642 - 5th - The setting sun

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 5th Aug'10

641 - 4th - The lonely surfer

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 4th Aug'10

438 - 8th - Taking history lessons

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 8th Mar'09

As I always do when I visit important Maya sites, I hired a guide at Monte Alban too. While I was having a tour of the place taking pictures and listening to my guide, I could see many others wearing a red tag and exploring the place with their respective clients.

On the top of the plaza, I saw this woman standing at the edge of the pyramid probably absorbing some important facts spoken by her guide. Believe me - without a guide such places are nothing but a heap of stones.

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437 - 7th - Mineral deposits

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 7th Mar'09

Hierve El Agua is a place in Oaxaca where streams of water, rich in minerals originate from the ground and flow down the slopes to the valley below. At the edge of the plain surface the water starts depositing the minerals and forms a bright slippery plastic like surface, dull yellow in color. If you step inside the water, it is unexpectedly cold and the surface feels like a smoot sheet of cermaic under your feet.

The water starts having a greenish look as you move towards the edge. All in all it is a nice view sitting on the edge with you feet inside the pool.

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436 - 6th - The morning sale

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 6th Mar'09

It was around 8AM in the morning and I was enjoying my chialquiles in an open air restaurant at downtown Oaxaca. Being a Sunday morning, the atmosphere was lazy and not many people could be seen wandering around, except those who wanted to do some business with the early risers. Among many who were trying to make a sale, was this man loaded with a million different things and doing nothing but standing at a distance hoping to be noticed.

I spent around an hour in the restaurant but I didn't see him selling even a single bag. Maybe it was becuase it was too early for people to buy some things or maybe he needs to move from his place and approach them.

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434 - 4th - Monte Alban

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 4th Mar'09

Monte alban is one of the most popular archeological sites in Mexico. Though most the ones which top the list were built by Mayas, this place belongs to the less known Zapotecas. The place is at a distance of around 30 minutes drive from the center of the Oaxaca city and from where it is located you can see a panaromic view of the entire capital.

The place was very strategically chosen by the ones who built it; right in the middle of series of mountains, spread out like small blocks of wood on a dining table. The scenic view which you get from the top (it is actually a socio-economic plaza which you can see in the image) is just breathtakingly beautiful.

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433 - 3rd - The broken thatch

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 3rd Mar'09

It looked like a small hut or a hideout which had been long abandoned. I could see a couple of signs nearby which told that it had actually been used for quite some time. There were some broken mud vessels, some shoes and some torn clothes littered nearby. Also, at one corner I could see a makeshift stove fueled with coal/wood.

Whoever lived here, chose a really picturesque place. Series of mountains at the back and open space all around; a perfect place to live - at least for me :)

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427 - 25th - Hierve el agua

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 25th Feb'09

Hierve el Agua (Spanish for "the water boils") is set of natural rock formations in the Mexican state of Oaxaca that look like waterfalls. Relatively small amounts of water -- which, despite the name, is not hot (25°C) -- bubble up from four springs and, running over the cliffs, evaporate. The rock formations, primarily of calcium carbonate, are left behind.
The formations are very high, with the two principal “waterfalls” measuring 12 and 30 meters.

Most of the people (some of them are even reading this :P) who visit Oaxaca fail to see this place as it is not that well spotted on the tourist map. But it is really worth traveling through the dusty 12 km stretch of road leading to the place.

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436 - 24th - Behind the bars

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 24th Feb'09

Poverty is a curse which makes small kids work hard for a living when it is their age to attend school and build a foundation for their future. They have to toil for hours just to make a few bucks.

This little girl in the picture is an example of how hard life can become. She was sitting by the street playing music and singing along. She had a small bowl in front of her for people to drop money. From time to time she used to get up and change places; hoping for a newer set of people and a bit more money.

She hid her face when she saw me taking her photo. So I went to her, dropped a 5 peso coin in her bowl and asked if I could just take a few. She nodded her head in acceptance and continued with her "business".

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435 - 23rd - Strands of color

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 23rd Feb'09

I was just walking by the small shops in Tule when one of my friends stopped to buy a small bag. While others were busy in getting a good bargain my eyes were searching something worth "clickable" inside the shop. Almost when I was about to give up, I saw this series of beaded necklaces hanging by the entrance.

Their vibrant colors and a continuous structure gave me a nice close up shot.

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434 - 22nd - Soaring high

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 22nd Feb'09

I don't know if you have ever observed a flying eagle or a hawk but believe me, that you can never see any other bird which can match it's observance, alertness and it's sharp eyesight. It spots it's prey from hundreds of meters high in the sky and flies straight to the ground, grabs the thing and flies back to it's nest.

I have been trying to catch one in my camera for a long time but never got a nice shot given their random flight path sudden turns in the air. This time I got a decent one but not as good as I would want it to be.

