with the jungle vegetation, it looks like a downsized version of the movie Apocalypse Now. Seems actor Dennis Hopper and Bob Dylan stayed in Yelapa. If the hallucinogens didn't turn their crank, then the lush jungle, humidity and bugs would do the trick. Google it. Electricity only arrived 8-10 years ago. Coastline is lush and rugged, with no real road access south of PV. The water taxis that service the remote beach spots cram about 30+ people on 7 benches or so, with all the junk people need to live out there - food, fridges, suitcases etc. 







 Met a great family at Mismaloya. Father and son work for warming-trends.com. They install custom designed outdoor gas fireplaces.  Scored several cooling sleeves for our beers.

Easily found a place to sleep after getting off the plane and taking the local bus into Old Town PV.. stayed several nights in Villa Del Mar until hotel told us they were booked up. Moved on to the Azteca Hotel for several more nights. Both hotels offered clean, basic stays, safe, family run hotels for around $36.

One evening here in PV we spent with a friend from Vancouver who walked us around the town after a lovely Italian dinner.  Such a nice visit.  We really like the old town of PV and can certainly see why so many people choose to winter here or live here full time.  As always, we have met some very interesting people in the hotels, on the beaches or in the restaurants. It seems to be like Spring Break for adults here. Party all the time!  Very interesting mix of people. Ann-du-lay pub (Andele) is quite the party place for the older crowd. Good old rock n roll, shots all around, a chance to ride a donkey and dance on the bar - even go motor boating..;)

After nearly a week in PV we have moved north to the beach town of Sayulita. We were there very briefly a few years ago but wanted to explore it a bit more.  We'll probably spend a few days here before moving north again.  There was just a festival here on the weekend so it is still quite busy. Finally found a great place, block off the beach for 800 pesos/night or $65.

We are well, the weather is warm, the people are great and we are enjoying not having to shovel snow... good luck to those that do!

Take care all of you!  Drop us a line and let us know how life is in your corner of the world.

Hugs to all of you!