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Carol Patterson

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Carol Patterson

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Do I need an assistant?

July 16, 2015 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

I get that question a lot when I announce I’m off to another exotic or warm-weather destination. Sure these media trips sound wonderful when discussed over the water cooler or space age coffee maker. But the reality is a lot less glamorous. Visiting Puerto Vallarta for a media conference is fun.
Getting there is not. A 6:30 am flight means arriving at the airport at 4am, which means leaving for the airport at 3:30, which means getting up at… starting to feel tired yet?

After too few hours horizontal I get to half undress for the lovely people at security. Selected for a random intensive search I remove the Kleenex from my pocket and assume ‘the position’. The monitor shows a big danger area over my chest. The agent suggests I turn my necklace around. I pass and start my search for breakfast. A gazillion calorie fat-fest of eggs, cheese and bacon on a croissant or a sugar-laden donut – healthy nutrition is nowhere to be seen at 4:30am.

I luck out on my first flight and get a full row of seats to myself. This is like getting triple cherries on the slots at Vegas and I snatch two hours of sleep. How I managed to score a 20 hour milk-run to Puerto Vallarta boggles my mind but I dutifully head to the gate for my next leg – a flight to Mexico City. I try not to groan as a mob of happy people load onto a direct flight to Puerto Vallarta at the next gate. They will be on the beach before I get into the air for my last leg into PV.

After hurrying over to the gate for a passport check it appears something is amiss. Or perhaps missing.  The ground attendants look forlornly at the space our plane would occupy if it had arrived.  It hasn’t.  The monitor optimistically suggests we will leave in 30 minutes.

Finally, our plane arrives. We wait. The plane requires the attention of maintenance personnel. Ominously we are told to wait another 30 minutes for an update. At 10:20 the flight monitor says we leave at 10. At 10:25 the speakers cackle to life – there has been a gate change and we are to head there immediately. Sounds like our plane is DOA but a replacement has been found.

Cleaners are ‘freshening up’ the plane for a quick turnaround. Quick turns to slow, then meandering, as the gate agent tries to execute corporate policy. Zone 1 will board before zone 2, Gold cardholders before the great unwashed, and only two carry-ons per person. Unfortunately her audience doesn’t speak English or read boarding passes well.

Our brave agent – who I guess graduated top of her class at US Airways University – is surrounded by Mexicans intent on getting home. For someone who said moments earlier we were going to board quickly, it seems farcical for the agent to make a passenger stuff a purse in her suitcase because she has a lunch bag, and bring the line-up to a halt.

Someone tells the agent the woman with 2.5 bags is a ‘church lady’.  God has little pull here but US Airways finally bows in defeat as no one is boarding now. All zones, cardholders and humans are allowed to board in a hurry so we can…wait. It takes another hour for the luggage to be moved from our old plane to the new.

Mexicans are very patient people. No one complains about the arctic-like temperature or the lack of refreshments as we sit on the tarmac. A woman beside me balances a bag the size of a Rottweiler on her lap. The guy in front of her reclines early and stays there. A nun in full habit taps away on her laptop on my other side. A sign God hadn’t deserted me totally?

So yes, I would love an assistant. If you could travel in my place and I could be beamed aboard a destination like Scottie did for Spock on Star Trek, I’d be in bliss. Send in your resumes!

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: assistant, puerto vallarta, reinventure, think like an explorer, travel, travel plans

Birds doing laps in the GM’s pool at Puerto Vallarta’s Velas Vallarta resort?

July 14, 2015 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Velas Vallarta Resort PeacocksLove ’em or hate ’em the peacocks at Velas Vallarta Resort make an impression. Strolling through the lobby, performing X-rated acts in front of the restaurant, or waiting for some pampering at the spa, the jewel-toned birds were impossible to overlook.
Their pre-dawn calls of “halp, halp” had lights sleepers at the North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) conference calling for a peacock barbeque – in jest (I think). But Assistant Manager of Operations, Donald Willis, said, “most people, and especially kids, love the peacocks.”

When the peahens lay eggs, they are gathered by the staff and taken to an enclosure away from predators or bad weather to hatch. “We keep them in the enclosure for two to three months after hatching as some of the older birds can be aggressive to the young ones,” explained Willis.

I shouldn’t have been surprised at the effort staff at this luxury hotel made to look after birds. The hotel participates in the EarthCheck program of environmentally friendly practices and TripAdvisor’s GreenLeaders programme, and General Manager Luis Angarita is a wildlife lover. “Mr. Angarita will foster young ducklings or injured birds in the pool on his balcony until they can be released,” said Willis.

The Velas Vallarta is located on Puerto Vallarta’s Marina Vallarta beach where sea turtles nest from June to December. Camping on the beach for weeks in harsh conditions, volunteers come from across the world to help scientists protect turtle eggs.  “At Velas Vallarta, we share their dedication and support them with shower facilities, three meals a day, and a nursery on our property where the eggs are kept for approximately 45 days until they begin to hatch,” said Willis, “Last year, with our combined efforts we were able to raise and release 23,741 baby turtles!”

As part of their commitment to the local ecology, 340 kilograms of raw food waste is diverted daily from Velas Vallarta to a local hog farmer. Compost created from organic waste has reduced chemical pesticide use by one-half and solar panels heat water for the hotel’s pools and guest showers.

While it might appear at first glance, the hotel is going to the birds; there is nothing flighty about staff intentions to be good environmental stewards. I was able to relax in poolside knowing the environment around me was in capable hands.

TWEETABLES

Birds doing laps in the GM’s pool at Puerto @VelasVallarta Resort? via @Reinventure. Click to Tweet.

Would you have a love or hate relationship with the birds @VelasVallarta Resort? Find out more: Click to Tweet.

This luxury hotel has birds everywhere! Discover why & how they take care of them: Click to Tweet.

Filed Under: Mexico Tagged With: ecology, north american travel journalist association, peacocks, puerto vallarta, velas vallarta resort

NATJA’s Puerto Vallarta Conference a Success

June 11, 2015 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Puerto VallartaAt the North American Travel Journalist Association’s (NATJA) recent conference in Puerto Vallarta, hotels, restaurants and tour operators rolled out the red carpet. The birdlife and Mexican hospitality has left me hankering to return. People at the conference took to social media to spread the word about this wonderful destination. During the conference, the hastag#NATJAPV15 generated over 24 million impressions and reached nearly 2 million followers!

Filed Under: Mexico Tagged With: birdlife, mexico, NATJA, north american travel journalist association, puerto vallarta, reinventure

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