This week's adventures seemed to revolve around food, drink, and friends. And dry cleaning. Boat projects continued too, of course.
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I found a place near Plaza Neptuno in Puerto Vallarta that did
dry cleaning, so I brought in my dirty settee cushions.
They also knew a woman who could replace a broken
zipper on one of them. Got three back so far.
Still waiting on the one that needs the zipper.
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This is a golf course right behind the bus stop near the
dry cleaners. The sign warns of crocodiles.
Maybe that's why there are no golfers.
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The cleaners was very close to Marina Vallarta,
so I walked over. No crocodiles this time,
but I did score a frappuccino. |
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I also came across a couple of dug-out canoes...
in front of a restaurant.
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On the way back to Paradise Village, I decided to stop in
Nuevo Vallarta to explore and eat lunch.
This gazebo is in a nice little park between the main road
and the waterfront.
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This is Marina Nuevo Vallarta. The brown buildings on the
horizon are Paradise Village, on the opposite side of the harbor.
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Finally got to eat lunch at the famous Eddie's Place in
Nuevo Vallarta. |
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| It wasn't so hot that I couldn't enjoy eating al fresco. I had chicken mole tacos. Muy delicioso! |
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Dinner that Monday night was at Titi's in Jarretaderras.
I had taken Tony into my confidence and finally brought him there.
It's so secret even the cab driver didn't know where it was.
Jarretaderras is a small working class town close to Paradise
Village, but invisible from the main roads and without any
directing signs. Titi's specializes in shrimp any way you want it.
Good food at good prices; casual, fun, friendly atmosphere.
Sometimes music. No tourists. We were the only gringos.
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Tuesday night was the weekly cruisers' dinner at Vallarta Yacht
Club. It's gotten pretty big as more cruisers have returned for
the 2017 season.
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This Tayana 46 (Gadabout) belongs to friends 'Wags' and
Paula. They returned this week to find the boat had been
struck by lightning while they were gone and all the
electronics are dead. They are now seeing if their insurance
will come through for them. I'm glad I added a lightning
rod and ground to my boat!
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Valella is my friend Chad's Hylas (44?). He returned to find
his batteries shot. He also needs to finish rigging and wiring
the new arch that Chava, who did my welding work,
completed while he was gone.
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Wednesday morning I ran into Armando, my first special local friend.
We were finally able to make good on our vow to drink tequila
together. So what if it was 11 am! We walked to the bar in
the nearby casino.
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A shot or two and three beers later, we were happy.
After all, we had solved most of the world's problems!
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| Not too many people in the casino on a weekday morning. |
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After leaving the casino, Armando wanted to introduce me to
his only other gringo boat friend, Walter. So we walked down
to Walter's boat.
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| Not bad.... |
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| ,,,for a million or two. |
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Walter turned out to be quite a character. Here Armando
is trying to help him buy a car, a 2017 Chevy Malibu.
It only took us one more beer to solve Walter's problems.
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Once I had sufficiently recovered from my adventures
with Armando, I headed to the little mall behind the
marina to get some solid food in my stomach.
I found there were some new Dia de los Muertos
(Day of the Dead) displays.
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The displays were created by local school children. Here
the children and their parents are gathered to get recognition
for their efforts.
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| Dia de Los Muertos will be celebrated November 1st this year. |
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Of course the stores start early. Need a
Dia de Los Muertos pillow? Available at Walmart.
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| How about some fabric to get really creative? |
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For dinner, I went upstairs to try out the new sushi restaurant.
Owned by an Alaskan ex-pat named Cooper. Nice guy.
Serves the closest to real sushi I've found so far.
This is a uniquely Mexican roll that takes advantage of all
the great fresh fruit available in Mexico. I got a two-for-one
deal too, so I had the second one for breakfast on the boat.
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| 'Finished' the gloss varnish on the galley locker doors. |
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| Glossy! |
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This is a corner of the settee. What was left of the old original
finish was in very bad shape, so I sanded it off and started again.
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| Stained. Epifanes Rapid Coat followed. |
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I removed all the trim pieces from around the settee seats.
They had not been properly finished by the previous owner.
Although not in a prominent place, it was time to do it since
I was getting down to the bottom of 'the list.'
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| First coat of stain/sealer |
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| Second coat of stain/sealer |
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After some RapidCoat was applied, the trim was replaced.
This trim was the last of the interior woodwork that was
in bad shape. But I still hope to do some work on the settee
locker doors that don't quite match the rest of the woodwork.
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