Puerto Vallarta – Riveted

Ten Days in Yelapa, Our Shower Iguana, and a Bigger Airship

Laura Domela — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 02:15:39 +0000

A lot has happened since I last posted (in May!) We lead the first flotilla from the San Juan Islands to Juneau, Alaska, then met our next flotilla in Port McNeill and headed down the west side of Vancouver Island, then made one full flotilla circle around Vancouver Island starting in Roche Harbor and ending in Victoria, BC. We had a blast, and we have five more flotillas planned for the summer of 2019.

Toward the end of our last flotilla (while on the outside of Vancouver Island), we learned of a Nordic Tug 42 for sale out of Sidney, BC. Photos looked good, specs sounded good, and to make a long story short, we sold smaller Airship (our Nordic Tug 34) and have now moved up to a 42! If you want more details and photos, here they are.

We sold the airplane before we left for Alaska, and we’ll be selling the Airstream any day now (2010 27’FB International CCD with a ton of upgrades — let us know if you’re interested…it’s not listed yet but will be soon). So we’re putting all our eggs into the boat basket, since it has proven to be the vessel of choice these days. We spent over 900 nights aboard Airship/34 in the four years we had her, and I know we’ll keep up the trend on the new Airship, so why not streamline?

But right now, we’re back in Yelapa, Jalisco, Mexico, enjoying the sun and sea (and tequila). Our friends Tiffani and Deke met us in Puerto Vallarta about a week ago and we water taxi’d to Yelapa where they spent a week with us (left yesterday, sad face). We’ll spend four more days before heading back to Portland and then up to the boat to help with upgrade projects that are happening now!

For Thanksgiving, we had the cooks from a local cafe (Cafe Eclipse) come to our casa and cook dinner for us: homemade guacamole and salsa, margaritas, carne asada, grilled fish, veggies, homemade tortillas, and coconut and chocolate pie from the Yelapa pie lady. It was delicious, and we even watched two humpbacks breaching out in the bay right from the dinner table. Pretty great!

Here are some photos from the past week:

Leaving Puerto Vallarta by water taxi

The view from Casa Pericos

After getting settled, we headed into town to grab dinner at one of our favorite eateries–Taqueria Los Abuelos. Tiffani and I had tacos (very good), and Kevin and Deke both ordered the special, which was a Chile Relleno con Camarones. It was extra delicious, and I wish it was on their permanent menu!

Sunset from Casa Pericos, first night in Yelapa

Path through town as it crosses the river

Local signage

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Local signage

We picked up a few things at the market for breakfasts and snacks (eggs, chorizo, stuff to make salsa, coffee, tortillas and chips), as well as a bottle of the locally made raicilla to try (which comes in this fancy bottle):

Raicilla is made from the agave plant, but is less of a mezcal or tequila, and more of a local “moonshine” specific to this area of Jalisco. Until recently, buying it here from the locals is the only way to get it, but there is now one distiller, La Venenosa, that has started to market a legal brand of raicilla. It got an interesting flavor and some definite similarities to mezcal, but it’s for sure its own thing (and there’s no way we’ll be able to really even dent this bottle we bought, so we’ll find someone to pass it on to before we leave).

Tuesday was the first of our two charter outings with Garcia Charters.

We trolled for about five minutes before we caught our first fish (a bonito). Today brought in 3 bonito, and about 30 skipjack. (We kept one skipjack that Juan Carlos made ceviche with, and threw the rest back.)

The lighthouse at the southernmost tip of Banderas Bay.

Back at Casa Pericos, we learned that we had a shower iguana (he’s still here).

The next day we thought we’d wander over to La Playa (the more touristy area of Yelapa). The moon is nearly full so the tides have been high, which means shoes off to wade across this area to the beach.

Heading to La Playa

We sat at a table and had some lunch, while this big iguana came a little too close to Tiffani’s shoes

Back at Casa Pericos, Tiffani and Deke heading out for a paddle (photo taken from our room).

We went out again with Garcia Charters on Friday after Thanksgiving: fishing first, then a stop out at Islas Marietas

Geared up and ready to swim through the sea cave/tunnel into “Playa del Amor” — a white sand beach inside a crater! Tiffani and Deke on the left, and one of our charter guides, Jonas, on the right.

