Blame It On Mexico

Well folks...I'm reluctantly back in the saddle...back in Austin after 5 days in beautiful, sunny Puerto Vallarta. My traveling compadres (Ash, Ted, and Joe) and I had a great time filled with lots of sand, surf, and sunshine....and the occasional spirit. My apologies for the delayed posting of the blog as well as it's extreme length, but I couldn’t find the time for periodic updates on this trip. So, here's the play by play (with a little left to the imagination to protect the not so innocent).

Last Wednesday we left a drizzly, cold, miserable morning in Austin for Mexico. With a glass of bubbly for Ash and I and some bloody mary's for the boys we toasted what was sure to be a weekend to remember (albeit hazy).

We arrived about 1 that afternoon and checked in to the Westin Puerto Vallarta. The hotel was great. Our rooms were ready in time for our early check in, so we downed our first official cocktails in Mexico, changed into our swimsuits, and hit the beach for a full afternoon of sun. The weather was perfect. It was sunny and just warm enough that you wanted to get in the pool every once in a while, but you weren't sweating to death while you lounged in the sun. We lounged in the Nikki Beach Club area that afternoon which is a swanky area of mattress type lounge chairs, complete with mounds of pillows, loads of waiters, and a DJ spinning tunes (although we quickly realized that my iPod was a much better fit for our needs.)


Of course, we really blew it out the first night: we had a wonderful dinner at Hacienda San Angel up "in the hills "that had a killer view of all of Puerto Vallarta. After a fairly treacherous cab ride up the mountain we were amazed at this fabulous little boutique hotel tucked away from the city. Our dinner there was amazing...great seafood, steaks and wine. On the way out though things took a tumble...well actually...I took a tumble. I fell down some stairs as we were leaving. As Ted so eloquently put it..."you ate shit." It was indeed hilarious (and a darn good thing I had just visited the ladies room) but unfortunately I did end up with a bit of a twisted ankle. After dinner we hit a local discoteca and danced until the wee hours (me and my banged up ankle and all). I'd say it was the tequila shooters that somehow pulled me through.


The next day Ash and I hit the pool early to bask in the sun while the boys went out to play and wander the beach. We were right at home on our beach chairs with a fabulous "little man" who tended to our every need. After a long day at the pool, we freshened up for a dinner at Daiquiri Dick's (the name is far more unfortunate than the actual restaurant) where we sat right on the beach overlooking the water. After dinner we hit a couple of bars...one of which I was hazed (ok politely asked) to danced on top of, bum ankle and all.


Friday involved more sun as Ashley and I worked on our tans by the pool all day while the boys went into town for a little exploring "up in the hills." When we met back up with the boys on the beach of our hotel they surprised us with their fresh beach-side tattoos...henna tattoos that is. That night we enjoyed a lobster and shrimp dinner at Ay Caramba complete with another great view of the city. It was here Ashley and I met are darling (eleven year old) boyfriend Jose...the gourmet guacamole cart boy. He tended to our every avocado need. After dinner we hit and then to Z Tai...a swanky lounge...for a few more drinks.


Saturday...our last day..Ash and I rented a beach side pergola and stayed out there until sunset. It was incredible and the service was great. They even brought complimentary large bottles of Evian in silver ice buckets - you can imagine my excitement. Hey...it's the little things that make me happy!!! The boys were supposed to have risen early that day to catch a ride on a booze cruise for the day...but tequila often gets in the way of the best laid, early morning plans and they actually opted against it. So, while Ash and I laid on the beach, the boys went into town again and treated themselves massages. They met back up for us for a few beach-side sunset cocktails and a little football tossing.




Our last night in PV we treated ourselves to our first authentic mexican food dinner at Los Arbolitos. We had a great balcony seat and we enjoyed mariachis, margaritas, enchiladas, fajitas, y mas. After dinner it was off to De Santos for a mean game of "Marry/Bone/Kill" and some cocktails for our last night in PV.

I'm actually a little disappointed in my picture taking on this trip, but between not particularly wanting a bunch of bathing suit pics and a rumble or two from the group, I just wasn’t on my best picture taking game. Nonetheless, click here to see the rest of our pics from Puerto Vallarta.

And last but not least....some of the obligatory quotes overheard on our trip...
"I like the smaller ones...I can't get my hand around the big ones." LLE
"It's not the going down that bothers me." LLE
"Just in case you wanted to toss something." LLE
"I really like those nuts." Ted
"I'll fix you when we get out of the car." Joe
"Don't do that when I have something in my mouth." Ash
"Ivory is the worst pube soap EVER." Joe
"Arrrf" Ted
"You don't think I can handle dirty?" Ted......."He invented dirty." Joe
"Its better with your shirt off." Ash
"I want you to grab my hair." LLE
"Anything up in the hills?" Joe
"What?" Ted ...."Wha?" Joe
"I feel like...." Leigh, Ted, and Ash
"This is Austin?" LLE

Other topics/subjects/comments/annoying-inside-jokes of note....
Edit
Toyota
Gushers
The Frenchmen (argh)
Goo
The Black Pearl
Tequila Ted
The f/u phone call
Our unsuccessful quest for a hot tub
TIU
Thriller
Jou wan someting for juour nose?

All in all...I'd say it was a successful trip. Although, of course, I now have that itch to hit the beach again. Any takers?

Thanks for a great trip my amigos.