Photographs in the Yucatan, 1946 and the 1990's

 

This week I stopped at Banamex on Canal and looked at the current photography exhibition, Armando Salas Portugal, Chronicle of a Trip to the Yucatan, 1946. The photographs stopped me in my tracks because I spent so much time in the Yucatan during the 1990's while I was photographing the 16th century churches spread across the peninsula. Some of Armando's images showed the thatched roof houses and churches that I, too, photographed. Not a lot happened between 1946 and 1993 except that doors were put back on the churches, fences were repaired and painted and the road was paved. I say paved in a most general sense. At least they were no longer sand and dirt but they still had pot holes and lots of topes. Our car moved at a slow place.

 

The church above is in Hoctun where we met people who had tiendas around the square. We returned many times and I took photographs back to the people we met the first time.

 

The image below is of a family in another little village. Actually I doubt that it could even be called a village. They lived in the small settlement of a ruined hacienda. The last time Ned and I went to the Yucatan in 2008, we tried and tried to find their house but a new road had been cut through the area and I'm afraid that it wiped out the little settlement.

 



 

I walked out of Banamex wanting to go back to the Yucatan and follow the maps in the guidebook that I used while I was working on the 16th Century photography project. What has happened to the old two-lane road that connected many of these churches now that everyone travels the toll road between Cancun and Merida? What do the churches look like today? Could I find some of the people that we met back in the 1990's? Could I find a driver? How long would it take?

 

Mmmm.....can you tell that a seed has been planted?

 

Back to Armando Salas Portugal and his trip in the Yucatan in 1946. This exhibition covers much more of the Yucatan than just the churches. It covers the beaches, Mayan sites just being uncovered, villages and people. Although I don't think that these are vintage prints, they are beautiful prints and definitely worth a stop in Banamex.

  

 

 

 

 





 



The Resurrection - Mexican Style

Last night I watched an amazing celebration at the San Antonio Church. The plaza in front of the church is large and it was full with families who came prepared with stools for the elders to sit on or for the Mom's who were holding little ones. Around the edges there were vendors selling fast food and others selling candles of all sizes.

When we first arrived the music and prayers sounded solemn like many of the Semana Santa services and processions that I have seen in the last week but suddenly fireworks erupted from the roof and the bell towers of the church.

 

 

Up from the grave he arose;

with a mighty triumph o'er his foes;

he arose a victor from the dark domain,

and he lives forever,

with the saints to reign.

He arose! He arose! Hallelujah!

Christ arose!  

 

 

 Christ appeared with his arms outstretched and his white shroud loosened and flowing from his body. He was carried on a pallet covered in flowers through the plaza above the heads of the crowd. White balloons soared into the night sky, confetti drifted from the roof of the church as more and more fireworks lit up the sky. The music changed from solemn to snappy contemporary rhythms and everyone was singing and waving white pompoms. On the terrace of the church the priest was leading by waving a pompom and jumping up and down. A young man by the priest was like a cheerleader urging the crowd on.

 

We watched this joyful celebration for about 30 minutes and it was still going on when we left the plaza. It was the most joyous and beautiful religious ceremony I think I've ever been to.

 

 

 

 

Instead of a Christmas Tree....

Instead of a Christmas Tree, Mexicans celebrate  the birth of Jesus with a nativity diorama in their homes, businesses and churches. I've seen them before made with some live vegetation and moss but gradually I'm seeing them decorate the vegetation as we would in the US with Christmas lights and glass balls. This manger was in the Monjas church. I was in the church for quite a while and these two little girls were standing in front of the diorama pointing and whispering to each other. I was kind of waiting for them to move on and then it dawned on me that they "made" the picture.

Since before Christmas I've been trying to go to all the churches to photograph their nativity scenes but most of the time I've been in town and ready to photograph there was a Mass going on. Today I thought that finally I'd get in the Parroquia because from what I can see from the back of the church it looks like they have a colorful and twinkly scene. Nope. The main floor of the church was decorated with white roses and roped off in anticipation of a wedding. I'll have to go back again. I'll also have to go back to the San Juan de Dios Church. The doors were closed. Although the doors of the churches in the Centro are almost always open, the San Antonio and the San Juan churches are closed except when there are services going on.

This nativity scene was in the San Juan de Dios Mercado. Actually there were two nativity scenes in the Mercado. In both of them the baby Jesus was disproportionately large for the other figures in the scene but then he is the principal character.

While I was at the Mercado I checked to see if any of the stands were set up to sell toys and candies for Mom's and Dad's to buy presents for their children for Three King's Day. Not yet so I will go back.

I love the Nativity scenes. So appropriate for remembering the reason for Christmas.

The Posada Across the Street

In the last post I was a little sad that I had not seen a neighborhood Posada. Oh, the Posada led by the San Antonio Church was wonderful but there is something very special to me when it is a grassroots event. Ask and ye shall receive.

Last night just as Carly and I were getting ready to go to bed, I heard singing in the street. We flew back to the upstairs studio to get the camera and when I looked out the window, there was the Posada knocking on the door across the street asking to come in. I was afraid that by the time I got the camera and got outside that they would have moved on so I decided to shoot from the window.

It was a good decision because just after I took this picture, the door opened and this was the house that gave Mary and Joseph room in the stable. The little house is about 10 feet wide but still all the people who had been in the street, maybe 75 or 100 people, followed Mary and Joseph into the house. I love the small bouquets. I love the candles. I love the kids lighting sparklers. I love the music. I love celebrating Christmas in such an intimate way. How blessed I am that it all happened in the street by my house.

The Virgin of Guadalupe

 

Every year on December 12, the San Antonio Church in my Colonia is the destination of a procession in honor of the Virgin of Guadalupe. I have not been here for it for several years but I'm here this year and headed over to the church. The procession comes up Salida a Celaya and the line stretched back as far as I could see. They are carrying their pictures and statutes of the Virgin to be blessed. There is also a big contingent of people on horseback with banners honoring the Virgin.

 

One thing I didn't see this year were people who came long distances on their knees. The one exception to that was while I was sitting in the church before the procession, one woman came up the aisle of the church on her knees, prayed for a few minutes and then left.

 

With the celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe it is like the Christmas Season has officially begun. Next it will be the posadas. It is a good time for me and my camera. 

 

 

Listening to the Stories

I have heard that there are creative writing classes where you are assigned a subject or an image to write about? Well, if I were assigned to write about the image I posted yesterday, I would be overwhelmed.

Babs commented on yesterday's post, "Oh my, this so touches your heart, doesn't it?" Yes, that image did touch my heart and I kept thinking about it after I posted it. Stories keep floating by. Stories about the fire extinguisher. Why is it there? I don't remember seeing one in such an obvious position in other Mexican churches. Stories about the flowers. Who picked them and brought them to the church and why? Stories about the battered offering box. Why is it battered? Why is it locked? Who are the people who drop their precious pesos in the offering box?

I think the Writing Muse is messing with me. Those stories are floating out there somewhere waiting to be written but the Photo Muse is keeping me too busy. The Writing Muse needs to give this assignment to someone else. I'm too old to concentrate on more than one thing at a time. Is it okay with you if I send the Writing Muse to your house?

This image of the beam of light is in the same church as the image from yesterday. I know. I know it is just kind of physics thing when a light beam comes in a small opening but I always feel like it is a ray of light from God.