Lots of Fun in Bucerias Mexico

Bucerias is on the south end of the Riviera Nayarit in Mexico, and a perfect place to come for a spring vacation. Spring is a great time to vacation in Mexico, as the hot summer has not yet arrived, and the winter season folks have returned to their other homes so it is not so crowded as it can be in the winter season. The pacific ocean is starting to warm up enough that it is fun for swimming. It is also only 15 minutes away from Sayulita, with only  another 5-10 minutes further to reach San Pancho, as well as about 20 minutes from the Puerto Vallarta airport making Bucerias a great vacation location.

Here are a few things that you may be interested in checking out while in Bucerias, as well as remembering about donating to the Casa Hogar Orphanage fundraiser.  There is something for everyone in Bucerias on the Riviera Nayarit in Mexico!

Monday Market

Mondays are the day for the Market, or the Spanish word is a Tianguis, and all of the shops have their wares outside of their shops, with delicious foods in the many restaurants, or perhaps a cut mango on a stick. There are blankets, shells, art work, clothing,  jewelry and just about anything you can think of!

Click on these links to see more photos! On the South side of the walking bridge you will find many more restaurants and art galleries, glass shops and other galleries like the Winged Iguana Gallery, which has lots of Katrina’s and al kinds of different things to check out!

All up and down the boulevard and the Malacon you will find exactly what you are looking for, along with plenty of Bucerias restaurants to choose from for lunch and a beer or margarita.

Thursday Art Walk

Thursday evenings starting at 7:00pm you can stroll around town for the Art Walk, checking out all of the wonderful art galleries filled with paintings and sculptures and more.

Music Under the Stars

There is also an evening of classical guitar music under the stars at the Biblioteca Rey Nayar, which is under the umbrella of the Association Bahia de Banderas Cultural A.C.  This event will be on April 18th at 6:00pm in the garden of Rita and Oliver Kollock, located at 232 Carmen Serdan, Bucerias. This event will be featuring Rigoberto Mora and his students.  There is no charge for the event, however you will be asked to dontate to the library. Please RSVP at bibliobucerias@gmail.com to ensure your seating, as last week was sold out!

Casa Hogar Orphanage 

The association of Manos de Amor pro Bahia, a.c. is a nonprofit organization that was created from the desire of a group of citizens of Bucerias to help the less fortunate, especially the children of Bahia de Banderas. It was formed on April 13, 2004.
The main project of this group was to construct an orphanage in Bucerias, and Casa Hogar was created.
The construction of the orphanage began on January 24, 2008 mainly due to a family in California who donated 15,000.00 (US) that enabled them to buy the adjoining lot to the one that was already purchased. The building is now completed and the children have been living at Casa Hogar since April 2009.  The Mexican government does not give any financial support, which means that they survive on donations alone. Luckily, they do have regular donators that donate monies, and others also donate food and clothing. Casa Hogar accepts all donations, and the items that cannot be used are sold at their frequent bazaars.  This way the community has the opportunity to purchase items at a great price and also provides additional income to the orphanage, as every little bit counts!

The Children of Casa Hogar
The children who are housed at Casa Hogar are “social” orphans. This means that the parents are either unwilling or unable to care for their children. Many times an older sibling is taking care of the younger children as the parents have either passed away, or abandoned them. In the past, the family would take in these children, but in Mexico, much like the United States and Canada, families have scattered across the country. So many times the family is not here to help, even if they were able.
Casa Hogar provides these children with good, clothing and shelter and to ensure that they attend school, giving them a home and as safe haven for as long as necessary.
Hopefully, when home situations improve they can return to their families, or can be placed in adoptive homes.

Donations
Donations are not just about monies, and although that is very important, you can also become a volunteer by applying and filling out a simple volunteer application. Come and play, read, or get creative with art and the children…whatever you would like to do, as these kids need all of the love and support we can give.
Please call or email to find out what time to come volunteer your time, as different needs are during the week, and Saturday and Sunday are open all day for volunteering. You can make a donation online at the website www.manosdeamor.com via PayPal with your bank or credit card, which makes it easy to donate!
Donations can also be made to this project and can be made by check, Mexican, American or Canadian. Please make your check payable to:

Manos de Amor pro Bahis, a.c.,
and mail to:
Casa Hogar Manos de Amor
Calle Rio Balsas y Rio Copostela
Colonia El Tule Dorado
Bucerias, Nayarit, Mexico
63732

You may call Hogar directly at 329-298-3680 and speak with Veronica (Vera), who is the main care- taker for all of the children, or you may also contact Nichole by email at: Casavaliene@gmail.com for more information.
The Next Fundraiser on April 15, 2012
The next fundraiser is a bazaar, so please bring your slightly used clothing to sell, or any other items that would sell easily. These children need help, and supporting by donating items to sell is a great way to help!
Where is Casa Hogar?
The orphanage is located at the corner of Rio Bolsas and Rio Compostela in Colonia Buenow Aries in Bucerias. To get to Casa Hogar, take Rio Colorado (the street directly across the highway from Billy’s Gym, (Mexican Marilyn Monroe) up about blocks. You will cross over the Canal. Go another three blocks.

