Puerto Vallarta

Today was Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (Day 43). This day’s tour was the best yet, we were with Jake and Shirley again. It was a 4×4 tropical safari. We started off being taken by boat to the main office of Vallarta Adventures. Ten of us got into the back of a truck with our guide. He told us this truck could go 45 degrees up, down and tilted on either side, we would find out he was right. The truck took the highway for a bit and we ended up in a small village where we visited a church. Our guide, Juan Carlos, was very knowledgeable about the history of his country. We were given a few minutes to walk around and then got back on the truck. We buckled our seat belts and off we went. There were dirt roads, rivers, dry river beds, all crossed by this truck while we hung on overhead straps. Then it got really bumpy as we went into the woods. The truck stopped in a clearing and we got out for a hike through the forest. We learned about plants and trees and animals. Our guide showed us a small pod that had a seed inside that tasted just like coconut, he even rubbed some on our hands to feel the nice oil it released. JC (Juan Carlos) then took some different pod seeds and crushed them, mixed then with water and painted our faces yellow. These are the same seeds that give cheddar cheese its orange colour. We went back to the truck and drove to a little place where we tried cactus and saw how tortillas were made a long time ago. The woman of the house (Dona Pachita) had made us fresh tortillas, cactus salad, fresh salsa and guacamole so we each got a taco for a snack. There was also papaya, plantain, guava and tamarind cut up for us to try. It was now on to lunch via another bumpy ride in the truck. Lunch was on a beach, a wonderful buffet with salad, salsa, fresh fruit, sausage, chicken and meat. It was an idyllic setting for a wonderful meal. The meal was followed by a dip in the ocean. The way back to the ship presented us with the opportunity to try tequila (my first time) and I even had Happy Birthday sung to me in advance. The ride was bumpy and windy and loud and a lot of fun. We were tired when we got back but it was a wonderful day.