Moscota with our Mexican friends and family

Mascota is a small Mexican village located as the crow fly's east of Puerto Vallarta and nestled in the Sierra Madre on an old back road to Guadalajara. We were so excited when the opportunity came up to travel there with our Mexican friends and family from Puerto Vallarta. Alvaro and Monserat made the arrangements for us to stay in what they called a cabin. To me it was more like a house!

Monserrat and her grandmother prepared a delicious Mexican feast for us upon arrival.

This molcajete you see below was given to me by the grandmother. I told her I had been shopping for a good authentic one at a great price. What a generous gift that I will cherish!

Delicious salsa was finished in no time.

Here's Alvaro and Dente, the 10 month old boy, who's first word was AGUA (water). LOL

Grandmother and the grandfather came along to so that the grandmom could visit her family in town where she was born and raised.

Monserrat and Randi

A laid back trip where some relaxed and some went on the ATV's in the mountains. We visited the remains of a 125 year old cathedral put together with egg whites, catus juice, tiny pieces of rock combined and used as "mortar" along with huge chunks of volcanic rock. Yes, behind the church in the distance is a volcano.


It's one thing to be a tourist and have the opportunity to see things from a distance but I find it to be more meaningful, intimate, and interesting to experience a culture from the inside with wonderful local friends. Thank you Alvaro, Monserrat, and family for your wonderful hospitality and friendship.

Bad news turned into blissful moments with mother nature

My bad news turned into good news. For at least the last 2 -3 months I have been physically unable to go to the gym because my sacroiliac "locked up" and said to me, "no more"! Then a few weeks later, I had a herniated disc in my neck! So, that was frustrating in that I could no longer enjoy part of my routine, a vigorous work out at Golds Gym PV.

This whole debilitating ordeal sent me on a search for what I knew I needed, a GOOD chiropractor here in Puerto Vallarta. Easier said than done when you're in new territory. Everything takes longer than your wildest estimation and well you need to ask questions and listen in Spanish too. After one horrible experience, I was reminded of what I already knew, don't trust a tittle. This put me on a mission to find chiropractors to "interview"! Before I would pay them a thing, I informed them that I needed to hear their "sales pitch"first, period.

How do you diagnose? What kinds of treatments do you do? What do you think of physical therapy? Where did you go to school? Who have you treated?

So, that's what I did. And, Dr. Oscar Margain, passed my test. Please check out his website with testimonials here. Mind you, I have been treated successfully by 3 chiropractors over the last 20 years all in the US. Dr Oscar Margain is a chiropractor GENIUS who goes beyond the text book with great common sense!

So why the picture of the pool for this post? Combing pool exercises, mega doses of vitamin B shots, chiropractic adjustments, special floor exercises, and sonic treatments on my sacroiliac over the last several weeks are all part of Dr Margain's treatment plan. Good nutrition, lots of water, exercise, treatments etc. are all part of the approach. Guess what, it works!

What a beautiful way to spend my time checking out all 5 pools in the common area which are spattered across the condo complex. Doing 30 minutes of water exercise surrounded by the beauty of mother nature, wasn't so bad after all!

Random thoughts about the calm before the storm

The calm before the storm! In about 1 week, we will move next door to our neighbors home. A month later, we plan to pack it all up again to make the trek up north to visit friends and family in Hershey PA. Of course we do want to get all our "healthcare needs" done right before we go and might I add at a fraction of the cost in the USA. That means eye doctors, dentists, orthodontists, general physicals, chiropractic visits and blood work all need to be done now. My calendar looks like a coloring book using graph paper with tiny little squares!

So here we are relaxing at Casa Isabel ,a Boutique Hotel with a fabulous restaurant, my absolute favorite in Puerto Vallarta! I prefer the couch with coffee table seating offering a birds eye view of the ambiance inleu of the rail side tables and chairs for the "close up view".

The best time to be here is at sun set - phenomenal ambiance !!

These were fun :)

At my wits end with back problems that became chronic I was eagerly in search of good chiropractic care which sounds simple, huh? Just pick up a phone and make a call. But really in a foreign country even though there's resources with thousands of expats Canadian and American the simplest task can just take forever! After 7 years of living in foreign territories I understand this fact of culture. Luckily, after several failures to find the right guy, I stuck a GENIUS! He's even better than the several good ones I had in the states.

My Mexican chiropractic treatments have been first class with great theory and experience. He has treated women from the Ballet De Monterrey with great success. He has me doing specific pool exercises and floor exercises. Daily I'm caught marching in the pool like a robot in repeat motion. But hey - it's working. Including the huge vitamin B mega doses he requested that I get. Randall gave me 2 cc's of vitamin B complex in the butt for 5 days. Ouch!! But after day 2 my sciatic nerve was ecstatic!! I didn't realize how much pain I had been enduring for so long.

Taking time to savor the moments of beauty we find here in PV everyday.

