Mike in the Wild

As my cruise ship moored, the forays of the flycatchers in the park beyond my stateroom balcony should have been a hint that I was in store for something completely different in Puerto Vallarta.  And the hooded oriole poking through a tree's pink blossoms as I walked to my tour's excursion boat on the next pier was yet another clue.  A short time later, the brown boobies diving in the motorized catamaran's wake confirmed that this visit to the Mexican Riviera's most popular vacation spot was going to be unlike any other before. I've been to Puerto Vallarta at least a dozen times, staying in guest houses, hotels, and stopping for day-long visits off of cruise ships.  The city is most famous for its Zona Romantica, a charming neighborhood of bridges, trees, and red tile-roofed adobe buildings that house art galleries, bars, and restaurants close to the shore.  Sprawling north is the long Malecón leading to mega resorts, while south lies vacation homes nestled in verda...