It was a short hop by plane, just one hour from Mexico City to Peurta Vallarta and then a 30 minute bus ride to La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, a charming seaside town and marina on the East Coast of Mexico. We are here for 4 weeks working in a small colourful guest house a few minutes from the beach.

8/6/17

Ok Mexico! What a fantastic place, so lively, colourful, noisy, fascinating - I could go on and on trying to describe it, but it is one of those countries where you just have to go and experience it. The Mexican people are so welcoming and polite, not afraid to step forward and offer their help. This little town is usually bustling with holiday makers, but this is early summer and the low season, from here on in it just gets hotter and hotter. Here the winter time is the busiest as it is a lot cooler. Now in early summer it is also the wet season, a time when it doesn't just rain , it rains in buckets with thunder and lightening. As yet we have seen no rain, but it won't be long they say. The hurricane season starts the first of June and finishes the end of November, so you never know we may get to experience one before we leave at the end of the month!

14/6/17

Music, music and yet more music. It's on all sides, starting late afternoon and sometimes keeps going until 2 or 3 am, eventually lulling us to sleep with the gentle tempo. They love to share the vibe cranking up the level to make sure the whole town can hear. Oh and they like to sing along too, with great gusto with everyone joining in with the chorus for good measure. It's great!

The B&B is quiet at the moment (metophorically speaking) so we have been cleaning and painting small areas that need maintenance, then we have the rest of the day to ourselves, when we go to the beach or swim in the pool. We cook our own food in the outdoor kitchen, getting our supplies locally. We love the avocados and papaya - so juicy and ripe. We eat the papaya with the local honey it's very yummy. There is a nice walk around the harbour with lots of interesting things happening. We saw a large boat being launched into the harbour, which was quite exciting, especially when one of the crew tried to jump aboard but missed and fell in!

Last week we took the bus to the next town, Bucerias, with a shopping list of screws, paint and other things we needed. We managed to find most things even without speaking Spanish. People were helpful and didn't seem to over charge us, which is a change. Afterwards we walked down to the beach, through streets lined with market stalls and traders that kept pestering us to buy. There was a warm hot wind blowing across the beach which curves around a giant bay alongside the towns. The temperature is in the 30's at the moment, so anywhere in town is hot and the only place to cool down is the pool or sea.

We took the bus back, which is an experience in itself in Mexico the buses are very dilapidated and prone to break down. There are small minibus types that you pay when you leave and the larger normal size bus that you pay on entry. They both speed along and stop suddenly when someone sticks out an arm or yells for them to stop. It is a good idea to hang on tight when you get in as there is only two paces - stop or speeding!