Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

 

Oct 16, 2022  

90 degrees, 90% humidity…That’ll slow me down. 

Some things will never change. Some things will always be the same. Lean down your ear upon the earth and listen. ~ from You Can't Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe 

Last January when we were on the Viking Star, we had a lovely day in Puerto Vallarta. The included excursion that day was a visit to the sea walk’s sculptures and the Our Lady of Guadalupe Cathedral. It was a rich experience, but as usual when you’re on an organized tour, you never get enough time to explore the places you visit. 

Today, we were on our own so we decided to fix that. We walked off the Eurodam and caught a taxi to the waterfront, about 3 ½ miles away. (It cost $10 each way and our American dollars were eagerly accepted.) Our driver let us out near the cathedral because we’d told him we hoped to join in the worship service if it was possible. We'd already viewed it as an outstanding example of colonial architecture, but we were hoping to see it as it was meant to be used--as a place of worship.  He assured us we’d be welcomed. 

Mass was underway, so we slipped into one of the back pews. Parishioners were moving down the center aisle toward the celebrant who was offering communion at the altar. We aren’t Catholic so we didn’t go forward. It was still a quiet time of joining with our God and our fellow Christians. 

A truly lovely soprano voice wafted up to the high ceiling. Light and lilting, she was singing Ave Maria, a piece I’ve sung many times, but instead of Latin, she sang it in Spanish. It was a moment of exquisite joy! 

Then after mass ended, a few families moved toward the front of the cathedral, bringing their babies to be christened. The children were dressed all in white, festooned with lace, like little princes and princesses, surrounded by their extended families. It was clearly a special moment in the lives of these worshippers and I felt so privileged to be there to witness it. 

After “having some church,” we wandered back to the waterfront to check out the public art installations. There was also a unique street musician situation involving three men in traditional garb perched on the top of a pole as tall as the surrounding palm trees. One of them played a penny whistle I could hear from a block or two away, while the other two banged away on drums. 

I wish there had been someone on the ground to explain the behavior and provide a way for us to drop some money in a hat or something. If I am entertained by something, I always want to chip in. 

It was bewildering, but intriguing, and clearly meant something to the men who were performing.

The temps were rising and it was time for lunch, so we caught another cab back to the pier. I had logged about 8K steps on our little jaunt. I have nothing but happy memories from both our visits to Puerto Vallarta! It was a good day all around.

A kind fellow passenger offered to snap our picture while we were doing our rounds on the promenade deck. We never get tired of the wake view behind us!

PS. One thing we discovered that is different about our southern neighbor is that medicines that are "by prescription only" in the states are freely available at the corner drugstore/mini-mart in Mexico. Here is a shopping list that was shoved under our noses when we ducked in to pick up a couple of cold cokes.

We could have walked out with plenty of mood-altering substances as well as some serious pain meds. One of my docs offered me something with codeine in it once. I thanked him but told him, "No, I'm using my brain at the moment."