| | |  News from Around Banderas Bay | June 2009 
The Last Time I Saw Alejandro Fernandez
 Liana Turner - PVNN
| | Don't miss Alejandro Fernandez at the "Jalisco en Vivo 2009" concert, scheduled for June 20th at 8 pm on Puerto Vallarta's beautiful Malecón. The event is open to the public and free of charge. | |
I wrote this article after the last free concert Alejandro Fernandez performed on the Malecón as part of Puerto Vallarta's 87th Anniversary celebration back in 2005, but after learning that Alejandro will be performing another free concert here in Puerto Vallarta, I wanted to share my experience with you...
Under normal circumstances I would rather stay home and wash dishes, or even stab myself in the hand with a meat fork, than go anywhere where there will be a massive crowd of people. This night was different, though. My daughter Maia, who is eight, had never been to a big musical event before, and I wanted to begin to expose her to as many experiences as possible.
I knew of Alejandro, that he was the son of the great Vicente, and I knew that I had heard some of his songs, but I couldn't give any specifics, such as titles, and I wouldn't even have been able to hum one of his tunes for you, but I was excited and put aside my aversion to crowds and, hand in hand, mother and daughter, we took off into the evening for a musical adventure.
Even though I've been living here in Puerto Vallarta for eight years, I still haven't learned anything about event starting times, so we arrived promptly at eight. We found a place to stand fairly near the stage, in front of "No Name Café."
We couldn't see much of the stage, but we had a really good view of the very large screen that was showing a photo of Alejandro and, intermittently, shots of the crowd and the small boats and yachts that were anchored out in the bay, just off the beach. I counted 60-some, but I think there were more. That in itself was a pretty spectacular sight.
I read later that there were 85,000 people there. Alejandro himself mentioned that there were 80,000. I think, although my talent for crowd estimation is questionable, that both of those figures are quite high, but certainly there were several thousand people, anyway.
At around 8:30 Maia started whining. She wanted to go back out of the crowd. I said, "If we leave this spot now we are going home. Let's wait until he comes out, and hear one song, and then we can go. Deal?"
So we waited. There were a few false alarms, when doors opened and someone in the crowd thought that HE was coming out, and girls began screaming just for a second. We continued to wait... and wait..
Somewhere around 9 pm his Mariachis came out, like bridesmaids before the bride. It was really quite beautiful. "This is Mexico!" I thought, feeling proud of my adoptive home, and happy for my daughter, who carries this heritage and history in her heart and in her blood.
Then it was the big moment. HE arrived! Tight charro pants, as promised, huge sombrero waving, slicked-back hair a little long, heartbreakingly handsome. In that moment I vowed to lose 50 pounds and come back to his next concert as a groupie.
The crowd was swooning, Mariachis were playing and HE was singing. I actually did recognize most of the songs from the radio and from the baile in Yelapa... a little too romantic and sappy for my cynical heart, but all very well done and touching. It was a great concert.
After two songs, we were ready to move. We started through the crowd, which by now was solid bodies, and they were not quick to move aside for us until they realized we were not trying to take their precious real estate, but just passing through.
We made our way slowly, and there was only one brief moment when I felt something close to panic, but thankfully it passed. Along the way we picked up a tiny Grandma, who was alone and found she could get through the crowd by following in our wake.
I had Maia's hand in front of me and the Grandma's hand over my right shoulder. She was so sweet, I could have hugged her, but she disappeared as soon as we hit the edge of the crowd. We went to the end of the Malecon, to the amphitheatre by the arches.
We found something to drink, a place to sit, some homemade potato chips, and we were set. We could still see the screen very well (Alejandro was a tiny toy figure up on the stage, but a giant on the screen,) the sound was good, even from so far away. We were very comfortable, and sat there for the rest of the show.
After the show, the Mayor came up and presented a key to the city to Alejandro, and Alejandro said some nice things about Vallarta, and then he played another five songs, and then some more. To be perfectly honest, after about the fourth song, they all sounded the same to me.
They were all very good and pleasant and the musicians very talented, but I would have preferred a shorter show. I'm sure I was in the minority. But hey, I have to get up early. Every moment is precious.
Then it was time for fireworks and after that, the walk home. I left there feeling extraordinarily happy to be even a very small part of this beautiful city, Puerto Vallarta. I was also happy to not be at home washing dishes.
The "Jalisco en Vivo 2009" concert, organized and hosted by Alejandro Fernández, who is one of the most popular Mexican singers in the world today and was recently named an official Tourism Ambassador by the state of Jalisco, is scheduled to take place on the Puerto Vallarta Malecón on June 20th at 8 pm.
This free concert is just one of an ongoing series of events designed to bring tourists back to Puerto Vallarta - and a musical extravaganza that you won't want to miss, so plan to get there early for the best seats.
 The Irreverent Chef, a.k.a. Liana Turner, is the chef and owner of Paradise Bakery and Catering. Serving the "Best Cinnamon Rolls in Vallarta," along with delicious sandwiches, salads, main dishes and yummy sweet treats every day but Sunday, and providing all styles of catering services, from pre-prepared meals to-go for informal gatherings to full service elegance for dinners, cocktail parties, wedding receptions and special events, Paradise Bakery & Catering is located at Sierra Aconcagua 299, Prolongacion Brasil, Colonia Lazaro Cardenas, Puerto Vallarta. For more information, call (322) 222-5133 or visit VallartaCatering.com.
Click HERE for more articles by The Irreverent Chef |
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