Bahía de Banderas

With Jessie’s birthday coming up we were determined to have some accommodation locked in for longer. We needed a place where we could relax and not have to worry about packing and moving right away.

Mitch had told us about a small hippy town on the beach just north of Puerto Vallarta called Sayulita. It turns out this little "hippy" town has become more known to mainstream tourists since Mitch was here. But it was still the perfect spot to stay and explore for the next week.

For something a bit different I found an apartment listed on booking.com that was marketed as a treehouse. Set about a 10-minute walk away from the touristy centre and beachfront, the apartment was awesome! While not actually a treehouse, it definitely captured the essence of being above the trees. It is like a modern studio apartment built fully open to the fresh air without a front wall. The kitchen, bed and shower all with a view over the treetops.

We caught a bus from Puerto Vallarta easily enough and after piling in with our bags we set off for a hot 1.5-hour ride north. Once in Sayulita, the walk from the bus station to the Treehouse took about 20 minutes with our bags and crossed the entire town. There was a Main Street lined with boutiques and restaurants/cafes and a park with markets in the centre. Immediately we liked it here more than in Puerto Vallarta. This was a barefoot, beach vibe and exactly what we had been looking for.

With a week here to relax and explore we set about with basically the same list of must-dos we had in Puerto Vallarta. One advantage of the many tourists in Sayulita is the abundance of local street food stalls and carts near the main square. We tried out different taquerias for most lunches and dinners. We couldn’t believe how fresh and delicious they all were. With a great variety of kebab-style marinated pork (“al Pastor”) and fresh fish or prawn tacos, we had plenty to keep us busy.

We had passed by one cart a few days in a row that looked a bit different to the others. He had a big pot of broth on a gas burner and was lightly frying the tortillas on a flat grill. Finally, we passed by at the right time of hunger and decided to give it a go. Despite its basic appearance, our curiosity got the better of us. It turns out they were our favourite of them all! The pot of broth was actually a slow-cooking meat that was being shredded to fill the tacos. And tortillas were being lightly fried in the fat that was forming on the top of the broth. And then to top it off, once they were fried to a crispy tortilla they were served with a cup of the broth to use as a dipping stock as you ate. Wowie!! It turns out that this is a well-known style of tacos from the NW of Mexico called "Tacos de Birria". 100% going to try replicate that at home!

The main beach directly down from the square was packed with a haphazard collection of beach chairs and umbrellas set up in front of the beach bars along the beach. This spot catches the majority of tourists as they first enter the sand. As you walk along the beach, the crowd thins out leaving empty sand and towels on the sand instead of chairs. On our first evening, we walked along the beach to escape the crowd and found a very cool beachfront bar to kick back and watch the sunset over the water. In true Mexican fashion, we paired our Cervezas with nachos and were set - Pure bliss!

The next day we made our way over the southern headland to Playa Los Muertos, or Beach of the Dead! Contrary to its name, the beach was a beautiful, sheltered cove with fewer people. Turns out the ominous name comes from the cemetery that you walk through on your way there. Seems logical enough I guess. Being a Saturday (as I was reminded by the guy selling beers to us on the sand) we kicked back for the day and soaked in the sun and perfect 26°C water.

The Sunday we set off early for a hike along the beaches to the next beach town San Pancho, and then it was finally Jessie’s Birthday!Read more