March 17, 2018 - Punta Perula to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

We packed up and moved 95 miles north today to Puerto Vallarta. What a change!

One of the little towns we went through had a carnival set up with a few rides. They were all right next to the highway!We encountered road construction today, too. No flagmen, no pilot cars, just stay on the left side of the road and share it with oncoming traffic and yield if you have a bigger area to pull over a little!On the right side of the road they piled boulders, rocks, tree limbs and even small boards with nails sticking up in them to prevent you from using that side. It is very different than what you would find in the US, but somehow, it works!We managed to get through Puerto Vallarta to Tacho’s RV Park without missing a single turn and avoided all of the “laterals”. YEAH! If you stay on the MEX200 highway through the hotel zone, there are roads that run parallel to the main road called “laterals.” If you are a bus, truck, or RV, you need to make sure you stay on the outside laterals. When we came here six years ago, we didn’t know about the bypass which avoided that  area and it was a miserable drive. Today, it was a piece of cake!

Once we checked in we got some lunch and took the bus into the “Centro” to walk along the malecon. We happened onto a Canadian bagpipe group who were performing. Fun little St. Patrick’s Day surprise!There was a Princess cruise ship in so there were lots of tourists along the malecon. This shop caught the attention of a few folks!Beach side of the malecon there were sand sculptures and rock balancing. Each had little buckets set up where you could leave a “propina” (tip) for the artist. There are lots of sculptures along the malecon, as well. We did stop in one shop to see this Huichol art. This artwork is now made with beads. Originally, artists used clay, stone, and vegetable dyes, then coral, bone, jade, and seeds to create these amazing pieces!Some of the larger pieces sell for over $3500 USD each! We didn’t buy any today!We took the bus back and will have a quiet evening in and see what tomorrow brings.