This coming Feb 17th from 9pm will host a superb charity event in aid of Pasitos de Luz (Mamas Unidas por la Rehabilitación de sus Hijos AC) at the newly opened Strana club on the main Avenue Fco Medina Ascencio. 

Coming new to the MLS a cute little building Edificio Brasil
offering 3 studios and 3 loft suites.

Granite counters and modern finishes, 1 bed, 1 bath.

Ocean view units, private roof top terraces

Just a block from the beach behind the Sheraton hotel and a short walk into downtown Vallarta. Located on Brasil close to the Stadium and all transport links.

Options starting from just $45,000 USD

GREAT news for those budget clients who want something new and practical.

Easy to show at short notice.

New Life Mexico, a very small, grass roots charity operating
here in Puerto Vallarta and its surrounding areas has launched a campaign this
week to help provide desperately needed school supplies for some of Vallarta’s
most vulnerable children.

For a full list of the school supplies being requested you
can look at NLM’s NEW website www.newlifemexico.com but Philippa Vernon-Powell, the Field Director here in Vallarta
tells us that they are in desperate need of the following items:

Backpacks,
pencil boxes/cases, boxes of 12 coloured pencils, pens, erasers, pencil
sharpeners, math sets and Spanish Dictionaries for Primary School children.

If you can
help with any of these items, they can be delivered to Applegate Realtors
office on Olas Altas, number 477A, across from Piazetta Italian restaurant, just up from Kaiser Maximilian, Cafe San
Angel and next door to Farmacia Fredy.

A fabulous event is coming up on Feb 6th here in Vallarta promoting the medical services available for our retiree, ex pat and English speaking community.

It is a totally free event and no reservations are necessary, but it is certainly an event you are going to want to keep in your diary.

There is a schedule of medical seminars for HealthCare Resources, The Hotel Marriott & The US Consular Agency, with the Support of Sharp HealthCare San Diego, California Proudly Present:
2012 Medical Matters Conference! 

CRATE Interiors added another property to their list of Banderas Bay Models, with the addition of 2 model suites at the downtown V399 project.
A fully turnkey operation or a pick and chose, mix and match concept, CRATE offers something for everyone. 

The guide price is $11,000 USD for the studios,$15,000 USD for the one bedrooms and $20,000 USD for the 2 bedrooms. This
includes every aspect from linens, towels and cutlery.
Items can be selected with the help of a local style consultant or on line with their designers in
the US to help clients pick the best of the options available. Furniture is shipped directly from the United States and CRATE offers free design consultations and the free “white glove install” to ensure that all items are
delivered, unpacked and ready to use on site.

The open models in V399 are fabulous, the colorful 2 bedroom (unit 204) and the stylish modern feel of the one bedroom (unit 206) show how versatile the company can be, to suit all clients´ requests. CRATE paired up
with Galeria Pacifica in downtown to
display art work, which is on loan from the Gallery, which goes a long way to
help complete the whole look.

In addition to V399,
CRATE also has show models available at Rio
Amapas in the south shore, Riviera
Cuale in old town by the river, Icon
Vallarta in the Hotel Zone, Punta
Esmeralda in la Cruz and Haixa in
Litibu to the north.

On Friday evening the newest downtown development Vallarta 399 Condominiums opened its doors to celebrate the Project completion. 

An interesting blog we want to share with all of you.

By Mike Hager,
Postmedia News January 6, 2012

Snowbirds say they will continue to flee the
West Coast’s cold, wet winters for the small coastal villages of Mexico despite
the murder of two British Columbia residents this week.

Robin Wood, 67, of Saltspring Island was shot
and killed Wednesday while trying to stop a home invasion at his friend Arvid
Chalmers’ home in Melaque, 200 kilometers south of Puerto Vallarta on the
Pacific coast.

News of another gruesome slaying in Mexico
surfaced days later. University of B.C. PhD student Ximena Osegueda, 39, was
discovered Dec. 27 half buried with her boyfriend Alejandro Alvarado, 38, on a
beach in the tourist town of Huatulco – about 500 km south of Acapulco.

Chalmers, a Saltspring realtor who witnessed
his friend’s shooting this week, told the Vancouver Sun in an email that he and
other Canadian visitors to the Melaque area are in shock.

“We are a small coastal community, and in
this area there are probably a few thousand Canadians, as a guess,” Chalmers
wrote.

