See the animal in the picture?

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No doubt you are used to seeing trees inhabited by birds and squirrels and maybe even monkeys, but in Puerto Vallarta iguanas are common fauna. So signature are they to the area, the scary-looking, slithering reptiles are prominently named in arguably the most famous movie of the coastal city: John Houston's Night of the Iguana, starring Richard Burton and Eva Gardner.
  

 Can you spot it?

This is in a tree in the 

park by the Rio Cuale,not 

the mountainous jungles

Sayulita (PICS)

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Sayulita is annually losing its 'unspoiled' appeal. Vacationers and retirees flock to pockets of tranquil paradise; developers and entrepreneurs set up businesses; and where there are tourists there are just as many local vendors.
Much of the dirt roads have been paved (usually cobblestones), the bridge built, and a large brick-and-mortar archway gate where once there was, well, nothing but dirt road. 

this 'city bus' travels between Pto Vallarta and Sayulita.

the ride lasts an hour -- but feels longer, owing to the steaming raggedy bus, the bus driver's blaring ranchero music, and your typically loud native fellow passengers. cost varies depending on where you catch it but is about $23mxn from Wal-mart/Marina stop

some ultra comfortable digs

when I first visited seven years ago there were 0 hostels;

now there are these 2 plus another!

still attracts loads of surfers and beach bums

Missed my flight to Spain

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The day started well but didn't end that way. Awoke comfortably early for my flight back to Europe last week. Had time to do little errands like repair my wristwatch band and say good-bye to friends that morning. I even took the bus to the airport instead of a cab. 

The first leg of the flight from Puerto Vallarta to Mexico City was delayed, cutting down the three hour layover to two hours. No skin off my nose, I thought. Once in Mexico City I luxuriated in the layover time...browsing magazine stands, writing in my journal and people-watching. After two hours I went to the boarding gate to fly to Spain! Then I'm told I can't board without my Mexican tourist visa; iin fact, that I can't leave the country without it. Where is it? the airline people asked. I answer that I wasn't given one.

"When I rode the bus through Tijuana no one gave me any form to fill out."
"Then you must go get one now from Immigration," they said. "Hurry the plane is ready to leave."

That was as helpful as it got.

The unfortunate thing about being law abiding in foreign countries is that persons hired in gainful employment don't speak English whereas people on the street do

From here the mis-adventure snowballed. I had to run around the terminal(s) with my bags trying to get this fucking paper stamped. One Immigration desk was nearby but she only handed out the forms. I would have to exit and go to another official for the stamp -- and that office was not nearby. After getting permission from federal police to go out I made my way to this nondescript office where I'm requested to fill out another two forms  --and pay something or another. And the girl's English was atrocious. (The unfortunate thing about being law abiding in foreign countries is that persons hired in gainful employment don't speak English whereas people on the street do. You'd understandably mistake those you meet in nice, respective clean jobs for being educated and worldly but it's likely as not that, yes, they went to the rights schools but only because their parents had the right money. Their advancements come via cronyism and marriages -- just like in the old days. How can you be a college graduate and native North American without learning how to speak English, the most important language in the world?!) 

I didn't pay the fee. Couldn't tell if I was paying for a fine or a process fee and, by this point, my chance of getting on the plane was dashed. Fifteen minutes had passed already. The plane was gone. But what about the next one? I still had hope. As far as Aeromexico was concerned I wanted to change my flight and that - change - required I buy a new ticket -- at three times the price. "It's policy, senor." What about a flight for tomorrow or the day after? "It's policy, senor." Policy! Policy! Policy! Airlines are goddamn robber barons. Thus my return ticket was, as we say in German, kaput.

