L, J and I are on our fantastic Puerto Vallarta vacation adventure of awesome, where the sun and the fun and the margaritas and friendly Mexicans just don’t stop!! We love the hotel that we’re at, and are spending about ten hours a day alternating from the pool to the beach lounge chairs, beckoning Gerardo (our fav waiter who calls us “my loves” and “my honies” and somehow its not creepy) to bring on another round of nachos or chili lime pistachios…and oh sure one more margarita. There are peacocks roaming the grounds that sometimes come right up to you to say hello, or in my case, come inside the workout room and take a poopie next to your elliptical and need to be chased out.

We are three of the maybe five white people who are here. And the girls say that I might not really count as white, since I speak in Spanish all day and am turning a lovely shade of Mexican in the sun. I love getting my espanol back up to speed and talking to strangers to find out things like “how do  you say ‘brat” in spanish?” and other obscure terms. We went downtown to the boardwalk or “malecon” and walked around, went out dancing, and didn’t see many more white peeps there, either. We did meet some military men on leave, but that was about it.the white folks we have seen are making sure that we know they are white, mostly by wearing the American flag as swim shorts or wearing those hideous shirts with a bikini-ed body on it…

Everyone is extremely friendly. I love Mexicans. I love how the Mexican men, from ages 13-70, are totally open about checking us out. I had one waiter who had to be about 68 years old come and ask me where my boyfriend was. I was lying on my lounge chair in my bikini and he was really openly eyeballing me. I explained I had no boyfriend, and he wanted to know why not, because “with a face and body like yours, are the guys in the estados unidos blind? you should live here in mexico, you would never be alone.” And somehow it wasn’t creepy, it just made me laugh. They do love their women here.

J has also had to hold me back from kidnapping mexican children…or at least asking their parents if I can hang out with them. they are so dang cute with these huge eyelashes and big old smiles, barbie bathing suits on and princess floaties. the boys are all in spiderman gear and goggles smashed up to their faces. And its a kind of cultural thing that the children just run right into you or hold onto you for balance in the pool, and its cute. Maybe its a teacher thing that I feel like I can talk to all children. Somehow even when they are yelling at each other, because its in a munchkin Spanish voice, its adorable.

I am eating my weight in chips and salsa and guacamole. And they do not skimp on portions here. you ask for a side of guacamol and they bring you a salad bowl of it. Fantastic for me.

Its my birthday tomorrow! At least i think it is. j and i had a ten minute discussion about what day of the week it was and we’re pretty sure its wednesday…but thats the beauty of vacation, especially for teachers who always have to be so conscious of the time and how much time is left and what day it is and plan plan plan. We have no idea what the day or hour is, we are guided by our hunger and our thirst and the sun that sets around eightish.

The lounge chairs and ocean breeze are calling me! chau amigos :) besitos de raquel.

i may never come home :)