350 - 30th - The christmas house

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 30th Nov'08

It is almost Christmas time and the whole city is in the festive mood. You can see Christmas gifts at practically every single shop in the city. Christmas trees, house decorations, gift packs and scores of other things to buy.

This huge Christmas house was set up in a local mall in Puebla. You could see a big fat Santa sitting inside the house with sweets and gifts (seemed to be unreal). All you need is to pay 50 pesos to get inside the house and take a photo with the man of the hour :)

Click here to see the full sized image

349 - 29th - Green plains

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 29th Nov'08

I was treading the distance between the two mountains at Cacaxtla to reach the pyramids on top at the other side. These plains on the left side of the mountains appeared to be part of an agricultural farm where the locals grow corn and other different vegetables. It was a beautiful sight with parts of the plain in shades of dark green due to the overhead clouds.

When I saw this image in Picasa, I was reminded of the famous Windows XP wallpaper. Dont know whether it really resembles it or not, but it looked that way at least to me :)

Click here to see the full sized image

348 - 28th - The curly creeper

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 28th Nov'08

This green creeper plant was curling its way up the front gate of my friend's house. I don't know if it was really an ornamental plant or just a wild thing but it was really looking good in bright sunlight with its broad leaves and tiny curls.

An almost close up of the plant gave a nice glowing effect with the sun brightening it up from the back.

Click here to see the full sized image

347 - 27th - Among the clouds

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 27th Nov'08

We were climbing down towards the base of the volcano at Toluca while the sun was setting down at the horizon. The distant mountains were slowly getting lost in a blanket of clouds and the colors at the horizon had started turning into a different shades of purple. The air was getting chilly we were the only people left behind in the curvy maze of roads on the mountain.

After two minutes of constant pestering, my friend finally allowed me to get out of the car and take some shots of the almost dark horizon.

Click here to see the full sized image

346 - 26th - Night lamps

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 26th Nov'08

I got all ready to walk out of room to have dinner with my friends when these lamps caught my attention. I took out my camera and clicked some photos. The orange glow effect which they gave in the dark room really gave a shining look to the image. The white wall at the background also seemed to be to painted in shades of orange due to the light thrown by the lamp.

Click here to see the full sized image

345 - 25th - Orange hamlets

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 25th Nov'08

The base camp at the mountains of Toluca was built at a height of some four thousand meters and is a house to some local cops who take care of the people who come to visit the volcanic lakes situated on top. People who come here park their cars at the base and then start climbing up. The only shop in the 10 km radius where you can find something to eat is available at this place.

The small orange buildings look beautiful with the green forest and the blue city of Toluca in the background.

Click here to see the full sized image

344 - 24th - The empty bench

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 24th Nov'08

The wind was blowing hard with a strong sense of chill in it and the mountain top view-place of the city of Guanaujato was almost empty. Only some crazy heads like me were standing there to capture some night time views of the city.

Soon after clicking the photos when I decided to head back down towards the city, I saw this bench under thew shade of the street-side lamp. I kept my camera on a nearby dustbin and clicked this one. I loved the "starry" look the lights gave.

Click here to see the full sized image

343 - 23rd - The mountain cabins

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 23rd Nov'08

Malinche is a dormant volcano in the state of Tlaxcala. It is accessible through a well built concrete road which goes half way up, upwards from where you have to walk on foot to tread the mountain. It takes around 4 odd hours to climb the mountain from the point onwards where the cars stop. The mountain has some beautiful cabins built a right in midway to the top. These cabins are available for rent and spending a weekend among this magnificent scenery is really an enriching experience.

Click here to see the full sized image

342 - 22nd - The small pumpkins

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 22nd Nov'08

It was Halloween time and the local markets were filled with pumpkins of all colors and sizes – from orange, white & green to small medium and large ones. You can see small pumpkin faces everywhere, in houses, in offices and in shops.

I bought one such small pumpkin and carved out a Halloween face out if it. I kept in my bedroom for some days before it rotted and I threw it away :)

Click here to see the full sized image

341 - 21st - Facing the ocean

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 21st Nov'08

Staring at the sea usually invokes two opposite emotions inside me - on one side the ocean inspires me to grow so big that everyone who looks at me can't help from doing anything but become spellbound while on the other side it makes me feel so nonexistent that it melts away each and every trace of proud or feeling of grandeur inside me.

I just love to sit in front of the sea and spend some time in peace. This was one such place in Cancun where I spent some time alone with my favorite landscape – a vast stretch of ocean.

Click here to see the full sized image

340 - 20th - The fruit shop

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 20th Nov'08

I've been to this fruit shop at least four times and each time I go there I take some photos, either of the fruits kept at the shop or some nearby things. This time when I was playing around with the camera, the man told me that he has put up a nice fruit basket and if I was interested in taking some pictures of it. Though the basket was not looking good, I still shot some pictures just not to appear rude.

