Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (2024)
We were docked in the harbor of Puerto Vallarta on the morning of January 30. A much larger cruise ship was docked nearby and was playing a movie or video on its top deck, where there were also some carnival style rides being used. The soundtrack was loud enough that we could hear it on our verandah, pretty far away. A party ship, we guess. During the morning we enjoyed watching a number of pelicans were flying around the area between the ships, doing who knows what (but probably looking for food).
Spanish influence in this area dates back to the 16th century. Early in the century Hernan Cortes sent ships up the coast from Acapulco to establish harbors safe from the pirates that were rampant in the area. Near the town of Tintoque (now Puerto Vallarta) one ship was wrecked and all but 3 crew perished, with bodies floating to shore for some days. Apparently a number of red flags floated to shore with them, resulting in this being named the Bay of Banderas. A nephew of Cortes conquered the area in 1525 and Tintoque became an important port for the Spanish galleons travelling between Manila and Mexico. The Spanish village that became Puerto Vallarta began in the mid 19th century and by 1885 had about 800 residents.
Puerto Vallarta became a major tourist and vacation center in the late 20th century, attracting many US tourists and vacationers after the 1964 film Night of the Iguana was filmed here, with extensive press coverage of the activities of Richard Burton, one of the film’s stars, and Elizabeth Taylor. Today about 80% of the workforce in this city of 275,000 is employed in tourism.
Not having been here before, we decided to take a taxi to the Malecon (the city’s downtown beach walk) to explore the town. Once we got to downtown we passed many cobblestone streets and colorful buildings. The cab dropped us off at the edge of the boardwalk next to a sandy beach where some pelicans and a snowy egret engaged in a food frenzy when a fellow dumped some garbage from a container there.
The church of Our Lady of Guadalupe is an iconic sight in Puerto Vallarta. Located in the center of the old town, its tall tower topped by an open see-through crown is visible all around the area and is often featured in photos of the city. It was built in the 1930’s on the foundations of a chapel dating to 1901. The Lady of Guadalupe is the patron saint of Mexico, beginning with an event in 1531.
The stations of the cross were depicted inside in what appear to be deep relief carvings on small stone panels.
The original crown on top of the church was replaced in 1985 because of erosion. However it was badly damaged in a 1995 earthquake and the current crown was erected in 2009.
We walked back down the hill from the church to the Plaza de Armas, which had a small bandstand pavilion. A book sale was in progress under a long tent and there were some adult size rocking horses nearby for people to use.
Between the plaza and the Malecon (sea side walk) is a small amphitheater for free public performances. It is called Los Arcos because the stage is backed by four arches standing in front of the water. The arches are an arresting sight in front of the water with the distant shore of the city behind.
A little down the Malecon we crossed a bridge over the Cuale River. Further up this river is an area called Gringo Gulch which includes the house built there by Elizabeth Taylor where she and Richard Burton lived (it is now a small hotel). We walked down to an island in the mouth of the river where there was a lively market.
We have seen mosaic sidewalks before, notably in areas with Portuguese culture. But the ones in the Malecon were quite different, made of small polished black stones set in the concrete sidewalks in what appear to be indigenous style representations of wildlife.
The Malecon is a mile long paved waterfront walk lined on the shore side with many shops and restaurants (most with English signs catering to tourists). It is very lively and colorful and makes for a nice place to spend a day. Of course, this is a resort town and we saw one with a pool on the Malecon rather than on a beach.
The most distinctive aspect of the Malecon is a series of sculptures set along the walk. Created mostly by local or regional artists, they are quite varied. One of the best known, considered an icon of Puerta Vallarte along with the church and the arches, is the Boy On A Seahorse. A small version erected on a nearby beach in the 1960’s was swept away by the sea and this one was set up on the Malecon in 1976.
“Millenium” is a soaring sculpture installed in 2001. “Vallarta Dancers” is unusual in that it is brightly colored (what would Mexican dance be without bright, swirling colors?). We aren’t sure when it was erected, but it was already there in 2014.
“Tritón y Sirena, erected in 1990, depicts two figures from Greek mythology. “Nature As Mother” is a sort of combination person and wave. We don’t know when it was created, but it was there by 2021.
“The Rotunda By The Sea” dates to 1996. It consists of eight figures with seats looking like thrones. The patina has worn off the seats, which are gleaming bronze, probably because people often sit on them for pictures.
