Rissask Report to Nuevo Vallarta, March 2010

[stcroixgal]

Originally Posted by Rissask

That is funny!

I have some pics of the tigers there! We snuck in one day and wandered around. That is some complex.

We liked it in Nuevo, yes. It was a very nice, quiet, relaxing beach vacation week. But, there were things about the area we didn't like. It was very much just AI hotels and condos, too much of a manufactured, glitzy, concrete jungle for us.

I compared it with Ixtapa, but Ixtapa, in our opinion, has far more Mexican flavour and more character, and the water much clearer (although the surf IS rougher there). The hotels there are mostly non-AI, and there are far more restaurants, and it just has more of a 'town' feel, somehow. But even in that area, we prefer to stay in Zihuantanejo!

To be honest, when we go back to Puerto Vallarta (and we will, we do love the area) we would not stay in Nuevo Vallarta again, but up in Sayulita or Rincon or south down by Mismaloya or Boca de Tomatlan where the water is 100% nicer, instead.

I'm not a real big fan of that type of vacationing, but I do own at Paradise and only go back every other year. Now its every 4 years, since my ex takes the other 2nd year.

For us, it's a pretty cheap vacation (now). We rarely ate on sight as they are very expensive. Wondered down to the shopping mall several nights and into the city several nights. It was a very laid back vaca this year.

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by stcroixgal

I'm not a real big fan of that type of vacationing, but I do own at Paradise and only go back every other year. Now its every 4 years, since my ex takes the other 2nd year.

For us, it's a pretty cheap vacation (now). We rarely ate on sight as they are very expensive. Wondered down to the shopping mall several nights and into the city several nights. It was a very laid back vaca this year.

We did really like having that mall a five minute stroll away! Very nice. All it needs is a theatre like the one in Cabo!

We ate at the Subway one day for lunch....and that Sunset Market was very handy too!

[Tlyn]

Yay, been looking forward to this! I love PV!! And I am with you ... I can never, ever sleep in public on planes, buses, etc. Looking forward to more!

[stcroixgal]

I'd do a trip report, but all we did was got up, got chairs down on the beach, drank, ate and then slept
Oh, we did take a boat out fishing on the day that the tsunami warnings were out

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by Tlyn

Yay, been looking forward to this! I love PV!! And I am with you ... I can never, ever sleep in public on planes, buses, etc. Looking forward to more!

Yeah, I am not sure if it is because I am such a light sleeper-or maybe a bit of a control freak?!? But I just find it very hard.

Originally Posted by stcroixgal

I'd do a trip report, but all we did was got up, got chairs down on the beach, drank, ate and then slept
Oh, we did take a boat out fishing on the day that the tsunami warnings were out

We didn't do too much more than that ourselves.
I guess if you were out on a boat (that must have been Saturday, the day before we arrived?) you were safer than at the hotel IF a tsunami did hit.

It sure did seem that there was a lot less beach on Sunday than the rest of the week.....a few locals said the water level in the bay did rise somewhat. And that it was a bit murkier than normal all week, the currents brought more sand into the bay.

And we were talking to people on the plane ride home who were staying two weeks up in Rincon de Guayabitos...that is past the north tip of the Bay about an hour. They said that much of the water in that small bay (on Saturday about noon) went out -and then there were some larger-than-average waves, but nothing major. But one guy was sea-doing, and when the water went out, suddenly hit the bottom and went flying over the handlebars! Luckily he was okay.

[stcroixgal]

Originally Posted by Rissask

Yeah, I am not sure if it is because I am such a light sleeper-or maybe a bit of a control freak?!? But I just find it very hard.




We didn't do too much more than that ourselves.
I guess if you were out on a boat (that must have been Saturday, the day before we arrived?) you were safer than at the hotel IF a tsunami did hit.

It sure did seem that there was a lot less beach on Sunday than the rest of the week.....a few locals said the water level in the bay did rise somewhat. And that it was a bit murkier than normal all week, the currents brought more sand into the bay.

And we were talking to people on the plane ride home who were staying two weeks up in Rincon de Guayabitos...that is past the north tip of the Bay about an hour. They said that much of the water in that small bay (on Saturday about noon) went out -and then there were some larger-than-average waves, but nothing major. But one guy was sea-doing, and when the water went out, suddenly hit the bottom and went flying over the handlebars! Luckily he was okay.

Yes that was on Saturday.

WOW that would have been quite the ordeal. While we were out on the boat, I don't remember thinking that anything was any different, but then again, I've never been out on a fishing boat before, so guess I wouldn't have noticed anything amiss. We figured that the captain wouldn't have gone out if he had been worried at all about it.

Hey, maybe that's what caused me to lose my footing and fall back onto my butt, while holding a plate of cevechi, which I then ended up wearing Doubt that the many cerveza's I had already consumed had anything to do with that.

I think that the whole area was worried about something possibly happening, cuz wasn't Sunday a red flag day? Plus then, do you remember seeing the coast guard ship out in front of our area?