This is such a cool thing to do from Yelapa (or Puerto Vallarta). Next time we may spend the first part of our charter snorkeling at the islands instead of fishing, since there’s much to see out here, but today we just had a quick swim into the crater with a great view of the local blue-footed boobies. (Two of them were positioned right at the sea cave opening, showing off their bright blue feet, just like Disney would have designed if this was a ride!) If you want to get a good overview of what this place looks like, check out this image search result.

Late morning view from Casa Pericos

On Saturday, we headed back over to La Playa and the far side of town. Deke decided that since Tiffani had never parasailed, today was going to be her day.

Making our way through town. We rarely get lost now after a few days navigating the winding cobblestone paths.

Looking down into the village/bay from the path above town

Local foliage

When we arrived at the spot to cross the river, it was WAY higher than it was the previous time, so we walked further on the path up river and crossed at the bridge.

Looking up river, taken from the bridge

The bridge across the river

Love this cool structure

Wood slat details

Kevin, Deke, and Tiffani

We arrived at La Playa and found the parasail guy, who he quickly got Tiffani ready, called the boat, and made it all happen!

Getting instructions for take off

There she is, flying over Yelapa

Coming in for a landing

Tiffani said she was super scared at the beginning, but that after she relaxed into a little bit that it was really fun and the view was amazing.

We had such a nice time with Tiffani and Deke, and we’re enjoying the last few days here just relaxing and cooking and watching the sea life from our balcony–the other day we watched a manta ray jumping out of the water over and over again just out near the rocks in front.

Casa Kimberly and The Iguana

Laura Domela — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 21:00:10 +0000

Last night was our last night in Puerto Vallarta. One of the things I did when we booked this trip originally was to make a dinner reservation at The Iguana Restaurant up at Casa Kimberly. We’d heard good things about the restaurant, and the history of Casa Kimberly is kinda cool, and…the place looked amazing (and fancy!) in photos so we thought it would be a nice last night in PV (and an excuse to celebrate our anniversary…again!)

We arrived up at Casa Kimberly after a difficult (for the driver) Uber ride from the Zona Romantica. The streets in these hills are narrow and steep!

Casa Kimberly originally was a casita belonging to Elizabeth Taylor. In the 1960s, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton came to Puerto Vallarta to film Night of the Iguana. They had met a few years prior on the set of Cleopatra, and apparently were “in the whirl of a scandalous romance.” Richard Burton bought Casa Kimberly for Elizabeth Taylor for her 32nd birthday, and the place across the street from his own casita, and had a bridge built over the street that connected their two homes. Not much of the original structures still stand, aside from the bridge and a few other things. (Ms. Taylor’s heart-shaped jacuzzi is in what is now the “Elizabeth Taylor Suite“, and Mr. Burton’s azure pool is still on the grounds as well.)

Upon arrival, we noticed the glass door at the street level is locked (to keep the riff raff out, I assume) and we were to ring a big bell hanging over the door to announce our arrival. (The rope hangs just far enough down so you can grab it and ring…well, it’s more of a “clank”…the bell.)

We were met for our reservation and led upstairs to The Iguana, where we were given a lovely table overlooking the city, right atop the bridge that previously joined Taylor and Burton’s residences.

Because it was our anniversary, they started us out with a cold glass of prosecco while we took in the beautiful view.

We decided that the mariachis here at Casa Kimberly were the best we’ve ever heard, and between Kevin and I (growing up in Texas and Los Angeles, respectfully) we’ve heard a LOT of mariachi music. These guys were really, REALLY good. They’re called Mariachi La Joya de Mexico, and they’re apparently one of Mexico’s most famous Mariachi troupes. I get it. They’re super good.

The cocktail menu has two different tequila martinis, which sounded intriguing. We ordered the reposado martinis, but our waiter, Miguel, said he much preferred the one made with blanco tequila. We decided to trust him (which would prove a very wise choice for the rest of the evening). The cocktail is made with blanco tequila, lime juice, orange juice, Cointreau, and something else I missed, with a cucumber and a berry on a stick with Tajín rim. (Tajín is a blend of lime, chilies, and sea salt, and I have two bottles in my bag now as we head home. This is apparently a very common condiment/seasoning here, and it turns out you can get it on amazon, but I found it for less than half the price in the PV airport.)

This tequila martini was delicious and I’ll be attempting to replicate it at home.

We had a perfect view of the sunset from our table.