Enjoying one of Randall's fantastic creative meals. He's really taken over the kitchen where ever we go. Yummy shrimp wellington....

"White out", but not from snow.

Paradise sometimes get's lost in the rain clouds but not usually in the "dry season". From about November until mid June is the time considered to be the dry season and the time of year when Puerto Vallarta comes to life. The snow birds arrive for a 6 month jaunt and vacationers come and go. Unfortunately mother nature was confused leaving some with little to see and do for 4 days during the "dry season". This view over looks old town Puerto Vallarta where everything is "happening" only here it is like a "white out".

It however made for good nesting time indoors and gave enlighten appreciation of our typical days perspective.

Danger on Conchas Chinas Beach

Normally, relatively tranquil waters never breach the rocks on Conchas Chinas beach in Puerto Vallarta. Most days one can find fisherman throwing hand lines, kids digging for crustaceans, and curious visitors lallygagging around the rocks below.

However, one day the waves were enormous and the life guards were trying to keep everyone out of the water let alone climb on the rocks. This poor soul must have missed the communication and obvious warning signs of eminent danger!

One extremely lucky man had up to 4 life guards venture to his rescue.

The outcome was good news for one and all!

Trip to CostCo in Puerto Vallarta?

Unlike other country's and islands we've been to in our travels, Puerto Vallarta is quite "Americanized". With over 50,000 expats from the US and Canada living in PV, the demand for places like CostCo, McDonalds, WalMart, Sam's, Home Depot, Domino's, Subway, K-mart, and so forth has created a not just "Mexican" kind of Puerto Vallarta. While at times it's quite convenient to find what you want when you want it, I believe it can take away from the true cultural experience. But we do go ,seek, and find those great deals and familiar foods like so many others. Here's just one of many trips however this one was on the bike! Of course Randall is used to traveling with "a load" on the bike and keeps everything balanced. :)

Baby Olive Ridley Sea Turtles

Olive Ridley Sea Turtles, an endangered turtle species, are raised in turtle sanctuary's on the coast of the Bahia Banderas here in Puerto Vallarta. One of my "beading friends" is a volunteer who helps by collecting donations for the sanctuary, giving a turtle facts speech, and releasing these Olive Ridley Sea Turtles every Monday during the season. We ventured to the Nuevo Vallarta beach to see this extraordinary event that releases hundreds of sea turtles each night during the hatching season.

The babies you see above were a collection of eggs from the beaches back in July which were brought to the sanctuary for a safe secure environment. They hatched yesterday and were released the same day. Olive Ridley Sea Turtles can grow to be 2 to 2.5 feet and can way upto 100 pounds. To see a fully grown Olive Ridley, look here.

When in Mexico, do as the Mexicans!

When in Mexico, do as the Mexicans who happen to celebrate the evening before with a huge dinner and then pinatas for the kids and gifts at midnight. Many here then have a day at the beach with family on Christmas day.

So, on Christmas Eve, the day was busy preparing for our feast. Prior to our 14 pound fresh pork, roasted root veggies, parsley with fruit salad, sweet potatoes with marshmallow topping along with short bread cookies dipped in chocolate, we went for a stroll around our condominium complex to watch the sunset.

French toast Christmas morning with wonderful gifts in a small package. When you travel like we do intangible gifts come in handy like massages and tickets to the circus etc.

Our tree...

After a lazy relaxing morning, we headed for the beach which is part of the agenda for the locals too. Austin decided to dig a little hole and attracted a bit of attention!

Experiencing new traditions with an open mind broadens our vision.

What matters most anyway?

Living abroad for the past 7 years and 5 of those years were traveling on our boat Duchesse, we all learned how to live a more "minimal life style". Especially while on Duchesse, we learned really quick that there was only so much room, everything had it's place to be stored away, and if you bring something new aboard something old had to go.

Well what do you do for birthdays and Christmas when things aren't as readily available in foreign countries and if they are available, normally they are outrageously expensive being an imported item? Hmm? You get really creative! What matters most anyway?

Randi just turned 14 on the 14th of December. And through the past 7 years I've come up with all kinds of fun creative intangible gifts, most of which include quality time spent together added to something fun to do together. This year I noticed she mention an interest in getting her nails done. So I decided, we'd take the day off from school and the usual routine stuff, and spend it together pampering ourselves. The day began at 10am at this fabulous Mexican spa, Metamorphosis Day Spa, where we both indulged in a SPA pedicure almost falling asleep on the love seat.

As we sank into the love seat having our feet pampered, we enjoyed the open door view of the Christmas tree across the street. We watched the community pass by with some signing up on sheets hanging on the door for their turn.
After the interlude with Metamorphosis Day Spa, we walked a block to the corner deli for a relaxing street side lunch. Did a little shopping looking for a top that she needed and then she picked out her cake. As a family for dinner we made her fillet Mignon which is easy to chew with her new braces and afterward watched a movie together. If you ask her, I think she'd say that she truly enjoyed the day. I know I did! :)

Improvising and Thanksgiving

Living in various "fully furnished" apartments the last couple of years, every now and then we wish we had a this or a that kitchen gadget. Usually, we just do with out, improvise or just MAKE what we "need".