[leedsb]

Originally Posted by Rissask

Okay, the distance is 275 miles from Mazatlan to Puerto Vallarta. I don't know if I would recommend that drive, since both Nayarit and Sinaloa are hotbeds of drug cartel activity, but I would love to drive from Puerto Vallarta south to Manzanillo, the Costalegre is GORGEOUS!


CJ, stay tuned to see some Roughrider gear we found!

It was Negra Modelo beer....a darker beer, not quite a stout...my favourite!

This is what I drink in MX too. Scary eh!
The usual nice TR Maggie. Keep it up.

[Rissask]

Thanks leeds!

Originally Posted by stcroixgal

Yes that was on Saturday.

WOW that would have been quite the ordeal. While we were out on the boat, I don't remember thinking that anything was any different, but then again, I've never been out on a fishing boat before, so guess I wouldn't have noticed anything amiss. We figured that the captain wouldn't have gone out if he had been worried at all about it.

Hey, maybe that's what caused me to lose my footing and fall back onto my butt, while holding a plate of cevechi, which I then ended up wearing Doubt that the many cerveza's I had already consumed had anything to do with that.

I think that the whole area was worried about something possibly happening, cuz wasn't Sunday a red flag day? Plus then, do you remember seeing the coast guard ship out in front of our area?

Sunday was a red flag day, yes- I do remember the waves were nice and big that day when we were boogie boarding after we came back from the hockey game.

I don't recall if it was there Sunday, but likely....we noticed there were military ships parked out in front of the hotel all week, two different ones, one large and one smaller one. We thought it was maybe because of the sailing regatta that was on, though?





Did you see all those cute teeny Sunfish piloted by KIDS? Too cute!



and I thought this was cute....the Sunfish were circling around the military ship...





more of the teeny ones....there were so many!





I cannot find a pic of the large sailboats!


edit...here we are:

[stcroixgal]

We wondered if it had anything to do with the Regatta also, but then wondered why they would need to be...in case of some sort of accident? Just seemed odd that they showed up after the earthquake.

Yes, those little sailboats were really cute. We were walking over on the Marina side one night when all of them were coming in. They were all roped together and being pulled by another bigger boat! I should get my pictures on line, cuz I do have a pic of them being pulled in.

Did you walk the grounds of Paradise at all, over by the Marina? There was a big yacht parked over there. Someone down on the beach said that they googled the name and found that it was Sir Elton John's boat! It was there the whole week we were there. Never did see him, if it even was his boat

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by stcroixgal

We wondered if it had anything to do with the Regatta also, but then wondered why they would need to be...in case of some sort of accident? Just seemed odd that they showed up after the earthquake.

Yes, those little sailboats were really cute. We were walking over on the Marina side one night when all of them were coming in. They were all roped together and being pulled by another bigger boat! I should get my pictures on line, cuz I do have a pic of them being pulled in.

Did you walk the grounds of Paradise at all, over by the Marina? There was a big yacht parked over there. Someone down on the beach said that they googled the name and found that it was Sir Elton John's boat! It was there the whole week we were there. Never did see him, if it even was his boat

Yes, we did walk around there, and saw some of those big yachts....I think I know the one you are referring to, yes. Nice!
Elton was not staying at our hotel that I could tell...

Yes, maybe they were there because of the quake, we never even thought of that....we actually thought maybe they were just there as a deterrent for any drug subs that might try to come into that area...but that would not be it, as they were not there at night, just during the daytime. The military base is right by the main marina, maybe they were just hanging out or doing some drills or something.

[Rissask]

Okay, rest of day one!

We staggered, joyful and glowing from too many cervezas, too much sunshine, and our hockey team's victory- back to the hotel where we again pitted in on the beach and went to get boogie boards!

It must have been around 4:30 by then. (So much for any change of an afternoon nap.) The waves, as I mentioned, were fairly high and the red flags were up, in part due possibly to the Chilean earthquake aftereffects?

Whatever the reason, the waves were quite powerful this day. Perfect for pushing you all the way to shore!









The kids with their ever-present 'smoothies'...either strawberry daquiris, Miami Vices or Pina Coladas- all sin alcohol of course!





After about an hour or more of that we were all so exhausted...I remember going downhill fast. I think we watched the sunset...






then went to supper without even getting cleaned up and then went upstairs to shower and watch some TV before falling asleep about 9 pm.

By that point I had been awake for about 37 hours straight- I am not sure I have EVER done that in my life!

[TAPPY]

Great report and pictures - you and Don are such cuties

[Brent & Kim]

That is man code for the term "dirty sanchez".

[roni]

If it were not for the fact that I do not want to give Maggie big head,

I would say she is a hottie

[jevans]

nice report. we are thinking about a trip this summer or next to guanajuato then bus to p.v. we have friends in yelapa. as you know, we love that part of mexico.