Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta Mexico- January 19th to Feb 2nd, 2008-02-18

Puerto Vallarta lies along Banderas Bay, the second largest bay in the Western Hemisphere. It is located 352 kilometers (219 miles) from Guadalajara, the state capital of Jalisco, and it is nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Madre mountain range. The region has many forests, rivers and waterfalls, with an average temperature of 27° C (80° F).
I must first thank Ron and Pam Larose for allowing us to stay at their condo

in Nuevo Vallarta (about 30 minutes north of P.V.) The condo was excellent right on the sandy white beach with two huge swimming pools superb new accommodations and the boogie boarding was rad!

Thanks so much as we are still trying to save a little money for the big trip (Home). Coupled with the stresses of trying to sell the house, the pressures of working and the two straight years of slaving for the $ and dedication to trying to get this trip going simply took a toll and we needed to get away.

Brent could only get a week off of work so the first week was dedicated to doing what ever Brent wanted – That typically included being on the beach with beer in hand J so that is what we did.
The first day we went to a large super store called- MEGA (a lot of locals shop there) we simply got in a cab and asked to go- it was $10.00 US dollars from the condo- Villa Magna in Nuevo Vallarta. There we spent $300.00 US dollars on booze, food, snorkelling gear and mix. –Seems like a lot- I thought so too. Mexico is not as cheep as it use to be (especially in the tourist areas)- the good thing is we mainly eat in (especially for breakfast and lunch) plus there was still a little left over for the next person to arrive at the Larose cottage. J

So what are the high lights you ask?
Well the first few days were spent on the beach tanning, walking, exploring the surroundings. There was a great dinner place off to the right of the condo complex (closer to Paradise village) on the left hand side of the road called Fajita Republic. - great food cost is around $13.00 US a plate.

Brent and I also decide to do a booze cruise on the Santa Maria which would take us to Los Arcos for snorkeling, Las Animas, for lunch and beach time and Yelapa, to see the water falls this was a all day trip including breakfast, lunch and booze for $35.00 US each.(bought at a stand just out side of Paradise Village near the water taxi pick up.)

Although Brent only had a week we decided to take Gustavo Rivera Archundia ( a coworker at the Blackfoot Inn) up on his offer to come down to see him in his home town- Manzanillo (in the state Colima just below PV.)- Thank you so much Gustavo for inviting us down –It was fun, beautiful and great to experience.
So how did this all take place well:

1. Had to get a car and figure out how to get there was the first thing on the agenda. So Brent and I took the pedal bikes out of the condo in search of a car rental company. With almost none of my spanish classes in tack we taked to the agent expaning we would like an open air Jeep for pick up at 9:00am on Wednesday January 23 and of course we would require full coverage. At a total cost of $180.00 US we were off.




2. Look on the internet and get a idea of where to go




3. Drive down the road with out falling out of the jeep during sharp turns, getting catapulted out as we went over speed bumps the size of small mountains, experiencing sensory over load when getting stuck behind a bunch of asses (please see pictures on Flicker) and dehidration due to the lack of cold beer on a hot days drive.




4. Upon arriving the next challenge was to locate Gustavo and his family that live in Manzanillo (as I have not taked to Gustavo since Canada about two weeks prior.)




5. Once we spoke with Gustavo we hung out at the main beach on the pier until he arrived – Where Brent and I had a great time- we got a few cold beers and slapped on our bathing suits and jumped in the ocean. WOW what a difference from PV just 4 hrs north- A) the water and the temperature was much warmer B) the waves were twice the size and mother nature dished up some ass kicking, so much so I had a boobie exposure accident. C) I have never experienced more salty water in my life- It was like licking a salt bed, rolling around on it and then having it shoved down and in every crevis you own.- Having said all that it was FUN- We laughed and got the shit kicked out of us by these waves.




