Chess, Upstairs

Playing some pick up chess with the resident barkeep and master of the house in Sayulita, Mexico. A few of our nights ended with some live music and chess on the top floor of Bar Don Pato on Sayulita’s bustling nocturnal plaza. The bartender was happy to be challenged by anyone deemed worthy — buy a beer or a tequila and you have an ‘in’. Our pals took up the challenge on a regular basis, defeating on occasion with a takedown of the beat-up King.

The scene is set with slices of light playing off the palapa roof at the top of the stairs at Don Pato’s – Rubber Duck. I didn’t figure out where the Duck part came in, but I suspect the mural upstairs may play a part. Downstairs picks up with Foosball, a hotly contested tournament staged nightly by my account. Live music on most nights, including local faves The Sayulites who really do kick it in all the right ways. From the upstairs perch, you can sip a tequila, watch the band and take in the townscape at once. It can be a hazy kind of mellow upstairs, drifts of smoke and the clink of glasses while the dub stretches on below. A pretty chill place, it’s an easy pick after a long, hard day of surfing and fish tacos.

Sayulita, Mexico, 2012.