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433 - 21st - Mobile flower market

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 21st Feb'09

The small city of "Tule" near Oaxaca is famous for the "Arbol del Tule" which is one of the biggest and oldest trees of the world. Just this one tree has made the place famous in all of Oaxaca. Almost everyone who visits Oaxaca coem to this palce for sure.

Many small businesses can be seen thriving at the place due this high volume of tourist traffic; small eataries, artisans and numerous women selling flowers with a big basket on their heads. These women search out specifically for young couples which they see as potential clients for doing some business.

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432 - 20th - Quiet and lonely

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 20th Feb'09

Sitting at a height of some five hundred meters, with a vast stretch of jungle in the front and scores of mountains is all you could see till miles; just imagine the tranquility and peace such a place would inject in your heart. Sitting drowned in your own thoughts with nothing to be heard other than the sound of your own breath and that of the flapping wings of birds flying overhead.

After taking this photo I trekked all the way to the spot and spent some quiet fifteen minutes just staring at the beauty of the place.

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431 - 19th - Spreading out in the open

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 19th Feb'09

Somehow this image gives a sense of "completeness" to me. The way the branches spread out and the way the tree displays it's magnificence, somehow makes the picture complete.

I took this picture during my trip to Oaxaca. I was climbing down a hill to reach a waterfall and this tree was a sort of "pit-stop" in the middle for people to rest under it's sprawling shade. Since it was a bit early in the morning, there were not many people around and I was able to get a "clear" picture.

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430 - 18th - Eyes wide open

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 18th Feb'09

I once saw a photo in one of forums in which a guy posted her pet cat with dark blue eyes. The cat's eyes were really strange and it was probably the first time I observed them so closely.

The first thing I noticed when I saw this cat was it's eyes. I wanted to get close to it and take some close-up shots, but the it being a cat was running away at every slight movement of mine. Finally I caught it perched on top a fence where there was no way to jump anywhere. The only direction it could move was front, and that was where I was standing with my camera :)

Amazing eyes I must say.

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428 - 16th - Iglesia de Santo Domingo

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 16th Feb'09

The Church and former monastery of Santo Domingo de Guzmán is the most important of the numerous baroque ecclesiastical buildings in Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico. The complex of buildings includes a substantial sanctuary and an extensive system of courtyards, cloisters and rooms that formerly constituted the monastery but now house the Cultural Centre of Oaxaca. This museum includes an important collection of pre-Columban artifacts, among them the contents of Tomb 7 from the nearby Zapotec site of Monte Albán. The former monastery garden is now an Ethnobotanical Garden, containing a large collection of plants native to the region.

I took this photo while staring at the glowing building of the church lightened by the bright sunlight and the ambient lighting of the place. I had to place my camera on a wall to get a clear picture. Now that I have a tripod, I wish I could go back and take some more; with some better angles.

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427 - 15th - Perfect in contrast

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 15th Feb'09

This one easily qualifies as one of the most colorfully contrasting shops I have ever seen. The two compartments of contrasting colors which you can see are two parts of the same shop. The blue one is the entrance while the yellow one is the part of the store displaying clothes.

I was sitting across the street near the cathedral since evening. But this wonderful display of colors caught my eye only when it was dark and the brightness was prominent.

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426 - 14th - Love under the trees

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 14th Feb'09

I took this photo almost two weeks back in Oaxaca but kept it in reserve for today. As 14th of Feb is being celebrated as Valentines day around the world, love can be seen floating around in many different forms. You can see couples on the streets, in parks, in restaurants and almost everywhere you go.

This image from the downtown of Oaxaca is of one such hangout of love birds. A small park just besides the cathedral with trees along the corners is just an ideal place for couples to cuddle up. At this time I remember the post I published on the same day exactly an year back; about a couple from Chennai. Love is life and life is love; come lets celebrate the passion.

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424 - 12th - A meeting in progress

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 12th Feb'09

I was enjoying the view of the vast stretch of the plaza at Monte Alban from the top of a pyramid when I saw this group of people sitting on rocks and discussing something. As there was no chance of them noticing me, I had enough time to take all the shots I wanted to.

I took some four different photos from different angles and then climbed down just to pass by and teasing them inside my head - I took your photos and you dont even have a clue ... :P

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423 - 11th - Up in the sky

Originally clicked and uploaded by - Pratosh Dwivedi - 11th Feb'09

I have clicked flowers on small plants, in big bushes, in my garden, on the road-side but never on top of a tree. This particular flower was blooming on probably the highest branch of a tree and was the lone "bloomer" among the 10 odd budr growing around it. With a perfect blue sky in the background and bright morning sunlight falling on the flower, the colors gave a perfect contrast.

It was tough to get that thing into focus, but after some 10-12 attempts I think I got it as I wanted it to be.

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