A discussion with Pamela Fuller, a Trip Advisor Destination Expert About The Road Between her Home in Lake Chapala, Mexico and Puerto Vallarta. Also her reviews on some Vallarta Luxury Resorts and Time-Shares.
Also Taxi and Uber Tensions Heat Up, Restaurant Reviews and more!
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Hello fellow travelers, welcome this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel show. I am your host Barry Kessler and I am just so happy to be introducing you to my favorite vacation destination, and maybe even yours, Puerto Vallarta Mexico.
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That music you were just listing to is performed by Alberto Perez, the owner of the La Palapa Group of Restaurants. Those are La Palapa, The
El Dorado Restaurant, and at night for dinner The El Dorado transforms into the ever so romantic Vista Grill with those dramatic views of the Los Muertos Pier all lit up at night in beautiful colors. Of course, at La Palapa you can enjoy that same view of the Los Muertos Pier all day long for breakfast, lunch or dinner, seated with your toes in the sand right at the water’s edge. It’s so romantic, it’s so Puerto Vallarta my friends!
La Palapa as you know if you have listened to my previous podcasts is one of the oldest restaurants here in Puerto Vallarta. It was built in 1957, and I would like to tell you the story and give you a little history of La Palapa, but I’m going to have Mr. Alberto Perez come on the show, and tell us in his own words, about the history of La Palapa, in an episode coming up in January, so stay tuned for that, but as for today, we have a special show but first, what’s happening in Puerto Vallarta this week, the 5th day of September, 2017.
Got this email from listener Cheryl from the great white north, and she writes….
Barry, I just discovered your podcasts. As a 7 month resident of PV I find your topics so informative. It makes me homesick to come back to paradise.
Friends have been going through the effort to become temporal or permanente residents. I think it would be very helpful to do a podcast on this process. We have heard there are changes going on at that office and it is very confusing what we should do when we start my permanente visa in November. Maybe you could interview someone in immigration?
Also, we love the Emiliano Zapata market. Have you ever had breakfast there in the hallway? Eat with the friendly locals. Something everyone interested in the people and culture of Mexico should experience.
Thanks again for keeping us up to date in our absence from PV. Can’t wait to return!
Well Cheryl, great suggestion, actually, a couple of great suggestions for show topics and guess what..? Your wish is my command Cheryl. I’ve got
a show coming up in just a few weeks with one of my favorite Abogados in Mexico, Licencia Felix Zarate, and Felix will give us the scoop on immigration and he will go through the process with us. He will discuss residency, temporal and permanente, all that jazz. We will talk about immigration.
I also am going to talk with Felix about Ejidos. About buying Ejido land. Did you know, that the North American Free Trade Agreement signed in 1992 opened the door to the sale of Ejido land to foreigners? Well, it did. And with NAFTA being rewritten and renegotiated, do you think that something will be changed in that portion of the law? We’ll ask Feliz that and more, so stay tuned.
Interview With Felix and Rhonda Zarate
I got another email from Listener Reggie and he writes…among other things…
My first visit to Puerto Vallarta was in May 1989. I was 20 years old. And I had only had two semesters of Spanish language classes in my then young lifetime. A college buddy and myself drove over 2,000 miles (one way) from Florence Alabama to Puerto Vallarta. It took four days. And we only stayed a week. But oh my that changed my life.
In 1990 I studied at the University of Guadalajara. I was able to visit Puerto Vallarta three times that year. And I traveled around Jalisco including trips to Barra de Navidad, Ameca and Tequila that summer.
He also writes that he met JR on his last trip down…
I met him for the first time on my trip this last March. And thanks to your podcast I wasn’t so surprised to hear his British accent. My wife and I actually spent the evening visiting with him which was really fun. I have many suggestions for your show. But reminiscing about my night with JR brings me to a interesting person you may wanna meet and interview. Isabel of Casa Isabel – http://www.casaisabelpv.com
My next suggestion is to meet and interview “Jalisco’s Funniest Human Being” – http://www.banderasnews.com/profiles/gil-givens.htm
He is the author of three books about his life in Mexico including “Puerto Vallarta on 49 Brain Cells a Day”. Ironically, I owned Former’s Mexico on $49 dollars a day on my first trip down. He and his wife own and operate Lucy’s Cucu Cabaña on Basillio Badillo. The store re-opens October 24th if you’re unable to find him otherwise. Please let me know if you’re able to make contact with Gil. He is a truly magnificent author.
So I told Reggie those were both great ideas, and that I had already been in touch with both Isabel and Gil, and as time allows, and if Gil will ever get back into town, I’ll wrangle an interview from the funniest guy in Puerto Vallarta, and spend some time with the delightful Isabel from Casa Isabel, the big Yellow House on the Hill, overlooking The southside and Los Muertos Beach. Stunning views and well, just you wait for that interview and visit.
