She Said...

June 15, 2008

I believe that there’s a lot of truth in that saying, «Be careful what you wish for…», especially since I’ve been wishing for rain for the last few weeks. I just didn’t want it to rain for days on end. I guess I should have expressed my wish a little more clearly…

Like the rest of us who live here year ‘round, I was expecting the rains to start in the late afternoon, or during the night, with beautiful hot sunny days in between. Oh well, I’ll remember to be more careful next time (as if my wishes had any influence whatsoever on the climate around here…)

Remember that «mega canal» they were building -at an exorbitant cost- to catch the rainwater so it wouldn’t flood various areas of town, including Francisco Villa Avenue? The one that was going to solve all those problems once and for all? Well, it doesn’t work. The avenue was totally flooded, just as it has been for the last couple of decades, every time there’s a good rainfall.

At least everything is nice and clean all around, for the first time since last October. I’m not complaining. I just feel bad for those tourists who came here on holidays, expecting a week of fun in the sun.

There was a bit of good news among the endless bad ones. According to the Associated Press, «Internet providers Verizon, Sprint and Time Warner Cable have agreed to block access to child pornography and eliminate the material from their servers, New York’s attorney general said Tuesday. The companies also will pay $1.1 million to help fund efforts to remove the online child porn created and disseminated by users through their services, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said. The changes will affect customers nationwide (in the U.S.)» I hope other countries follow suit.

On the local scene, a number of reports made me chuckle, sarcastically I admit. One headline read «Mexico to strengthen focus on Chinese market». The article goes on to say that Mexico hasn’t been able to benefit from this huge sector despite the fact that China has opened commercial and tourism exchanges with this country… At the inauguration ceremony for Aeromexico’s new Mexico City – Tijuana – Shanghai flight, the Mexican Ambassador to China stated that the Chinese spend more than Americans when they go on holidays, so the acquisition of visas for them has been facilitated. He added that the forecast is for a 200% to 300% increase in tourism from the third largest country in the world. A few dozen multiplied by 200 or 300% still doesn’t amount to much though.

And then there’s the matter of our (in)famous convention center. The call for tenders for operating the long awaited but highly controversial site is still pending, despite the fact that Sr. Luis Guillermo Martínez Mora, the State of Jalisco’s Secretary for Economic Promotion, had promised it by the end of May, 2008. Now they’re talking about August. In the meantime, the Governor stated that construction will definitely be finished by the end of October.

For their part, the various tourism sectors, local, state and national, warned that years are needed to promote a site such as this convention center, and not weeks or months like the authorities believe. They foresee a very slow start for its use.

In the meantime, the federal Department of Tourism is signing an agreement with an American company, 15 expert consultants in the realm of conventions, congresses and incentive tours. I guess time will tell.
JOY! tells us that «Mami’s Cucina Asiatica is doing a roaring trade for good reason.

The food is awesome and the most expensive thing on the menu is 60 pesos, most meals range between 30 and 50 pesos! I’ve just finished the best chicken teriyaki I’ve ever eaten! I’m so impressed with this sweet little restaurant in Plaza Romy that I’m using its free wireless to tell y’all about it. The place is owned by the lovely Lisa who is catering to the locals with everything from secret recipe shrimp tacos with homemade salsas to all kinds of Asian appetizers - AND she delivers to the Old Town area… Check it out, summer hours are 9 to 5.» Worth a try, don’t you think?

What else did I learn this week, that’s worth sharing? Well, I learned that idling burns about a half-mile worth of gas every minute, according to the California Energy Commission. That’s why hybrid cars shut down their gasoline engines whenever they stop, even for a moment. And that if you drive a more-or-less recent model car, with fuel injection, it is worth it to turn off your motor if you see that you’ll be stuck for a while in a traffic jam, or waiting for someone. With these vehicles, it is wrong to think that turning the motor on uses more fuel than if you let it idle. OK, that’s my bit about mechanics for now.

As far as «events» go, I’m glad that it’s a little calmer now. I only speak for myself of course. I’m fully aware that it’s not a good thing for local businesses, but hey, in all the years I’ve lived here, I’ve noted that the arrival of the «low season» always seems to come as a surprise to our Department of Tourism. Every year, they claim to be working hard to avoid its recurrence, but no one has seen any improvement to date. Who knows? Perhaps once all those 7,600+ condos are finished, bought and populated, things will get better. I sure hope so for the sake of all Vallartans who have invested their life’s earnings into a business here.

I was speaking to an old, dear friend of mine about that very topic, and others, recently. He asked me, «So if things get worse, the economy, the traffic, the violence, would you move away?» Of course not. Think about it. Where else could I see an Aztec dancer dressed in full regalia, walking along the Malecon, talking on his cell phone? Where else could I find myself stopped in traffic, waiting for the light to turn green, next to a pick-up truck filled with huge piñatas hanging in the back? Where else could I enjoy fireworks every night, shot off the replica of a 16th century pirate ship? And all our amazing restaurants… And finally, where else but in Puerto Vallarta could I find the people of Puerto Vallarta? Nope. I’m not leaving.

Before I forget, a big thank you to all my readers who sent me such nice comments about my blog, a.k.a. this column, especially while the Tribune was off line.

By the way, check out your favorite eating establishments, folks. Lots of them have special fixed-price summer menus, very reasonable, very delicious. Trio has reopened, so I think it’s time for me to pay them a visit. Maybe that’s where we’ll go to celebrate Father’s Day. I also have to check to see when the next annual «Duck Festival» is scheduled for…

I wish all the daddies out there a wonderful Father’s Day, and if you’re reading this after the fact, I hope it was wonderful. I leave you with a thought I received this week: "That wrong turn may have made you three minutes late, but it could also be the reason you weren’t involved in the accident that never happened. Think forest, not trees." Hasta luego.
pvmom04@yahoo.com

posted by Anna Reisman @ 11:15 AM