On the road again...to Guadalajara

We left early by luxury bus to begin our road trip as we head towards Mexico City. The bus headed north than east over the mountains towards Guadelarja. The landscape along the way was beautiful...

There were many farms and ranches...

But not many towns to be seen as there were many miles of this gorgeous countryside, it is dry season now but in rainy season it must be many shades of green.

 

The trip to Guadalajara took about four and half hours and we stopped on the outskirts of the city at a very modern bus terminal. As we were driving in we were surprised to see the signs of a modern city unlike the only other Mexican city we have visited which was Merida.

 

Guadalajara is the second largest city in Mexico with a population of about 4 million including the suburbs so we naively thought it would be very crowded and dirty but that is not the case.

We arrived at our AirBnB casa, owned by Julieta and Mario, a young professional couple who have made the city their home. Their house is located in a very nice neighbourhood that is close to downtown and very walkable.

Our room is located at the back of the house with sliding glass doors to an outside space.

One of the neighbourhood streets...

Everywhere the streets are cleaned and the houses very well maintained.

After we settled in we went out to explore the neighbourhood which has lots of great places to eat and seems to be filled with young people from the many universities in Guadalajara.

We also were told by Mario that there are a lot of artisan beers made here so we tried a few...

 

The next morning we walked to Centro and were very impressed with this city...

Large Gothic cathedrals that would look at home in Italy

 

Creative murals on many corners...

 

Shaded places to meet friends...

 

Lovely plazas everywhere we looked...the city is so pedestrian friendly.

Lots of sculptures everywhere..

 

Including huge ones in roundabouts.

The avenues are wide and leafy with Arches reminiscent of the Arc de Triumphe in Paris, in fact there were many times today we remarked how this place felt like a European city.

And of course there is always a market...

And things to be sold....

 

This area is also known as the birthplace of tequila so of course we had to take a tour of one of the oldest factories here..

The beginning of the process is harvesting the fruit of the agave plant which takes 7- 10 years to grow. They are put through a process of steaming to extract the agave honey and then through a distallation process to create tequila.

We received a short course on the types of tequila produced and how they should be consumed, apparently not in a shot glass!

 

It was quite an interesting tour and at the end Don had made a new friend...

 

We also spent some time in the town of Talaquepaque which is well known for its arts particularly pottery and blown glass. It is quite a walkable town with lots of pedestrian only streets, galleries, museums and shops.

 

A beautiful town square that was filled with rose gardens...

A small church which was preparing for a funeral when we were there. It was interesting to see the mourners walking behind the hearse all the way up to the church.

There was lots to see such as this mural in the town hall...

And this sign outside the town hall...

They were collecting guns and at the end of the table they had a saw to cut them in pieces.

Great street art...

Leaders of the Revolution...

Guadelarja is also known as the birthplace of the mariachi band but unfortunately the only one we saw was this one....

 

Here are some pictures of the shops, galleries and the ceramic museum...

 

I loved the colour of this display in the museum.

 

Absolutely gorgeous paintings everywhere...

And so interesting ceramic work.

Some random shots of people I noticed... this woman was teaching the boy how to bead the animal she was making.

 

This nun was reading a book about amor (love).

There were so many sights to see in Guadalajara and area and we were really glad that we visited here, not knowing what to expect but being surprised everywhere we looked!

 

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A month in Bucerias,Mexico

Well our time in Progreso was over and three months went quickly so we were now moving from the Yucatan peninsula to the west coast of Mexico. We left Progreso early our last day and decided to spend our last night at the Gran Hotel in Merida as we love the city in the night time.

The Gran Hotel is one of the oldest hotels in Merida and must have indeed been a grand lady in her time. She is a little worn around the edges but still impressive...

Here is an interior shot of the hotel...legend has it that Fidel Castro and Che Guevara stayed here as well.

Merida comes alive in the evening when it is cooler and the streets are filled with people...

Not a great shot but it is in the Grand Plaza which is the main square in front of the Cathedral. If you could see there are lots of people strolling, sitting and enjoying the evening. One of the best things about winters in Mexico is being able to sit out and enjoy the warm night air.