And, as a bonus to all of you listeners, Reggie has also agreed to come on the show, along with his wife, and tell us about his adventures and their adventures here in paradise, so stay tuned for that!
Got another email, from a listener named Sam who writes…
Hola, I will be visiting PV for my second time in Oct. I travel solo and like to eat local taco cart or small family restaurant. I would like to know
your choices, In Old Town. I have also read that a lot of places are closed in Oct?
So, I made a list of my favorites and sent them back to you Sam, but your email keeps bouncing back to me. Maybe it’s that CA.GOV address that’s not allowing me to send back to you so Sam, if you are listening, send me a real non-government email address and I’ll get that info over to you pronto before you get boots on the ground in October.
As for you listeners, yore going to just have to wait for that list till next week. There’s just too much to cover today.
Taxistas Acting Badly
It’s been awhile since I have mentioned Uber in Puerto Vallarta, so I think we need to go over some things once again, I have been seeing lots of video and news reports of taxi drivers in Vallarta actin badly. I will post one in the show notes so you can see what I’m talking about. It seems almost every time I see incidents like these, almost 90 percent of the time, it involves an Uber driver picking up a ride in front of a resort or Hotel. Look guys, let’s review how we keep safe and sound and not end up in a confrontation between your UBER driver and a Taxi Driver, or in some cases, many taxi drivers. Remember, I’m telling you this not only for your own safety, but the safety of that poor Uber Driver as well.
Uber is not allowed to pick up at the airport, There are some of you (Debbie G. I’m talking to you Debbie) who are cheap, and insist on adventuring out of the airport lobby with all of your luggage and in the tropical heat, after a long airplane ride from Canadia to Mexico, you
schlep all that stuff up the steep ramp, across the pedestrian bridge and down the other side, and negotiate a ride from the regular taxi drivers at a lesser rate than the federal taxis out of the airport, and we can talk about that now, ummm..no..not now, maybe later, but let’s not summon an Uber driver at the Airport boys and girls. The airport area is crawling with taxi drivers. Too risky. Way too risky a way to start your vacation in paradise. Actually, Debbie gets off the plane, walks across the parking lot to the OXXO right there at the airport, she and her family buy a sixer of cervesas, then they trip across the bridge to the cheaper taxis waiting on the other side of the bridge. Okay, if you want to see some pictures of the bridge, and Tacon Marlin, I’ll post some picture for you in the show notes, so check them out.
Okay back to Uber and your Safety.
- Do Not summon your Uber ride where Taxis and taxi drivers hang out.
- At the Airport
- In Front of Hotels and Resorts
- In Front of Restaurants and Bars
- Near a Taxi Stand
- On the Malecon at the end of Streets that Dead-End at the Malecon
- Don’t stare at your cellphone while waiting for your ride. Okay, that may be hard to do, but a taxista may think you are watching along as the Uber approaches.
- When you get into an Uber car, get in the front seat and acknowledge the driver as if they were your friend. Greet them with an Hola Amigo or Que Anda or como estamos? That way, you don’t look like an Uber Pickup, but just friends.
Some of the locals are getting a little fed up with this taxi nastiness and have created some, might I say interesting Facebook groups where they discuss ways to get back at the taxistas. I’ll keep an eye out for you guys. Just stay safe and follow my advice, all will go well amigos.
There’s just so much news this week. The heavy rains that Vallarta has been experiencing have caused some damage of note. One of the many suspension footbridges that cross the Cuale River was taken out by flood waters, so bummer for those neighborhoods that depend in that footbridge to get from one side to the other. and if you have any thoughts of visiting San Sebastian de Oeste by road, that can be pretty sketchy. The road was closed to traffic due to mudslides and washed out roads for almost 2 weeks and that was a bummer for those trying to get from Vallarta, to this Colonial Town, but even worse for those who were stuck up there, with difficult terrain to follow out from a far less traveled dirt and gravel road to out and it was a mess. Right now, authorities say it’s still closed so stay tuned for reports as to when we will be open again.
Let’s get to our guest. I have been following Pamela Fuller for a long time on the Trip Advisor forums. Pam is someone I would consider a luxury traveler.
- She is a Trip advisor destination expert
- Expat from Massachusetts
- Lives in lake Chapala, a beautiful ake situated in an extinct volcano in the Altiplano above Guadalajara.
- Luxury traveler. She has lots of timeshares and you will hear about some of them.
Timeshare Properties and Resorts are Plentiful in Puerto Vallarta.