On the right side corner you will see a house with swans on it, and on the telephone pole across from that, you will see a sign with a  red arrow directing you to Casa Hogar. Turn right at that corner. Go two blocks. On your left is a small tienda called Los Portrillos. Turn right there and the orphanage is one block on your left.  Look for the many signs with arrows posted along the way.

Here is Vera and the volunteer staff at Casa Hogar. They truly need your support how ever you choose to give it, whether is be monies, clothes, or donating your time and loving energies for the children. These kids deserve a good family, so you may want to help in that way as well! Thank you for all of your support!

 

Visit beautiful Bucerias on your Mexico vacation, or relocate to the Riviera Nayarit for life! 

 

Semana Santa Riviera Nayarit Style

Happy Semana Santa and Happy Easter to all of our advertisers and viewers  from the crew at RivieraNayaritFun.com and all of our town websites AllSayulita.com, AllSanPancho.com, AllLodeMarcos.com, AllGuayabitos.com, AllLaPenita.com and AllChacala.com, and the new site coming AllBucerias.com!
No matter what your religion, Semana Santa and Easter day allow all of us on opportunity to be more caring and heart centered with our friends and families, creating a group vibration that spreads the love around the planet. So Enjoy and embrace the holiday!
Happy celebrating and many blessings!

Time to Celebrate!

Semana Santa all starts with a week long celebration on the Riviera Nayarit, with beaches filled with familia and friends, laughing and dancing until the early hours of the morning. The Mexicans really know how to have a lot of fun, as they love to play, and love to dance to the very loud music! One of the reasons the I adore the Mexican culture, is their sense for love for their family. Everyone from the very oldest to the little babies come to the different beach towns on the Riviera Nayarit to celebrate life. I love to watch them play, and dance to the brass bands on the beach, throw sand at each other and eat and party!  If you like Mexican culture, Easter week, or here in Mexico is known as Semana Santa,  is the time to come immerse yourself in the wonderful Mexican culture.

Holy Week

In the religion Christianity there is the last week of Lent, and the week before Easter. It also includes the religious holidays of Palm Sunday, Maudy Thursday or Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. It, however, does not include Easter Sunday. There are variations of the Christian Religion, and each day has a specific meaning, with certain rules. Easter Sunday, which immediately follows Holy Week, is the great feast day and apogee of the Christian liturgical year: on this day the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is celebrated.
Easter Sunday is the first day of the new season of the Great Fifty Days, Easter-tide, there being fifty days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.

The starting point for Samena Santa’s extensive history is the death of Christ, but the celebration that we see today on the Riviera Nayarit in all of Mexico is the result of centuries of evolution.  And, on the Riviera Nayarit, it is one big party and celebration with live music going until 4:00AM and campers spread out over the beaches and filling the RV parks, bombs going off (something about the spirits) and fireworks. Everyone shares space and is quite friendly from my experiences. Its also a great way to practice your Spanish!
Its a fun time to dive into the Mexico culture as Mexicans come to the Riviera Nayarit from all over Mexico for their Semana Santa vacation. Here is Fanny selling yummy cakes and Fidel selling oysters on the playa.

Enjoy your Easter Celebration with love and joy in your hearts, and I’ll see you later on the Riviera Nayarit in beautiful Mexico.

Visit the Riviera Nayarit for your Mexico Vacation, relocate to Mexico for life!

 

Music on the Riviera Nayarit San Pancho Style

Its that time of year again, and the  12th annual San Pancho Music Festival will be opening in San Francisco (San Pancho), Nayarit, Friday February 24th at 5:00pm on the beautiful Riviera Nayarit in Mexico. The Festival will be held for three days, Friday through Sunday the 24th through the 26th.  Performances are free to the public and begin each afternoon at 5pm, typically ending prior to 12pm midnight.

