Wow!!!! What a beautiful city! If you have never been, you HAVE to go!
I had such a wonderful time watching the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, walking through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, seeing the Tower Bridge (more than the London Bridge...and you'll see why by the pics), walking through the National Gallery, Tate Modern Museum, the Shakespeare Globe Theater, the Picadilly and Oxford Circuses (and up Regent Street), seeing the Tower of London, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, the Thames, the London Eye, etc. There is so much beauty in this city, and surprisingly, the weather was really nice. I got a chance to see 2 musicals, Avenue Q and Dirty Dancing!!! Great seats for both, great shows! I stayed in a nice hotel, and then a really grungy bed and breakfast, that led me to shower in the sink rather than their community showers. I went out salsa dancing one night. I told the cab driver to take me to a salsa club, and he took me to a club called Salsa :). When I walked in I was really excited. I danced one song with a not-so-great dancer, and then the DJ called me over. He said, "you look like a dancer, I was watching you. Stay over here with me and I will introduce you to all the good dancers." Well that was 11pm and I literally didn't stop dancing until 2am! And of all the luck, the DJ that I met happens to be one of the best known salsa instructors from London...Super Mario (for all you salseros that are reading this)!!! What a great night that was!
Click on my PICS link and check out the London Collection :)
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
My Bags Have Arrived :)
Even though they were 4 days late, they got here, thanks to the godfather :)
I got that wonderful phone call yesterday afternoon frin Iberia saying my bags were at the airport and that they would have someone deliver them later that evening. When they arrived, it was a sight for sore eyes. My big blue bag had been run over by either a truck or a car because it was completely capsized and smashed from every side, with tar all over it. Luckily EVERYTHING was still in the bag. The zipper stayed intact except in 1 corner, but my mother packed so well (thank u), that nothing fell out. My other new backpack was fine.
God it was so nice to see my clothes. I was getting so tired of the same shoes, jeans, sweater, and having to buy new underwear and socks.
So I completed the claims process to have Iberia reimburse me the money, and then they sent me to a store to get a new suitcase. It's even bigger and better than my other one.
So today is a great day! Finally I feel like my trip to Spain can begin. Talk about a test of patience and strength. Thank you all for your support.
I am leaving tomorrow morning for London for a few days
I haven't taken pics yet because i didn't have my computer cable or the battery charger, but now will go camera-crazy :)
I got that wonderful phone call yesterday afternoon frin Iberia saying my bags were at the airport and that they would have someone deliver them later that evening. When they arrived, it was a sight for sore eyes. My big blue bag had been run over by either a truck or a car because it was completely capsized and smashed from every side, with tar all over it. Luckily EVERYTHING was still in the bag. The zipper stayed intact except in 1 corner, but my mother packed so well (thank u), that nothing fell out. My other new backpack was fine.
God it was so nice to see my clothes. I was getting so tired of the same shoes, jeans, sweater, and having to buy new underwear and socks.
So I completed the claims process to have Iberia reimburse me the money, and then they sent me to a store to get a new suitcase. It's even bigger and better than my other one.
So today is a great day! Finally I feel like my trip to Spain can begin. Talk about a test of patience and strength. Thank you all for your support.
I am leaving tomorrow morning for London for a few days
I haven't taken pics yet because i didn't have my computer cable or the battery charger, but now will go camera-crazy :)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
I'm in Madrid!!!!
Well what a crazy 48 houra this has been.
I got home from PV a day late because of bad weather, so I arrived Sunday instead of Saturday. In my mind, I was leaving for Spain on Tuesday. As I was sifting thru my mail I came upon a letter from American Airlines telling me of a schedule change on one of the flights. As I looked over the paper, I realized that I was leaving Monday instead of Tuesday! So I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off unpacking, doing laundry, repacking (thanks to my mom's help), paying bills, running errands, etc. I left the next morning at noon.
