Newcott Blog

Pics of our Puerto Vallarta Vacation are online.  You'll find a bunch like this: 

I've been thinking about Mexico.  Puerto Vallarta is a major tourist destination, and it's been so for at least 20 years.  Yet, you drive through town and it's totally developing nation.  You can't drink the water from the faucet.  Every road is pot-holed and under construction.  There are half-built buildings everywhere.  The locals are all trying to hustle the tourists.  And it's not for a lack of money.  Every tourist leaving out of Puerto Vallarta pays about $40 USD in visitor and departure taxes.  I've read that between 3 and 5 million people visit each year.  That's at least $120,000,000 USD per year in tax revenue (on top of all the sales tax that comes with the tourism).  I'm not a master urban planner.  But for just half that money per year, PV should be able to clean up their water, build a nice road through the city, and finish up some of those buildings.

We're back from a week of vacation in Puerto Vallarta, MX.  Highlights include, beautiful blue water.  Snorkeling along natural reef.  Driving to little towns south and north.  Drinks at Carmelitas, overlooking all of PV.  Home-cooked Mexican breakfasts and dinners overlooking the ocean.  Fun time with the Moyer family.  I also learned a few important lessons that are even more important now that I have a baby: 

1. Know what you want out of a vacation BEFORE you decide where to go on vacation.  I didn't realize until I got home that I wanted a few luxuries on my vacation:  nice hotel style bedding; air conditioning in house common areas; no mosquito bites; clean water from the bathroom fixtures; sleep.  If you only get one or two shots at relaxing vacations per year, make them count.

2. Children change everything, and make relaxation difficult.  Find a sleeping arrangement in which babies have their own, closed-off space (so they can cry and not bother you every time they wake). 

3. One structured activity per day helps give the lazy days of vacation a sense of purpose, makes it more memorable, and accentuates the restful hours spent reading by the pool with a frosty cold one in-hand.  My favorite days were the ones that involved a 3-4 hour adventure:  driving up to Saulita, kayaking 3 miles to the snorkeling islands, walking into town.

4. Most importantly, give yourself a day or two on the backend to decompress at home before heading right back into work the next day.

I uploaded some pics.  My hotel, the Hotel Okura, has US-style rooms  (i.e. size and shower), with one exception, the  toilet.  I can't believe I didn't take a picture of the toilet, but it is in the tradition of Japanese super toilets.  You sit down, the toilet automatically flushes.  At the hit of a button, warm water will spray on your backside — temperature and flow are fully adjustable.  I'll never know why this fad has not caught on in the US, because the experience is superb. 

Each morning, I ate a delicious full American-style buffet.  The food is delicious and their coffee is really good. 

It was rainy and hot.  One person told me it had been the hottest July he could remember. My office is a 5 minute walk from the hotel, and I was soaked with sweat after each walk.

Unlike people in California, and even in rainy DC, folks in Tokyo always carry umbrellas if the forecast calls for rain.  Most buildings have umbrella lockers outside the front door. Click your umbrella into the metal clasp and a key falls out. 

Major streets in Tokyo are as you would expect — wide, paved, and filled with cars.  But in most areas outside of Tokyo city center, the streets are more geared for pedestrians — crowded with shops, signs, and people. 

There are several major intersections in Tokyo that look like Times Square.  This is the Shibuya crossing.  In the background is the busiest Starbucks in the world.  At Shibuya, I met up with two of my friends from business school.  They took me out and showed  me how to have fun in Tokyo. 

Step 1 (8:30 pm), find a good Thai restaurant (and avoid the Outback Steakhouse). 

Step 2 (10:00 pm), go to a local bar. 

Step 3 (12:00 am), go to karaoke bar and rent out a private room on any of the 10 floors and belt out Japanese and American pop songs until hoarse. 

Step 4 (2:00 am),  go to 7-11, buy some beers, and drink them on the street, which it totally legal all over Tokyo. 

Step 5 (3:00 am), get in a taxi (which always has an automatic door opener for the passenger) and hope the Japanese driver understands your request for the hotel of your choice.

It is illegal to smoke in public places.  But most of the people in Japan smoke.  So, there are a structures for doing so all over the country. There are so many people in this smoking area they are spilling out onto the street.  Smokes are cheap — about 2 bucks per pack — and you can buy them in vending machines all over.

Finallly, the cuisine.  Compared to Mexican, Thai, and Indian, Japanese food is bland by design.  The intent is for you to taste the meat, appreciate the presentation, and enjoy the meal slowly.  The sushi and sashimi is amazing.  It is all super fresh.  I learned very quickly that I have been using way too much soy sauce, wasabi, and ginger on my sushi (i.e. my host, Ueyama-san, laughed in my face when he saw I was drowning my food in the sauce concoction I had whipped up).   I ate some scary raw chicken, seared on the outside, raw on the inside, and covered in salmon roe.  And I dipped at least one dish in raw egg yolk.  How do these people avoid salmonella?  I am proud of being the adventurous tourist.  I even tried grape-sized fish eggs that tasted like salty, chewy explosions of sea water.   Finally, the meal is served at a very slow pace — two or three bite-sized dishes at a time. We finished every meal with cold green tea.  My favorite Japanese food, I've found, is cold, thick soba noodles — something I will look for here in the states.