San Pancho Music Festival History

San Pancho’s Music Festival is a vibrant, eclectic expression of performing art traditionally held annually for 3 days during the last weekend of February. It began informally in 2001, and by 2006 included some 116 performers. The Music Festival attracts some of the most colorful musicians from around the world, including international acts from Europe, the U.S., Chile, Guatemala, France and Germany. Regional talent has also been retained to include the traditional Mexican and Latin music of local musicians. (Werther Ellerbrock, on left and below Dave Fisher, both played in the 2011 event)

Musicians Play for Free

Traditionally there is no fee to attend, and performers are not paid. The Festival is entirely supported by the gracious contributions of local musicians and international recording artists, and by the local residents of San Pancho. Artists come to perform because they enjoy performing in the intimate venue and magical surroundings of San Pancho. It is a truly wonderful balance of amateurs and professional performers coming together for 3 days to share an unforgettable and enriching musical experience in one of the most beautiful regions of Mexico. Donations are encouraged, but there is no intent for the Festival to profit from the performances. Additionally, proceeds from sales of music and video CD’s go directly to the performing artists.

San Pancho Community Park

This year the Festival has been moved to the community park in San Pancho due to street construction and remodeling of the Plaza. Seating in the park is festival seating only, and is somewhat limited. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own chairs or blankets. Restaurants like the Blue Pig and bars like Ponchitos, who make the best drinks in town, and shops like  Galeria Serendipity with amazing native Indian beading and the cool kite shop San Pancho Aire Paplotes  next door that has kites and very colorful windsocks. They will all be open throughout the event to serve the crowd. There are also plenty of rentals at San Pancho Rentals…Caren will be happy to find the perfect place to stay so there is no worry about drinking and driving. Eat, drink, dance and be merry in San Pancho!

 

San Pancho Music Festival Itinerary

Check out and see who is playing so you don’t miss your favorite Riviera Nayarit band! Its time to get your groove on!

FRIDAY Feb. 24th

5:00 Nuiwarika (Grupo de Danza – Folklore Dancing)

6:00 Olivia de la Cruz

7:00 Frida’s Eyebrow

8:00 No Walls

9:00 Steve O’Connor

10:00 Jeff Oster

SATURDAY Feb. 25th

5:00 – open -

6:00 La Turquesa

7:00 The Coolerators

8:00 Werther Ellerbrock

9:00 Banderas Bay Jazz Allstars

10:00 Jam Session (with others to be announced)

Jeff Oster, trumpet Chas Eller, keyboards

Bryan Savage, alto sax Steve Goldberg, flugelhorn

Werther Ellerbrock, guitar Dov Schiller, percussion

Tom Lillienthal, bass Lazaro Poey, drums

SUNDAY Feb. 26th

5:00 – open -

5:30 Los Compas (musica nortena)

6:00 Awacero (trova Mexicana)

7:00 Sons of the Beach (featuring Jodi Moran)

8:00 Latcho & Andrea (Blonde Gypsies)

9:00 Tatewari

9:45 Jazz Tubo (with Beto and Carlos)

10:30 Atrakadero

For more current information and directions, please visit the Music Festival website: http://www.sanpanchomusicfestival.com

Enjoy the sounds of the Riviera Nayarit in beautiful San Pancho Mexico and have a great time dancing and eating at the San Pancho Music Festival 2012.

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Riviera Nayarit Community Fun

Its the middle of January already and the Riviera Nayarit in beautiful Mexico is in full swing for the winter season. There have been many community functions and business attractions, and we want to share some of them with you! There is always a lot happening on the Riviera Nayarit, and you can check out the happenings on AllSayulita.com, AllSanPancho.com, AllLodeMarcos.com, AllGuayabitos.com, AllLaPentia.com and AllChacala.com.

The Third Annual Jaltemba Bay Rotary Fundraiser

The third annual Jaltemba Bay Rotary fundraiser was held this last Saturday on the 21st of January, 2012 at Tonita III in La Penita. The festivities included the beautiful Mexican Tepozcalli dancers from Las Varas and live music for some dancing with Manuel and Son. A lovely chicken dinner was served that included any beverage of your choice.
There was also three different auction fundraisers, the Chinese Auction, the Silent Auction and a Live Auction, which made for a really fun time! Every year the Rotary Club members give out awards to the outstanding citizens in Jaltemba Bay.
This year there were four volunteer groups that were recognized and honored for their services to the community.
If you are interested in becoming a Rotary Member, the Rotary meetings are held every Wednesday at Pina Coladas at 8:00am in Guayabitos. I am very proud to be a Rotary member here in Mexico and help bring in changes that help the peoples and the community without changing their wonderful culture.