After a long journery of Dallas to Boston to Washington, DC to Madrid, I arrived with no luggage. Apparently Iberia was able to lose both my suitcases, so I have nothing but what I am wearing and the toothbrush and toothpaste they gave me on the plane. The only good part of this story is that I hadn't wanted to take a taxi from the airport to the apartment because I knew it was going to be expensive. So having no bags freed me up to travel by metro. I exited the metro and began looking for a Movistar store so I could add minutes to the SIM card I had from the last time I was in Spain. After going to 2 different stores, I come to find out that a SIM isn't valid anymore if more than 6 months pass without u using it. So I went back to another Movistar store and they couldn't even sell me a SIM. I had to buy a phone to get the SIM. This was actually not a bad deal. SIMs sell for 15 euros, and for just 4 euros more I got a cheap phone and a SIM. Anyways I needed a new phone because the charger for my phone is in my suitcase, which is somewhere in never never land. After getting my phone, I walked to the apartment, only to realize that I knew the apartment address, but not the floor or unit #. Sooooo, that was another nightmare.
Finally I got into the apartment, plugged in my new phone to charge it, called Iberia to tell them my phone # and the apartment # so they can deliver my bags. They said they hadn't found them yet and it could take up to 48 hours to locate them! hahahahaha! What a nice welcome to Spain :)
So Shanda, Brent, their 2 girls and I went out to dinner, walked in the rain because my umbrella is in my suitcase, and now am at home.
The apartment is nice, and both Brent and Shanda have a computer with internet capabilities, so for 3 weeks I will have the convenience of internet accessibility.
I will post pics soon of the apartment and Madrid.
If u want to get ahold of me, my skype is "maria.shrime" and my cell out here is 011.34.660.603.965 or u can just email me.
I got home from PV a day late because of bad weather, so I arrived Sunday instead of Saturday. In my mind, I was leaving for Spain on Tuesday. As I was sifting thru my mail I came upon a letter from American Airlines telling me of a schedule change on one of the flights. As I looked over the paper, I realized that I was leaving Monday instead of Tuesday! So I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off unpacking, doing laundry, repacking (thanks to my mom's help), paying bills, running errands, etc. I left the next morning at noon.
After a long journery of Dallas to Boston to Washington, DC to Madrid, I arrived with no luggage. Apparently Iberia was able to lose both my suitcases, so I have nothing but what I am wearing and the toothbrush and toothpaste they gave me on the plane. The only good part of this story is that I hadn't wanted to take a taxi from the airport to the apartment because I knew it was going to be expensive. So having no bags freed me up to travel by metro. I exited the metro and began looking for a Movistar store so I could add minutes to the SIM card I had from the last time I was in Spain. After going to 2 different stores, I come to find out that a SIM isn't valid anymore if more than 6 months pass without u using it. So I went back to another Movistar store and they couldn't even sell me a SIM. I had to buy a phone to get the SIM. This was actually not a bad deal. SIMs sell for 15 euros, and for just 4 euros more I got a cheap phone and a SIM. Anyways I needed a new phone because the charger for my phone is in my suitcase, which is somewhere in never never land. After getting my phone, I walked to the apartment, only to realize that I knew the apartment address, but not the floor or unit #. Sooooo, that was another nightmare.
Finally I got into the apartment, plugged in my new phone to charge it, called Iberia to tell them my phone # and the apartment # so they can deliver my bags. They said they hadn't found them yet and it could take up to 48 hours to locate them! hahahahaha! What a nice welcome to Spain :)
So Shanda, Brent, their 2 girls and I went out to dinner, walked in the rain because my umbrella is in my suitcase, and now am at home.
The apartment is nice, and both Brent and Shanda have a computer with internet capabilities, so for 3 weeks I will have the convenience of internet accessibility.
I will post pics soon of the apartment and Madrid.