6. Gustavo came down to the each to get us where we had a couple of quick cold ones and then he brought us up to this look out point over one of the bays. Although I have never been to Monaco the pictures I have sceen of it looked exactly like the amazing view I was experincing.- Gustavo was right when he said his home town was beautiful.




7. We stopped off to meet his Mom, sister and brother and have a drink with them in their home- now we can see why Gustavo has so much charm –his family was very hospitable and fun to meet.




8. We get back to the hotel and take a quick shower to remove salt and sand from the unmentioable parts and start to drink- after the hotel there were two bars and because that was not enough and we still wanted to drink so the only option left was a strip club- to end our tequilla run.




9. So that ends the trip to Manzaillo- as it was lights out clothes and all. Total cost - $220.00 US for 4 of us. (ouch)
   Recall the trip down to manzinillo- well we had to return to pv but this time hung over and dry heaving. L
   
   WOW Manzanillo
   
   After Brent had to go home on Saturday the 26th I was left by myself. Dispite having spent a huge amount of time alone traveling for work, I have never spent a full week in a country where I did not really speak the language and did not have anyone to hang out with.
   It was really a good experince one in which I became more connected with myself.
   
   So what did I do? Good question for the first couple of days I was unsure what to do- I went to the beach, did a huge amount of walking – no drinking after the Manzaillo experience.
   So I looked for jobs, tried to find out more about the cost of living and housing costs- because Canada is simply too cold and it is time to move on to a diffeent lifestyle.
   Then that was not enough so I desided to go sailing & whale watching ($55.00), visit Punta de Mita ($60.00 taxi), do a day trip to PV ($29 taxis) have dinner in Bucerias,which is excellent, and take a dinner cruise to Calistas Island (very expensive at $85 a head but well worth it)- not to mention great days of boogie boarding and lazy afternoons of writing in my journal and taking afternoon swims in the heated pool.-total cost $0.00
   
   
   Let me fill you in on what I found. (PS all in US $)
   Housing costs are min of $65,000 for 1 bedroom housing –no washer or dryer in a poor neighbourhood. $150,000 to $250,000 for a nice two-3 bedroom 1500 sqft home in one of the smaller villages out side of PV or Nuevo- equipped with new apliance and a washer-dryer.
   You could get a 1 bed modern condo on the beach for around the $179,000 in Nuevo but a great modern house on the golf course was going to be $550.000. Now I have given you the rock bottom I could find –They easily go up from there. Electricity- water and gas is about $210.00 a month aprox. $1.50 a sqft with no AC you put that sucker on and you will need a cash IV of about $600.00 a month. Cost of Vehicles are around the same as Canada- Toyota Rave 4 $32,000- although small motorbikes are quite reasonable $1,500 or so. Now for the jobs- well to sum that up it really is a surival of the fittest, luckiest, smartest and truly the best connected with cash to get going. Basicly everything is commission and the commission is no screaming hell compared to the cost of living. You need to go down and carve your own job or career. One thing that is a real asset is english –so many tourists with money and especially in the real estate business they need you.
   If you would like to make a change you can go down to the immigration office in Nuevo Vallarta at Paridise Village mall located upstairs in the book store and ask to apply for a FM3 (either a extended visitors or a working one) the cost is around $120 to $180 US.
   A real estate web site : http://mlsvallarta.com/
   For jobs and other items- all in Spanish though: Anuncios Clasificados de Puerto Vallarta - Mano a Mano (http://www.manoamano.com.mx/)
   
   
   In the end I hope you found this interesting and informative if that was what you were looking for- thanks for reading- until next time.
   
   Carrie Larose- Feb 15, 2008

San fransisco trip

San Francisco- July 31, 2007

Go west young man (and now woman) – someone once said and we took it quite literally in this case.

