Marina, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (Tuesday, October 9th, 2018)

We enjoyed a very slow, relaxing morning this morning, and even brought some coffee back up to our patio to enjoy.  OK, I'll fess up, we both did some sit ups and push ups, but that was our big workout for the day.  We had our nice healthy lunch on our porch, and then headed out to catch the bus to the marina.  

When we were here in July, we tried hard to find a bus schedule or bus route for the local buses here in Puerto Vallarta, but there aren't any.  So yesterday we went down to the office and talked to Betsy to see if she could bestow some of her wisdom on us.  She said that all of the local buses stop by the park that is just above our hotel, Based on the writing on the wind shield, you then pick the bus you want to ride. 

So after lunch we walked up to the park to find the bus that was going to the Marina.  And sure enough, the second bus that came by was the one we wanted.  We jumped on and rode for about 45 minutes to the Marina at the north end of town.  The cost was 7.5 pesos each which is about 40 cents.  And the big bus news is....they got all new buses with A/C!  Yes, A/C!  This is huge.  We can now ride in luxury around town!  

We jumped off at the entrance to the Marina District because we wanted to spend some time walking through the neighborhood.    There are actually three marinas.  The outermost is the cruise ship area, then there is an outer marina, then a smaller inner marina.  We started our journey walking along the inner marina.  You can see a cruise ship in the distance.

The marina has a lot of houses and condos, and what appeared to be a very nice golf course.  When we got hot and tired, we ducked into the Mariott to cool down for a few minutes.

From the beach at the Marriott we could look across the bay to where we are staying.  The dark spot on the beach is the seahorse statue on the beach by us.

Once we had cooled off, we headed back out for a little bit more walking.  We came upon this pretty big iguana having some lunch in the park.

And we kept seeing these much smaller green lizards everywhere.Some were at leat a foot long.

 And a pretty butterfly.  

It looks so different with it's wings open.

Apparently there are also crocodiles in Puerto Vallarta.  There were warning signs around the marina, and apparently they have been sighted at the Malecon.  Yikes!  I didn't realize that there are crocodiles here.

We made our way back to the Marriott, where we would be meeting a group of people for happy hour.  This group of expats meets about six times a month at various locations around town.  Today's gathering was at a sports bar called Champions in the Marriott.  They had a very nice menu and discounted prices (30%) for the ex-pat group which was really nice. 

We had a chance to talk to some really nice people and have some great food and we got to see the Marina district for the first time too, so all in all, it was a really fun day!

After happy hour with the ex-pats, we caught a bus back to our neighborhood and walked along the beach home.  It was a beautiful night with a beautiful yet simple sun set.

The view from the water taxi stand.

Hurricane Rosa came by this area about a week ago, and the beaches are still quite rough.  They are much rougher than when we were here in July of this year.

This is our home sweet home.  We are in the 4th floor penthouse suite called the Palomera.  It gives us a lot of nice private outdoor space which we really like!

We intended for today to be a leisurely day, but even with our bus ride and happy hour time with the expats we still managed to get over 12,000 steps (4.9 miles) and 16 flights of stairs.  Not bad!

Getting Groceries and Dinner at Martini En Fuego, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (Monday, October 8th, 2018)

This is our beautiful little breakfast spot at the hotel.  It is an indoor/outdoor patio where they set out a simple breakfast of yogurt and granola, fresh breads, fresh fruits and coffee each morning.  This area is surrounded by the hotel, but is full of beautiful trees and has no roof.  Most morning we can sit and watch birds and squirrels in the trees as we eat.

A view from the top.  The outdoor kitchen is in the upper right hand corner.

The small pool.  I don't think it's heated.  It's always pretty cool, but we prefer the calming ocean waves anyway.

When we finished breakfast our goal was to go find some nice healthy food for lunches so that we can just eat in and save our fat and calories for dinners.  So we walked about 1 1/4 miles to our nearest grocery store called Super Ley.  Last time we were here they seemed to have a nice selection of produce and other groceries.

We decided to try a few of their nice bakery items.  I know, this doesn't fit into our "healthy food" outing.

