Continuing on our way towards Ixtapa, we continued to be delighted by the ocean views. In many ways it reminded me of the US Northwest with calm beaches and rocky points. This water is much more comfortable for swimming, however!   We arrived in Ixtapa, which was developed by businessmen who decided they wanted a Cancun of the West Coast. They have built up the coastline with large hotels, resorts, and some shopping.  It was recommended...

We drove straight from Colima to the coast, searching for the nearest beach. We ended up in Ayuntamiento Tecoman, which had a lovely stretch of nearly deserted beach.  A small sand road was lined with little restaurant shacks with a lot of seating—it must be popular on the weekends. Further south, we were surprised to find a fairly newly built malecon, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Yet further down Highway 200, we finally came...

We left Chapala in the afternoon after the girls’s school let out. About 40 minutes after pulling away from Chapala on our road trip to Guatemala, I realized I had forgotten to pack our Melaleuca essential oil. UGH!! It is an oil I use often for cuts, sore throats, and skin irritations. I was bummed—but losing 1 hour and 20 minutes turning around was not an option. I would have to wait nearly 2 weeks until we arrived in Guatemala and...

We met up with some gringo friends and drove 3 hours to the Guachimontones pyramids near the quaint town of Teuchitlán. We weren’t sure where to go when we reached the town, but convenient signs pointed us the right away. These pyramids are unique because of their unique round structures. There are 3 major pyramids, with platforms surrounding them, supposedly to allow VIPS a better view of the rituals that took place on the...

We had a great time in the Puerto Vallarta area with friends over the weekend. We spent a couple of nights at our friend’s home in Bucerias. The wife is American and her husband is Mexican. We met them by chance in Guadalajara last Spring and have stayed in touch. They were so wonderful to invite us into their home! We crammed a lot in a little bit of time! First we spent a day at the beach in Bucerias! Some Skagway, Alaska...

Nicholle visited from Alaska to escape the dreary winter and see some SUN. Unfortunately, her arrival coincided with a hurricane storm that had hit the Pacific Mexican coast, bringing with it loads of unseasonal cold rain for us!  Normally we can go an entire winter (“dry season”) without more than 1 or 2 rain episodes…but instead we had rain for nearly a week! In an effort to see some sun and fun…we jumped in the...