The Wedding -- Part One

My friend Heidi was here for the week of November 18 to 25 and we went to a wedding in Guadalajara one day after her arrival. I've been trying to write this blog ever since! Our friends Martin and Missy were also in Vallarta for vacation and to attend the wedding, so the four of us rented a car from the Vallarta airport and drove to Guad together. FYI, the car was $125US (3 days, unlimited mileage), tolls were $540p and gas cost less than $50US. By comparison, the bus would have cost us $770p each return, so having the car was economical and fun. Plus we felt like we had more freedom of movement, and not having to rely on public transportation was a blessing.

It took us 4.5 hours to drive to Guad from here, after coffee and bagels for breakfast at Cafe du Soleil on Constitucion. The owner Amy was aware that we were coming in early so she was there, in spite of their car breaking down, to make us something to eat before the trip. Next time you are in Vallarta, check them out! They are on the block between Carranza and Cardenas. Open 7AM to 5PM. Great specialty coffees (regular too!), breakfast, lunch and sweets.

Anyway, after filling up our tummies, we hit the road around 7:30AM and arrived at the Motel Puerto Vallarta in Guadalajara around noon. The ride was uneventful save for my extreme car sickness. Oh well ... I've been suffering since I was a child and some things never change. LOL Other than the name, the motel was unforgettable. The price was right (only $330 pesos per room for double occupancy) but the rooms were dark and cold. I remember better showers in the barracks during my basic training and the walls were paper thin.

After a quick lunch at the mall next door, Heidi and I decided to look around. It was a novelty for us but we were both tired and still a little bit hung over from her "welcome to Mexico" drinks the night before so we decided a siesta was in order. We had arranged to meet everyone at the bar in the lobby of the hotel next door at 4PM. The wedding was at 5PM in a beautiful church downtown Guadalajara. Of course, I can't remember the name of it now and I could look it up on the invitation (which I kept) but suffice it to say that it was an old fashioned Catholic church with a lot of saints on the walls. The inside was lit with candles and festooned with calla lillies ... very beautiful.

When we arrived, Leticia was there, sitting in the backseat of a car outside the front of the church, waiting for her groom. Cliff was late and she wanted to know why. So I got on my cell phone to call him only to discover that his driver, who happened to be Leticia's cousin Jose or Jesus (or JJ as like to call him now!) was lost! You have to understand that JJ is native to Guadalajara. Jesus was supposed to pick Cliff up outside the hotel lobby and Jose was inside the hotel lobby, socializing with us. Imagine my surprise when I learned they were one and the same person! No wonder Cliff was miffed. Or maybe it was just pre-wedding jitters since Cliff is normally a pretty easy going guy.

Anyway, he finally arrived down the street from where Leticia was waiting for him and promptly lost his cell phone. So when I walked up to the car, he asked me to call him again so that he could find it. So I did -- twice. LOL I think he was a little discombobulated; it was an important day in his life. We all eventually made our way into the church and the wedding commenced, in English and Spanish. Typically, Catholic ceremonies last about an hour and this one was no exception. After the service, when most people had exited the church, a man pointed to my friend Missy and motioned for her to come up the altar. Being a good girl, she did and was given a huge flower arrangement to take to the reception hall.