We ordered a couple starters: ceviche (scallops, octopus, and shrimp marinated in a roasted habanero vinaigrette), and squash blossoms (filled with requesón cheese and poblano chile, served over breaded panela cheese with a black bean and poblano chile sauce). Both appetizers were fantastic. Miguel said we really shouldn’t miss one of his favorites though, a cup of the black bean soup (I can’t find the description of this) but wow, we definitely would have overlooked it — because soup, hot day, Mexico — and it turned out to possibly be our favorite thing of the night!

Of course after the martini and the soup, we let Miguel steer us toward our entrees: grilled salmon served over huitlacoche, squash blossoms, roasted sweet corn and a jalapeño cream, and a sea bass dish with a tamarind sauce that was incredible! The sea bass dish was really different…the richness of this fish combined with the tangy tamarind sauce was such a cool balance of flavors. Of course after this we couldn’t ignore Miguel’s recommendation for dessert. A guava tarte type of thing that I never would have ordered over flan or something else with chocolate… We probably wouldn’t have gotten dessert in the first place, since we were a bit on the full side by this point, though the portions were perfect and not too big…but OMG this guava thing!! Super wow. I told Miguel he should have the “Miguel’s Choice Server’s Menu”

After dinner we walked around the grounds a little and took in the beautiful architecture and environment, and then walked back to our hotel (much easier going back than it was getting here).

Wall art on our walk home along the river:

You could do a whole tour on the street/wall art in Puerto Vallarta. There’s some great stuff!

It was a lovely evening!

This morning we returned to Azul Bistro for breakfast, and Cesar made us two totally different dishes from what we had yesterday: 1) tostadas with mole, feta, and an over easy egg (amazing! the mole!) and 2) an omelette with bacon, gouda, feta, and another cheese I forgot, topped with some delicious red orange salsa. Cesar and his wife are ALL ABOUT the sauces/salsas, and they do a great job experimenting to find interesting combinations of flavors. If you are in Puerto Vallarta and need a non-touristy breakfast spot that will become your new favorite, check out the Azul Bistro!

We are at the airport now waiting for our flight back to Portland, doing some work and people-watching. We used Uber this time to get here (Uber has been here in PV for about 6 months) and it was SUCH a nice change from the crazy taxi ride we had on our first day in town. Our Uber driver was chill and awesome, from Guadalajara, and says he’s working to learn English in ONE MONTH! He’s killin’ it, too!

I thought we’d be disappointed spending two days in Puerto Vallarta after 9 days in Yelapa, but we weren’t at all. It’s definitely different, and more crowded and more touristy, but if you seek out something other than the beach and the tourist shops (unless that’s all you’re into, then cool), you’ll find a lot more here than what you might have expected.

Exploring Puerto Vallarta

Laura Domela — Thu, 15 Mar 2018 22:29:43 +0000

We left Yelapa (and might or might not have shed a couple of quiet tears as we said goodbye to our glorious room) and hopped on the 11am water taxi to Puerta Vallarta. (But guess what?? We booked our same room at Casa Pericos for later this year, so see you again in November, Yelapa!)

Waiting on Playa Isabel for the water taxi, while they chat with our buddies aboard Iza (Garcia Charters)

Burros were getting loaded up and sent down the path, carrying groceries, water, and other supplies. As soon as they had their load, they’d just slowly wander down the path, munching on greens along the way.

The water was relatively calm, so we had a nice chill ride to Puerto Vallarta that took only 30 minutes from our last stop in Yelapa to the Los Muertos Pier in Puerto Vallarta.

Waiting to dock at the Los Muertos Pier while passengers load onto another water taxi.

We walked the couple of short blocks to our hotel, but we were a bit early for check in, so we opted to spend the two hours sitting at a lovely table in the shade in the courtyard, doing a bit of work and reading.

From the courtyard at Casa Doña Susana, looking back out toward the street.

Stairs in the inner courtyard at Casa Doña Susana.

Looking straight up from the courtyard at Casa Doña Susana (there’s a pool on the roof!)

Courtyard vines

Two hours turned into three and a half or four, but by the time our room was ready we were happy for the air conditioning (and the couple of free drink coupons the front desk gave us for being so patient). I’d have to say though…based on watching other interactions besides ours (as well as my experience booking online in the first place) this is not the most organized operation. Our room (No. 202) is fine, but the one they first showed us as an option if we didn’t want to wait had two double beds, zero windows, and opened out directly into the traffic path. I said “It’s our wedding anniversary, so no thank you, I think we’ll wait.” The concierge said “Yes, this one is not so appealing, I agree.” Anyway, we got settled, hung out a bit, and then walked over to dinner at the Merida Grill, which came highly recommended by our friend Joni.

