Familia: Round one

We hadn’t seen any family from home since September. Finding a place that’s affordable, convenient to fly into, and with easy access to our boat is a challenging trifecta south of the US border, and we were looking for a certain level of comfort and ease for the grandparents. Puerto Vallarta fit the bill.

Is it just me, or does this look uncomfortable?
Is it just me, or does this look uncomfortable?

First up: grandparents from Michu’s side of the family, plus his sister Aisha and her boyfriend Taylor. We parked ourselves in Marina Vallarta, nearby their hotel, and indulged in some marina living.DSC_0026

Resort living
Resort life

Having spent so much time in Chiapas, we’ve been feeling a little overwhelmed by the number of gringos in PV. The weather is lovely, the pool is fun, the beach is beautiful, the bay is full of whales; but it’s maybe not the best place to work on your Spanish or find authentic Mexican food. We were continually exhorted to “Relax, you’re on vacation!” But…we’re not on vacation. This is just our life at the moment; we still have to chip away at school, go grocery shopping, and do the occasional boat project. Balancing the vacation atmosphere and our regular, quotidian needs is a challenge. Still, with enough Negro Modelos, I think we can pull it off.

Auntie and Uncle on the Malecon
Auntie and Uncle on the Malecon

And it was great to see familiar faces. Our break with regular boat life has been working against me in a few areas, and documentation is one of them; I failed to get any good pics of the grandparents. So hard to pull out the big camera, when you’re sipping the fruity umbrella drink! But I did manage to assemble a little evidence of our first week in Banderas Bay.DSC_0050

I had to force myself to walk away from this miniature cabinet of partying skeletons in the bakery.
I had to force myself to walk away from this miniature cabinet of skeletons partying in the bakery.
These guys were beachfront in downtown PV. Four of them climb up a pole, wrap ropes around the top...
These guys were beachfront in downtown PV. Four of them climb up a pole, wrap ropes around the top…
...and then spin down headfirst, magically without passing out.
…and then spin down headfirst, magically without passing out.
Uncle Tay-tay is an arborist, so obviously we sent him up the mast to look for whales.
Uncle Tay-tay is an arborist, so obviously we sent him up the mast to look for whales.
Cuidado!
Cuidado!
We asked him to clean the solar on/off switch for the nav light while he was up there, but he said it was surprisingly clean.
We asked him to clean the solar on/off switch for the nav light while he was up there, but he said it was surprisingly clean. No whales, though–until a couple of days later, on a trip to La Cruz.
And of course with the delicious food!
And of course with the delicious food!

Two more sets of family yet to roll in, before we return to our regularly scheduled cruising program. My guess: lots of ice cream, not so much on the math homework.DSCF3533

One Comment on “Familia: Round one

  1. Good to see family . looks like you had lots of fun with the family.

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