At the art show, in front of the Estudio Café on the malecon in Nuevo Vallarta, a little painting with blue blue sky and dancing white leaves falling from a graceful tree gathering in layers upon the ground, caught my eye. It was a happy piece. It conveyed such dimension and texture that the fallen leaves looked like you could remove each one from the painting with the care of a delicate touch. Almost as though tiny translucent grains of rice, these little white leaves, so deliberately rendered, that each individual one had a specific place nestled among the others blanketing the ground
Small things with great impact, it is nice to have the time to savor these details. It’s a luxury to “stop and smell the roses” as they say. Here in Puerto Vallarta, there are many scenes, many different pockets and places, limitless details to examine and enjoy.
After many years of discovering and exploring these myriad nooks and crannies of this fun and fascinating town, we saw things this time through the eyes of our young cousin and niece – both 26 years old and both experiencing Mexico for their very first time. Their wonderment was palpable. There was no pretense to conceal their enthusiasm through cool veils of studied “hip – seen it and done it” placidity. Quite the contrary, these girls were beaming with sparkling eyes and bubbly exclamations for the 10 days that they participated with us in this adventure.
Both are well-traveled. Coincidentally though, neither had been to Mexico. We were thrilled to be the ones to introduce them and share one of our favorite areas. The details that they perceived and about which they enthused were many…from the delicious aroma and tantalizing sizzle of the carne asada cooking on the small grills which circled the plaza in Bucerillas amidst the carnival-like atmosphere of the night’s festivities – to the soft glow of the candlelight dancing on the tablecloths to the sensual beat of jazz in the gentle breeze of the beachside tables at La Palapa – they were amazed.
We tasted tequilas, savored the nuances, and marveled at the smooth warming effects without typical telltale hangovers of the over-indulgent…in fact, they both now swear by the mysterious medicinal qualities of the great blue agaves and their magical distillation! Imagine that! Each tasting experience brought with it a new vessel from which to enjoy the drinks – so exclaiming about the glassware – tall short, green, clear, each had its own unique character that delighted the girls.
The colors and textures of the architecture intrigued them. Those surfer boys on the beach…cute waiters, nothing escaped their observation. Water aerobics in the sapphire blue water of an infinity pool over-looking the sea with thrilling black whales’ tails flipping in the glitter of the sunlight on the water. Surreal…could this be staged? Cameras were constantly clicking off the shots – what did we do before the multi-gigs of our digital camera cards? Hundreds of images were documented for later examination and re-living of the memories gathered in such a short time. An introductory time, we’re sure as each expressed their absolute desire to return again to continue the adventure.
We’ll change gears now and miss their energetic enthusiasm but maybe have more time now to reflect and enjoy before heading back to “reality.” But at home, we’ll see the little white leaves falling through the blue blue sky from the delicate tree branches of the little painting that caught my eye. Thank you Jesus, it’s a treasure.