“This has for a long time, been a second home
to many Canadians and I am sure it will continue to be. We love the area, and
the residents of these towns are lovely, caring people who have always treated
us as welcome friends.”

West Vancouver retiree Leiani Anthony spent
last October in Huatulco and has gone to Mexico with her husband Brian every
year for the past 20. She said she remains undeterred by the recent deaths.

“I feel it’s absolutely just random, bad
luck,” Anthony said. “I feel perfectly safe in Mexico, ever since 1970, when
we started going there.”

She said she is very familiar with Melaque,
having spent recent years just 15 km to the northwest in the quieter village of
La Manzanilla.

“They’re not the wealthy Americans that want
all the amenities because they don’t have them down there – they’re just
ordinary folk looking for some sunshine,” Anthony said of Melaque.

“It’s very reasonable and the Mexican people
are very friendly and nice.

“You’re going to get some bad apples
everywhere, but down there if theyre bad, they’re probably carrying guns.”

According to the Foreign Affairs Department,
112 Canadians have been killed in Mexico in accidents, murders, drownings or
suicides between 2006 and 2010. Of those, 15 Canadians were murdered or died in
suspicious circumstances.

By comparison, there were 414 homicides
reported in the same time period in B.C., according to Statistics Canada.

Cesar Mendoza, acting director of the Mexico
Tourism Board in Vancouver, said authorities are working diligently to find
Wood’s killer and that the incident is not indicative of the danger most Canadians
face when vacationing in his country.

“It’s easier to get involved in an incident
in Canada than Mexico for Canadians” Mendoza said.

“It was an isolated event where,
unfortunately, he lost his life.”

Mendoza said crime has not affected the number
of Canadians who come to Mexico for vacations.

He is supported by data from Statistics
Canada, which reported more than 1.6 million Canadians visited Mexico in 2010,
up 50 per cent from 2006, when a little more than one million visited.

On average, each visitor spent $893 per visit
in 2010, totaling $1.45 billion, according to the report.

Vancouver Sun
mhager@postmedi

Vallarta’s Romantic Zone welcomes a new development to its
area, right on Amapas street.  Located
just behind the Meza del Mar Hotel,
which is currently undergoing and ambitious makeover to receive more guests and
update its facilities, this will be a welcome new addition to an already
thriving neighborhood.

The project will consist of 21 units, all studios and 1
bedroom, responding to current market requirements with an extremely attractive
price point, starting from just $99,000 USD. 

All condos and studios will have ocean views as
the construction will be raised well above the street level as on the first
levels will be the parking, gym and administration office. Six levels of units
and a roof top terrace with a pool and entertainment area.

This project also has the advantage of easy access, from
both the road to Mismaloya (highway 200) and the cobbled Amapas street. It will
be disabled friendly with the elevator going from top to bottom and allowing
access from both entries. Amapas 353 will be rental and pet friendly.

For more information see www.amapas353.com
or http://www.sarahelengornrealestate.com/sales/developments/amapas-353/

Strolling along the Malecon this morning I noticed for the
first time ever that the city is offering free bikes and strollers for kids!
What a fabulous idea! 

Families with children seemed to be delighted at the new
brightly colored arrivals and can now be seen scooting down the boardwalk. Also
a new and very welcome addition for our visitors is the free kayaks that are on
offer to tourists, allowing them to make the most of their vacation and take
them out into the ocean for fun paddling.

Along with the favorite restaurants, bars and commercial
stores the Malecon is fast becoming a real family destination, free of the
noise of traffic and the smog of pollution, families can now enjoy the extended
length of the pedestrian walkway and the superb vista out to sea towards Los
Arcos along Banderas Bay.

It is official, 2011 saw a huge amount of “A” list celebrities
arriving to our beautiful shores.

Just this December 18^th the latest star to be
spotted was none other than Charlie Sheen who spent time here on a family
vacation and was even snapped swimming with the dolphins with the Vallarta Adventures crew! Charlie
Sheen tweeted about his family Christmas vacation in Mexico.

Just to name a few …Thierry Henry, Kate Hudson, Mario Lopez,
Kim and Kourtney Kardashian, Lady Gaga, Charlie Sheen, Courtney Cox, Elsa
Benítez, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Ana Gabriela Guevara and Dionicio
Cerón were just some of the celebrities seen in Riviera Nayarit this year.

Here’s to many more exciting celebrity spotting in 2012!