Another sculpture with a sitting theme is “Nostalgia,” installed in 1984. “In Search Of Reason” was erected here in 2000. It depicts a pillow headed woman standing on the ground watching two girls climbing to the top of a free standing ladder. Apparently the unoccupied lower part of the ladder is a little too inviting, as we watched four women climb up for a photo. We walked on before seeing whether it would hold them all.
Some people perform and solicit money in this area. We saw evidence of people having stacked rocks on the beach, but the people were gone when we got there. Then we happened by while a group of colorfully dressed people hanging upside down from cables attached to a very tall pole were playing instruments as they were swung around the pole, descending bit by bit. We have no idea what this was about (other than the assistants working the crowd for donations), but it sure was unusual.
We grabbed a cab and headed back to the Zuiderdam, still patiently waiting right where we left it. It turned out that to reach the ship from the taxi drop off required walking through a long obstacle course of vendors selling all variety of things we didn’t want. We sailed away from Puerto Vallarta (and the Western Hemisphere) in late afternoon and headed out for a long sail across the Pacific Ocean.
Manzanillo, Mexico (2024)
We were out on our veranda as the Zuiderdam pulled into Manzanillo harbor late in the morning on January 29. Manzanillo has a population of about 160,000 and its port is the busiest one in Mexico. Some military boats were in the water nearby as we sailed in, one of which had a soldier in front with a machine gun over his shoulder. When I looked again he seemed to be taking a picture of me while I took one of him (more likely he was photographing the ship).
Manzanillo bay was discovered by the Spanish in 1527 and it served as a base for shipbuilding and exploration for the next 300 years, while pirates roamed these seas. Today it is a center for sport fishing, calling itself the “Sailfish Capital of the World.” If you have seen the Bo Derek-Dudley Moore film “10” you have seen Manzanillo, where much of it was filmed. From the ship the town appeared colorful, with a huge sculpture of a blue sailfish in the center of the Malecon. But later in the day we would drive through the town and it seemed rather drab and uncolorful, with many American businesses familiar from home (like Home Depot), all with signs in English.
So we did not regret having booked an excursion that would take us to a town called La Central to visit one of the largest orchid farms in Mexico, called VivePlants. We picked this primarily because Mary wanted some tips on how not to kill orchids (sounds funny, but they are very fussy). We exited the bus in an area with many large tent-like areas set up in neat rows, with a beautiful Bougainvillia array about 10 feet tall at the place were we alighted.
We were guided through several of these vast areas covered with a shady mesh sheeting and full of growing tables holding orchid plants in various stages of growth, some with flowers and some without any yet. They sell most of their orchids as cut flowers, though they are expanding into the sale of plants as well.
Fidel, the founder and owner of VivePlants, addressed our group. He has studied horticulture and orchids in Japan and the Netherlands and explained the history and current state of the orchid industry. It turns out there are some 25,000 to 30,000 natural types of orchids and more than twice that many that have been bred by humans. And did Mary get the orchid tips she was hoping for? Oh yes, several of which Fidel says are his alone so we should keep them among ourselves. So I won’t be sharing those tips here (also because I really don’t remember most of them). Before leaving we were shown to the gift shop, which had plants for sale and other orchid related products, notably some necklaces displaying actual orchid blossoms that had been treated somehow for preservation.
We were taken to a nearby place with a walled patio where we sat under a canopy made of leaves for some lunch and a performance of Mexican dancing in a festive atmosphere. The food was very good, including tostadas with guacamole, empanadas and very sweet fresh local fruit, particularly the pineapple and mangoes.
The young dancers looked like they might be high school age, but danced very well and wore very colorful costumes. They received an enthusiastic response and a good time was had by all. Rick stayed in his seat and took some pictures over the heads of other diners, but Robert cleverly walked to the edge of the stage to get cleaner pictures of the dancers. He generously shared those, some of which are included here.
After the drive through the hills back to Manzanillo we were left at the Malecon, a mile long waterfront promenade near where the ship was docked. It is a nice area for walking or sitting on one of the many benches, and there are a number of sculptures and other things to see. We showed you the distinctive blue sailfish sculpture that dominates the area, but we also saw a skeleton of what we think is a whale and a few other unusual sculptures as well.
That’s all from Manzanillo as we headed to our second and last Mexican port. We will leave you with a towel animal, which is much rarer than it used to be on these voyages.
BADER JOURNAL 
