Nothing Short of Amazing: January 2017

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Jan 13 - Jan 16, 2017

Friday:

This year Matt and decided to try our first Costco vacation. We chose all all-inclusive that happened to be adults only. We flew out of Chicago and had a direct flight. That was a must for us. In only 4.5 hours we were greeted by the resort salesmen. In 30 minutes we were walking away carrying a bottle of tequila with an appointment to view their resort the next morning in exchange for 2 free spa massages and 2 free Zipline packages. We checked into our resort, La Fiesta Americana and hit the pool. We had ourselves drinks at the poolside bar and soaked up the 80 degree sunny day. After our drinks we hit the sky bar whirlpool and met a fun couple from North Carolina. Matt quickly related to them once he found out she used to live in Idaho on a potato farm. I related once she shared with me that my calves looked really defined. She was an athlete as well...with long curly red hair. They seemed like a real down to earth couple with 3 kids of their own. We probably could have hung out with them for awhile but we had to make it short to get to the 6pm dinner reservation we had made at the Sushi restaurant. We got dressed up and Jill officially attempted chopsticks for the first time. I didn't succeed. Matt oohed and awed about the food...I on the other hand would have been just as happy with the restaurant with the amazing salad bar. We chatted with a couple from the twin cities who sat next to us. He was an environmental lobbyist and she didn't say a single word...but then again I didn't either. Matt loves the small talk...I find it hard to do. Afterwards we crashed rather early to the sounds of the pacific waves crashing up on the beach.

Saturday:

I set my alarm early to make sure I could get my run in. Unfortunately the roads here as so narrow that it is too dangerous to run on them. Therefore I hit the treadmill. Blah!! I was able to run a faster pace but it was boring as he**. We were picked up at 7 AM this morning for our meeting at the other resort. We had Starbucks drive-through coffee and tea on the way there and started of the meeting with an amazing buffet breakfast. I found an awesome oatmeal, I'm still not sure what it was. Maybe a cream of wheat except with corn...with whole milk? I thought there were vanilla beans floating in it but they were actually cinnamon stalks. We got a tour of this other resort and then had to sit through a session in which they tried to convince us to pay them a one time free of $18,000 plus $500 a year for the rest of our life in exchange for one week of vacation per year. We said no. We collected our gifts and hit the snack bar. I had the most amazing veggie quesadilla. The grease literally pooled in my hand. We walked along the beach and then hit the spa. The first hour we got to use the services....Cool blast showers dispensed from a pull cord, sauna, steam room, hot tub, detox water, mouthwash, hand lotions & creams, and cucumber eye masks. Our massages we're done independently. It included stretching with the massage. I'd have to say it was one of the top massages I've ever had. Afterwards we took a cab downtown. We hiked along the boardwalk and found a cute Mexican restaurant in which Matt had the best fish tacos he has ever had. We didn't really want to cab back to the hotel so we decided to hike the beach. It began rather sandy and quickly turned rocky. It reminded us of the Oregon coast line. I think the average Joe would've turned around however knowing Matt and I, being the adventurous people we are, we kept going forward. Pretty soon we felt like we were rock climbing. I finally put an end to our adventurous side when I saw the hundred foot drop below us had we missed one step. It was picturesque. We saw so much land I don't think many people get to see. Once back to our hotel we showered up and had dinner at the Italian restaurant. The food was mediocre. We sat and chatted with a couple from Canada. They seem to be frequent all inclusive vacationers. They definitely were "foodies." On our way out of the restaurant we caught a glimpse of the evening show at the poolside and decided to take a seat. There were talented young men and women juggling fire, hula hooping fire, and doing acrobatic type tricks. Matt was at the edge of his seat cheering and clapping like I've never seen him before. Next we headed up to our room and crashed for the night.

Sunday:

This morning Matt decided to join me for a run on the treadmill. He felt my misery as we stared at the miles per hour, sweating, wishing we could run on the beach. Afterwards we hit my favorite restaurant which had a buffet style breakfast. I was in heaven with my hot cereal with cinnamon stalks, sliced almonds, star fruit, raspberries and lettuce wrap filled with fresh veggies & goat cheese. Matt on the other hand had a made to order omelette with the spiciest ingredients he could find. Next started our first adventure of the day. We caught a taxi to the southern side of the town where we hopped onto an open aired truck to drive up the dirt road to the top of the mountain in the middle of the jungle. This is the spot where we zip lined. A scene from Arnold Schwarzenegger's movie, the predator, was filmed here. The experience was awesome. My highlight was doing a zip line only hanging on by my legs upside down with my arms above my head. When our session was over we were free to have lunch. Unfortunately Matt Lost track of how much pesos he was giving away in tips. Fortunately our tour guide will likely be treating his girlfriend to a nice dinner with the tip he gave him, unfortunately we weren't able to have lunch. Nah....it wasn't that bad. We had a snack and came back and ate amazing lobster tacos at our resort. We still had some energy and us so we boarded our next taxi and headed south again for a paddle boarding experience. Not quite like paddle boarding in Lake Kegonsa. Let's just say we never got off our knees. The waves were 5 to 8 feet high. Fortunately neither of us fell in. Next we went back to the resort, showered up and watched the Packer game in Spanish. And they won!! After the game we had dinner at the buffet restaurant and then sat in a cabana beachside listening to the waves and gazing at the stars. We then hit the sack....but both awoke at 3am...Matt thinking of work and me thinking I'm hungry. Pretty cool to be able to order a caprese sandwich and ceasar salad at that hour. We both turned out the lights and slept 3 more hours.

Monday:

This morning we hit the gym together again. It was a bit crowded this morning. I'm thinking people were working off all those empty calories consumed the night before while watching the Packer game. This morning's run...even though it was boring as ever I did get to see dolphins jumping out the water looking through the gym windows. Afterwards we opted to skip our beachside yoga class given only 3 people were there and instead strolled the sandy shoreline. We then showered up, packed up, and met our Costco taxi driver at noon. Matt and I both enjoy our trip and would gladly recommend the place. Three nights was perfect for us. We are refreshed and ready to return to see the kids. Even if it is returning to 10 degree temperatures.