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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 8, 2013 4:47:55 GMT
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Post by htmb on Nov 8, 2013 5:19:29 GMT
Back up, back up, back up. Was that a clown?
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 8, 2013 5:31:03 GMT
Truly, nowhere is safe! ;D
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 8, 2013 6:39:11 GMT
This post will be devoted to an altar and display we saw on Alcalá. Be warned that if you're in a fragile state, you might want to save this till later. Honestly, it broke me up when I saw it in person, and then again reduced me to tears as I sorted & edited the photos. The poster on the ground says "Let's stop the killing of women". The petate (woven palm mat) on the left says 55 women have been killed in [the state of] Oaxaca in 2013. The petate on the right says "My husband killed me with three gunshots after 17 years of physically abusing me." Each handkerchief is embroidered with a history, sometimes in the first person, sometimes in the third, & in some cases in the stark language of a missing person notice. The women commemorated are from all over the country of Mexico. The people sitting on the curb are embroidering cloths about murdered women from Oaxaca. January 19, 2007 Jalisco My name: Alicia Gúzaman Saldaña I was 31 years old when they found my body in my house in Colonia Loma Bonita. I was raped and stabbed 25 times. They don't know who killed me. Not one more! Maria Hortensia González Morales She was 47 years old when found face down in her bedroom in Colonia New St. Anita. On November 26, 2007 she was shot by her husband during an argument. The one on the left below describes a Jane Doe, raped & murdered. The scarf was found nearby. Teófilia Hernández Hernández 34 years [old] Monterrey, NL September 2012 My husband stabbed me because he didn't want me to work and we fought over that. The woman on the right below tells that her husband killed her because he believed she was unfaithful. Dolores Montesino Dominguez I was 66 years old. They don't know who killed me. They found my body in an empty lot in Ixtlilco el Grande. I'd been struck very hard on the head. November 28, 2009 Chihuahua Flor Alicia Gómez López was kidnapped, raped, and murdered by an armed gang. She was the niece of an activist in "Justice for Our Daughters". Maria Elena Sanchez 25 years old Colonia Huayatla, Municipality of Magdalena Contreras On the 13th of January 2008, her body was found lying naked on 12th of October Street. She had marks of blows on her arm, chin, leg and back. She'd bled from the mouth.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 9, 2013 20:06:21 GMT
Leaving the sad commemoration above, we strolled up to the south side of Santo Domingo in order to turn east to 5 de Mayo street & do some shopping.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 9, 2013 20:07:07 GMT
Sighted through a doorway ~ Since we were on a mission to get some lunch and to get to the cemetery while there was still good light, we only went into two stores. However, visitors to Oaxaca always enjoy 5 de Mayo street, which has several stores offering outstanding examples of regional goods on a section of the street closed to traffic.
We also had to hustle because, as you'll see in pictures taken on the street, rain was threatening.
I love La Casa del Rebozo, but really need to avoid it, as it's a near occasion of frivolous economic sin for me.
On the self-serving bright side, most of the items for sale there are on consignment from the artisans who make them, many of whom bring their wares to the city from isolated towns around the state.
That's the case as well at our next objective, the nearby MARO -- Mujeres Artesanas de las Regiones de Oaxaca.
It's almost worth visiting this store for its building alone, a grand old house with two interior patios and lots of small rooms chock full of wonderful things, making each twist and turn into a treasure hunt.Here come the dead, returning for their yearly visit! (could be rain, too)
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Post by fumobici on Nov 9, 2013 21:20:53 GMT
Best one yet. The colors of Oaxaca are... are... I don't have the words. We are all lucky such colors exist somewhere and we get a glimpse.
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Post by htmb on Nov 9, 2013 21:31:51 GMT
I second that! The light and color captured by you through your lens is truly amazing, Bixa.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 10, 2013 2:15:15 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 10, 2013 2:30:09 GMT
Let's go look around under the arches ~
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Post by mossie on Nov 10, 2013 15:31:29 GMT
So much work and devotion goes into these displays. It is so obvious that religion plays a much larger part in the life of the people than it does here.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 10, 2013 19:31:10 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 10, 2013 19:42:37 GMT
The beautiful, rapidly waning light draws us back outside ~
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 10, 2013 20:14:36 GMT
One more stroll through the arches, then it's back out into the night.
