Return To Vallarta
And, I am back; did you miss me? I have been home for about 36 hours, unpacking, doing laundry, snuggling with my darling Bogie, and easing back into my former fabulous life in the tropics.
It is wonderful to be warm. The enormous heat wave that swept Europe this summer never adhered to my schedule and left me wrapped daily in my black cashmere shawl that saved me from freezing to death!
I left my house in Centro last evening and took my time walking over to Garbo’s to listen to Sargento Dan, who was entertaining the crowd with an early show while celebrating his 32nd birthday.
I stopped on the way at Michael Tolleson Robles’ gallery on Olas Altas to get a hug and see how he is doing. He is well, painting daily and selling his amazing work. We chatted briefly about how quiet the city is. For me, it was delightful to be able to see where I was walking without a wall of people surrounding me on four sides. European streets are packed with humans busily getting to where they are bound. Note to self in future lives: come back much taller and bigger, and maybe just stay home!
Garbo’s was full of well-wishers, and my seat was tucked away safely, close to the stage, and surrounding the table were some of my dearest friends on earth – Rob Burton and Jan Dorland, who are Sargento’s producers and mentors, and Sharon Gerber Scherer and her hubby, Rob. Sharon is Vallarta’s Air Fryer Queen, current city Scrabble champion, Sargento’s Jewish ”mother,” and is, to me, a perfect person. Her kindness knows no bounds, and she is a bundle of talent and a beauty to boot, aka, perfect.
The hugs from that table alone restored my soul and welcomed me home. The love continued from superstar Gloria Fiona and her wife Irene, Gabe Arciniega was in the house, parked at the bar, surrounded by local talented singers. Kimberly G and Alfredo Mendoza sang as guests of Sargento.
And then there was the Birthday Boy himself. What a difference a couple of years have made with this extraordinary young man. I remember seeing and hearing him at Nacho Daddy at Open Mic, knowing there was something rare about him.
The theme for Sargento’s birthday was Mario, a cartoon character and Nintendo mascot. Sargento managed to find plumber-style overalls to match his superhero. Cupcakes were topped by various Mario-related characters, and a gift box dispensed small favors to whoever contributed tips to the evening’s performance.
Jet lag caught up to me almost at the end of the evening, and I had to bail out early as curling up in my seat and going to sleep was not an option – I still had a long walk home.
Vallarta was so quiet last night; just what I needed to decompress further and walk off last week’s train and airplane travel and sitting for hours on end.