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November 24, 2002.
There has been
so much going on these past days that I don't even know where to start. There
was the Gourmet Festival of course, the book signings and the exhibits, the finger
pointing regarding the buses re-entering the town center, the delay in the reconstruction
of the Malecon, the delay in payment of damages by the insurance companies, the
delay in the controversial proposal for the construction of the long-awaited bridge
linking the Malecon with Olas Altas, etc. etc. Due to the
first three, I went out more often than usual (remembering to take my little camera
with me most of the times) so I figured that this week I would submit more of
a "photo-reportage" than my usual opinionated blather. If
I were to start with the good stuff, it would be the Gourmet Festival. I "only"
got to sample the offerings at three of the participating restaurants, but if
I had had the time (and the $$$) to go to a different one every night of the event,
I would certainly look like a blimp today. Come to think of it, I wonder if anyone
has ever done that… In any case, I'm including a couple of photos of some
of the dishes we had so you'll get an idea of their beautiful presentation - even
if you can't appreciate the colors or the flavors (excellent!) The
night of the "Book Walk" was an absolute delight for me. All my friends
from the "media" were there, along with other gallery owners who wanted
to meet Pat Henry and see Meg Munro's latest work at Galeria Dante. Folks were
all over Basilio Badillo Street, going from one place to another, greeting each
other with hugs and kisses, some obviously hadn't seen each other since last spring…
It reminded me of when I used to take my kids out for Halloween and all the parents
in the neighborhood would meet and hug and chat while the little ones did their
"Trick or Treat"-ing. What fun! There were Mariachi playing outside
of Lucy's CuCuCabana where Gil was selling his "Puerto Vallarta on 49 Brain
Cells a Day" (now in its second edition!) and they lent that wonderful fiesta
feeling to the entire block. This town is waking up, folks! It's about time… The
next day, I dropped in to see how the youngsters at "Once Upon A Time…"
were doing. After all, they had committed themselves to reopening this past week,
whether the insurance company paid on time or not. (As of this writing, they still
hadn't received the check that was promised to them over two weeks ago.) In any
case, there they were, working all day long to ensure that they would have at
least 30 some flavors of their wonderful ice creams, sherbets and frozen yogurts
ready in time. A big bouquet to you, kids! Now all they need is for the tourists
to arrive. When I attended the original inauguration of
that ice cream shoppe, I was impressed by the murals that local artist Philippo
Lo Grande had painted all over the walls and the display cases. I asked him if
he ever did stuff outdoors. He said yes. A few weeks later, after many typically-Vallarta
delays and misunderstandings with the fellow that had to build the scaffold for
Philippo, I now have a beautiful mural facing my bedroom instead of my neighbor's
yucky yellow-green-beige wall which I had to look at first thing in the morning
for the last 8 years plus. I would like to share it with you, just because it
makes me so happy every morning. And by sheer coincidence, Professor Cupul's article
deals with those beautiful creatures - the parrots. (I have three on my mural…)
Getting back to the shop story, while I was there that
Sunday, enjoying a delightful mango sherbet as I watched Mike and his fiancée
work, I decided to count the buses again - just to see if there would be only
half as many as usual, as promised by the authorities. I need not have done that
because as it turned out, my colleague Miguel published an article in our mother
publication, the Tribuna de la Bahia, on that very same topic, that very same
day. It was a two-page spread wherein he interviewed some
of the gallery, restaurant and shop owners along the Malecon to get their views
on the matter. In short, although many had originally complained when there were
no buses, now that those racing, polluting behemoths were back, those folks were
not happy campers! I suggest you read Miguel's article in this issue if you're
interested in how the stomach turns on this ongoing saga… At
the risk of bringing up a rather unpleasant subject, I really have to mention
it. One day last week, a faithful reader of this publication sent me an e-mail
that had already made the rounds through all the travel agencies in town, tour
operators and leaders of various organizations, based on the number of "forwards"
I read and the names thereof. The content of this e-mail is nothing more or less
than an outright smear campaign. Now, in itself, this is not something new, but
what made it more ugly than usual is the fact that the person accused is a relative
of some of the biggest figures in this town. How do I
know that it is unfounded? Easy. Last year, there was a similar campaign waged
against a well-known, well-regarded notary in this town. The poor man was accused
of having violated a little boy. It nearly destroyed a career and a reputation
he had built over a period of more than 20 years. He had to call a press conference
to prove to the media that he wasn't even in town at the time of the alleged crime.
Yes, the truth came out, the whole thing was nothing but lies, but the man's career
and his name were scarred forever. The damage had been done. The
content of the e-mail circulating around town is exactly the same as the one of
last year! Everything, the story, the accusations, the name of the child, etc.,
VERBATIM, word for word. The only thing different in this year's version is the
name of the person being accused. Please, dear readers,
if you receive this smut among your e-mails, know that it is pure fiction and
delete it. Do not help to spread it. I set my alarm clock
to view the Leonid meteor shower in the middle of the night of Nov.18/19. It had
been touted as the most fantastic ever… we would not be treated to such an
incredible show again for another twenty years or so… even Lou Dobbs had
promoted it… The alarm clock went off, I got up, went outside, looked up
and was blinded by the light of the full moon. I remembered that we were advised
to drive out of the city, where it was dark, in order to enjoy the full impact
of the celestial show. I thought about, decided against it, and went back to sleep. The
next morning, I received a call from some neighbors of mine whom I had talked
with about the meteors the day before. They're young and full of energy, so they
did what I was too lazy to do. They drove out towards Mismaloya until they found
a stretch of road without lights, and witnessed what they described as "the
most incredible, awesome display of shooting stars" they had ever seen in
their entire (combined) lives. They won, I lost. So what else is new? Well,
actually, there is something… that I'm quite proud of. In the past three
weeks, the web site I work with along with my partner, Jesus de Avila, has exceeded
1,000,000 hits! Yessiree, one million! From this column, I would like to thank
all our readers who have placed so much trust in our information and referred
us to so many around the world. Whatever we can do (as long as it is truthful
and honest) to help counteract the damage done by the international press, we
will do it! That's all for now, folks. I wish a most delightful
Thanksgiving to all of our American readers, and remind them to check this publication
for the various restaurants offering special Thanksgiving dinners. By tradition,
they have always been wonderful - and fun! Enjoy yourselves and take good care
of each other Hasta Luego! pvmomto3@hotmail.com Archives
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