If u want to get ahold of me, my skype is "maria.shrime" and my cell out here is 011.34.660.603.965 or u can just email me.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Leaving Tomorrow Morning for Spain
OMG I am SO glad I checked my mail today when I got home from PV. I was sifting through my mail and saw something from American Airlines about a change in my flight schedule. Upon looking it over, I realized that I was in fact leaving tomorrow, not Tuesday! hahahaha! wow!
So I am frantically unpacking, doing laundry, repacking, uploading pics, etc.
I arrive in Madrid on the 19th, losing a day due to travels, and will be living in an apartment with Shanda (high school friend), her husband (when he is not traveling for work), and their 2 kids.
Fun fun fun!
So I am frantically unpacking, doing laundry, repacking, uploading pics, etc.
I arrive in Madrid on the 19th, losing a day due to travels, and will be living in an apartment with Shanda (high school friend), her husband (when he is not traveling for work), and their 2 kids.
Fun fun fun!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Sunset Sail
On our last night together, we decided to take the Sunset Sail tour with the company Cesar works for (Vallarta Adventures). They took us out on a beautiful sailboat, which was the same boat we took for the whale watching tour that I never got a photo of (so now you can all see it). We sailed out into Banderas Bay, crazy choppy waters that tipped the boat so much to the side that I felt like we were on the Titanic! OMG I was so nervous. Soon the waters calmed down, and we enjoyed the music, the view, and the cuba libres. After the sun set, we were served a plate of appetizers and then continued sailing through the bay. After we returned to the marina, Cesar and I walked to the lighthouse and had a drink and took in the view of the marina, and then continued onto the fondue restaurant. Check out the pics in both the SUNSET SAIL album and the PUERTO VALLARTA album
Playa Gemelas and Mismaloya
So we took the rental car and toured the southern part of Banderas Bay. We drove through Conchas Chinas and saw the incredibly beautiful houses on the cliffside, then on to Playa Gemelas where we stopped to sit at the beach for about an hour. It was a beautiful white sand cove, and very hidden from the masses. After that we got back in the car and drove further south to Mismaloya and took some photos of the incredible view. We had a late lunch at Le Kliff Restaurant, with probably the most breathtaking view I had seen yet, but awful service. After that we continued on south to Boca de Tomatlan, which is a small fishing village and also where the river dumps out into the ocean. We stayed there for less than 30 minutes, which was OK for me because I felt really uneasy there. On our way back home we stopped on the side of the road at Mismaloya again to watch the sunset. Gosh PV has the most incredible sunsets I have seen. Such beautiful colors! Enjoy the pics
Valentine's Day
What a fun day!
Cesar surprised me with a massage on the beach at the Marriott Hotel. They have a beautiful setup right on the beach, where u can hear the waves crashing. It was so relaxing.
After that we headed to Punta de Mita, a town on the northern part of Banderas Bay to have a nice romantic dinner on the beach. We went to the sister restaurant of Cafe des Artistes, called Cafe des Artistes del Mar. We have such a nice dinner of, I'm sure you can guess, mussels and other seafood, and then a delicious bottle of white wine. The had a great piano player to entertain us during dinner. Check out the pics :)
Cesar surprised me with a massage on the beach at the Marriott Hotel. They have a beautiful setup right on the beach, where u can hear the waves crashing. It was so relaxing.
After that we headed to Punta de Mita, a town on the northern part of Banderas Bay to have a nice romantic dinner on the beach. We went to the sister restaurant of Cafe des Artistes, called Cafe des Artistes del Mar. We have such a nice dinner of, I'm sure you can guess, mussels and other seafood, and then a delicious bottle of white wine. The had a great piano player to entertain us during dinner. Check out the pics :)
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Our Weekend....
was wonderful!
Friday night Cesar had to work, so I went out salsa dancing at J&B, the ONLY salsa club I have been to yet with a wooden dance floor and real salsa dancers :)
It was fun. I met a few guys and girls, and had a wonderful night dancing salsa. Gosh I missed it.