Later, just before leaving the place I took some photos of his shop with him right at the center. This photo came much better than the one he suggested :)

Click here to see the full sized image

339 - 19th - Xcaret

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 19th Nov'08

Xcaret is a beach resort cum sea-activity place some twenty miles from Playa del Carmen. Almost everyone who visits Cancun visits the place. It offers you a day full of fun water activities like scuba diving, snorkeling & swimming with the dolfins to name a few. Also, it offers some authentic "Maya styled" acitivites like Temascal (an ancient Mayan purifying bath). People usually spend the whole weekend at the place enjoying the fabulous natural setting and a huge sprawling campus.

I took this photo late in the evening when the place was almost empty. It gave me a nice open view with no one peeping inside the scene.

Click here to see the full sized image

338 - 18th - Two old men

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 18th Nov'08

It was late at night and there was no one to whom these two old waiters would serve at their small restaurant. So they were just sitting together at the entrance of the place and probably chatting merrily. The wind was chilly and it was getting colder every passing moment, but they were so lost in their conversation, that they didn't seem to care.

Click here to see the full sized image

337 - 17th - Ummm .. Delicious

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 17th Nov'08

This image may look a bit creepy and also a bit cruel to some people. Among those who feel bad seeing this image there would be some who love to feast on dishes like chicken-tikka and butter chicken. At the time of eating they don't mind it, but it feels bad seeing such an image.

Thousands of birds are slaughtered each hour to cater our taste buds. We don't care about anything while eating it, but feel disturbed when we see such images. But who cares as long as it tastes good.

Remember- No matter how it is sliced and cooked, it remains a piece of dead burnt flesh.

Click here to see the full sized image

336 - 16th - The shy birds

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 16th Nov'08

The hotel in which I stayed in Cuernavaca was a big "Hacienda" or the old huge mansions built by the Spanish during their colonial rule. Though these mansions are now converted to hotels, they still reflect bits and pieces of Spanish architecture in their design and natural settings.

One of the major attractions of the place were these peacocks which could be seen roaming around everywhere. There were white ones and the more traditional blue ones. Its really hard to get a nice shot of a shy bird as a peacock & I was lucky enough to capture two of them in a pretty decent pose.

Click here to see the full sized image

335 - 15th - The empty restaurant

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 15th Nov'08

It was 9 at night and not really a time for people to desert the markets. Maybe it was the effect of lowering temperatures or tiredness of a long weekend that made the restaurants and markets seem empty. I entered a small restaurant to have dinner & I realized that I was the only one inside the place apart from the waiters and the cook. I ordered a plate of quesadillas and while the waiter served them I decided to fool around with the camera. The result is the image above :)

Click here to see the full sized image

334 - 14th - Interesting woodwork

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 14th Nov'08

On my way to Taxco, I stopped at a "scenic-point" from where one could see the the whole city in a single view. I came out from the car and was searching for a nice angle for the shot when I saw this small shop set up on the pavement. The owner of the shop was busy working on a wood piece to create something like what he had on display. The things kept there varied from small decorative pieces to general utility items like spoons & tumblers.

I really liked the quality of his work and the reasonable prices he was offering. I bought a set of 3 wooden bowls with wooden spoons to take back to India. It was really something original and hard to find.

Click here to see the full sized image

333 - 13th - Cool blue beaches

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 13th Nov'08

The Caribbean is famous for its crystal clear sea water and white sand at the beaches. I got a chance to see the Mexican share of the Caribbean at Cancun. The sight of see-through sea water with ten different kinds of corals beneath it was really magical. The beaches were empty and serene with no signs of any pollution. You could practically spend an entire day just gazing at the sea without coming to know where actually the time flew away.

Apart from lazing around on the beach I enjoyed snorkeling too. I regretted not having an "under-water" camera as the scene underneath the sea was something you cannot even imagine.

Click here to see the full sized image

332 - 12th - Building sand castles

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 12th Nov'08

Building sand castles - this is something I have never done in my life. The biggest reason for that being that I never came in contact with the sea until I was 15 and then perhaps it was too late to do such stuff. But when I saw this kid playing with wet sand, I couldn't stop myself from just staring at what he was doing. I observed him for nearly half an hour; the way he was building small heaps of sand and the way the waves from the ocean used to wash it away every couple of minutes.

I think it's never too late to do something ... maybe I should spend a day at a beach building my own castles of imagination.

Click here to see the full sized image

331 - 11th - Game or cruelty ?

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 11th Nov'08

I had heard both good and bad about the "tradition" of Bull fight in Mexico and before I could really judge it, I wanted to have a first hand experience. So I decided to watch it in a Bull fight plaza at Tlaxcala. The bull fighter or the Torerro killed six bulls single-handedly in the same evening.

People were roaring, clapping, cheering, but believe me there is nothing fun in it. Seeing a poor helpless animal bleeding and getting murdered in a slow cold-blooded manner can be fun only for people who have totally lost all their compassion.

I witnessed six murders that evening and I am happy that I did, because now I am a staunch opposer of the so called "traditional game". I will post a detailed description of the event on my other blog shortly.