My experiences with time share properties,
- Villa Del Palmar
- The Lindo Mar
- Dreams
- Casa Velas
- Velas Vallarta
- The Now Amber
- Friendly Vallarta
- The Canto Del Sol
- The Crown Paradise Resort
- The Melia
- Garza Blanca
- Vidanta
- The Grand Mayan
- The Grand Bliss
these are properties that have rooms, hotel rooms, but they are timeshare properties, and they spend a good amount of time trying to get you to agree to sit for a timeshare presentation. We were too young at the time so they weren’t interested in us.
So that’s what you will expect when you stay at one of these properties. She will talk about that.
Pamela is also a breast cancer survivor; her moto is survived to travel. So she knows about medical care in Mexico and in Puerto Vallarta, so I just had to get her on the show and share her experiences with you so I sent my microphone to Boston Massachutes and had a one on one conversation with Pamela Fuller, from Lake Chapala.
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Pamela’s Favorite Restaurants
- Bravos Restaurant and Bar, Puerto Vallarta
- Layla’s Restaurant, Puerto Vallarta
- Blake’s Restaurant and Bar, Puerto Vallarta
- The Food Park , Puerto Vallarta
- Anejo Limon Restaurant Puerto Vallarta
- Sheraton Puerto Vallarta Breakfast Brunch
Thank you so much Pamela for sharing with me and all of us. You are an inspiration to all fellow travelers and adventurers. And such a fount of information and knowledge of the Jalisco Area.
Well, that should do it for this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show.
Next week stay tuned for more on the ground reports from Puerto Vallarta Mexico, with travel tips, great restaurant and excursion ideas and more. Until then, remember, this is an interactive show where I depend on your questions and suggestions about all things Puerto Vallarta. If you think of something I should be talking about, please reach out to me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending us your message.
And remember, if you are considering booking any type of tour while you are in Puerto Vallarta, you must go to Vallartainfo.com, JR’s website and reserve your tour through him, right from his website. Remember the value for value proposition. His experience and on the ground knowledge of everything Puerto Vallarta in exchange for your making a purchase of a tour that you would do anyway, you’re just doing it through him as a way of saying thank you. It costs no more than if you were to use someone else so do it. Really. And when you do take one of these tours, email me about your experiences. Maybe you can come on-board and share with others what you liked or didn’t like about the tour. Again, contact me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending off a message.
And once again, if you like this podcast, please take the time and subscribe and give me a good review on iTunes if you would. That way we can get the word out to more and more people about the magic of this place. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Remember I made it easy for you to do just that with each episode I create. But if you haven’t been to my website, you really need to have a look there. I have the links to the places we talk about, interesting pictures and the more all right there in my blog-posts and show-notes for each episode of the show so check them out for sure if you haven’t already all-right? All right.
So, thanks to Pamela Fuller, Trip Advisor Destination Expert, Luxury Traveler, Breast Cancer Survivor who survives to Travel. I have pictures of her and her husband and all the places she talked about in the show notes of this episode, at www.puertovallartatravelshow.com. And thanks to all of you for listening all the way through this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show. This is Barry Kessler signing off with a wish for you all to slow down, be kind and live the Vallarta lifestyle. Nos Vemos amigos!
Listen to The Podcast
Well, that should do it for this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show.
Next week stay tuned for more on the ground reports from Puerto Vallarta Mexico, with travel tips, great restaurant and excursion ideas and more. Until then, remember, this is an interactive show where I depend on your questions and suggestions about all things Puerto Vallarta. If you think of something I should be talking about, please reach out to me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending us your message.
And remember, if you are considering booking any type of tour while you are in Puerto Vallarta, you must go to Vallartainfo.com, JR’s website and reserve your tour through him, right from his website. Remember the value for value proposition. His experience and on the ground knowledge of everything Puerto Vallarta in exchange for your making a purchase of a tour that you would do anyway, you’re just doing it through him as a way of saying thank you. It costs no more than if you were to use someone else so do it. Really. And when you do take one of these tours, email me about your experiences. Maybe you can come on-board and share with others what you liked or didn’t like about the tour. Again, contact me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending off a message.
And once again, if you like this podcast, please take the time and subscribe and give me a good review on iTunes if you would. That way we can get the word out to more and more people about the magic of this place. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Remember I made it easy for you to do just that with each episode I create. But if you haven’t been to my website, you really need to have a look there. I have the links to the places we talk about, interesting pictures and the more all right there in my blog-posts and show-notes for each episode of the show so check them out for sure if you haven’t already all-right? All right.
So, thanks to Pamela Fuller, Trip Advisor Destination Expert, Luxury Traveler, Breast Cancer Survivor who survives to Travel. I have pictures of her and her husband and all the places she talked about in the show notes of this episode, at www.puertovallartatravelshow.com. And thanks to all of you for listening all the way through this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show. This is Barry Kessler signing off with a wish for you all to slow down, be kind and live the Vallarta lifestyle. Nos Vemos amigos!