Saturday I went shopping during the day, and then at night met up with Cesar on the boat to head to Rhythms of the Night, the cruise he works on 5 nights a week. Since I have already seen the show and had the dinner there 4 times, he had his crew members buy the ingredients to prepare ceviche on board while the guests docked and went to see the show. It was SO much fun. I got to hang out with his crew members, eating delicious ceviche (shrimp and octopus), dancing salsa and learning banda (hahaha...that was funny), drinking rum and coke, and I even taught one of his crew members a choreography so he could dance salsa for the people on the boat! It was so cute.
After we got off the boat, we went to Mambo Cafe and danced with a big group of his friends until 4am! So fun!
Sunday we spent the morning in deep conversation about life, love, future, etc. It was so nice. Gosh I feel like we have been dating for 6 months already. We played a brief chess game and then headed into downtown PV because he wanted to buy a few clothes. After shopping we ended up at River Cafe (my second time in 3 days) having scallops, mussels, and delicious Errazuris Chardonnay, and listening to a wonderful jazz band. After that we went to La Bodeguita del Medio and did a little more salsa dancing to the music of a live Cuban band.
Monday we headed out to La Palapa, a wonderful restaurant on the beach. We rented chairs and enjoyed the afternoon. Cesar smoked a cigar and I fell asleep. He had 2 guitar players come serenade me. We saw the most beautiful sunset. You have to check out these pics. After that we went home, changed, and got ready to go to Cafe des Artistes. Wow! Probably the best place I have eaten. He actually brought me here on our first date (with Lisa and Monica) for dessert. At that time, I was still on my cleanse, so I couldn't eat the food or drink the wine. This time it was different. We had mussels, scallops (do u see a theme here?), salmon and snapper, then a chocolate dessert and a strawberry and vanilla dessert. Mmmmmmm!
I hope u enjoy all the pics :)
Friday night Cesar had to work, so I went out salsa dancing at J&B, the ONLY salsa club I have been to yet with a wooden dance floor and real salsa dancers :)
It was fun. I met a few guys and girls, and had a wonderful night dancing salsa. Gosh I missed it.
Saturday I went shopping during the day, and then at night met up with Cesar on the boat to head to Rhythms of the Night, the cruise he works on 5 nights a week. Since I have already seen the show and had the dinner there 4 times, he had his crew members buy the ingredients to prepare ceviche on board while the guests docked and went to see the show. It was SO much fun. I got to hang out with his crew members, eating delicious ceviche (shrimp and octopus), dancing salsa and learning banda (hahaha...that was funny), drinking rum and coke, and I even taught one of his crew members a choreography so he could dance salsa for the people on the boat! It was so cute.
After we got off the boat, we went to Mambo Cafe and danced with a big group of his friends until 4am! So fun!
Sunday we spent the morning in deep conversation about life, love, future, etc. It was so nice. Gosh I feel like we have been dating for 6 months already. We played a brief chess game and then headed into downtown PV because he wanted to buy a few clothes. After shopping we ended up at River Cafe (my second time in 3 days) having scallops, mussels, and delicious Errazuris Chardonnay, and listening to a wonderful jazz band. After that we went to La Bodeguita del Medio and did a little more salsa dancing to the music of a live Cuban band.
Monday we headed out to La Palapa, a wonderful restaurant on the beach. We rented chairs and enjoyed the afternoon. Cesar smoked a cigar and I fell asleep. He had 2 guitar players come serenade me. We saw the most beautiful sunset. You have to check out these pics. After that we went home, changed, and got ready to go to Cafe des Artistes. Wow! Probably the best place I have eaten. He actually brought me here on our first date (with Lisa and Monica) for dessert. At that time, I was still on my cleanse, so I couldn't eat the food or drink the wine. This time it was different. We had mussels, scallops (do u see a theme here?), salmon and snapper, then a chocolate dessert and a strawberry and vanilla dessert. Mmmmmmm!
