Puerto Vallarta: What I Bought

Whenever I travel internationally, I always have to do a little shopping. For me, it's never been about acquiring, but about discovery, and bringing the taste of a foreign culture back home to always remember a trip by. I love beautiful things and I am happy finding them in the appliance section of a Japanese department store, the seconds room of an Italian manufacturing plant, or off a Mexican cart. There is beauty at every turn.

When my reaction to an object is visceral, I know it's one that needs to come home. Like that funny, winged cupid at top center. I have no intelligent explanation for my feelings, but my heart started to race when I spotted him, and I couldn't stop smiling. The woman photographed here painted all her pieces right there on the street. I wonder what her whole story is, and I wish I could have communicated how much I loved her work beyond just a smile and a "Gracias".

This big guy just cracks me up. I imagine this is what Elvis might look like up in heaven. His new home is on an exterior wall to the right of our orange front door.

There was a great store in Puerto Vallarta, down the street from Joe Jack's Fish Shack called Ponciana, which sold incredible hand-crafted items for the household and body.

I fell in love with these paper mache figures, filled with little beans and mounted on colorful sticks with ribbon. I brought home a matador, a queen and a winged heart. I think I will put these in a vase in our bathroom.

Right before dinner, on our last night out, we stumbled on a not-yet-open-for-business store that was still unpacking their incredible collection of beaded Mexican art and Dia de los Muertos figurines. The quality of all the products was a notch above others I'd seen. Our friends picked up a bull for their living room, symbolic of their shared astrology sign. I didn't grab a picture of that purchase, but I did snap this of a beautiful cow that stood about 12" tall. It was stunning and we were all in awe of it.

Comments

[granny Alexis]

I was lucky enough to be the recipient of a prior Mexican trip - two wonderful shopping bags. Grocery people love them as do I.