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Published: March 15th 2011
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Today is Ash Wednesday. Conveniently Fred, Karolina and myself are all Catholic so we made plans to head to the Cathedral in downtown Puerto Vallarta to give penance and receive our ashes. I called the front desk at the resort and was informed that services were offered every hour. After breakfast, at about 10:00 we hailed a cab downtown. Fred's friend Harriet joined us since she was traveling alone and wanted to participate in Ash Wednesday services as well. We arrived at the front steps of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadapupe. The church is rather new, as far as Cathedrals go and was built in the 1930s, but you wouldn't really know it from the structure. From my last visit, I knew the building was damaged by an earthquake and the crowns were never replaced properly. As I entered the church today the wooden planks still covered the main crown over the alter. Regardless the alter was absolutely stunning with trims of gold and fresh paint adding beautiful color.
We made our way to the chapel where a lady was administering the ash. I can't understand Spanish, but I imagined them saying "Thou art dust and to dust
thou shall return". I replied "Amen" and made my way to the pew.
After, Fred and Harriet took a cab back to the resort to relax. Karolina and I wanted to explore the city. First we talked a few blocks off the boardwalk to see the Mexican side of town and then made our way toward the boardwalk crowded with tourists, shops and artwork to admire. On the Mexican side of town, I couldn't help but think of something I once learned from a business economics professor in college in a lesson about want vs. need. In the poor parts of Mexico, even after a few days of not receiving wages the first thing a lot of Mexican workers will buy is a coke. I believe it considering all the "Coke" vendors and advertisements I saw.
We made our way into a Mexican candy shop called "Aztec Confections" that claimed to have all the traditional Mexican treats and we both filled our bags. I had been searching for a gift for Michael. Boys are so hard to shop for, especially when Tequila would go to waste, so I settled on candies. That man loves his food.
There
are restaurants overlooking the boardwalk and Karolina and I found one called La Destileria and decided to order some drinks and guacamole to enjoy the view. We watched the cars, Mexican street performers, tourists, boats, painters, etc from that balcony. It was very relaxing.
As we walked around after our meal, Karolina pointed out to me the lack of Mexicans with ash on their foreheads. Mexico is supposed to be a primarily Catholic country, so it surprised us. Even our waitress at the restaurant thought Karolina and I had bruises on our foreheads. Maybe Mexicans just never sin?
Karolina also pointed out each McDonalds, Dominos Pizza, Hard Rock Cafe, etc. Downtown Puerto Vallarta was, most definitely, not real Mexico.
When we made it back to the resort we booked a trip out to real Mexico at Ranch Capomo for Friday. We'll see the town of Las Palmas out in the Mexican countryside. Karolina headed to the pool for a quick swim before dinner and I took a quick stroll down the beach.
It was another night of sunsets and dinner, however the Sexy Coffee was made differently today. There was much more alcohol and therefore more
flames from Jonathan (the waiter)'s method. Each waiter making coffee has their own style. Please see my pictures for the flames!
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