Hello and welcome to another edition of OnVallartaTime, the last one of the season! But, I did it again. I didn’t get the final blog post done in all the preparations for leaving, and now we’re home. I’m going to get it finished and posted anyway since there are some fun things to show you.

Leaving was especially challenging this year. With all the packing done, all the preparations done for caring for our apartment in our absence, and with just two hours to go before the driver showed up, I went into the back room to turn the pilot light off on the water heater, one of the last things on my extensive list. And guess what? There was water all over the floor! The water heater had sprung a leak! (Yes, that same water heater, the one that had smoked up the room when we first arrived.)

There was nothing to be done, I just stuck a bucket under it and made some quick calls. Luckily our regular cleaning lady was close by working in another house and was able to let our handyman in after we left. He and I ware texting as Peggy and I were at the airport waiting for our flight. The good news is he was able to shut off the water; the bad news is we need a new water heater but there’s time to take care of that. Whew!

Our time in Vallarta went so fast! One day just seemed to melt into the next, and the days went by in a blur. We were so used to it — our comfortable apartment, our daily life, the perfect weather day after day, the relaxed feeling that comes with the laid-back lifestyle of Mexico. We were so relaxed! The culture of “mañana” may mean tomorrow, or later, or maybe not at all. If you call a repairman, he could promise to come at 9:00 in the morning, but may show up any time that day. Or you could get a phone call saying he’s sorry, he can’t make it today after all, but will come for sure tomorrow. Mañana.  If you order something to be delivered, be prepared to wait. Yes, it may take longer to get things done, but they do get done, amazingly just in time, and often surprisingly well. 

This whole system of doing things seems to drive people from North of the Border (NOTB) completely crazy. But really, just chill out, this is Mexico, things are different here. The pace is slow and flexible. Relax! And pretty soon, you do relax, and it seems natural to take it easy. No problem, no stress. So different from NOTB, where stress is everywhere, with schedules, rules, and rigidity.

So take a deep breath, settle back in your chair, relax and I’ll tell you about one way we often shopped for food, and about a little trip north to escape the city for a couple of days.

First, the shopping. There are supermarkets, and we often shop at them because it’s easy to find a lot of things we need in one place. Heck, there’s even a Walmart and a Costco! But most Mexicans feel that these stores are convenient, but impersonal. They would rather go to their local market, whether inside or in the open air. There, they know the person selling them those tomatoes. Cheaper, too.

These markets have a long history in Mexico, going back to prehispanic times. When the Spanish got to the great Aztec city of Tenochtitlán, now Mexico City, they were amazed. The city was larger in population than any city in Europe at the time, well ordered, and clean. But one feature they remarked on was the ubiquitous colorful markets, selling all kinds of food items, tools, clothing or anything else one might want, from all over the empire.

In modern times, every small town has its weekly market, with larger regional markets. Officials in larger towns and cities provide permanent or semipermanent locations or buildings to house the markets. That’s the case in Puerto Vallarta, where many neighborhoods have structured locations. Our closest one is the Emiliano Zapata Municipal Market. It’s somewhat of a hike from our apartment so we don’t go as often as we would like. But the variety, quality, and freshness of the offerings there make it worth it. So let’s go!

This is a scene on the walk to the market.

Now we’re getting a little closer. All the streets in our colonia (neighborhood) are cobblestones.

Along the way we pass my favorite meat market, Carnicería Colín.

There is a central building for the market. But lining the street are lots of small stores selling just about anything you can think of.

Another small store, with a huge variety of wares.

This is the central courtyard of the Emiliano Zapata Market. Various shops line the covered portion.\ around the edge.

Here’s the meat market. There’s a fish market too.

This is Esmeralda. She and her husband Enrique have a beautiful little deli that has everything. Everything I’m looking for anyway. It’s my favorite store in the market.

At the back of the market building is the restaurant area. There are three little restaurants here and it’s a good place for hungry shoppers to grab a bite.

Across the street from the market building, on the corner, is the Baca Frutería. It’s a family-run business, and the variety and quality of the produce is amazing. I always walk out of here with way too much to carry.

This is another view inside Baca Frutería. There’s an amazing variety here. 

These shoppers are illustrating how you go about it. You pick up a bowl from the stack on the way in, then fill it up! Sometimes it gets pretty heavy.

These are Baca family members working behind the counter.

This is Norma Baca, the matriarch, at her familiar place behind the register. Note the jars of herbs and spices behind her.

Thanks for following along on the shopping trip! But before we go, I want to show you some pictures from our short vacation to San Pancho.

 

Our friends from the beach, Melissa and Jeff Utschig, along with their dog Hannah left Vallarta in the middle of March, to drive home all the way to Wisconsin! But being Wisconsin, there was still snow on the ground with very cold weather so they wanted to take their time getting there. They decided to stop for a week in San Francisco, Nayarit, which everyone calls San Pancho. It’s close, to the north of Vallarta about 50 km. To get away from the city for a while, and to see our friends off, we decided to joint them for two nights. 

San Pancho is a small town of 3,000 people. While it lacks the big city amenities of Vallarta it has a reputation as a quirky counterculture tourist destination. There are quite a few good restaurants, mostly located along the main street which is perpendicular to the ocean. The tourists are a much younger crowd than the snowbird folks we’re used to in the city, mainly artists, musicians, surfers and hippies. (Hippies! My people, still going strong after all these years…)

This is the Main Street in San Pancho, lined with shops and restaurants. The restaurants are very good here, with quite a variety to choose from. The colorful decorative papel picado flags lend the street a festive air.

The following is a short video:

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After arriving our first day, Peggy and I had some time before meeting our friends. We stopped for a drink at a sidewalk cafe and I captured this video. The papel picado in the sea breeze looks like ripples of water.

Looking the other way on the main street, toward the beach.

Our lodging was one of three small suites attached to this gallery, right by the beach.

You have to go through the gallery to reach our apartment.

That door on the right leads back to the apartments.

This is the path back to our apartment.

This is the courtyard/kitchen area. The kitchen is on the left.

Our little kitchen. We didn’t really use it, except to keep Peggy’s wine cold. That pink bag held ice that I bought at a beach bar.

Inside the apartment looking out.

A well-appointed bathroom. Shower and toilet are through that door.

We had a banana tree in our kitchen!

 

San Pancho beach.

Looking back northward to the beach restaurants and a hotel.

Looking south along the beach.

The oyster guy.

Peggy and I on the beach in San Pancho.

Our friends Melissa and Jeff Utschig.

This is Hannah. She’s a sweet little person in a dog suit.

It’s the custom in San Pancho for people to gather on the beach to watch the sunset.

San Pancho sunset. Thanks to Melissa for the picture.

 

So that’s the end of our odyssey for this season. Thanks everybody for following along. God willing, we will be back in November. Until then, we’ll be here in our cozy beach house!

Oh, one more thing, the sign-up feature is back! Sadly, we lost the original list. So if you want to get OnVallartaTime by email, just sign up!