Day 1-FRIDAY- we only made it to Banff National park
First night after work we hit the road. I got home first so I prepared the bikes. Brent had the bikes on the center stand so I attempted (I am sure you know where this is going..) to take my 500 lbs – or so loaded bike off the centre stand. All seemed to be going well until it started to come down off the stand when I realized I was in for a collision. Brent’s bike was parked to close to mine and in a my futile attempt to not totally destroy our trip even before we exited out of the garage I tried to tilt my bike out of the way and in doing so took down the metal shelving rack where we stored our gear.
Battered and with a bruised ego I looked for assistance as I cannot lift the bike –especially is that situation. To no avail my attempts were futile. Hanging my head and with a lip the size of my head I looked up at Brent as he arrived into the drive way full of excitement and anxiousness to get the show on the road.
In the end we pulled it together and worked like a well oiled pit crew in the Indy 500. I broke the new rubber turn signals, they were not meant for that type of impact, the side mirror and my new windshield- Luckily there was no damage to the console as the bikes weight was resting on the console. As we hit the road my speedometer reads 9268 km.

What a way to start- by almost hauling it dead in its tracks.:)

Note: we went to stay in the Banff Hostel- they wanted $114 a night-are you kidding me? For a hostel ? So we camped for $24.

Day 2- SATURDAY- Banff to Hope BC,
What a way to start out – morning was beautiful all was well and our sprits were high. Ready to drive off on our trusty steeds, dressed, helmets, gloves donned, we hop on start the engines ready to engage. As I start to pull out Brent at my side and within a second I see out of the corner of my eye Brent drops to the ground bike and all. –He forgot the bike lock on the front wheel.- oops
Day 3- SUNDAY- Banff to Silvia Lake State Park in Washington: in the town of Montesano.
The border crossing was a breeze – we crossed at Sumas (just below Abbotsford BC)- most of the day was cold, rainy and the roads were slippery so the bike is all over the place. We have been in heavy fog for about 2-3 hours and with the need to increase and decrease speed frequently my clutch hand had become sore- I really was not a great driver at this time. Remember I have only been riding for about 2-3 months in total road time. –So I was slightly irritated and mostly stressed by what seemed to be tough road conditions.
It is funny sometimes there is a rainbow at the end of the tunnel and it was Silvia Lake State Park Very nice spot- peaceful.- We found this place by asking locals- as there would have been no way for us to find this on our own.
Notes:- keep in mind: foot care - being in your boots for long periods –the moisture level in there and lack of air circulation- ladies bring a sander. Also need larger containers for laundry soap and roll up some sheets of bounce, always keep a container for bike gear as you can take it off when you go hiking or into town etc..

Day 4- TUESDAY.- Tillamook to Reedsport Oregon. Today was cold as everyday has been since the beginning.- Cloud cover and high winds topped off with low temperature creates a cold popsicle.- For clothes I have my Lulu jacket, and outer jacket and my bike jacket on –I am wearing the Joe Rocket jacket. I have the heated hand grips on- days like this are not that much fun- plus I am getting use to driving very twisty roads and adjusting to speeded of 80 to 20 around some of the real tight corners.- Brent doesn’t care, he just keeps riding with a big grin on his face. Needless to say I am ready to give my own frazzled sensory over loaded psyche a rest. We stopped and decide to enjoy the rest of the day by playing in the sand dunes. We discovered this private area were there was a fresh water lake and miles of mountains made entirely out of sand.- It was like some strangely magnificent beach. Camped at a beautiful spot outside of Tillamook for $10. Also visited the local cheese factory (yummy).In the morning we had to drive past a large herd of milk cows which seemed to be staring at Brent with those big daisy eyes (haha)
Notes: I would not drive the first part of HWY 101 again as there is not much to see, it was cold and the roads were twisty. I would suggest starting in at Lincoln City that is when it warms up a bit and the view gets first-rate. I found that you better love your riding boots because we were in them about 90% of the time.
I loved stopping where we wanted and simply picking up a couple of sandwiches and drinks to have lunch. I believe this will be the better way to go for the future.


