How March and April Flew By

Two months has flown by again. These months do seem to float on by me and I don't know what month it is, for everyday is sunny, there is a blue sky and it's warm. Seems like a summer day to me, all of them. What a life. I look at my eldest child's blog of her life in the frozen north "Alaska" and her work in the wilderness of North Slope on the Brooks Range and she is all wrapped up in a snowsuit and big boots. I can kind of remember a life similar, in Minnesota. But after three years down here, Minnesota is becoming a "thing of the past". It seems I must be getting used to this "New Life".

Vianey in our hammock

Jacob and Shauna relax at beach in San Pancho

March and April were busy with company. Our son Jacob and his girlfriend Shauna were here in latter part of March, and my sister Joanne from Arizona came in April. Throw in a trip to Mexico City for Victor to try to figure out his social service commitment for licensure, and a trip to Tepic to finalize it (yeaaa, thank God finally, can't believe it till it happens for real, which is tomorrow when he drives up there to the Rehabilitation clinic to begin his work).

Shauna, Jacob, Luke,Joey serenaded by Banda music

Jacob made his annual trip here, a much long awaited vacation for him, for both he and Shauna who work hard all year and truly treasure a Mexico vacation. I took them to San Francisco (San Pancho for short, as nicknames here are Pancho if you are a Francisco, and Panchi if you are a female Francisca) within a couple hours of getting them from the airport. They loved the beach with the big waves pounding the shore (no protective bay here), and some good surfing can occur. They quickly got comfortable with a cerveza and guacamole and got into their swimsuits to soak up some sun. It was hard to leave the beach that afternoon; they were so relaxed and happy.

Friday Victor took off a day of work and we headed north up to the little village of Chacala to Chac Mool for coffee and then to the beach of course. After some sunbathing, we ate at Las Brisas palapa restaurant right on the beach for good Mexican food and drinks. Saturday Jacob's old high school friends Luke and Joey came up to La Penita and spent the night. They walked to Guayabitos and had a local Banda band serenade them on the beach. We dined at a beach restaurant 'La Tonita' and loved our shrimp and seafood dinners. They loved the view from our roof with a glass of wine at sunset. Sunday Jacob and Shauna drove them down to the surfing town of Sayulita. Jacob and Shauna bused to Puerto Vallarta on Monday to visit friends and go to a wedding. Victor and I met up with them down there for an overnight, and farewell at the airport. We all agreed that it was a week that flew by way too fast. We were as sad to see them leave, as they were sad to have to say good-bye to sunny warm Mexico. I hope their next visit down here can last for a couple of weeks at least, to get some true R n' R.

More socializing occurs in April as gringos and Canadians head back home for the summer. Which is always fun, to go to a potluck and eat all kinds of good food and schmooz with folks you might not have seen much of lately. We drove down to Cruz de Huanacaxtle for a party one Saturday afternoon and got to see a little of that town, which we barely know. It is between Bucerias and Punta Mita. Seems there is a nice music scene down there, which is an attraction for Victor for sure. He likes to find some jazz groups if he can, to drum with.

My sister spent a week here in April and she loved her R and R. First event on way from the airport was stop in San Pancho (her first) for yummy shrimp quesadillas. Two days of lounging around, water coloring, hammock hanging, and my first venture into Polaroid Emulsion Lift with a lesson from Joanne, was great fun. Except only 3 out of 10 images on the Polaroid pack turned out. Expired film. But now I have the knack and can't wait to try more. Problem is a slide is used in the slide printer, which with a press of the button exposes the image from the slide onto the Polaroid film. I have new slide film to develop, but not even in Puerto Vallarta can I get the film developed.

A two-day trip up to San Blas was fun…staying at old German consulate Hacienda Flamingo Hotel one block from the town square. This place has lots of character and charm, plus a lovely swimming pool and lawn area. Dinner was tasty shrimp dish and next morning a jungle boat ride to Tovara to see birds and crocodiles and some sightseeing to the old Fort and church on the hill overlooking San Blas and the ocean. Couldn't leave town without eating the specialty fish dish, Zarandeado…

Joanne needed some beach time, so we took her to our favorite beach as of late, Playa Naranjos which lies on the extreme right end of our bay (Bahia de Jaltemba). It is a quiet secluded beach with clean shallow water safe for children and great for wading. But at times you can boogie board and even surf. Due to government plans to turn this area into a tourist zone of hotels, golf, etc. we are cherishing this time to get over to this beach as much as possible before the tranquil beauty is lost. It is one long stretch of empty natural beach and the mountains in the background make for gorgeous scenery. This is the place to bring a picnic, a big umbrella, a good book and truly spend hours of relaxation and even some exercise if you desire a good beach walk workout. Take a little walk back towards the estero and get a glimpse (not too close for safety sake) of crocodiles.