Whats up on the Guayabitos Strip Mall

The Guayabitos Strip Mall is located behind the Oxxo in Rincon de Guayabitos, and has a lot to offer!
Starting out with Beauty by Aurora. She has a full staff and offers hair shampoo, cut and style, hair coloring, highlights and hair attachments. Manicure the hands and pedicure the feet, change your polish or add gel nails. Waxing for legs, bikini lines, lips, eyebrows, underarms and back. Aurora offers a complete line of hair and skin care services. Come and visit Aurora….you deserve it!

Next in line is the Espresso Internet Cafe, where you can enjoy a delicious cup of coffee or a tasty latte’ while you check your e-mail.

And, what is a day without a great workout? Come and work off ail of those extra holiday pounds at the Fitness Pad.  The Fitness Pad has 20 fitness machines including treadmill, stationary bikes, a full kickboxing bag, adjustable 6-setting ab/crunch bench and a pull-up tower! There is also a entire free weight system with a professional trainer on staff.  Dell also has some fun workout clothes as well as other fun things to wear out and about. She has some great specials as well.

Then its time to eat! One of the best places in Guayabitos to eat at is TeriYaki Time Restaurant. Yakisoba, chicken, beef or shrimp teriyaki, fried rice and a variety of pasta dishes are served daily made fresh to order. Try a large fresh salads for lunch or check out their daily breakfast specials. They also make a great Thai Iced Tea, and have a good selection of wine and beer.

Annual Amigos de Lo de Marcos Fundraiser

It s that time of year again, and the Amigos de Lo de Marcos is having their amazing annual fundraising event on the beautiful Riviera Nayarit in Lo de Marcos Mexico. It all starts on Friday, February 3rd, at 8:30am, with a town “Walkabout” with a guided tour of Lo de Marcos. The tour will visit sites where the Amigos of Lo de Marcos works with the town, and will also cover the water issues of Lo de Marcos. There is also the new town compost project which is a great success!

When the tour of Lo de Marcos is finished there will be breakfast served at the Lo de Marcos town square.
The following day on Saturday, Feb 4th the Silent Auction begins at 4:00pm, along with the huge  rummage sale that you will not want to miss as well as freshly baked goodies for purchase. And what would a celebration and fundraiser be without ice cold beer and tasty margaritas? They will be served later in the evening form 7:00 to 10:00 pm. along with dancing to the Latin reggae sounds of two local bands, Mal Bichos, as well as some fun Salsa music with Rhythm Eleison.    Come and support the town and peoples of Lo de Marcos!

The 2012 Pro Surfing Tournament

On January 12,13 and 14 the 2012 Pro Surfing Tournament in Arroyo Seco was amazing.  Felipe Hernandez (left), age 21 from Sayulita, Nayarit took the first place for the Men’s Pro Category, as well Adan Hernandez, age 24 from Sayulita, taking 5th.
Edgar Rodrigues, age 14 from San Pancho took 4th place in the Sub 18 Category and Adan Hernandez (right) from Sayulita was presented a trophy by Artemio Rosas for “Arroyo Seco Pro 2012 Surfer of the Year”, recognizing his involvement in a large number of important international tournaments and his support for the surfing industry. It was really an amazing time and I loved covering the event, as all of the people I met were really cool and well as the fact tht surfing is a big thing in Mexico and all over the planet! The entertainment with DJ PIN, Christian Reggae by Majhave, and Christian Rap by 12 Clan was awesome and they all rocked the house.
I posted about 450 pics on the RivieraNayaritFun Picture Gallery as well! Enjoy!
You can read more about it on our town sites AllSayulita.com and AllSanPancho.com.
Here is a list of all of the winners below:

Sub 18 Catagory:                                                                                                             

1st  Place     Mario Farias, age 17 from Play Azul, Michoacan
2nd Place    Marcos Hootman, age 16 from Tecoman, Colima
3rd Place     Victor Alarcon, age 11 from Manzanillo, Colima
4th Place     Edgar Rodrizues, age 14 from San Pancho, Nayarit
5th Place     Edgar Juan Camarena, age 15 from Manzanillo, Colima                              

Mens Pro Catagory:

1st  Place    Felipe Hernandez, age 21 from Sayulita, Nayarit
2nd Place   Martin Olea, age 23 from Barra de Navidad
3rd Place    Adrian Rodriquez, age 25 from Sayulita, Nayarit
4th Place    Raul Medina, age 30 from Playa Azul, Michoacan
5th Place    Adan Hernandez, age 24 from Sayulia, Nayarit

It was a terrific time, and I can’t wait for the next tournament. Congratulations to all of the contestants and winners.
There are so many different things to do here on the Riviera Nayarit. I really love living here all year long! Come enjoy the amazing flavors of the Riviera Nayarit in beautiful Mexico!

