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Show L B 1 F " 'i 1 mmrnwt 1 fa By QUIG NIELSEN When Liz Taylor and Richard Burton hid away for their love tryst during the filming of "Night of the Iguana" in Puerto Vallarta, little did they realize they were focusing the eyes of the world on Mexico's "Garden of Eden." That was in 1964, when Puerto Vallarta consisted of nothing more than a few minuscule ramshackle huts fishermen used for living quarters. But secrets can't be kept long. Now the world wanted to know about this enticing land with the captivating bay where the warm blue waters of the Pacific provide delightful swimming, exciting surfing, surf-ing, unexcelled fishing, and inviting, in-viting, sandy beaches. My wife and I flew into the Mexican Mex-ican paradise on Jan. 9, not particularly par-ticularly ecstatic about the destination. destina-tion. After clearing Mexican customs, we climbed aboard a com-bi-van, already crowded with eager tourists. When we pulled out of the airport, we were on a road filled with chuckholes. I immediately thought I was back on the pot-holed roads in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) in Russia. Soon, however, the roads were better and j we found road crews busily engaged engag-ed in repairing the holes and mak- 1 ing new roads. fish. Shrimp are extra delicious, lobster is plentiful and, obviously, seafood is a big seller to the tourists. My wife and I wanted to eat at least one meal at Le Bistro, one of the top rated restaurants in the city. When we arrived, it was closed. As we returned to the main walk, a well-dressed lady, I would guess about 40-ish said, "Femando's is open. They have good food." We hesitated for a moment, then walked down to Fernando 's. As we entered the restaurant, we were greeted byyou guessed itthe lady who spoke to us as we left Le Bistro. "Do you go out and hustle up business?" I asked. "No, I thought you were hungry and wanted a good place to eat," she replied. My wife ordered red snapper and I, butterfly shrimp. While we waited for our dinner to be served, we enjoyed a virgin pina colada, no alcohol, of course, served to us in a huge, shiny glass goblet. When our waitress brought the meal, I looked at her and said, "I have a question for you. Did you cook this meal for us too?" She sheepishly responded, "Yes I did." It was one of the best meals we had in Puerto Vallarta. On a side hill called "Gringo Gulch," many Americans have resort homes. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton at one time owned The bridge between the Liz Taylor and the Richard Burton homes in Puerto Vallarta is one of the most famous tourist stops at very the popular vacation spots in Mexico. homes here. Liz's home, an unusual Mexican-style house, is directly across the narrow cobblestone street from her lover's home. A concrete bridge, painted pink and running high over the street, connects the two homes. The tourists just have to see it. All streets in the gulch, like many streets in the city, are paved with cobblestones, not very conducive con-ducive for women wearing high heels. Ten years ago Puerto Vallarta registered a population of about 40,000 residents. Today it is nearly 300,000. So, Liz and Richard, we thank you. Because of you, the world found this gorgeous place to rest, relax, enjoy beautiful scenery and eat tastefully prepared meals with a Mexican twist r , , f t vT ' W - , r 1 t :; if - .. f t 1,5 h t f&& pr L . --' "s,... - - - --! - ... Our combi-van stopped at many of the luxury hotels along the beach before transporting us to the condominium con-dominium which was to be our home for our vacation time. Were we surprised! Our condo was right on the beach; in fact, the ocean waves beat against the walls of the condo. Quite a thrill, I must say, to I stand on our private balcony and 1 see the ocean waves directly below, I Jaing ofttimes gently and occa-I occa-I I Qly with a fury against the con- croe wall below us. Looking up the coast from our balcony, we could see the northernmost nor-thernmost point of the semi-circled , Bander as Bay, then down to the I southern point where "Night of lg- I uana" was filmed. The bay, we I were informed, is the largest on the I Pacific side and the second largest I in Mexico. With homes built high 1 on the hills and luxury hotels along I the beach all lighted, it was a night- I time scene of splendor. I The uncommonly fertile soil pro- I duces an abundance of fruits of all I kinds including citrus and I vegetables. Knowledgeable Puerto j Vallartans inform us that with the I Sierra Madre mountain chain runn- I ing along the coast, heavy storms, I hurricanes and cyclones never hit I the area. I Another proud boast is that no I sharks come into the bay. I couldn't I find out why, but the natives insist it I a haven for all varieties of Thatched roofs are still in vogue in Puerto Vallarta, the "Garden of Eden" of Mexico. In this exclusive residential area several homes featured the compressed palm tree leaves roofs. |