Time to post a few pictures that I took when we left Puerto Vallarta and also a few from the park in Mazatlan.  I mentioned before that there are two routes between Tepic and PV and neither is very good. I didn’t mention that there are actually four but the other two are very bad. I drove the Tracker and Steve followed while I navigated one of the very bad routes.  There is a brand new road being cut from north of Tepic to San Blas and that will become the preferred way eventually, although we don’t plan to drive to Puerto Vallarta again. Mazatlan is so much nicer and there is no need to torture ourselves with the drive. This route we took on highway 57 was very pretty though and I’m glad we drove it.  I would not recommend it for larger RV’s and unfortunately we still came out in the middle of Tepic so we had to pay one of the tolls that we would have missed going the coastal route. Steve had to often drive into the middle of the road to avoid low hanging branches. The good news was there was no one else on this road.  It climbs and winds for a long time.  I would guess this choice of routing took two extra hours in getting us to Mazatlan. We came through this little town high in the Sierra Madres and were stopped because of a parade and celebration. I was about 30 seconds too late to get a picture of all the horse riders in their white hats at the front of the parade. All the fruits and vegetables at this stand were yellow or green Paper flags strung over main street as far as you can see Here we are parked up at Las Jaibas RV Park in Mazatlan for a month.

Rhythms of the Night is an everything tour in Puerto Vallarta that wows from the first minute to the last.  It’s a boat trip with open bar and music, it’s an all you can eat buffet, and it is a first class musical show.  First we took a boat from the marina to the Las Caletas beach hideaway on the southern side of Banderas Bay.  The boat ride is over an hour long, going full speed in a catamaran but the time went fast with music on board, open bar, dancing, and entertainment from the crew.

When we arrived at Las Caletas Beach, we walked along a path and encountered  mythical characters perched here and there among the rocks.

I would say there were at least 350 people between the four boats on the tour and wondered how crowded it would be at the beach.  But the organizers had skillfully set up many cozy dining areas, each with it’s own buffet.  The buffet included, beef, chicken, shrimp, many vegetables and salads, desert, and wine.  Different musicians came to the tables and played for us.  The harp player sure wowed my mother.

There were thousands of candles and torches lighting the dining areas and walkways. Everything was just immaculate with beautiful palms and plants along the paths. Even the bathrooms were worthy of being photographed which I didn’t do but should have.

After we ate we all went to an outdoor theater area for a show that was themed as ancient mayan but with a modern Cirque du Soleil twist. It was fast paced dance with beautiful costumes, drums, lots of fire, and acrobatics. We were not allowed to take pictures during the show. I did not expect to see a show so professionally well done on a remote beach far from the city but it definitely compared to anything you would see in Las Vegas or even better.

Too soon it was time to walk back to the boats for the long ride back to Puerto Vallarta

Looking back at Las Caletas Beach

We assumed the boat ride back would be long and tiring but it was anything but.  The crew dressed up as the rock band “Queen” and put on a show that almost had us on the floor laughing.  Oh my, it was SOOO good!

I think initially my mother was shocked that we bought the expensive tickets for Rhythms of the Night but when it was over she thought it was a bargain and had a wonderful time.  It was definitely a night to remember.