A Beautiful Monday Morning in Puerto Vallarta
A beautiful Monday morning with clear skies for a change! The air feels lighter, a good start to another week in Vallarta.
What I love most about any conversation is to hear people’s opinions and thoughts about Vallarta. Particularly the ones that touch on serendipity and ‘coincidental’ moments, which are a rite of passage for newbies and – if you are aware – will continue to happen almost daily here in Vallarta.
One such conversation took place over mango smoothies with Deborah Cole last Friday. I met her at The Palm and sat beside her and Matt Karimi a couple of weeks ago. A quick exchange of names and business cards before a performance, then emails, finally led to an opportunity to sit and get to know one another. We wound story after story about mutual friends and how people from ‘up there’ (Texas and Canada) and the two of us in Mexico are inextricably bound. It was such a lovely couple of hours. Our paths will cross again this evening at Georgia Darehshori’s house.
Vallarta Mirror columnist and dear friend of mine, Sandra Bradley, joined me for dinner at Richard Burton’s glorious old house overlooking the city for dinner last Saturday. We had plenty of time to chat before the mariachi began entertaining the booked-solid crowd at Hacienda San Angel We enjoyed their Restaurant Week Menu with beet salad, vegetarian entree, and dessert, which we washed down with a delicious raicilla made close to El Tuito. Restaurant Week ends tomorrow, so get out there and choose one of the participating 50 eateries this year and indulge!
The First Saturday at Arte Vallarta Museo is always a party with Mexican food, fabulous live music, exhibitions of art, loads of wine, and conversation. The Museo is like a beacon, and last Saturday, three friends I adore finally made it for the first time, and I am sure, not their last! It was lovely to see Janet Simmonds, Brian Bott, and Jody Wolk enjoying the enormous patio and open air. Monica Miller and Vicki Walters Paulin joined our table just as Sharon Gerber, her hubby Rob, and John and Barb McKinney strode in the front door. Sydney Clark and Fatima were there and, of course, Bradley and the missus, who never miss an event at the Museo. William Haydon tended the bar with purpose, Director Nathalie Herling and husband Javier Nino made their way to every table to say hello, as did Curator Richard Di Via.
I was at the Museo the next day for a Workout and Caridad (Charity) fundraiser. There were puppies and dogs everywhere, all behaving like the best of friends – it was quite remarkable. Nathalie and I sat waiting for Colette Zarry to arrive with Roxy, a dog she has been fostering for two years that my sister, Patrice, wants to adopt. It was my job to assess if Roxy would be a good addition to my sister’s life. I think she will be a fine fit.