Thursday was port day in Puerto Vallarta.  We had chosen to take an excursion to San Sebastian, a Unesco site located an hour and a half drive from the port.  The first pleasant surprise was the lush, mountainous countryside, so different from the dry desertic landscape of Cabo San Lucas. The second one was San Sebastian itself; a former silver mining town producing twenty five pounds of silver daily at its peak, nestled high up in the Sierra Madre mountains. It dates back to the 1600's and has retained a lot of its charm.  An unexpected highlight of this excursion  was a visit to a quaint, local museum privately run by the descendants of one of the town's three original founding families.  The tour of the museum culminated with a hilarious depiction of the original families members' pledge to never mix with the indigenous locals which resulted in a series of intermarriages that, through increasingly convoluted bloodlines, created amazing situations in which a single person's uncle is also her nephew, is also her father-in-law, is also her cousin, etc., etc.; mind boggling but funny and true.

A very good authentic Mexican lunch was served at a restaurant located in a most pleasing and peaceful setting.  Altogether a very nice choice for an excursion.

Friday and Saturday were sea days. Days of doing nothing other than enjoying the weather, reading, talking to fellow cruisers and watching a movie in the Hollywood Theatre. No pressures, no important decisions to be made; simply recharge our batteries and eat much too much good food, including the very popular and nicely done Asian and American buffets.

Friday night we had drinks with Claire and Alan at the Avenue Saloon and together went to the farewell reception, twirled around the Starlight Club's dancefloor and, for the last time this cruise, had dinner with the Captain and enjoyed the French gala which was as good as ever.  My choices included the Malossol caviar and, with the memories of Monday night's dinner still causing me to salivate, picked the lobster for my main course.  Insanely delicious Grand Marnier Souffle and carefully chosen wines made for another memorable dinner in the main dining room.

Tonight is our last night on board and we will be joining friends Andie and Rich at Silk Road. This short cruise has delivered exactly as expected.  Another delightful Crystal special, tailor-made to dissolve the stresses and worries of the past few months.  Two more cruises have been booked and we cannot wait.