You grab a tray and a set of tongs at the bakery counter, and use them to pick out what you want.  Then you take it all back to the bakery counter and they bag and tag it for you.

Once we managed to get through the bakery, we were able to stick to our healthy shopping trip.  

We bought some vinegar for rinsing our vegetables, so hopefully that will be enough to discourage any bacteria.

And a nice healthy lunch on our balcony as a reward for our morning commute to the grocery store.

We enjoyed a nice leisurely afternoon at the hotel before heading out to dinner at one of our favorite spots in Puerto Vallarta for dinner, Martini En Fuego.

Chef Roberto is always so kind.  He started us off with our usual  caesar salad.

The beautiful needlepoint table cloth.

Steve had the red snapper special. That plate is at least 14 inches across.

And I had a shrimp stuffed chili rellano.  It isn't on the menu, but it's my favorite and chef Robert is always kind enough to make it for me.

Everything was cooked to perfection, and chef Robert finished us off with his poached pears and ice cream for dessert.  We always feel like it is such a bargain for the amazing food and service we receive.  

We purposely came to Martini En Fuego on a Monday night, because he is so busy Friday thru Sunday that you can barely get in.  They are closed on Thursday's. We love to eat there when it's nice and quiet and we feel like we can truly take our time and enjoy our meal. 

Tacos at El Flaco Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (Sunday, October 7th, 2018)

When we left Puerto Vallarta back in July, we realized that we still wanted more time, so we went down to the desk of our hotel and booked another stay in October.  So now were back and ready to do a little more exploring.  We drove into LA yesterday via Riverside and stayed overnight last night.  We enjoyed a great meal at our favorite Thai restaurant (Ayara Thai) and got a good night's sleep.  Our flight left at 11:40 this morning and we were here by 4:40 (after a two hour time change), so not bad at all.

After a little time to settle in, we ventured out for dinner.  Last time we were here we kept walking past a taco stand that always looked amazing, so tonight it was our dinner of choice.  They have a couple of tables complete with table cloths, and along the building they have a few stools under the cover of the building.  We chose the covered stools since it looked like it could rain at any moment.

We each ordered four tacos al pastor.

The al pastor on the spit!

The condiment bar.  Oh so good.  The salsas range from hot to mild starting on the left.  Pickled onions, fresh limes and cucumbers in the back.

I was only able to eat three of my tacos, and Steve said that four was plenty for him (although he managed to finish my last taco for me).  The tacos were 75 cents each, and we both walked away stuffed.  And they were amazing!  So glad we gave them a try.

We are in the same hotel as before, but a different room this time.  We still have a good view, although not quite as good as last time.

We're really excited about our room this time.  It is the only room on the 4th floor, so it is incredibly private with great outdoor space!

The view up the hill  to the south.

 We're super excited for the opportunity to spend a little more time in this beautiful town, and we're just as excited to be able to share it with you!

Rediscovering Riverside, California (Saturday, October 6th, 2018)

Today we met some friends in Riverside.  They are friends of ours from Havasu, but their "real" house is in Riverside.  When we are in Havasu, they talk about their other home all the time, and we have really wanted to see it for several years.  So today, on our way to Los Angeles we stopped by to have lunch with them.  

Of  course, they had a great afternoon planned out for us.  They gave a tour of their beautiful house, and then we headed out for lunch in downtown Riverside.  On the way, they showed us around the town, and it was so fun to watch the excitement in Cheryl as she told us about the different areas around town.  We parked downtown by the old Mission Inn where we would be having lunch, and walked through the lobby.  They told us about the history of the inn and showed us around, which was a lot of fun.  

Then we went out the front door to see the front of the inn.  It is a remarkable building!  They said that it is always decked out for Christmas, but I was quite impressed with the fall decorations!

Then we made our way to the beautiful patio restaurant.  

We enjoyed a great lunch, and then toured around the rest of the inn and then downtown a little more on foot.  



It was an amazing day, and there is so much history in Riverside California, but I think the funnest part of the day was watching Tim and Cheryl rediscover the town that they love and have loved for years.