Puerto Vallarta: From Guadalajara With Love

What is a Tapatío?

Tapatío is much more than a salsa, which by the way is made and sold in the United States. Though it’s often thought to be a product of Guadalajara, it only represents this gracious city. The tagline “It’s a sauce that’s…very saucy!” is a compliment to the capital of Jalisco, the state of Puerto Vallarta. The world has received many gifts from Tapatíos and Guadalajara; they have a unique culture and their pride is well expressed in the representative song with lyrics that proclaim the soul of the provincial clean smell of a morning rose; the beautiful doves, a symbol of peace; the sweet smell of the earth; the mariachi, pottery and wonderful marketplaces. The song Guadalajara expresses a Tapatío’s love for his home. Tapatías, women from Guadalajara are known for their ojos tapatíos, large, bright and sparking, dark brown eyes, though we have met many Tapatas with blue eyes, as well as blond hair. A person doesn’t earn the name Tapatío by living in the city; one must have been born there, though many Jalscienses try to claim the moniker.

It’s not unusual to find Tapatíos living in Puerto Vallarta and many have vacation homes here; it’s a quick drive that gets shorter all the time, with improvements to highways and bridges. When we first moved to Puerto Vallarta, a trip to GDL could take as long as seven or eight hours!

Guadalajara is the second largest city in Mexico and a great introduction to the liveliness of a huge metropolitan city… a good first experience before a trip from Puerto Vallarta to Mexico City. Guadalajara is an amalgamation of three separate areas, Zapopan, Tlaquepaque, and Guadalajara proper, and each is very distinctive with its own peculiarities and personality. They complement and blend against one another well. Aside from the traffic circles, it’s a relative easy city to get around when driving one’s own vehicle, though we have found extreme ease in the application of public transportation, with taxis and Uber even cheaper than Puerto Vallarta and none of the battles between the two that recently affected Puerto Vallarta.

The cuisine of Guadalajara is world renown and chefs are very competitive in their ingenuity and creativeness. Plan to have a few good Tapatío meals during your stay and make sure to hit the Chapultepec zone.

Mariachi Plaza is a must and you will find the real spirit of Tapatíos here. The best time to visit is in the late afternoon and we have booked groups for parties who are more than willing to make the distance to Puerto Vallarta for a fiesta. Not to be missed are the tonier neighborhoods of Tlaquepaque and Zapopan (the Beverly Hills of Guadalajara) and the amazing shopping district of Tonalá, where a flea market goes on and on. We have purchased many fabulous pieces of art here at shockingly low prices. The nightlife is also great, with nightclubs for all tastes and world-class music.

Que es cómo es.

Thanks to our Guest Blogger Adam Garcia for this great article!  (Opinions expressed are his own…)

About Vacation Villas of Mexico Founder, Vanessa Cole

The founder of the company, Vanessa Cole, lived in Puerto Vallarta for 10 years and in Cancun for 2 years. She has worked in Luxury Vacation Villa Rentals since 2001.

Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Vanessa earned a degree from the University of Texas in Austin, majoring in International Business and Latin American Studies.  Fluent in Spanish, she has worked and traveled all over Mexico and South America.

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