 

We left early on March 1 to take a taxi to the airport to catch a flight to Puerto Vallarta and good thing we were early. I had booked our flights on a budget Mexican airline and when we arrived they told us our flight from Merida to Mexico City was on time but the other flight from Mexico Ciry to Puerto Vallarta was cancelled. So after several conversations they booked us on another airline and we actually got to our destination earlier which was a lot better than the first answer saying we had to stay overnight in Mexico City. I find being polite but persistent usually solves the problem.

Here is a map of Mexico that shows Merida in the Yucatan Peninsula and Puerta Vallarta on the west coast...

We chose this area because we had never been on the Pacific Side and had heard many good things about it. There was also an International airport in PV so family could fly in easily. We decided that we wanted a small town so we settled on a place called Bucerias...meaning the Place of Divers which was about 20 kms north of PV.

The centrepiece of this area is the Bay of Banderas and the coastline that runs along its shores. It is about 100 kms long and sits at the base of the Sierra Madre mountains. The landscape is much greener and lush than the Yucatan and the temperatures are a bit milder.

Here in Bucerias there are lots of green spaces and lovely flowers...

A house just down the street from us. We are renting a house in an upscale neighbourhood that has many huge homes with lovely gardens.

The streets for some reason I can't figure out are almost all cobblestones so very difficult walking and driving. This is the street by our house running downhill to the beach which is about 5 minutes walk.

We are located on the very edge of town on the same street as an all inclusive resort, the only one in town. It is called the Royal Decameron and we have talked to people who have been coming to stay here for years.

Our time here has been very laid back as we had company for most of the time...

Dawn and Matt came for a week and enjoyed their time here, especially the great food.

Though sometimes we ate in with Matt being the chef and me being the dishwasher...here he is BBQing fish with a headlamp.

 

There were lots of days on the beach enjoying a cold beverage...

 

And time cooling off in the pool....

 

The beach here is lovely, quite long for walking and very few people...

When Dawn and Matt left Anne Marie, Mike, Cooper and Quinn arrived and our quiet existence was shattered!

 

There were nice mornings on the beach but when the wind came up in the afternoon there was the pool...

 

Pop was always ready with the water gun and him and Cooper had many fights!

Quinn was really brave and even jumped in the pool without her water wings!

Also time to relax.

So thankful for an IPAD!

And go to Feliz Hora! Cooper's choice of beverage was Orange Fanta...

And it seems everyone is enjoying their papas frites...

 

However with two small children it was easier to eat at home with lots of great vegetables available...

And Quinn enjoying her bananas...

 

Since it was hot we didn't go far but managed a few walks around town with the kids in the double stroller.

 

Bucerias is a very different town than Progreso in that it has many amenities for tourists while Progreso has few! The town has about 5000 people and is separated by a highway where the area closest to the beach is filled with foreigners and the area away from the beach is where the local Mexicans live. The town looks like a holiday destination yet there is still a local feel to the place.

There are lots of places for tourists to shop...

 

To have a spa treatment...

The town is full of art galleries and each Thursday night there is an art walk when the galleries open their doors offering beverages and snacks to encourage visitors to walk in...

Fabulous art everywhere!

There are also lots of activities so I did Yoga for a month at one of the local studios across the highway. Anne Marie and Dawn joined me while they were here and we enjoyed it a lot. However when we were there it was difficult to concentrate because we were on the main highway and this was our view...

 

A huge Marilyn outside the local gym and our favourite French pastry and coffee shop where we stopped every day on our way home from yoga.

As in most Mexican towns there is a central square around which much of life revolves...

 

There is always a church...

Lots of food stands..

Bars...

And all the drugs one would need...

 

It is also separated by a river which at this time of year is dry but everyone has to pass over the kissing bridge...

 

There are still signs of the slower side of life as we often saw horses and their owners on the streets

And at the beach especially on the weekends the Mexican kids enjoying themselves, here they are chasing sea snakes so waiting for them to come ashore.

The town has many great restaurants, both Mexican and International...here we are on our last night enjoying a meal in the courtyard of a Greek restaurant.

 

Overall we really enjoyed our time in Bucerias and can see why many ex pats make their homes here and why the area receives so many visitors each year. We would definitlely recommend this coast as a destination for someone looking to experience Mexico without roughing it!

 

 

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