#2328 travel Tuesday: Puerto Vallarta

My friend from work, Mandy, and her husband are going on vacation the day after tomorrow. They are going to spend ten days in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico! I think it's the first time she has been out of the country. She is crazy with excitement and I'm totally stoked for her. We have talked about her trip since she decided they would go on vacation. She's been doing lots of research and checking out Pinterest for ideas of things to do and places to eat and sights to see. I know she and her husband are going to have an amazing time because they are fun, adventurous people who will embrace everything about being on vacation. Cheers Mandy and Courtney! I can't wait to hear about your adventures!

I have been to Puerto Vallarta one time. It was the final stop on the Mexican Riviera cruise we took in February 2009. T got to choose the excursion for that stop, and he selected a Jeep ride through the countryside to a tequila factory/tasting. In 2009 he was almost eleven years old, so of course he couldn't taste the tequila. He just wanted to ride in the open-top Jeep and check out the countryside.

After the tequila tasting, we jumped right back in the Jeep and headed back to town. I should specify  that we were with a tour group and there was a caravan of about ten to twelve Jeeps. It wasn't like we were just cruising around the countryside without guidance, wearing red bandanas, looking like bandidos. The tour guides gave us the bandanas because the road got dusty in some places.

Like I said, we headed back to town. The guides directed us to a restaurant right on the beach so we could have some drinks and lunch and get in the water if we so desired. T desired...

Gosh, he was fun on that trip!

I don't remember how we got back to the cruise ship area. I think there was a bus. T wanted to go back to the ship and chill out. MT and I decided to look for souvenirs and maybe have a drink before we got back on board. T was happy to find his way - I think we walked him to the boarding area and he was all about doing it himself. His plan was to get something to drink and some cookies and watch a movie in the room.

MT and I looked for souvies but couldn't find anything we liked, so we went to a bar right near the ship; it was very close. We then proceeded to get as drunk as I have probably ever been. I hesitate to share this pic, but it tells the story:

There are details in post #1614 if you care to revisit that classic. After so many drinks, we were much more inclined to shop. That's when we bought the ugliest souvenir ever. The post I mentioned has a photo.

Anyway, I certainly hope Mandy and Courtney make some happy memories in Puerto Vallarta and maybe buy a souvenir or two that they will be proud to display.