01 January 2011

Au revoir Eric! - 1 January

Today is Eric's day to fly home.  Eric set up the taxi yesterday when Dave had arranged his.  Eric's flight was at 12h40, he wanted to leave the condo at 10h00, so he would have lots of time.  Wise, that's the way I like to do it too - spend extra time in the airport instead of risking a delay messing you up.

Just before accompanying our "little boy" (ha ha) to the airport


Dayna wanted she and I to go with him, so we accompanied our little boy (23 yrs old remember!) the airport.  We had figured it would be a zoo, with all kinds of flights coming and going today.  However, it wasn't all that bad.  There was a lineup of maybe 200 people for a Canjet flight to Vancouver, but Eric's Westjet flight to Winnipeg was only about 100 people.  After about five minutes in line, Eric quietly said to me, "You know, you don't have to stay."

Well, that's equivalent to asking us to leave, so realizing that he can readily deal with things from there, we did leave.  We took the walkway over the highway (wish we had one of those over the perimeter between the Harte Trail and the Headingley Grand Trunk Trail) and caught the northbound bus back to Bucerias.  12 pesos each, what a deal.

At one stop, several folks got on the bus, then an old fellow started talking to the driver from just outside the door.  Of course the exchange was all in Spanish, so I don't know what they were talking about, but I could have sworn that the fellow was gunning for a free ride.  He didn't seem to want to let us pull out until he got what he wanted, whatever it was.  He also seemed to be calling more potential riders in and directing them onto the bus.  At one point, he was waving some kind of a pulley in the doorway, looked like a clothes hanger pulley.  It was almost like he was trying to barter with the driver to get a ride!  Well, this went on for about five minutes, and each time that the bus driver revved the engine and I felt the clutch ease out and the bus pull forward, the driver backed off and stopped again.  The fellow would talk a bit more, and a couple more people would get onto the bus.  Dayna was thinking that maybe he was threatening to lay down in front of the bus or some such thing to impede its progress, but my impression was that he wanted a free ride.

Finally, I heard the driver ask, although again my Spanish was poor, something like, "So you want five pesos?"  And then toss a coin out the door to the fellow and drive away.

Extortion on the highway!  For five pesos!  Wait a minute, remember that it's 11 or 12 to the dollar, so not a big deal.

So for you telecom folks out there (any Norscan guys listening?), when you see an open cabinet on a street corner, what do you think?  This is 1/2 block from the condo where we are staying.  It appears to be fully punched down, and live!

Open patch cabinet on the corner?  Free telephone for anyone who can hook up to it!


Once back, we had a light lunch and flopped for a bit - me to do my E-mail and blogs, Dayna had a walk and a siesta - and then went down to the beach for few "laps" in the ocean and catch some late afternoon sun.

My "laps" were difficult - I'm not used to swimming in such salty water!  I had trouble keeping the goggles from leaking.  And those silly rented jet-skis, before and after my swim I could see them going back and forth within about 60 ft of the shore, within the area where I and others were swimming!  Bozos.  I had to keep an eye out for them, don't need to get whacked by a jet-ski.

Dayna relaxes in the sun!

Dean dripping after coming in from a swim in the ocean


There were a lot more people on the beach than there have been, both Mexican folks and vacationers (easy to tell because of their pale complexion - oops just like me).  This makes sense, as we are aware that a lot of flights come in to Puerto Vallarta on Saturday.

There was a Mexican family just down the beach from us, they appeared to have brought a bucket full of pea gravel and spread it where they sat.  I wonder why, since the sand is so silky soft and warm?  They had a bunch of coconuts and tequila bottles.  They appeared to be breaking open the coconuts, eating some of the meat, then filling them with tequila, and drinking up!  Wow what a system they had!

Eating coconut meat and drinking tequila out of the shell - a family outing for all ages?


A little further, a fellow came along with a wheelbarrow full of coconuts and other things.  I saw him whacking coconuts in two, carving the meat out of them, putting the meat in a baggie, putting in other things, and selling them to folks on the beach.  I wondered what exactly he was doing, but then again, I didn't want to ask, because with my gullible nature, I'd end up buying it, even if I didn't want it!

Whacking a coconut with a machete

Delivering the product, whatever it is, to a customer


We had a quiet supper without any of the kids, just the four of us.  Basso - yes, fish - and rice, very nice.

We went for a walk afterward.  The town is very quiet tonight.

Oops, we got back and that bad two blocks away is at it again.  They are going crazy - going to be another one of those nights, I guess.  Oh well, it sounds like they are having a good time, anyway.

Tomorrow being Sunday, the market will be open and we'll be going down in the morning.

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