Cool birdcage/light fixtures hang from the high ceilings

Everyone here is super friendly, and they go out of their way to make you feel welcome (and not at ALL in an annoying way…SO genuine and wonderful). We ordered a bottle of champagne, because (1) anniversary, and (2) we’ve had plenty of margaritas in the past two weeks…it was a nice change! We shared some ceviche, and a nojol salad (grilled cactus, greens, some delicious cheese, tomatoes, avocado), and then shared two entrees: cochinita pibil and grilled octopus.

The cochinita pibil was my favorite, but both were delicious.

A soft, low-light photo of the cochinita pibil taken with my iPhone, but you get the idea.

Grilled octopus with vegetables…gorgeous presentation.

Cochinita pibil is a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán Peninsula. Traditional cochinita pibil involves marinating the meat in acidic citrus juice, seasoning it with achiote paste/annatto seed which gives it a vivid dark red/orange color, and roasting the meat while it is wrapped in banana leaf. At Merida Grill, they cook it in a big pot that’s lowered into a pit inside a brick oven, and I had a ringside seat when they opened the oven doors.

After dinner, we walked around a bit, then down to El Malecon boardwalk, which is basically just a wide sidewalk along the beach populated by mostly tourists, bordered by shops, buskers, sidewalk vendors, and restaurants (and in our case last night, some really drunk chicks belting out “YMCA” by the Village People–might have been karaoke, but I could only hear them—trying to get people to join them…no thanks).

We slept well, considering the sound of the surf crashing below our room in Yelapa had been rudely replaced by the erratic hum of an AC on the wall above our heads here in PV. Heh.

After a little work this morning, we ventured out for some breakfast. Originally I’d picked out a place for us to go down on the beach that had good reviews, but last minute changed my mind and opted for a more local vibe (still with great Yelp reviews) and we ended up at Azul Bistro, a few blocks from our hotel.

Azul Bistro is small, and has a few outdoor tables (which is where we sat…nicely in the shade)

We ordered the Huevos Azul (poached eggs, breaded/fried and served on a spinach puree) and the Bienadictos Mexicanos (english muffin, skirt steak, poached eggs, chipotle sauce). Both dishes were excellent (that chipotle sauce!!), and we decided to go back tomorrow morning for breakfast so we can try two new things. Cesar said he’d make us something completely different tomorrow, but I heard our table-neighbors RAVING about the mole sauce on their order (and how they were ALSO coming back tomorrow), so I’m pretty sure we can’t go wrong. (Note: they do dinners here on Saturday nights only. This Saturday it’s Chile en Nogada…reserve early because the place fills up!)

Huevos Azul, payapa, cantaloupe, and a potato/coconut hash.

Bienedictos Mexicanos, cantaloupe and papaya, and the potato/coconut hash.

After breakfast, we walked the neighborhood a bit, and decided to stop in Galleria Dante. (It’s #7 of 172 Things to do in Puerto Vallarta on Trip Advisor!) This place is packed with local and mostly/kinda/localish work, and there were quite a few pieces we liked, including these paintings by Emilio Rama:

These are some of the paintings we liked…

…and I think we’re coming home with this one

After the gallery, we just wandered all around town randomly. Here are some photos, in no particular order.

Typical street in the Zona Romantica

No one here seems very fond of Trump (shocker, I know). There are “F@#$ Trump” t-shirts, signs that say “Don’t worry, you’re on the fun side of the wall”…stuff like that, but I really liked these Trump piñatas we walked past today.

We took a break from the sun and are doing some work (and some blogging, obviously) back in our room now. Later this evening, we’ll go out for our (fancier) anniversary dinner up at The Iguana at Casa Kimberly. Casa Kimberly was once the vacation home of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. According to the owner, Burton bought the property for Taylor back in 1964 for her 32nd birthday. The two vacationed in Casa Kimberly for decades, and Elizabeth Taylor eventually sold it in 1990 after Burton’s death in 1984. (I think they filmed some of “Night of the Iguana” in the bar there.) Reviews of the food on both Yelp and Trip Advisor are very good…we’ll let you know tomorrow. There’s a dress code, and you’re not supposed to wear “beach or board shorts, t-shirts, or flip flops” so I’m hoping I don’t get ousted for my flip flops (they’re fashionable flip flops, not the usual beach rubber ones, so I’m hopeful they pass because it’s what I’ve got).