PARADISE REVISITED - Puerto Vallarta, Sayulita, San Francisco, Mexico May 2017

PARADISE REVISITED

Puerto Vallarta, Sayulita, and San Francisco, Mexico  May  2017

Fewer crowds in May

We've had many great family vacations at our Paradise Village timeshare over the years, timed with the kids' winter or spring vacation. Our last trip was for Mike's 60th birthday celebration, rudely interrupted by Hurricane Patricia, which promised to be one of the worst hurricanes ever to hit. 

We were evacuated to a nearby shelter with our friends the Gordons but it turned out to be not much more than a lot of hot air, literally and figuratively. We missed having Briana and her friend Mackenzie join us. (However, it made for some great jokes about needing winds that strong to blow out Mike's birthday candles.) 

Veggie buffet bliss

Strolling along the Malecon

This time it was just the two of us for a three-week stretch between Briana's graduation (the third and final, we think) and the Goldey Bar Mitzvah in California. We got to soak up the sun, walk-or--in Mike's case--run on the beach, eat at our favorite vegetarian restaurant, Planeta Vegetariano, and enjoy surprisingly pleasant May weather.

We also ventured further afield by bus one day to Sayulita, a beach community to the north. Also, we traveled to another small town, further north, called San Francisco (nicknamed San Pancho), where we got to see "Entreamigos," an NGO helping locals that was doing everything right, from their glass recycling workshop to an extensive roster of activities and community engagement.

But the highlight of our stay was a four-day visit by Inez, Eileen's Dutch friend from Spanish school in Guadalajara, Mexico and her Mexican boyfriend, Cristobal, shoe designer cum film documentarian. 

Bounty on the beach

Surf's up for Mike!

Both Inez and Cristobal wanted to make sure that we had the quintessential Mexican beach experience--and they succeeded on all fronts. Cristobal coached Mike through his first surfing lesson. He didn't end up upright, but got close and gained a greater appreciation of the arm strength required to paddle out to the waves.

Wearing your heart on your wrist

They treated us to un almuerzo tipico (a typical lunch), which hit all the right tastebud notes. And Inez purchased for Eileen a very special piece of jewelry that she promised to treasure forever--but hopefully would not be relevant much longer: a "Pendejo Trump" bracelet. Apparently, they were selling like hotcakes on the beach. No surprise there.

All in all, it was a fantastic stay that upended our preconceptions of Puerto Vallarta in May.