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The Fisherman
By The Editor
 "They say that distance means forgetting but I do not conceive this reason". is part of the lyrics of a popular song written many years ago and men used to sing it to the beloved woman underneath her balcony during a romantic serenade. When I am walking through the streets of Vallarta mi mind evokes this part of the song and I feel the same, "but I do not conceive this reason".
It is more than the distance of 25 years ago that I arrived at this port and there is no forgetting of that what I saw there for the first time. The Puerto Vallarta I found when I arrived - very different from the Vallarta of today - is still very much alive in my memories.
In addition to some constructions and the facades of older houses in the hill district, it is definitely the streets of the center of town being some of the elements maintaining alive the essence of the small village and they are the reason why millions of visitors from all over the world fall in love each year with our paradise.
Matamoros Street 
Walking along Matamoros street, just behind the Church of our Lady of Guadalupe, there is the school 5th of May where I finished my studies as a teacher for elementary school. During this time, in this street, while my colleagues and I were studying inside the classroom, the unmistakable sound given off by the knife of the fisherman was heard every day very early, while the fisherman was hitting the log where he hang the catch of the day, announcing the sale of dorado and tuna amongst other species. Those were the ones that the people of the neighborhood generally were used to buying from him.
For many years the fish vendor on the street was a characteristic figure of the town and a fundamental part of the everyday life of the people. It was impossible to conceive a day without the fisherman passing by offering his merchandise. While the fisherman passed by, the desire to eat a fresh ceviche spread over tostadas, bathed with a hot sauce and accompanied by a nicely chilled beer was aroused by the fragrance of fresh fish. For others the passing by of the fisherman announced that it was already time to prepare lunch. Seeing the very colored load of the fisherman manifested the abundance of the catch and evoked the adventure that this man had to experience since very early in the morning in order to make his catch reach our mouth.
In those days there were various fishermen, covered only by a pair of cotton pants held together at the waist by a lasso, wandering on the streets of Vallarta offering their merchandise. At the present time, even though it seems as if one of them is still walking around over there offering fresh fish in those districts further away from the center, the most common way to buy fresh fish is visiting the seafood market located in the district 5 of December.
Formerly the fisherman brought the fragrance of sea salt to the streets of Vallarta. Today the fragrance of sea salt that is perceived, is the one that remained impregnated as a testimony that the fisherman, selling his merchandise, was and will always be a typical figure of Vallarta, walking the streets of the village, injecting them with an authentic coastal flavor. This character represents a lot of the life and the history of Puerto Vallarta and there is a sculpture in his honor, made by the sculptor Barquet. It is located right at the corner of the streets A. Rodríguez and Libertad, in front of the municipal market that nowadays is called fleamarket.
We will continue to walk the streets of Vallarta.
The Editor - editor@pvmirror.com
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