Sr. Comacho makes another appearance this year on AnyPort ~~ Goodbye for another year ~
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Post by htmb on Nov 10, 2013 20:16:37 GMT
I particularly like the picture you framed looking out the archway, Bixa.
And, of course, ending with the photo of the ghoulish little girl and her baby was quite perfect.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 12, 2013 18:51:19 GMT
Thank you so much, Htmb, for that & for your comments throughout. It's your well-expressed insightfulness that makes creating picture threads worthwhile. I'm sure others feel the same.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2013 19:59:11 GMT
I am having trouble seeing the pictures on the road, but I will have comments to make when I get back home.
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Post by lola on Nov 12, 2013 20:07:33 GMT
Bixa, I've been hoping for this and looking forward to it, but you have outdone yourself this year. (admitting of course the credit due to those creative and vibrant people.) Those embroidered cloths are amazing.
I look, I sigh, I smile.
Back when I can linger more. Thank you, Bixa.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2013 14:50:05 GMT
You really did surpass yourself with this Bixa. I have been showing these pics to all !! So much for the shortage of flowers.....the tuberose a page back had me positively swooning.... I think somehow the traditions there are being so well preserved and revered in a way I wish they were here...so much has been commercialized and has lost so much over the years. This whole thread is a real treasure and I thank you for the time, effort, and passion you so beautifully portrayed. Some of the photos, too numerous to mention, are absolutely spectacular in their own right. And,the colors of Oaxaca are like no other I've ever seen and portrayed so beautifully!
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Post by mossie on Nov 13, 2013 15:35:16 GMT
The colours are remarkable.
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Post by bjd on Nov 13, 2013 16:34:03 GMT
The colours are amazing, as usual. My favourites are the street scenes, especially with that stormy sky.
But those embroideries about murdered women are heartbreaking.
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Post by lola on Nov 14, 2013 4:33:20 GMT
Had to share with my daughter MC: "Wow those are cool!! Looks like quite the fiesta!! I knew Day of the Dead was big down there but I didn't know it was THAT big!"
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Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2013 11:50:23 GMT
I must chime in as well to say how remarkable the colours are, but thinking about, there is no way that they could be any other way. The normal colours of nature around Oaxaca are so vibrant to begin with -- the blue sky, the everyday flowers, the greenery -- and when you couple this with the paint on the buildings with all of those lush tones, one has to push the hues even more to make it seem like a festival atmosphere instead of just normal daily life. If you were to try to transpose these same items to the dullness of northern Europe at this time of year, it would probably completely overpower most people and they would claim that it is garish or something. So I guess we'll all just have to go over there and see it for ourselves.
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Post by lola on Nov 14, 2013 14:36:56 GMT
I guess we'll all just have to go over there and see it for ourselves. Exactly what I've been thinking. Since Bixa might not have enough beds for everyone, we'll all have to rent a bijou compound or palacio near the action. I am surprised there are so few Anglo, or other, non-local looking faces in the crowds for such a wonderful spectacle.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 16, 2013 20:30:51 GMT
Huge thanks to all of you for looking at the thread and for your kind comments. Each of you made me feel as though I had some success in imparting what I saw and felt. I know I've answered some comments already, but to all of you who took the time to reply, thank you again. Casimira and Lola, thank you for sharing the thread. I'm particularly gratified by MC's response, as I'm such a fan of her photography. Bjd, thank you for addressing the very sad but necessary commemoration of those poor women -- one more person who keeps them from being forgotten. Fumobici, Htmb, Mossie, Kerouac -- yes, the colors here are saturated joy, something all of you, with your excellent eyes for beauty & interest, picked up on. So I guess we'll all just have to go over there and see it for ourselves. So stop threatening & just do it! Exactly what I've been thinking. Since Bixa might not have enough beds for everyone, we'll all have to rent a bijou compound or palacio near the action. There are certainly many such places available. And aren't y'all lucky to have someone on site to check them out for you?! Really, there is something here to appeal to all interests -- eating, drinking, sightseeing, archeology, nature, crafts, lollygagging, shopping -- what better venue for a pissup?
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