I hope u enjoy all the pics :)
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Sayulita
Cesar and I rented a bright red Jeep Wragler and drove out to a small surfing village called Sayulita. It is overflowing with Americans and Canadians, and some Europeans. I am beginning to find out that Puerto Vallarta in general is a huge attracting for Canadians, especially during their winter months. As well, there are tons of Americans here that own property or participate in timeshares. They are EVERYWHERE!!!
Ok back to my story. I unfortunately didn't take many pictures of the town (I am really bad at remembering to capture moments on film). But I took a few pics of us at the beach and then the beautiful sunset on our drive back home. Hope u like them :)
Ok back to my story. I unfortunately didn't take many pictures of the town (I am really bad at remembering to capture moments on film). But I took a few pics of us at the beach and then the beautiful sunset on our drive back home. Hope u like them :)
America's Cup Sailing
So during the day, Cesar works on the America's cup sailboat tour. They take out anywhere from 10-20 people on each of the 2 boats. These boats are the originals that were used in the America's cup. The just recently got new sails, and the sails are 34 meters tall. They are simply magnificent. The two sailboats participate in 3 races against each other. The great part is that the passengers on the boat do a lot of the work. You are right in the middle of everything, grinding, tacking, etc. Take a look at the pics!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Whale Watching in PV
OMG!!!! What an incredible experiece!
I have always dreamt of seeing a whale, and for some reason, never taken the time to go whale watching. The company Cesar works for operates a whale watching tour on a Benetton sailboat. He explained to me that the boat costs $650,000! It was gorgeous!
So we took off at about 10:30am. The crew served us a huge bowl of fruit, cut out of a watermelon shell. We began our morning with a delicious rum and coke.
We sailed out to the middle of the ocean and passed numerous boats on the way. All of them kept telling us that today was an incredible day to see the whales. I was so excited :)
When we approached the site, there were 4 other boats already there. I was worried we weren't going to get to see anything because of the traffic. But the whales have a mind of their own. They wanted to play with all of us!
All of a sudden, the most beautiful sound exploded out of the water, the puffing sound the whale makes as it comes up to greet us. There were 3 whales, and they were here to play!
They went from boat to boat, teasing, puffing, going under, around, and displaying there incredible beauty.
The whales spent a particularly long amount of time at our sailboat. They came so close to us, we could practically touch them. See for yourself! Go to my pics link.
The crew of the ship later told us that they hadn't seen the whales like this in about 3 years! So evidently I had great luck :)
After whale watching we were served appetizers, lunch, and then we anchored off the coast and people went swimming in the ocean....not me! too cold :)
I have always dreamt of seeing a whale, and for some reason, never taken the time to go whale watching. The company Cesar works for operates a whale watching tour on a Benetton sailboat. He explained to me that the boat costs $650,000! It was gorgeous!
So we took off at about 10:30am. The crew served us a huge bowl of fruit, cut out of a watermelon shell. We began our morning with a delicious rum and coke.
We sailed out to the middle of the ocean and passed numerous boats on the way. All of them kept telling us that today was an incredible day to see the whales. I was so excited :)
When we approached the site, there were 4 other boats already there. I was worried we weren't going to get to see anything because of the traffic. But the whales have a mind of their own. They wanted to play with all of us!
All of a sudden, the most beautiful sound exploded out of the water, the puffing sound the whale makes as it comes up to greet us. There were 3 whales, and they were here to play!
They went from boat to boat, teasing, puffing, going under, around, and displaying there incredible beauty.
The whales spent a particularly long amount of time at our sailboat. They came so close to us, we could practically touch them. See for yourself! Go to my pics link.
The crew of the ship later told us that they hadn't seen the whales like this in about 3 years! So evidently I had great luck :)
After whale watching we were served appetizers, lunch, and then we anchored off the coast and people went swimming in the ocean....not me! too cold :)
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