San Francisco itself: Cool place- As we came in the temperature went from about 77F to 52F in a matter of 6 miles plus the wind picked up and started to gust as we came across the bridge. It was so windy we just about had the bikes lying on their sides, extremely windy and not get blown into the next lane. The site of the golden gate bridge and that water was exciting as this is one of the wonders of the world that I needed to cross off of my life long goals.
While here we stopped off at a hotel just as we crossed the bridge. It was a Best Western hotel called the surf hotel that looked like a dump what was well renovated inside and was a great price. 2 nights $234 and that includes tax and for San Fran that was a great price-yahoo!.

Brent had dirt tires still mounted on his bike so by the time we hit san fran the front tire was finished. We went to san fran BMW but they we not willing to help us for a day or two. A customer suggested a place called KC enterprises down the street and they had the tire changed in 10 minutes. a big thank you to them. Also make sure your chain tension is properly set with YOU and your LOAD on the bike.

While here we also went to the pier, an evening out to a jazz dinner club and saw Alcatraz- Very cool- also another on the life long goal list marked off. Note-buy advanced tickets online-they are sold out way in advance.

Beware when you are out there- remember to stay alert- Coming into San Fran the traffic was heavy and I was following Brent, an elderly gentlemen started to drift into my lane and to prevent him from hitting me I backed off and blew my horn ( I would suggest if you can get a louder horn do so). Also some one tried to hit me with their door on purpose going down the interstate during extremely heavy traffic because Brent and I took the shoulder. Can you believe the nerve of some people as we are trying to do some illegal driving?

San Fran was nice but you really only need on day, unless hitting the night life is what you are after.- Left San Fran at 12,066 km

Land of the Red Wood Giants- What an amazing and magical place. As we drove the old hwy into the giant trees I have no other way to explain it –Wow it was like some sort of enchanted mystical forest. I recall looking out into this forest to see this slight haze and the dancing sun rays peering through these giants. The sounds of small animals moving about in the forest and crickets rubbing their legs looking for mates, it was like there was a small whisper of our presence. If this was not enough to put a person on cloud 9 then the smell of fresh dew and the rich earthly soil floated in the air to give us a full sensory overload.- It is simply beautiful I have never seen anything like it –You must go.

Yosemite National Park: The Park is a fairly short drive from San Fran. Upon our arrival we discovered there were no accommodations left. As we spoke with one of the park rangers he explained to us of a place just out side the park gates. We needed to go up the side road were there located many empty turn offs on the road. He said we should stop at the first one that had a clearing and we could camp for free.- Well that was great news. We did just that and the bikes did a little back country driving. This was a perfect spot- although with a background of out door camping this place freaked me out a little.
First there were hundreds of bats, Yosemite is known for Bears, wolfs and cougars to name a few.
Some quick notes about the park: good food and beer, granite mountains make up the terrain, 4th tallest waterfall in world and simply a nice place to visit-it is charming.
Upon leaving the park there is a place that looks like the Moon- we missed the turn off but if you get a chance to go please send pictures- I saw a few in the store but disappointed I did not get to see it in person.

Notes: I always make sure that when I have to go pees (mine being plural as I have to get up at least 3-4 times a night) always go quite far away from the tent in case it attracts animals.
Keep your food locked up and far away from your tent- preferably high in a tree. I also try not to sleep in the clothes I eat dinner in- to reduce the smell. Never leave food out and that includes canned, jarred or boxed juices or soft drinks.
Having said all that, I made it through the night and loved the park.

Lake Tahoe: just stopped in and did laundry plus hit the beach for a while. We found it to be a lot like Banff in Canada. Although the lake is big there are many small towns around it that you can choose to go to. It was very busy and very hard to get through. The water was beautiful to look but very cold- See http://www.aquest.ca/ for further pictures.

Seattle: Best BMW store we have ever scene. Besides the BMW store the city was clean and really friendly.

To sum up the trip I did not like the constant driving from the time we got up until we made camp at night to sleep. I really like to stop and enjoy- it helps for me to feel human- it allows me to experience the culture and the surroundings. End trip at 15,497. Total kms of the trip were 6229.