My luggage felt like baggage

For hours I languished in the airport, scheming a new game plan. But the going costs of flying abroad were astronomical. So...I figured I'd regroup at leisure: I'd take the bus back to Vallarta (because being in Mexico City is a ticking time-bomb) and unpack and resume travel in a week or, heck, maybe a month. Always look on the bright side.... It was an overnight bus ride on ETN, the most expensive coach line (see below post), whose comfort  I hoped would calm me down. It didn't and it wasn't comfortable. More, the apartment I'd just left was suddenly no longer available. Another guy who had earlier offered me to cheaply rent his spare room suddenly had to get his father's permission first. "Could I wait until July?" he wondered. Click. My luggage felt like baggage. The morning was hot! I sat on a park bench and filled a garbage bag full of stuff and sat that bag of goodies (plus the now empty suitcase) on the curb for garbage collection.  
I would make do with whatever fitted into my two carry-on's.  In under ten minutes the suitcase was carried off. 

I went to an out-of-the-way hostel near the edge of town which I imagined would have vacancies. They did. I was the sole guest. I told myself I'd take the weekend to exhale and regroup. It wasn't the first time I found myself stranded; but, thankfully, this time I have money. And I'm resourceful.  
Always look on the bright side of your life...especially when it's so fucking hard to do so.    
  

ETN Buses are no longer the best (MEXICO)

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ETN used to be the best coach service in Mexico. Not anymore.

Competing bus lines have beefed up their infrastructure and become the way of most things 'global': cookie-cutter. But in this case, that's a good thing because, being a Third World nation, it's a step up for Mexico. What you or I may take for granted e.g., punctuality, clearly advertised prices, clean and clean-smelling interiors, stocked bathroom and, lately, wifi onboard, has gradually become the new norm for Mexican bus travel which, unlike, America, is still extremely popular. You'd think by it being so popular and with so many competing companies that service and amenities would already be the bee's knees but that's Mexico for you: if it's already like this, then that's the way it's supposed to be.

Primera Plus bus is on par with, if not better than, ETN and offers lower prices

For years ETN buses was ahead with big, comfortable reclining seats, complimentary snack lunches, clean His & Her toilets, personal entertainment (you plugged in the headphones IF you wanted to hear the movie/music), and, judging by the spotless collars and neckties, apparently higher standards for their operators. The tickets, naturally costed, more. But ETN is no more the most lujoso (luxurious) -- yet their prices remain the same. The drivers aren't the smartest in appearance and the provided service and comfort is not worth the extra hundreds of pesos they charge.


Primera Plus bus, for one, is on par with, if not better than, ETN - with an equally expansive list of destinations, on-board comforts - and, more importantly, Primera Plus offers lower prices! For example, a long trip from Mexico City-Puerto Vallarta (direct) via ETN costs $1,230 while the same trek via Primera Plus is $1025; Futurama charges about $1045. The lujo of the latter two companies is not beneath expensive ETN's. Neither the wi-fi nor the reading lights worked. Knowing this, barring a time-table and specific destination not served by any other company, I won't bother travelling on ETN. It's just not worth it.

For the bus drivers, customer service ain't part of their job descriptions; it's to drive the bus safely

Where all the companies still lack, however, is the establishment of rider rules or etiquette, and un-hindered communication with the driver. There are no announced or written reminders to refrain from disturbing fellow passengers with loud conversations, personal audio devices, objects in the aisle. Mexican parents even allow their brats to shout and run up and down the aisle. They certainly don't attempt to hush them. The only 'common-sense' activity noticeably absent is cigarette-smoking! Communication with the driver is hindered by a door which physically and visually separates him from us. Plus it opens out toward the driver so you can imagine how awkward that is. Thus, if it's too cold or hot - and it's most always too cold - or the volume from the overhead speakers is too loud or some passenger is being obnoxious, then, sadly - and frustratingly - you're shit out of luck. The operators also refuse to activate overhead reading lights because, naturally, who wants to read a book on a long ride?! For the bus drivers, customer service ain't part of their job descriptions; it's to drive the bus safely.

barring a specific destination not served by any other company, I won't bother travelling on ETN. It's just not worth it

Safety is important but so is having a stress-free environment. For us as well as the driver.