Welcome to OnVallartaTime! It seems like just yesterday that I posted the last blog, but suddenly it’s been weeks! When I realized that, I thought, what will I write about? We have been so busy, and done so much! So this post will be a mashup of sorts, to catch you up on all our activities.

Last time, I wrote that the weather had finally changed, flipped the seasonal switch to our usual winter weather of temps in the low 80’s and lower humidity, finally! Well, we were sorry to learn that those few days were but a temporary respite. It has been hot, hot, hot, which of course affects our daily activities. We get relief at the beach, with a bit of a sea breeze, but that walk home has been hot! The weather has kept us from getting out and walking around as much as we’d like, whether it’s to shop, try a new restaurant, or just check out a new part of town. They say El Niño is to blame.

Well, I almost hesitate to write this (I don’t want to jinx it), but this last week has been lots cooler. We have had visitors from the US, and we have been able to enjoy ourselves a lot. So here’s hoping it stays this way this time!

Now to what we have been doing besides trying to keep cool…

As I mentioned last time, we were again invited by Kai Doyle to her house in El Tuito, a town in the mountains near Puerto Vallarta, for Thanksgiving. About 20 people attended, and we had a really great time eating and drinking, and playing Pictionary. You’ve never lived until you play bilingual Pictionary! And the food! Kai provided the turkey and dressing, and everyone else brought side dishes like mashed potatoes, corn pudding, rajas (creamed poblano pepper slices), salads, cranberry sauce, and lots more! Kai graciously put Peggy and me up overnight in her casita across the street. It rained all night, hard on the corrugated concrete roof, and we slept blissfully, lulled by the rain, snuggled under the covers.

I bet you’ve never seen turkey breasts like that!

Beautiful fruit plate depicting a turkey.

Pictionary after dinner!  (Thanks for the photo, Vickie Jensen!)

The garden of Kai’s casita in the rain.

Casita garden.

Snug in the casita for the night as the rain pounded on the roof.

The next day, we were invited to Hank and Vicki Lindsay’s El Tuito house, Casa Victoria, for a quiche breakfast. Their house and grounds are beautiful — what a setting!

Casa Victoria casita and office.

View from the Casa Victoria deck of the lower garden area.

Peggy and I heard about a nice quiet beach just past the Malecon, with a wonderful seafood restaurant, Mango’s. So we thought we would check it out.

The entrance of Mango’s.

Peggy on the beach at Mango’s.

The deserted beach.

A sailboat on the horizon.

Lunch is served!

Peggy’s greek salad.

My seafood salad, with scallops, shrimp and octopus, yum!

Our ukulele group, Los Vinolentos, has been gathering to jam on the beach every Tuesday. As happened last year, we were asked to provide the entertainment at a charity event at Nacho Daddy restaurant, the Panty Raising Party. The goal of the event is to provide underwear for kids of all ages for an orphanage here in town.

The ad for the event.

Here we are, strummin’ away!

Another shot of Los Vinolentos.

I’d say it was a successful event!

Last week we were visited by Cheryl and Mike Brush, of Idaho. Cheryl held a similar position in Idaho to mine in Oregon for years, and we would meet at various conferences. It was great to see her again, and to meet Mike. They stayed at Lindo Mar, a beautiful property in Conchas Chinas, just south of the city and very close to us. We had a whirlwind time as we took them to as many places as we could in a short week. We went out to eat a lot, and also visited the Vallarta Botanical garden a short way out of town.

Mike, Cheryl, Peggy and I at dinner at Lindo Mar.

It’s just a few more days until Christmas! It’s such a nice, mellow holiday here, a quiet family gathering, so unlike the incessant commercial hype we get bombarded with in the US. We have made plans to go out to dinner with friends. First, a few signs of the season:

A pretty Christmas tree in a restaurant.

A sweet decoration over a humble doorway. Even if they are poor, the Mexican people are rich, with strong families and pride in their traditions.

This is a large, almost life-sized nativity scene at an upscale mall, Las Galerias. You may note the baby Jesus isn’t there — it’s not time yet!

And now for our own decorations! We keep them pretty low key…

The decorations on our terrace.

Our tiny nativity figures, with the wise men making their way, and as you can see, no baby Jesus yet!

Our small tree, surrounded by a fat, red mariachi band!

Thank you for following OnVallartaTime! I hope you have enjoyed this post. May you and yours have a wonderful holiday season, surrounded by love and peace. And may all of your holiday dreams and wishes come true.