A librarian ran off with a yacht captain in the summer of 1968. It was the start of an incredible love story
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The first time Beverly Carriveau saw Bob Parsons, she felt like a “thunderbolt” passed between them.
“This man stepped out of a taxi, and we both just stared at each other,” Beverly tells CNN Travel today. “You have to remember, this is the ‘60s. Girls didn’t stare at men. But it was a thunderbolt.”
It was June 1968. Beverly was a 23-year-old Canadian university librarian on vacation in Mazatlan, Mexico, with a good friend in tow.
Beverly had arrived in Mazatlan that morning. She’d been blown away by the Pacific Ocean views, the colorful 19th-century buildings, the palm trees.
Now, Beverly was browsing the hotel gift store, admiring a pair of earrings, when she looked up and spotted the man getting out of the taxi. The gift shop was facing the parking lot, and there he was.
“I was riveted,” says Beverly. “He was tall, handsome…”
Eventually, Beverly tore away her gaze, bought the earrings and dashed out of the store.
“We locked eyes so long, I was embarrassed,” she says.
No words had passed between them. They hadn’t even smiled at each other. But Beverly felt like she’d revealed something of herself. She felt like something had happened, but she couldn’t describe it.
Beverly rushed to meet her friend, still feeling flustered. Over dinner in the hotel restaurant, Beverly confided in her friend about the “thunderbolt” moment.
“I told my girlfriend, ‘Something just happened to me. I stared at this man, and I couldn’t help myself.’”
Then, the server approached Beverly’s table.
“He said, ‘I have some wine for you, from a man over there.’”
The waiter was holding a bottle of white wine, indicating at the bar, which was packed with people.
As a rule, Beverly avoided accepting drinks from men in bars. She never felt especially comfortable with the power dynamic — plus, she had a long-term partner back in Canada.
“I had a serious boyfriend at home and thought my life was on course,” she says.
