Angie and Mike stopped for tasty smoked marlin burritos across the street from the airport while waiting for the Toms to arrive
It’s always great to welcome friends or family onboard Madrone, and we got both! Mike’s uncle (named Tom) and family friend (conveniently, also named Tom) flew into Puerto Vallarta from Missouri for a few days of sun, sailing, and exploring coastal Mexico.
Yay, the Toms are here!
Way back when, the two Toms (together with Mike’s other uncle, John) introduced Mike to sailing. A couple of times a summer, the family would meet at Crab Orchard Lake in southwest Illinois for an afternoon of sailing, picnicking, and enjoying the water. With rides on Tom’s Sunfish, the other Tom’s Hobie 16, and John’s Buccaneer (at 18′, the big boat in the fleet), Mike learned the basics of sailing. From his memory, the rules were simple and went something like this – 1) Remember which way the wind is coming from, and 2) trim the sails correctly for that wind direction.
Villa Magnolia had several fruit trees including this starfruit
Now that we’re aboard Madrone, it’s fantastic to be able to return the favor by taking the Toms sailing. They joined us for a few days of exploration in the Gulf Islands back in early summer of 2016 before our trip to Alaska, and this time we looked forward to enjoying both the warm waters and consistent winds of Banderas Bay.
Tacos al pastor for dinner tonight
To ease the transition into Mexico, we hopped on the bus at La Cruz to pick the Toms up at the Puerto Vallarta airport and ferry them back in an Uber. Once checked into their hotel (the very nice Villa Magnolia, highly recommended for both the outstanding hospitality and beautiful grounds), the transition was over. We walked through the unpaved back streets of town, dodged traffic crossing the main highway on foot, and tromped through the dust on our way to the local al pastor taco shop – welcome to Mexico!
