Hello from Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico!
The switch to being on the move happened today (April 30). On April 1, we started off with an easy month in a place we’d visited before, a spot we love and we knew would let us relax. We’ve fallen into a slower pace and gotten pretty comfortable in Sayulita. While we absolutely love it there and certainly plan to return in the future (I still have a lot of work to do on my surfing :), we’re ready to start moving and seeing some new places and meeting some new people.
However, this is a serious lifestyle change. This morning, we left what’s become a pretty comfortable space, where we had some semblance of a daily routine and a working knowledge of the geography and operating schedules of the town. We weren’t living out of our backpacks, in fact we hadn’t packed anything in a month. And we hadn’t been forced to speak a whole lot of Spanish. We knew this change was coming and in fact have looked forward to it. But suddenly its here!
I was awake at 3am this morning feeling like a kid on Christmas Eve, so much to be excited about. And on the bus ride this morning as I kept an eye out for the right place to get off and rehearsed my Spanish greetings, I had those same butterflies I get when I’m about to get up in front of an audience to talk.
When you ask what we did today, I’d say we traveled from Sayulita to Nuevo Vallarta. No big deal, its 25 miles, but in that space we changed worlds. Not only physical worlds – from sleepy little surf town of 4,000 to a crowded, bustling city of over 250,000 – but emotionally from a place that’s become comfortable and familiar to one full of new opportunities and challenges.
Today, we navigated new bus routes, took our first taxi, knocked on the door of nearly complete strangers who’ve been kind enough to take us in based on a few emails and utilized two somewhat common languages to introduce ourselves, get acquainted and figure out how to be gracious, appreciative low-maintenance guests for the next few days.
And that was all before noon.
This trip is about pursuing dreams, meeting people and learning about ourselves and the world. And frequently those are not entirely comfortable endeavors, but most worthwhile things aren’t.
So here we go.
Staying with the locals is one of the most rewarding things to do, while away. I hate going into hotels, I much prefer to stay with a family.
We are trying to stay with locals whenever possible. This is the best way we’ve found to get a taste of what its like to live in a place even on a short visit. Its also a good way to get the inside scoop on where to go and how to get around, locals are the experts!
Looks wonderful, Joyce! Surf on!
Thanks Kim! I hope the journey to your big adventure is coming along well.
Thinking and praying for you guys as you begin you journey…thank you for the opportunity to see this trip through your eyes and allow us to go a long for the ride!
Kathy, we’re so glad to have you guys following along intently! Its like you are traveling with us 🙂 After some unexpected delays, the house is scheduled to close today. That’s the last of the loops we left open, so we’re pretty excited (and anxiously awaiting the email that says it is actually done)!