Fabulous Puerto Vallarta

Sunday, December 16, we left the state of Nayurit, and entered the state of Jalisco, arriving in fabulous Puerto Vallarta in late afternoon.  We decided to look for our hotel first thing.

We knew we liked the old historic part of Vallarta from a previous trip there last March, so we headed for that part of town.  We found a wonderful hotel, the Hotel Paloma del Mar, with a kitchen, a view of the ocean, and a rooftop swimming pool for $490 pesos per night, about $38.00 USD.  I was so happy!

We swam in the pool that night and took it easy, and headed out the next day to explore Vallarta.  The historic district is hilly and very scenic.

There is a long expanse of boardwalk, where there are street performers,

artists and craftspeople selling their work,

discos, and lots of shopping.

There's a store with the work of Sergio Bustamante, one of my favorite artists in Mexico.

And you can watch the sunset from the boardwalk.

At the local park there was a craft fair with many regional crafts displayed, including these great carved mermaids from Guerrero,

and this art from Oaxaca.

This craftsman was weaving beautiful bags, even though a car accident about 15 years ago left him blind and in a wheel chair.  He had a beautiful spirit, and sang me a song about Mexico!

Again, there was a beautiful church, which Eduardo went in and photographed for me, since I wasn't allowed inside wearing shorts!

Puerto Vallarta is very magnetic and alive, and I look forward to visiting again and spending more time there.  It is filled with art and culture, and also has a modern portion with the kinds of big stores you find in US.  Puerto Vallarta also has an airport and is within 2 to 3 hours driving distance to multiple beautiful beaches both to the north and south.  But since we were on a mission to make it to Ixtapa by December 24, we reluctantly said good-bye!

We left Vallarta Tuesday morning to continue our drive south to explore the beaches of Jalisco.

xo Linda