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