Come on people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together try to love one another……” ~ The Youngbloods

Most recently my handsome husband and I took our vacation to Mexico. We go every year to Puerto Vallarta. When we first started going we did the resort thing and made our way to a timeshare. I figured out that the timeshare experience was for those who were skeptical of other cultures and needed the protected, white bread experience. A gated community that has everything you need and you would not have to venture out into the world of the ‘other’. Sometimes on the beach ‘the others’ try to sell their wares but even there on the beach, was a line they could not cross to get to you. For many years I felt great about this and enjoyed our very protected, very secured controlled environment. Then, the more we wandered out and became comfortable with the people and culture, the more bored I got with the gated community experience. So we decided to give up the controlled environment and stay in old town, affectionately called “The Romantic Zone”. Restaurants, cafes, boutique hotels, cobblestone streets with broken cracked concrete sidewalks. Driving is for the strong of heart only, so we walked everywhere and it’s all up and down hills. Our boutique experience this year was about a half a block from the beach, all up hill to the hotel. Once at the hotel, which was very rustic, it was 52 steps up to our floor, no elevator. As rustic as it was all our needs were met, comfortable bed, air conditioning and a view of the city below and the ocean in the distance. We were immersed in the culture. It was wonderful. Every morning we’d get up have our coffee on the patio and then get ready to walk to the gym, The Fit Club, which was a little over a mile all along the boardwalk by the ocean. It was invigorating. When our workout was finished we would walk through town and try some different cafes for breakfast.

There are some unique things I noticed in Puerto Vallarta. The gym had many older people, yes, even older than me. The Americans come down here to retire and live near the ocean less expensively than in the states. Now, evidently, they have decided it’s time to work out that old body. I suppose if you live in this area, you do need to be in shape, because as you may have gathered, you must walk everywhere. It’s just easier than driving and cheaper than a cab, and just more fun. Or maybe at this time in their lives they finally have the time to take care of themselves. Whatever the reason or motivation, men and women whose skin was sagging with no muscle tone were working out with a trainer. It was fun to see the joy on some of those faces as they accomplished their task.

The gym was also comprised of many male muscled bodies. You see, Puerto Vallarta has become the place for the Gay Community to vacation. Everywhere  gay, lesbian, trans,cross dressers were walking around holding hands laughing and from the energy I felt, feeling free. These people were welcomed, invited, and cherished. There is a magazine in each hotel room just for gays. Where to shop, eat and of course where the best entertainment was. It really was a wealth of information with a comprehensive map and a very studly picture on the cover. Whether we were walking around or at the beach relaxing, the energy of freedom was there. It screamed, ‘Be Yourself, no one here is judging you’. Men and women, with very large bodies in very small swimsuits. Those who had the hard muscled bodies were in even smaller swimsuits. I envisioned the people coming here and finally getting to be who they really are. How wonderful that feeling must be. Then, once the vacation was over putting on the suit and heading back to work, perhaps hiding the truth about themselves.

It seems to me Puerto Vallarta in the ‘Romantic Zone’ has mastered the art of being a society that accepts everyone. The people who do not even own the hotel or the restaurant but are the employees treat you with respect and are thrilled you have chosen them to help you. The service everywhere we went made us feel welcome as if they were there for just us. The symbiotic relationship between server and the one getting the service was showing how both were benefiting from the relationship. Great service, good food prompts you to tip more which encourages them to serve you more. You as the customer, whether, gay, straight, black white, brown or whatever in between are welcomed and honored. Yes, it is a vacation place, and the ocean is right there, what’s not to love? It is a definite different energy of acceptance not always experienced here in the states. Maybe, not everyone will have a great experience but that would be your choice not to, because the whole area is made to give you that great experience.

It seems to me, our country is going through a growth spurt, a very painful one at that. So many of you spend way to much time complaining and being offended by how others live their lives than focusing on yourselves. Not one choice a gay person made that week had any affect on me or you. Yet from the way so many of you talk you just can’t live your lives if someone is gay. Seeing them happy and free just made me feel happier. If you are easily offended and judgmental don’t go to Puerto Vallarta. Perhaps it’s time for each of us to take care of our own junk and allow people to live their lives the way they see fit. It can work and does in many places.Those of you who choose to spew your religious dogma and beliefs, need to realize that is yours not mine or anyone elses. As I stated in my blog for November, ‘what you think of me is none of my business’.

I’m a  white, straight girl from Cleveland, Ohio. There is a great big world out there that continually shows me people are people. We are the same at the core of our beings. We want the same things, to be loved, accepted, keep our family safe and healthy. The arguments to divide us are bullshit and made directly from egotistical people that want to control you with fear. And each of us have choices to make, do you let hate and fear keep you from enjoying life or do you approach life as the amazing experience it is meant to be. When you are ready for that fun, amazing experience take a week off in Puerto Vallarta, specifically the ‘Romantic Zone’.