Click here to see the full sized image

330 - 10th - Late night music

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 10th Nov'08

Downtowns in Mexico are always buzzing with different activities. Be it early in the morning or late at night, the buzz never seems to die. You can see people lingering around, small eateries making good business and music streaming through the air.

It was one such night when I just went for a walk to downtown Tlaxcala. I was passing through the central park when I heard some music from a distance. Upon reaching there I saw this young man singing and playing a guitar to a small audience. His songs were filled with local "bad words" and the listeners really seemed to enjoy it.

Given the fair amount of equipment piled behind him, I was sure that this was sort of an end to a bigger concert & given the hat kept in front of him, I was sure he was singing for money.

Click here to see the full sized image

329 - 9th - The mural paintings

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 9th Nov'08

The structure you can see in the image belongs to the Maya ruins at Tulum. This particular building hosted a series of mural paintings created by ancient Mayans as a means to mark the various symbols of the society. These symbols included various deities, different rituals and many everyday activities. Though the paintings have now faded away, this structure stands tall as a witness to the rich Mayan heritage.

I loved the way the photo came in bright sunlight with a blue sky on top and green grass in the foreground.

Click here to see the full sized image

328 - 8th - At the horizon

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 8th Nov'08

After a long day of roaming around I was exhausted to the core and thus decided to have a break and rest for some time at a deserted beach. As I was searching for an empty place to lie down, it was already getting dark and the beautiful coconut trees on the beach had started to turn into silhouettes. The sun had gone to bed leaving behind a dim trail of light. The ship at the horizon seemed to be sailing back home.

I lay down on en empty chair and closed my eyes. The sound of splashing water and a cool breeze hitting my face soon led me into deep slumbers.

Click here to see the full sized image

327 - 7th - Point no 34

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 7th Nov'08

This photo is from Xcaret - Playa del carmen. Xcaret is a beach-side fun-cum-water activity resort. I visited there a couple of weeks back and decided to jump in for snorkeling. Snorkeling has always been something which thrilled me and I always wanted to do. So I booked for the trip and was asked by the ticket counter to go to "Point no 34" and pick up my towel, locker and equipment.

When I reached point 34, this is what I saw. A big building beautifully structured in the form of a spiral with numerous windows all around it's face and giving a combined look of Greek architecture and ancient Maya stone constructions.

Click here to see the full sized image

326 - 6th - The Green fruits

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 6th Nov'08

I saw these Green tender looking coconuts in Archeological zone at Tulum. Being a beach-side area, it was full with coconut trees which were not very high as compared to the trees I have seen back home in Chennai. Due to their small height, they were perfect for people to rest underneath them and save themselves from the scorching heat.

I really liked the way the brown dry branches were intruding out from in between the bunch of coconuts.

Click here to see the full sized image

325 - 5th - Sign of life

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 5th Nov'08

The area was completely barren with no signs of life whatsoever. Dry ground, dead grass, dead pices of wood lying around; all in all a total barren piece of land. So it was quite surprising to find as fresh a form of life as this couple of leaves sprouting out from nowhere. They were completely in contrast with their surroundings and gave an impression as if someone has just plucked them from a tree and, dug a hole and put them in it.

Nature has countless surprises in store for those who are willing to explore.

Click here to see the full sized image

324 - 4th - Daring the waves

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 4th Nov'08

These children seemed to be enjoying the splashing waves of the sea while being under the shade of the huge rock. I was sitting there and observing them for quite some time. Each time they would see a wave coming, they would yell at their father to be ready to click a photo. I don't know if he succeeded, but I definitely got this one after at least ten to fifteen attempts.

It's not that easy to catch that huge wave right in the air !!!

Click here to see the full sized image

323 - 3rd - The fluorescent mushroom

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 3rd Nov'08

I was biking through the dense vegetation at the Archeological ruins in Cobe when I noticed these green mushrooms sprouting out of dead damp wood on the ground. I came back and observed the tiny things for quite some time before I clicked some photos.

Their bright green color, grainy texture and round little shape made them look really catchy to the eye. I could see only a couple of them in the entire area. Maybe it's a rare species which I caught in my camera ;)

Click here to see the full sized image

322 - 2nd - Mini pachyderm

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 2nd Nov'08

These mini reptiles with a scary look on their faces can be found in abundance all over the archeological zone in Tulum. They are free creatures and can be seen sun-bathing on rocks or strolling on the beach. They are not aggressive and can go almost unnoticed with a Grey rocky background.

I am scared of reptiles and this one with it's unusually big size was looking all the more scary. So I kept a fair distance from him and used the zoom of my lens to full effect to capture this one :)

Click here to see the full sized image

321 - 1st - Orchids

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 1st Nov'08

Orchids is one of the most famous species of flowering plants. I got a chance to shoot some of them at the orchid nursery in Xcaret. There were so many different kinds of Orchids there & each one of them so was beautiful that I can dedicate one post to all of them. These brownish-yellow ones were my favorites among them all.

Did you know that the "Vanilla" flavor comes from a famous orchid called Vanilla Planifolia

Click here to see the full sized image