Vancouverite Doug says he would probably never have met Ken, a US resident, and now his husband of more than 10 years, if he’d made different choices during his Christmas holidays in Puerto Vallarta in 2004.
“If I hadn’t booked a last-minute flight to PV,” he muses, “gone to the Gay Beach, run into a friend who invited me to Gay Bingo at the Los Amigos pub, I might never have met Ken. I think about all the little decisions we make every day that can affect everything else that happens as a result.”
When the two initially met over that first game, it was a “bingo” moment for Doug, who was single at the time. But it was still a few years before the couple could be together. Ken, married with grown children and living in Seattle, at the time, was devoted to his ailing wife, and faithfully stayed by her side until her last breath.
“We maintained minimal contact during that time,” says Ken, of his meeting with Doug. “But when I got through the grieving process, I called him. It developed quickly after that.”
The two, both now retired, have spent their last nine winters in Puerto Vallarta and they hope to resume that tradition as soon as travel restrictions lift. They also share homes in both Vancouver, where they have been living through the pandemic, and on Whidbey Island in Washington State.
“We are looking forward to getting down to our US home and garden again when the borders ultimately re-open,” they say. But they also agree that Puerto Vallarta is their “special” place, not only because they first met there, but also because they enjoy the Mexican culture, connect with its people and, of course, bask in its climate.
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