Come to the Riviera Nayarit for your Mexico Vacation and enjoy all of the diversity this region has to offer! 

 

The Journey to the Petroglyphs

Owen and I started our on our journey, not having a lot of directions other than knowing that the petroglyphs were in Alta Vista on the Riviera Nayarit in beautiful Mexico.  If you are heading north, the Alta Vista town sign is just past kilometer 82 on the Mexico Hwy 200. You will want to turn right there. After that you will want to make the first left, which takes you to Senior Gonzales place, where the trail head starts. He charges 20 pesos (about 2 bucks) per person.

The Town of Alta Vista

The dirt road was very well taken care of and seemed to be well traveled. We stayed on the main road and went all of the way into the small town of Alta Vista, which is literally carved out of the hillside, thinking that it was where the trail head to the petroglyphs were located, but it was not.

The town was very small, with only a couple of roads carved off of the main street. Chickens were running around, as I comically like to refer to the chickens of Mexico “free range chickens” and the roosters were hanging out together loving their free range lives as well, eating the bugs and whatever else free range chickens and roosters eat, leaving me to wonder where all of the eggs are laid, and how they find them.

Alta Vista is a huge farming community that grows mangoes, bananas, papayas and guanavano’s down below the village.  Guanavano’s are a really cool looking fruit with thick green skin with soft spikes all over it. I had not had the chance to see one yet, or taste one until that day. The flesh of a guanavano is white and fleshy and a little bit viscous, but it tastes incredibly delicious! The natives say that it has properties that cure cancer, but I have not checked that information out for myself yet.

It did not take long to discover the town, but we did not see any signs about petroglyphs. So we turned around. As we were turning around, a four wheeler was coming by, so we asked about the petroglyphs. He knew what we were talking about, and told us to follow him. And so we did. He went to find another man to help us and his name was Oscar. Oscar owns a lot of the farm land below. He spoke some English, which was good for us, (as we are still learning Spanish) so Oscar hopped into the jeep and off we went back down the road out of the town.

Finally on the Path to the Petroglyhps

Oscar directed us to turn where there was a gate leading into the orchards. We ended up going through 4 gates. All along the way there was an abundance of mango’s and papayas. It was incredibly beautiful. The dirt road was muddy in spots, and it was good that we had the 4 wheel drive jeep. We stopped and got out and walked about 10 minutes to the river, under a fence, across the river and onto the trail where the petroglyphs were located. The scenic tour indeed!

The Petroglyphs

All I can say is wow! I have seen many petroglyphs, and these are some of the most amazing petroglyphs I that have seen, as well as there were so many of them. There were spirals, which I believe were the sun, people, aboriginal dots and there were also two flat large beds that seemed to be where they had sacrificial killings for the gods.  The trail was well worn and  easy to hike, and it was fun with the river flowing down on the right. We were hiking in the middle of the jungle! We took about 130 pictures. It was truly amazing. It took about 45 minutes to walk the trail and check out the petroglyphs, ending at a large pool and a small waterfall where the native Indians held their ceremonies, and still do to this day. This picture to the left looks like rain coming down on a person to me.

Finding a Guide

It was really great to have Oscar as our guide, but you won’t need one. Here is Oscar and I reading one of the many posted informational signs, which by the way are in English and Spanish. But, if you do, just about any tour guide outfitter will be able to help you, and there are many tour guide companies to choose from that will be happy to bring you to the petroglyphs.

Or if you have a car and are looking for more adventure,  you may choose to go on up to Alta Vista after 2:00 pm and look for the first big white house on the left as you come into the town. Or, just ask around for Oscar and you can get the same scenic tour like we did…but you better have a 4 wheel drive for that excursion!

Another really great thing about visiting the petroglyphs is the fact that it doesn’t have to take up your entire day. Plan for about three to four hours for the trip. And, you will still have plenty of time to get in some snorkeling, or get a massage in the afternoon. And, its great for the entire family!

So, when you come to the Riviera Nayarit, remember to visit the petroglyphs, which are only about 15 minutes away from Chacala.

 

© 2012 Riviera Nayarit Fun Suffusion theme by Sayontan Sinha