Here are our expenses: Total cost $ 2,534.25
Day 1



Camping Banff
23.75

Gas
17.00

Supper
39.40


80.15
Day 2



Breakfast
26.00

Gas
23.54

Hope Motel
57.50

Lunch
14.91

Gas
20.94

Beer
18.60

Gas
20.94

Dinner & drinks
42.07


224.5
Day 3



Gas
21.98

Breakfast
16.60

Lunch
7.53

Snack
3.24

Camping
16.00

Wood
16.00

Dinner
14.50


95.85
Day 4


Gas
15.45

Breakfast
21.00

Tillamook-Dinner
18.00

Tillamook-Lunch
15.54

Tillamook Cheese Factory
15.79

Gas
3.30

Camping
10.00

Firewood
12.00


111.08
Day 5



Breakfast
17.00

Gas
11.38

Lunch
18.45

Tea-Warm drinks
6.00

Snacks for evening
11.70

Oil (for bike), beer-corner store
16.00

Camping
22.00

Dinner
13.08

Wood
15.00

Gas
11.07


141.68
Day 6



Lip stick
9.54

Gas
13.34

Food
12.35

Snacks
1.07

Food
7.00

San Fran accommodations
117.41

Booze
15.15


175.86
Day 7



Food
10.31

Alcatraz
130.00

Cab
8.00

Food
24.80

Gifts
22.00

Food Booze
28.10

Latte
5.00

San Fran accommodations
117.41


345.62
Day 8



Gas
17.40

Food-booze
31.67

Showers
5.00

Snack
3.00

Food
15.06

Park Passes
20.00

New Tire (Brent’s bike)
140.34

Cramp Busters for Brent’s bike
5.00


237.47
Day 9



Dinner-Booze (mainly booze)
90.85

Food
20.00

Gas
15.01

Gas
9.15

Camping
15.00

Beer
7.51

Food
18.32


175.84
Day 10



Accommodations
68.82

Food
40.37

Food
5.12

Gas
13.58

Gas
10.96


138.85
Day 11



Food
27.84

Gas
13.28

Gas
9.55

Motel
60.60


111.27
Day 12

696.08

Gas
11.09

Booze
23.00

Food
7.00

Gas
11.37

Gas
10.28

Motel
59.01


121.75
Day 13



Breakfast
8.55

Camping (Includes wood)
31.80

Supplies
13.00

Gas
13.83

Gas
14.25

Food
44.34


125.77
Day 14



Booze
15.25

Beer & Burgers
21.78

Food
14.00

Gas
13.62

Snacks
1.72

Toll booth
10.00

Gas
20.94

Food
14.75

Accommodations
47.45


159.51
Day 15



Beer & Food
46.04

Gas
20.00

Breakfast
11.50

Gas
25.10

Food
22.82

Batteries
10.00

Snacks
3.44

Camping
22.00

Wood
16.00

Gas
14.00


190.9
Day 16



Camping – Including Wood
31.65

Food
27.01

Gas
20.00

Gas
19.49


98.15




Total:
$ 2,534.25

Per day
$ 158.39
Well when we left on this trip we wanted to see what we could get by on and what we needed to trim.
At $158.00 a day would only get us about 2.16 years on the road.- This needed to change.
Now let’s keep in mind that this is one of the most expensive places to travel in, however here is what we could do:
I know have 2 coolers in the bike- on for booze-beer and one for food. We can cut down by eating breakfast and lunch-not in a restaurant unless we see a cheep one like $3.99 breakfast. Also buy our own booze instead of drinking in a pub. Finally we would need to keep accommodations around $35.00 or so (and that will need to be motels as well)-Look hard- possibly hop on line in a café-Plan a head.
We should get around the $115.00 a day in North America. There for we should get 3 years on the road at that rate.

I sure hop you find this helpful- It is a fair amount of work to track this info but I know we could not find anything on this info.
Good luck to you.