Once again we loaded our XL-7 with three days of necessities and headed for La Manzanilla, some 240 miles south on the Jalisco coast. This small fishing village of approximately 1000 persons is located in an area called Costa Alegre, which means Happy Coast. The neighboring towns around La Manzanilla are Cihuatlan, Melaque, Barra de Navidad, Isla Navidad, Tenacatita, Boca de Iguanas, Los Ingenios, Emiliano Zapata, Rebalsito, Careyes, El Tecuan, and Tamarindo.
The trip on MX 200 is on a good two lane ribbon of asphalt and which is currently experiencing a significant amount of maintenance improvements. The trip is a driver’s joy – assuming you like the challenge of driving through a shadow draped landscape on a winding, twisting, and hilly motorway. Highway 200 is a few miles inland from the ocean, and straightens out as you enter the area where Costa Alegre starts some 75 miles south of Puerto Vallarta near a village called Playa de Quemaro.
It is a beautiful easy drive passing by many different plantations and gorgeous scenery. We barely avoided a very large Coati who was hustling across the roadway – first time we’ve ever encountered one near the road. Located nearby La Manzanilla is the La Laguna Mangrove Ecosystem one of several small and unique ecosystems that are located throughout the coast of Jalisco. It supports a large population of the American Crocodile (who can grow to 15 feet and 450 pounds), mammals such as Greater Fishing Bats; Raccoon’s; Coati’s; Iguana’s; a large variety of birds (20+); and many fish, shellfish,. And last, but, not least, many different types of insects.
After approximately three hours we arrived at La Manzanilla and our temporary home away from home – Brisa del Mar located on a hillside directly above the Zocalo and overlooking the green/blue waters of the Bay of Tenacatita.
The first evening we had intended to visit a local restaurant favorite, Figaro’s, however, as luck would have it they actually closed for the season the evening before we arrived. In fact our second-third choices were on alternating schedules and were also closed. We spent the dinner hour at a local sports bar which had just reopened after a couple weeks of vacation. We were out on the town early due to a localized power failure at Brisa del Mar caused by an over enthusiastic tree trimmer who dropped several tree limbs across the power lines. We were told that this was the second time in the week – when asked about the damage the trimmer shrugged and said, ¿Quién, yo? (Who, me?). He then calmly placed his tools in his truck and drove off. The next two days were spent on the veranda reading, on the computer(s), and watching local life unfold slowly in the town center. The main avenues and the road around the Zocalo have been re-paved with adobe bricks since our previous visit and greatly helps local traffic which is made-up mostly of trucks (all ages and types), bicycles/motorbikes, an occasional car, and foot-traffic. In the evening many locals get together in the square to socialize and or just sit on the benches to watch others watch. We observed a traveling circus circumnavigated the Zocalo and disappeared to the south end of town. Later in the evening a pickup truck equipped with a mega-speaker traveled throughout the town advertising the upcoming attraction. Upon inspection tour before dinner we discovered its location and saw two tents and at least two miniature ponies and four goats teetered outside – did you expect more for a town of 1000 residents?
Leaving La Manzanilla Friday morning after a wonderful Dutch/Indonesian breakfast at Yolanda’s (plus 5 sausage rolls and 4 apple turnovers just out of the oven), then purchasing 4 floaters (inner tubes) for our pool we headed back to our home in Puerto Vallarta. Arriving safely after two and a half hours and 89 topes (speed bumps) we unloaded and settled in for an overnight sleep-in with 5 of the local niño’s. For your info 26 of the topes were located between La Manzanilla and Boca de Tomatlan (a distance of 116 miles) and the other 63 were ¨homegrown¨ between Boca and Garza Blanca (distance of 6 miles). They range in size from a 4” radius to a cross-section of Mt. Everest and are identified by yellow or white “antique” paint or the newest of asphalt black contrasted with several year old asphalt black. My favorites are identified by black tire skid marks and a local mechanic shop within viewing distance. In all cases you can be assured that local traffic treats them like roadside bombs about to explode if you exceed 1 to 1.5 mph while negotiating them. Consider it your highway planning in action, or who has a left over surplus of asphalt?
Deanna and Darwin Hammersley, who have managed the Brisa del Mar property the last 10 years have decided to move to Merida in the next several months; however, have found another couple to take their place. We know we´ll return next season, earlier before everyone heads north for the cool clime.
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| HASTA LUEGO |
