3rd Annual Puerto Vallarta Dog Show

This show took place across from the Sheraton Hotel in the municipal park. Stan and I volunteered and had a great time.




Large Breeds



Small Breeds





Stan was in charge of selling refreshments



How many men does it take to put up a tent???



Agility Competition for Dogs of All Sizes and Abilities

Caberneigh Farms, Mexican-style

We came across this lovely hacienda on our way to one of the local beaches one day. How about it girls?

Good Surfing and Going Fishing in Sayulita

Sayulita is very popular with surfers - lots of young people - a reminder of what the California beaches might have looked like in the 50's and 60´s (on the beach we visited in any case). Apart from that, it is developing real estate wise surpassing, we were told, Puerto Vallarta. There seems to be a real estate office on every corner.



Surfers, Pelican and Dog (interested in pelican)





Surf Instructors???

Huichol Indians of Mexico

The Huichol Indians´native home is away from the sea. They come to Puerto Vallarta to display and sell their art. They are very colorful in their traditional costumes. This young couple are enjoying what might be a rare visit to the ocean.

Update on PJ and Nicole's Blog

Check the winter shots at the farm and the trip to New York photos by clicking on the PJ and Nicole's Blog Link to the right.

Totally Recyclable Roofing!

The Old and the New of Puerto Vallarta

Primitive beach dwelling contrasting with hi-rise hotels in the background.

The Birds of Boca de Tomates

Great bird watching at the mouth of the river emptying into the Bay of Banderas

Dinner with Two Irish Lasses

We met Bridget (Bridie if you’re Irish) last year on the beach. Found out she was staying right around the corner from our place and saw each other a few times before the end of the season. We reconnected this year – same place, same time, different year. Her old friend, Joan, is visiting from Chicago for a couple of weeks and they invited us over for dinner last Friday. Bridget’s condo this year is right on the Malecon with a glorious view of the bay and nightly sunsets.

Keeping in Touch on the Net!

Olivia’s mom, Ellen, tells us that she pines for her buddy Stan. As a treat, she sometimes gets to look at his picture on the computer!

Beach Exploration

Drove out in the search of the perfect beach yesterday. We first went to Sayulita but the place is so crammed with people and cars that we decided to head back towards Punta de Mita. Found out when we arrived back home that our landlord, Alejandro saw us there! He is building a house there and said that prices in Sayulita were now higher than in PV.

This is one of the beaches at Punta de Mita, very beautiful and wading-friendly as the rollers are quite small compared to some of the other beaches. Unfortunately, it was so windy yesterday we couldn´t keep the umbrella in place. So carried on... we'll try it again though.








Twin Photos at Punta de Mita







We also found another beach we liked - Manzanilla Beach. Almost deserted. The only activity was some oyster fishermen shucking them.

Boca de Tomates

Spent a lovely peaceful afternoon yesterday on the Boca de Tomates beach normally only used by the local people. Quite deserted during the week. It was nice to get away from all of the tourists and vendors. We saw an enormous tree on the way there - probably 35 to 40 feet around.

Birthday Dinner

Celebrated my birthday at one of the restaurants on the Malecon and enjoyed a wonderful sunset.

Casa de Franko y Anna

As some of you know, our friends Frank and Anna, are in the process of building a house in Mexico. It is in a suburb of Puerto Vallarta called Pitillal. We spent many great weekend days with them there last year when only the first floor was completed. Unfortunately, they couldn’t come down this year but the house continues to be built by their friend, Elio – and under the direction of his wife, Silvia! We took some photos for them when we arrived here last week. The second floor is taking shape as well as the veranda which will be on two sides. Here’s the ‘work in progress’!













Silvia showing off her papayas!

On to PV!

The drive down to Puerto Vallarta was uneventful and easy. The toll roads are very good and at times we felt we were the only car on the road. Well worth the $80 or so in tolls from the border to PV. We spent the first night in Guaymas and the second night in Mazatland. Toll roads ended south of Tepic and we had to contend with slower traffic and long line-ups – not many passing lanes for the remainder of the trip. Weather was nice and sunny until we reached the PV area. You’ve guessed it, overcast with showers! Lasted for a couple of days – mainly just overcast – and gave us an opportunity to get settled in before hitting the beach. Weather is much improved now and we’ve started to put in beach time!

A little mishap with a broken water pipe down the street and no water for about 24 hours in the last couple of days but, we are getting into our PV mode and going with the flow!




Mazatland Sunset on our second day of driving





Gas stations are government run and the price is way better than in BC.





Two new sculptures this year on the Malecon





A pair of friends!






Stans new haircut, front and side!

Vancouver to Phoenix

Surprise, surprise – I have figured out a way to download my photos on the laptop and I can carry on with my blog from Mexico after all. We had a great road trip here including a very enjoyable stop in Phoenix to visit Ellen and Kathleen as well as Dakota and their new kitty, Olivia. We left the cold weather and the rain behind us and had lovely although cool weather down to Phoenix. We made it to Redding, CA the first night and to San Bernardino the second night. On Wednesday we arrived at Ellen’s and Kathleen’s. Mom’s stew for dinner topped off with kahlua cake! Unfortunately, that was the last we saw of Kathleen as she came down with the flu and was confined to quarters for the remainder of our stay. Went shopping on Thursday to stock up on items we can’t easily get in PV. We were greeted with cold and rain on Friday morning – can’t seem to be able to escape it for very long. Stan felt a cold coming on so he hunkered down and rested all day. Ellen and I went to see Freedom Writers in the afternoon – great show. Another great dinner and an evening of Grey’s Anatomy and ER! We had breakfast with Ellen on Friday morning and got back on the road heading south around 10 a.m.