CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship in Puerto Vallarta
From the 29th April to the 3rd May will be held the qualifying rounds for the FFIA Beach Soccer World Cup (set for Dubai in the United Arab Emirates November 16-22 2009).
This will be the 3rd year running that Mexico hosts the event, and the second year running in which Vallarta is the host city.
Puerto Vallarta The Safest Place to be
In response to the travel safety warnings released by the US government regarding Mexican border cities and the excessive media coverage on US news networks the Puerto Vallarta Tourism board has recently released a number of short videos.
These videos show interviews of foreign tourists, asking them to describe their vacations, and importantly, if they feel safe here. Here are their responses :
13th International Film Festival of Puerto Vallarta
Tomorrow, the 24th of March, will begin Puerto Vallarta’s 13th International Film Festival. This year’s festival will take place over 5 days at a number of different location – projecting films outdoors at the Los Arcos Amphitheater, at the CUC University and at the Cuale Cultural Center.
The full Festival program can be found on the festival’s website : http://cinefest.pv.udg.mx
Quimixto’s very first Surf tournament
Last weekend was held Quimixto’s first surfing tournament. Quimixto is a beautiful beach village only accessible via water taxi, either from the pier at the Los Muertos beach of from the village of Boca de Tomatlan. You can see where Quimixto is located using googlemaps here.
As a surfer myself (very much a learning amateur surfer) I couldn’t miss out on going to the competition. I dediced to go on Sunday for the finals. I drove drove to Boca de Tomatlan at about lunch time and boarded a water taxi heading to Quimixto – from memory I think that we paid 30 pesos each way. For anyone visiting Vallarta I really recommend a day trip to one of the small beaches along the south shore. The water taxi rides are always great fun and give you spectacular views of the mountains plunging into the crystal clear water.
Arriving at Quimixto was quite a sight. It’s usually a very quiet sleepy beach but the organisers clearly did a great job at promoting the event. The turn out was really impressive. Lots of groups of friends and families, of all ages and in fun spirit, enjoying the sun and the surf. There were a few food and drink stands, some chairs were available for the lucky ones that arrived early, and there was music playing all afternoon.
I only got to see the semi-finals and the final round. The waves weren’t really at rendez-vous but there was enough swell to be surfed. In the final there were 4 surfers, 1 from Sayulita and the other 3 from other regions of Mexico. The good news for the local crowd was that the Sayulita kid won the event – and as the cherry on the cake it also happened to be his birthday !
So, nothing but praise for the very first Quimixto surf contest. I hear that for next year the organisers are looking at organising the event a different month, hoping for better surf conditions. I’ve attached a few photos from the event below.
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
Vallarta Charro Contest 2009
A few weeks ago was held one of Mexico’s National Charro competitions in Puerto Vallarta. For those who don’t know, a Charro is basically the Mexican equivalent to a cowboy – but as opposed to your classic cowboy, a Charro is always dressed in traditional clothing with the big famous sombrero. Charro competitions, or Charreadas, are team competitions where the Charro skills are put to the test and the team with the most points wins.
Charreadas are very popular in Mexico, and especially so in Jalisco. The event is real family day out and there is as much entertainment in the crowd than in the arena. This year’s Vallarta Charreada was my first, and I must say that it really was a fun day out – and one that I’d recommend to any vacationer visiting Mexico.
There were various “heats”, the most notable being the one for the longest horse skid, and the heat for the best bull-riding and catching. For an amateur photographer it’s a real treat attending an event such as this one. I’ve attached a few of my photos from this year’s event below. Enjoy !
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
©Jamie B. R. Robinson 2009
