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The Bull Fight: Part I
3/7/2010 5:07:00 PM
We're getting to the bullfight.... but just like how it went down at the Plaza De Toros, first up are the many dances, parades, and contests- all part of the pageantry that take place before the official la fiesta de toros.
For almost two hours, horsemen and dancers engaged in spectacular displays of cultural showmanship, like this Mexican square dance on the dusty arena floor.
Sash wearing chareos dance their crazy sword dance.
Horseriders display the flags of the tourist countries.
A mariachi band warms up the crowd.
Tourista damas play a game of catch the greased piglets.
And the
tourista hombres play an invigorating game of man vs. little bull soccer.
Which didn't go so well for this guy.
Or this guy.
And the pre-bullfight activities concluded with the grandest of animal contests; the rooster fight.
Up next: the moment you've all been waiting for, the
tauromachia.
Playa Del Carmen Part II- Akumal
3/2/2010 6:11:00 PM
Yal Ku, a lagoon full of reef fish and barricudas and perfect for snorkeling located near Akumal. One of the gems of the trip was finding this quiet resort village.
The Akumal PD.
Delicious shrimp-filled releno at La Lunitas beachfront bistro.
The Akumal fishing fleet.
Our fishing guide, The Skipper.
His trusted assistant Jose, aka Gilligan.
Our day's catch.
Playa Del Carmen Part I
2/28/2010 5:33:00 PM
Hola Amigos! Back from our trip to Mexico we are. The snow may still be ankle deep in Michigan but after the next several postings, you'll feel like you were there with us... toes buried in the warm sand, a sweating mojito off to the side, watching the clouds pass and the tide roll in.
The threads will start off with various random collections of how it looked last week on the Yucatan peninsula, 60 kilometers south of Cancun, and finish with a bullfight at the Plaza De Toros. Ole!
Above is how the beach looked in morning, before tens of thousands of sun crazed Americans, Canadians, and mixed Euros plopped their white bods in the sand to scorch in the rays.
The food was awesome. Check out the size of these killer prawns... as big as chicken drumsticks!
We visited as many of the local sites of interest as time allowed. Here you see the ruins at Tulum, a walled Mayan port city dating back to the 12th century. Walking past the castillo (main temple, seen here), we thought of the Mel Gibson yarn Apocalypto and wondered how many beating hearts were sacrificed before the Mayan civilization went extinct.
Now the only inhabitants at Tulum are the many iguanas who pose like swimsuit models on the rocks above the azure blue waters.
Back in Playa Del Carmen, a street performer does her nightly fire dance.
So until next posting, buenos noches!
Last Brick Standing
2/18/2010 5:21:00 PM
The Lafayette Building is now days away from final respite.
The claw showed no mercy to its crumbling bricks and rusting beams.
A new hole is opening in the city skyscape.
Through the wind-sheered grand canyons of Detroit.
Lafayette II
1/24/2010 9:31:00 AM
The demolition continues, brick by brick, beam by beam.
Soon this building will become another empty lot in a city awash in empty lots.