Well we were invited our neighbors home for Thanksgiving. Chris happens to be an AWESOME professional chef. Being grateful, we volunteered to make some pies, homemade eggnog and roasted fall root vegetables.

After I volunteered, it dawned on me that I don't have my favorite pastry cloth or my marble rolling pin let alone have my dough recipes etc. Well Randall to the rescue as always! He quickly made a star shape cookie cutter out of a tin can so I could make the crust look decadent. We used "French" butter and what looked like the best flour I could find. Quality ingredients makes a huge difference! I was able to roll the dough out with lots of flour on our granite counter in the cool morning hours which worked perfect. All pies turned out fantastic!

As for the fall roasted root vegetable dish, my usual root veggies were not all found after searching several grocery stores. But, I did discovered some new root veggies that we tried. We're still not really sure if the new ones were a different version of a turnip or a parsnip but the dish was delicious!

As for the eggnog, it was almost perfect. I did have a little trouble figuring out the right name for cream and where to find the best fresh cream as opposed to the boxed cream that's not fresh or refrigerated.

Wonderful time meeting some locals along with other expats. Really it was overwhelming the amount of food Chris made! From sushi, crab stuffed mushrooms, shrimp cocktail, pumpkin soup to all the regular menu items and then some we all were indulging and overwhelming our appetites!

Plus, it was an extra special day for Randall and I celebrating 21 years of marriage!
:)

Where to go for a cut?

A little stroll on the Malecon and then some shopping with Randi and Austin. All the time we were in search of a barber or salon to get hair cuts for the two of them.

It's always a gamble finding the right place and then trying to communicate in Spanish how exactly you want it to look. Well half way through Randi's cut I told the lady to STOP! No more! Let's wait for the owner to come back and finish.

Austin's cut was great because it was exactly what he requested. However the owner you see below left and had the lady above do Randi's hair. And well that didn't work. So we waited for the owner to return and FIX Randi's hair.

As it turned out, both were done with a combined cost of $12 US ! :)

Wide Open + No Screens = Wildlife Indoors

From dragon flies to geckos, from beetles to cats, from birds to bats, we've had them ALL in our home. With no screens and smoldering heat, we open our doors and windows for fresh air in hopes of a breeze. In they all come and go as they please!

Sayulita Beach

I was wondering what in the world was the purpose of this big tire in the sand. Well at first I was caught off guard with a run, flip, twist, and pounce right next to me. Quickly out came the camera with low batteries again. Finally a shot that worked.

On the beach everyone is working hard selling what ever they have from food to clothes to pirated movies. But this little one? Yeah, they send their children out to work.

Well the guys, Austin and Randall, rode their bicycles to Sayulita beach all the way from Puerto Vallarta old town. Randi and I had a leisurely drive and met them there. Our drive was one hour and their ride was 2 hours! We took the bikes apart and all drove home together. Another great day in paradise.

Seize the opportunity! Pay attention! Go for it!

One evening while on the treadmill at Golds Gym I spotted this women signing up with 2 teenagers appearing to be the same ages of Austin and Randi. So, I didn't even stop to ponder, I just took off to meet them. So happy I did. Darci, the mom, has a daughter 13 and a son 15 both close to the ages of Austin and Randi.

Anyway, we were invited for a birthday celebration at their home which is located in Gringo Gulch directly in the middle of old town Vallarta. Their traditional style Mexican rented home was spectacular sitting right next to the Cathedral we over look from our condo. It's what I would describe as indoor outdoor living on the roof top. Wonderful evening making new friends who are all happen to be from Canada.

I discovered Darci is an inventor with a cool story! She loves to bake and one day her grandmother told her how she used to take a piece of broken clay pottery and put in her brown sugar to keep it moist. Darci was making pottery one day. She rolled out some clay, took a cookie cutter, and made some discs. And well that was just the beginning of a budding business! Now these little guys are sold worldwide and found in magazines, gift shops and such. Check them out here, Brown Sugar Discs. That's what I call inspiration, paying attention and making things happen!

Sunset at the beach

Not being able to see the sun disappear into the ocean at our new condo, every now and then we'll head directly down the mountain to Playa Conchas Chinas to view the spectacular ocean sunset.

One evening with camera in hand along with the extra batteries, Randall and I took off for the beach. Well, just as I started shooting of course the batteries needed changed. And wouldn't you know the extra set needed recharged. Quickly we phoned Austin who promptly hopped on his bicycle and made a bee line to the beach. Well, he got there FAST, but the sun just disappeared. Luckily the colors left behind were breathtaking as you see above.