She Said...

July 15, 2007

Eight days. That’s how long it took this year for the mountains to turn from dry, drab grayish brown to lush, luxuriant tones of green. Three good rainfalls, though I’m told that one of them came close to breaking a local record for the most rain in a specific period of time. What absolute beauty surrounds us! LIVE EARTH indeed!

Can you believe it? Over 2 Billion people watched this biggest musical event of all times. Now we’ll have to wait and see what will come of it. And Chichen Itza, the Mayan pyramid in the Yucatan, near Cancún (which is actually in the state of Quintana Roo), has officially been declared one of the New 7 Wonders of the World - despite the United Nations’ plea not to vote for it as it would attract too many additional tourists and thus lead to increased damage to the site… Thank goodness that no one suggested Palenque, or Tikal for that matter. At least those will remain more or less pristine for a little while longer.

Driving out to the Marina -or points further north- is not one of my favorite pastimes. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not housebound nor agoraphobic; I just don’t like driving much, especially since the traffic has gotten so bad around this town, even through the so-called “low season”. Consequently, I’ve been sticking to the south side as much as possible, what we call the Romantic Zone. And now it’s going to get much worse as the school year is finished and families from all over Mexico are arriving to Ourtown for their summer holidays - a third of them by car according to the statistics published by the Tourism Department.

Nevertheless, there are exceptions, reasons why I will undertake the voyage. Last week was one of those. I went out to the Westin to spend some time with our good friend, Haim Outmezgin (the hotel’s General Manager), before his imminent departure from Mexico. He received a promotion he couldn’t refuse which entails his return to Israel, from whence he came and where his family resides. I will miss him terribly.

But back to my story: due to the traffic situation, I was stuck on the Libramiento - again. With the motor turned off, I had a chance to look around. The most impressive sight was straight ahead of me: the Sheraton Buganvilias, the biggest hotel in town, is now dwarfed by the condominium towers being built near it. The entire skyline around the bay is changing so quickly that it’s scary… No wonder critics are warning against the potential “Acapulco-nization” of PV.

On the other side of the street, a car pulled up and parked in front of the hardware store. The driver spent a while adjusting his electrically-operated window so it would remain open just a wee bit. Up, down, no, a little higher, ok… Satisfied, he stepped out of the car, pushed the button down to lock the door, and walked over to the lighting supplies store at the corner. What made me smile was the fact that after all the time he spent setting his window just right, he left the rear windows wide open. And here I thought I was the only one to do such things…

The line of cars before me finally started moving. As I approached the bridges over the Pitillal, I looked at that billboard advertising the soon-to-be-built Icon towers. I read that the first tower of that development is already sold out… but, according to the latest inquiries at City Hall, they still don’t have a permit to build… Hmmm. Then, when I finally reached the entrance to Marina Vallarta, I looked at the huge lot where Nima wants to build 11 floors instead of the 6 for which they were given a permit. I can see why the residents are so upset. And then, there I was again, facing the now-gutted and cleaned-up structure at that triangular intersection in front of the Marriott, wondering why they never built a convention center there. Passed the humungous Shangri-La towers, and arrived at that beautiful, beautiful Westin and its incredible gardens. Over 600 well-cared for palm trees, there to be admired by all, not to mention all the other species of plants thriving in its expansive gardens… Made me think of those poor, poor dying palms along the “new” Malecon. And did you happen to notice how quickly the Posada Rio Cuale disappeared? It took a week, but it felt as if it had happened overnight. Talk about an icon! This was a place the European tourists adored. Le Gourmet restaurant was a favorite of so many (including yours truly), and those beautiful trees around its pool! All gone. Gone, to be replaced by more condos…

If I’m coming across as nostalgic or something like it, it’s because I am. Astrologers say that “as Mercury turns direct in Cancer -the sensitive and nostalgic water sign- it is time to incorporate the conversations and communications of the recent past in a way that provides you with a stronger inner foundation, as well as emotional resilience and a sense of acceptance.” Maybe that’s why I feel the way I do. I’m just glad that, except for that condominium monstrosity being built next to / and Lazaro Cardenas Parking “Plaza” transformed from what was a Park, the rest of the Romantic Zone is relatively stable, the way it was, the reason for which we decided to move down here - to the “real” Mexico - instead of Miami-South-of-the-Border (a.k.a. Nuevo Vallarta).

On the other hand, the Neighborhood Association representing the south side, Romantic Zone, Colonia Emiliano Zapata, whatever you want to call it, had its first formal meeting with the Mayor a little over a week ago, where it complained that absolutely nothing has been done to spruce up the area for the last 15 years or so… That’s 5 or 6 different administrations, of both political parties. They’re right. Years ago, I remember when the then Mayor promised to fix the streets and install underground cables, as soon as the downtown core was finished… it never came to pass. As a matter of fact, they’re talking about it again, and again they’re saying that first they must take care of the downtown core, the “historical” part of Vallarta.

According to last week’s statements by the municipal Director of Tourism, as quoted in the local papers, this is what’s on City Hall’s agenda, aside from the “rescue” of said historical center: keeping the Tourist Information Office in City Hall open 7 days a week, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., fixing the cobblestone streets and burying the overhead wires (I thought that had been done a few years ago, but I guess they resurrected somehow…), synchronization of traffic lights, street signage, urban traffic (?), reduction of the 32 bus routes that come into town, search for alternatives for more efficient and ecologically-friendly public transportation (?), regularization of vendors’ activities, homogenization of their sites, etc. etc. I’m not kidding you. Does it all sound very familiar?

On the other hand, the City Council approved a $15 Million Peso budget for a program called “Improve Your Street” whereby it would pay half and residents would pay the other half. I’m going to mention it to my neighbors and see if they can get some $$$ to build a sidewalk and/or stairs on our street. Or maybe that doesn’t count as part of the street per se. We’ll have to investigate that.

In the meantime, I haven’t heard anything about any planned demonstration about the City’s intention to go ahead with the project on our beautiful Isla Cuale… I’m not sure that my “sense of acceptance is strong enough…”

Consequently, I think I’ll just go into my ostrich mode for a while and just enjoy the rains, and those breathtaking sunsets we’ve been having lately. (I’ve always maintained that we need clouds in the sky for the sunsets to be as spectacular as they are. A clear sky just doesn’t cut it in the same way.) One of these days, the boys in our print shop will have refined and resolved all the little quirks in their machines, and maybe then, the Tribune will once again be able to feature some of those fabulous sunset shots we receive from our readers on our covers. Keep your fingers crossed.

In closing, I want to use this space to extend my deepest and most sincere congratulations to JOY! for the incredible work she’s done with her Thursday night bingo games at the Lazy Lizard. This lady’s organization has resulted in thousands of pesos for the R.I.S.E. children’s shelter that only receives a whopping $3,000. pesos (that’s around $300. US Dollars) per month from the Family Services department …to feed and take care of 57 kids!

posted by Anna Reisman @ 4:58 PM