| Have you heard the horror stories about traveling | | | | return home with negative feelings about Vallarta. |
| through Mexico? Worst yet, can you imagine living | | | | The objective of each and every Vallartense is to |
| there? Well, being the adventurous and | | | | assure all tourists an enjoyable and safe time |
| courageous retirees that we are, in 1997 we | | | | while visiting so that they look forward to |
| bought a beautiful new mountainside villa | | | | returning. The young Mexicans are taught that |
| overlooking Banderas Bay and El Centro, or | | | | safety is the prime concern of all visitors and to |
| downtown in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The villa is | | | | harm a tourist would be equivalent to taking food |
| actually a compound, surrounded by 10 foot walls | | | | or money out of their own family household. |
| with a walk-in gate and doors for car entry. | | | | As a side note of interest, there is currently a |
| Our initial thought while closing the doors during | | | | film, "South of the Border" being shot here in |
| our first evening in our new villa was to hire a | | | | Vallarta by the Disney Company. It's a cute story |
| couple sentries to guard the villa at night. One | | | | about a chihuahua, owned by a Beverly Hills |
| could be positioned in front and the other down | | | | socialite, that got lost while she was visiting a spa |
| below on the backside facing the bay, thus | | | | in Mexico. A group of local Mexican chihuahuas |
| providing the security required in this foreign new | | | | found this pup, took care of and entertained it, |
| land. Well, we never got around to hiring those | | | | and then assured its safe return to Beverly Hills. |
| guards and furthermore, we've never heard of | | | | The film will be released in 2008 and will help |
| anyone being burglarized in the neighborhood for | | | | promote the social, cultural, and economic relations |
| the past ten years. Municipal Police do cruise | | | | between Mexico and the US. The bottom line |
| through the neighborhood a few times every | | | | being, that the safety and security that one feels |
| night and we do have excellent street lighting; | | | | in Vallarta is quite comforting and is demonstrated |
| however crime in the neighborhood, known as the | | | | in the film through the life of a chihuahua. |
| "Beverly Hills of Vallarta", is virtually non-existent. | | | | Serious crimes such as murder, rape, kidnapping, |
| Ten years ago, we would be pulled over by the | | | | etc. are unheard-of in Vallarta. Security is such |
| local police every two or three months for any of | | | | that armed robberies are virtually non-existent. |
| a myriad of concocted reasons. It was the typical | | | | One reason of course is, guns are not permitted |
| corrupt Mexican police shake-down where after | | | | in Mexico. The penalty for carrying a firearm is |
| you handed him 200 pesos or $20, you were no | | | | much more than anyone would ever want to pay. |
| longer guilty of breaking any laws or committing | | | | The one crime that persists in PV is related to |
| any crimes; you instantly became his amigo! That | | | | drugs. Although the Mexicans seldom use them, |
| corruption is seldom seen anymore in Vallarta and | | | | they are plentiful for those tourists too ignorant |
| we haven't been pulled over by the police for a | | | | to understand the consequences. The penalty for |
| number of years. In fact, they seemed to have | | | | drug possession and use is so severe that anyone |
| gone 180 degrees the opposite direction being | | | | dependent on drugs is best off avoiding Paradise. |
| very friendly to all Americans and Canadians. The | | | | With full employment in PV, even the art of |
| city of Puerto Vallarta, referred to as PV or | | | | pick-pocketing is no longer practiced here; it's just |
| Vallarta by the residents, has exploded in | | | | too easy to find a job! The US and Canadian |
| population during the past ten years to the | | | | Consulates in Vallarta are well staffed and ready |
| current level of 350,000 inhabitants. That growth | | | | to assist any tourist with just about any problem |
| can be attributed solely to tourism. | | | | that could arise while visiting here. |
| Virtually every job in PV is based on tourism and | | | | Even though Vallarta has reached the size of |
| without the influx of foreigners from the US and | | | | Anaheim or St. Louis, it's still a small city where |
| Canada, Vallarta would still be a sleepy little | | | | everyone seems to know what others are doing. |
| Mexican fishing village. Because tourism is so | | | | Any crime committed by a local would be known |
| important, the young locals are taught to treat | | | | about by many others immediately. Not to be |
| the Americans and Canadians with dignity, | | | | picking on Anaheim or St. Louis, but when |
| respect, kindness, and as friends. The very last | | | | comparing Vallarta to cities in the US of similar |
| thing they can afford is to have tourists | | | | size, our hunch is that it's much safer in Paradise! |
| encounter problems while visiting Paradise and to | | | | |