We knew that the main reason Nate’s parents were coming to Mexico was to see us Sully, but we still wanted to show them around and give them a nice vacation. In the six days they were in Puerto Vallarta, they got to experience not only resort Mexico, but also the real, small town Mexico that most tourists never venture out to see.

They arrived tired and hungry, so we hopped on a bus and headed to the beach. We took them to the beach side restaurant we went to with our new friends the week before. We had discovered ceviche and wanted more! We enjoyed a nice lunch and some beers before taking a walk down the malecon (seaside walkway) and finding a bus back to La Cruz. We could tell our guests were tired – they had been up since 2am!

Thinking back about their visit, it seems like the first few days revolve around food and drink. But there’s no better way to get to know a place than by trying the food! Thier first morning we woke up and went out for huevos rancheros (rancher’s eggs served with tortillas) and chilaquiles (tortilla chips covered in salsa) for breakfast and that night we had the most flavorful rib-eye tacos at Tacos on the Street. The next day we did a tequila tasting followed by “drowned” carnitas tortas for lunch.

After tacos one night, we walked through the La Cruz town square and found a big bouncy house blown up. They were getting ready for the Semana Santa (Easter) carnival. Sully jumped and played for over a hour. We texted his friend’s mom to let them know about the fun. Soon Sully was jumping along with his best friends Ollie and Emma. It was so cool to see Sully in there having SO MUCH FUN! I was glad that he wasn’t nervous at all and climbed right on in the huge structure. The bounce house was there the next night, too, along with other rides. Sully begged to go on the bounce house again all day, but once he saw the cars to ride, that’s what was on the agenda. He had his heart set on a pink big rig with Whinnie the Poo on it, but that ride was broken. He settled on the pink jeep.

After three nights at anchor, it was time to get these landlubbers into a marina before the seasickness meds wore off! We motored to Paradise Village Marina where we would stay for the duration of Lynn and Mary’s visit. We spent the next three days enjoying the perks of dock life and resort living!

On Sunday nights there is a welcome party with free snacks and drinks. The hotel staff comes up on stage and describes all the events that happen during the week. There is a kids club and to promote it all the kids get up on stage to play a game, and Sully wanted to get up on stage! The kids line up and when the music starts they put on the sombrero, spin around and then pass the hat along. If the music stops when you have the hat on, you’re out! Sully needed a little help from the staff, but there were a few other toddlers on stage, and the crowd was cheering for them all. When there was about five kids left (and the little ones kept getting free passes) they asked for a parent to come on stage to give guidance. Once I went onstage to help, Sully lost interest in the game and just wanted to go back to his seat and eat his popcorn. Guess he didn’t get my competitive spirit!

The marina leads back into an estuary that is a known crocodile zone. We took a dinghy ride one day and went crocodile hunting. We even brought a whole chicken that had been in the fridge a little too long. We saw one big one and one baby one, but didn’t catch them on camera, and the chicken just ended up sinking to the bottom. Hopefully a croc found it as a snack later.

On the last night of their visit the hotel had a big Mexican Fiesta! We decided to splurge and enjoyed the food (every Mexican dish you can think of), drinks (they gave us shot glasses to wear around our necks and filled them with tequila all evening!) and dancing (they had dancers from each state in Mexico). Of course there was a mariachi band and what’s a party without silly balloon hats! It ended up being a great night and by the end, Sully was up on the dance floor wooing all the girls.

Some more pics just for fun!

We sent Nana and Pappy back to the airport before dawn. Our last obligation in La Cruz was completed so now we could start planning our passage north in to the Sea of Cortez. We plan to sail north to Guaymas and haul Astraea out of the water in May. We’ll return to the United States to renew our tourist visas and visit friends and family.