CASA GALA--for all you "Gringos in Paradise"

For readers of my book, "Gringos in Paradise", or my article in AARP magazine three years ago, you may recall that my wife and I decided to settle and build a Dream House in the lively, lovely village of Sayulita.

Sayulita, for those of you new to the area, is a surfing and fishing village tucked into the edge of the jungle, about 40 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta. It was the paradise we picked after traveling throughout Mexico.

Well, we’re here now, having built our beautiful 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom house, pictured on the cover of my book. It is ideal for 6 guests, and can sleep up to 8. It’s a handsome Colonial Home in the quiet north side of Sayulita, just a 10 minute walk from the life and color of the plaza.

There are restaurants and stores where you can get cold cervezas just down the street from us, too. We’re on the main beach road, 2 blocks away from the ocean, on the tranquil side. (Sayulita’s main beach can be crowded in high season.)

Our house has two stories inside a secure, corner compound enclosed by a big, hacienda-type wall. Except during holidays, each floor can be rented independently. There's secure private parking within the compound, though one of the charms of the village is that you don't need a car--you can walk everywhere.

The first thing you see upon entering our imposing wrought-iron gates are 2 tall flower-bedecked arches, one of which cascades water into our 30-by-15 pool. There is an enticing thatch-roofed "palapa" poolhouse with its own powder room , sink, and mini-fridge.  Through the arch is a "mini-secret garden" behind lush foliage, with a seating area and a corner fountain. There's an outdoor shower.

On the ground floor, we have 2 beautifully-appointed bedrooms with queen-sized beds with custom-carved head boards and furniture, each with a private bathroom decorated in hand-made talavera tiles. There's a full tiled kitchen with breakfast bar.

The living/dining great room is open to the garden and pool area, which glows at night from the lanterns along the hacienda wall. There is also an inside den that can be closed off when it's cool for DVD-watching and sofa-loafing, or air-conditioned when it’s warm.

Our dishes and glassware are colonial Mexican, the doors and windows are of handsome parota wood.  We’ve decorated the house with handicrafts from our trips to the villages surrounding Patzcuaro.

Upstairs is a self-contained apartment with 1 Queen-sized bedroom and 1 very small bedroom with a sink. (It has a double bed.) The 2 bedrooms share a full bath. Plus a living room, kitchen and nice small terrace with chaises where you can lounge, red, watch the life of the village and the garden below you. Both sleeping areas have AC.

All bedrooms and the den on the main floor are air conditioned, though it's not necessary during the winter months.

We also have a spiral staircase to a large roof pavilion, and a seating area where you can take in the sea breezes. You’ll have a view of the village and surrounding mountain and jungle, and a peak throught the palms at the nearby ocean. It's surrounded by wrought-iron railings and lanterns.

Other amenities: laundry room with washer-dryer, bed linens, bath and pool/beach towels provided. Midweek cleaning and change of linens & towels. There’s a restaurant-trained cook/chef we like nearby who  is available for home-cooked meals.

As you probably know if you’ve been scanning these listings, you can stay for 2 weeks and not visit all of Sayulita’s restaurants. There’s a wealth of beach activities, including Sayulita’s own world-class surfing, plus horseback riding, nearby snorkeling, whale-watching, canopy tours, and of course the glitter of Puerto Vallarta 40 minutes away.

See you on the beach!

Barry & Thia Golson