Back stage tour of the musical "All Shook Up"

Samantha and Carla
Originally uploaded by Brite light photos.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Yes, it is a long way from the warm waters of Mexico and the charms of Tenacatita Bay.

But the joys of life in urbania were crystal clear Sunday when we went to see a touring production of "All Shook Up," with granddaughter Samantha and then got a back stage tour with a member of the cast, Carla Woods.

Carla is the older sister of Steve Woods, the husband of Admiral Fox's cousin Kate from Boston. We made a rockumentary about their wedding two years ago titled "Kate & Steve, A Hector'd Romance." We met Carla at the wedding and she has a big part it that rockumentary, singing "Love Me Still."

"All Shook Up" is a rock n' roll production featuring songs by Elvis and while a local newspaper critic was less-than-enthusiastic, the show was fabulous. Or as the governor of this state is fond of saying, "It was fan-tas-tic!"

The two acts went by waaaaay too fast. We could have sat through another round of rollicking toe-tapping music and comedy.

After the show we zipped to the stage door where Carla met us and took us on a backstage tour of the set - and where we met some members of the cast. One of my goals had been to get a photo of me with Susan Anton, the tall (and drop-dead gorgeous) blonde bombshell in the play, but she had already zipped out for dinner. The cast had a second performance that evening and a short time slot in-between shows.


Susan Anton swings

Samanatha's eyes were nearly as big as her eyeglasses as we walked around the stage while Carla gave us a running dialogue about where she had to stand, explaining how they knew exactly where to be at any given moment and showed us the stage manager's control booth where all the action is controlled from.

From out in our seats, the performance was flawless.


Samantha and Carla in front of rolling stage props

We were introduced to a number of the cast members - many of whom look quite different out of costume.


Two girls from the cast with Sylvia and Samantha

There's some loose talk of going to see the show again before it leaves town in about a week - loose talk I'm supporting, and not just so I can have my photo taken with Susan Anton. (OK, it is a argument in favor of going back.)

It was just fun to hear the great music and suspend reality for the theatre experience for a couple of hours.

Hmmm... I wonder if All Shook Up will ever play in La Manzanilla?

I'll take it up with Ms. Anton.

Change of climate and a change of cultures

Outdoor butcher shop
Originally uploaded by Brite light photos.

SACRAMENTO, Calif., USA - The Admiral and I returned home from Mexico late Friday and it wasn't until this afternoon that the reality of life back here began to sink it.

It coincided with waking up after a several marathon days in Mexico just before we left and then a looooong day of travel from Puerto Vallarta to San Francisco via Alaska Airlines and a drive home in the Prius.

Alaska Airlines reminded me that I was back in the nation of rules. First, I forgot to put up my tray table when the plane started to taxi and thought I had committed a felony given how the flight attendant barked at me. Then, during the flight, the attendants were on the loudspeaker every five minutes, reminding us that we were on an international flight and, by God, there were rules. And they repeated those rules many times in a 4-hour flight. What rules? Well, stay in your seat, don't make lines in the aisles for the two bathrooms at the rear of the plane and please, please, don't interfere with the handing out of stale pretzels.

It was pretty hard to reconcile all that with a nation that lets you drink a beer on a bus if you so desire and let's people ride around, gasp, in the backs of pickup trucks, sans seat belts.

On our sojourn from Puerto Vallarta to La Manzanilla to get another look at Admiralty Beach, we stopped in a little town for water and snacks and parked next door to the Mexican butcher shop you see in the photo above.

The butcher thought it was pretty funny that I was taking photos of his sides of beef and a few chickens hanging there. While we got our supplies, he came out several times to make some cuts from the raw meat, which he then wrapped and sold to customers.

Not exactly the Safeway meat counter, but you sure know what you're eating.

When we got to La Manzanilla, the Admiral posed outside of Santana Realty, the company we have been talking with about Admiralty Beach property with the nice folks there.

Note the bare feet. Don't see that at Coldwell-Banker offices.


Barefoot and grinning

The sad part of that trip, however, was when we walked the beach in front of La Manzanilla and saw that five loggerhead turtles had washed up on the beach and were in various states of decay. In several cases, sea creatures (crabs most likely) had already started to reclaim the turtles back to nature. Farther up the beach, buzzards were hard at work.

The turtle deaths appeared to be natural, perhaps a virus we supposed. The local folks were puzzled, too, and a team of naturalists in town, studying the ever-present cocodrilos, was expected to take a look to see if they could figure out what was killing these magnificent creatures.


Two of the five dead turtles

And although this part of the coast rarely has serious threats from hurricanes, we also took a tour of seawall being built by one gringo to protect the house he has planned for his property.

A veteran of hurricanes in Florida, he apparently lost severals home some years ago to rising waters and isn't taking any chances at his new casa.

Pretty impressive concrete and rock.


Heavy-duty seawall

The hazards of boating include occasional rocks

AnchorRock
Originally uploaded by Brite light photos.

ISLA ISABELLA, Mexico - The boaters around here worship a magazine out of Marin County, Calif. called Latitude 38 which loves funny - and not-so-funny - boating photos.

This one was published this week of a boater at Isla Isabella, a long day's sail from Puerto Vallarta and the site of bird sanctuary. We anchored there several years ago and explored the place, anxiously watching Sabbatical at anchor, not far from where this picture was taken.

The bottom is littered with boulders and coral heads and this unlucky boat came up with a massive rock.

How they got it out of the crook of the anchor remains a mystery.


Puerto Vallarta's own Wal Mart

Tuesday was mostly a beach day, but we did fight a traffic jam coming home, with cars all zooming in and out of Puerto Vallarta's very own Wal Mart, with a Sam's Club right next door.

The more 'local' grocery stores (chain outfits like "Gigante" and "Comercial") all have comparison lists in their stores showing that the Mexican chains are actually cheaper (for groceries at least) than the Arkansas-based giant.

The produce is certainly of better quality.

But the beach! Ah, the beach at Paradise Village! As this trip/vacation/adventura winds to an end, it was the best surfing day yet. (OK, body-boarding) And there was also a lot of volleyball action for the younger tourists.

Tuesday was likely the last visit to Paradise Village beach as Thursday we will roll back down to La Manzanilla for a visit with Dan & Lorraine Olsen (from Zephryus) and the folks at Santana Realty. And then over the weekend, Alaska Airlines willing, we will return to Sacramento and, gulp, work.


Volleyball action at Paradise Village

Surf was up for 'body boarding' at Paradise

PARADISE VILLAGE, Nayarit, Mexico - The surf was up today, higher than when we left 10 days ago making the body boarding (the sport-formerly-known-as-boogie-boarding) a lot of fun. It was old home week at the Vallarta Yacht Club with Jim & Myrna Keitges from the sailing vessel Blue Moon and also Bob & Judy Lyon from the sailing vessel Lyon Around.

While the crew of Blue Moon didn't take to the boogie boards (oops), Jim's sister Cathy and her husband Fred did, proving that Iowans can surf quite nicely, thank you very much.


Surf's up, amigos

In addition to the boards, there were quite a few parasailers zooming over the tops of the beach. Several years ago, a woman went over a crane at a downtown hotel and got hung up in her parachute and had to wait hours for the fire department to come and cut her down.

No thanks.


Getting a good view of the beach


Waiting for a customer

The vendors were having a busy day today, too, even though the beach wasn't quite as littered with tourists as in the past.


Shopping for the perfect bracelet