Greetings from Mexico!

Mexican Babymoon!

Buenos Dias, Amigos!

Greetings from the tropical seaside town of Riviera Nayarit, just north of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. I'm watching the sunshine envelope the sky, as I glance out our balcony doors, and enjoying the swaying palm branches as they dance in the morning breeze. It's a little below 70-degrees outside, and we're gearing up for another 85-degree day here in Mexico.

Ken and I stumbled upon this Costco destination package a few months ago, after reaching the disappointing conclusion that it was too expensive to travel to Maui this winter to see my family. It's ironic to me that visiting another country would be cheaper than visiting my own. And yet, in needing a hefty dose of Vitamin D (in the form of sunny skies and warm beaches) after living more than a year in Alaska, we decided to try out a place new to both of us: Mexico.

Together, Ken and I have traveled to eight countries in the past four and half years of marriage, which includes Western Europe and Canada. Before meeting each other, we had separately visited countries such as Japan, Korea, Australia, Africa, and Iraq. Somehow, neither of us made it to Mexico - we hadn't really thought of going there. Particularly since I was from Maui, and Hawaii is a tropical paradise in and of itself, I never thought of Mexico as anything new. Also, with all the border issues and drug cartels I’d seen in the news over the years, I was also very hesitant to travel to a politically/socially tense environment.

And yet my perspective has shifted greatly in recent months. Yes, there are dangerous places in Mexico and yes, it’s probably best not to travel to those places as a tourist – but there are also very tourist-friendly cities, that thrive off of tourism in the same way that Hawaii does. In researching and preparing for this trip, I noticed that Mexico has so much beauty and richness, culturally and physically. The beaches are lovely, and much like Hawaii’s. The people I’ve come across are overall, warm and welcoming. They are also fascinated in finding out that we traveled all the way from Alaska.

“Alaska es muy frio!” We hear that a lot.

While I’m not sure when we will journey back to this area, I’m so glad that we took this opportunity to have our “Babymoon” getaway here. It reminds me of how much I love different cultures and people groups. What a diverse world we live in!

Here are some photos of our time here in Mexico. Ken and I have spent our time here relaxing, swimming, kayaking, body-boarding, eating fresh fruit, walking the beach, and exploring the local towns.

For now, adios!