Shadow Shot Sunday 110 - Puerto Vallarta

I have just finished school here in Mexico, and am off to the beach for five days -not this one in Puerto Vallarta where the sting ray got me last Christmas, but Pie de la Cuesta a tiny place North of Acapulco....

I am looking forward to chilling out, swimming, and reading before preparing for the final departure from Mexico on Sunday 10th July...

For more shadow shots from around the world, check out Shadow Shot Sunday by clicking here. Enjoy!

Puerto Vallarta - boating down the backwaters....

The Mexican Pacific coastal resort of Puerto Vallarta is very well known to tourists from overseas, and visitors flock to its beautiful beaches, hotels, marinas, restaurants, shops and galleries on a very regular basis. But how many have ventured out into the backwaters by boat?? Those who do are rewarded by these gorgeous scenic views above. Keen twitchers can easily spot this great variety of birdlife - look at all the different types of herons that can be seen....

Not to mention these very flamboyant and ferocious looking iguanas who hug the branches and literally bristle and puff up at the sight of intruders into their territory....

Take another look at these perfect vistas - where the reflections are so symmetrical and synchronised they look like the unfolded ink blot drawings from the shrink's office....

Unfortunately this perfect day did not have quite the perfect ending, as it was Christmas Eve 2010 and a couple of hours later, I was hospitalised following a very nasty sting ray puncture wound right through the sole of the foot....but let's dwell on how the day began with these serene shots of the river and wildlife!!! For more global glimpses this week, check out My World Tuesday Postings by clicking here. Enjoy!!

Shadow Shot Sunday 109 - Santa Maria La Ribera, DF

Where would you find these lovely green shadows in Mexico City??

Well they are on the walls of just an ordinary city apartment block on Calle Santa Maria La Ribera - but on the way to my favourite square in the whole of the city..........

Tucked away in the heart of the very ordinary working class neighbourhood of La Ribera is this gorgeous gem of a square - complete with Moroccan Pavillion. Last Saturday, as I arrived here, there was a full orchestra inside playing music most sublime - Such serendipity and just another reason to enjoy wandering the streets of Mexico City....

For more shadow shots around the world this week - click here - Enjoy!

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Pinatas........

One of my favourite street sights here in Mexico City are the shops which sell pinatas. These particular tiendas are just around the corner from where I live, and depict all the favourites for children's parties. I especially like the speccy Harry Potter contrasted with the rather muscular and robust Spiderman.......

Of course in addition to the cartoon characters, traditional sputnik-style pinatas are sold and flown all year round - but especially in the approach to Christmas. Here are some soaring above the cobbled streets of Taxco, and my school playground....

Each of the seven spikes represents one of the seven deadly sins, so when you have bashed the life out of gluttony, sloth, anger etc, you are rewarded with the shower of sweeties and goodies....

A word of warning, however, to stand well back when the pinata is being bashed for all its worth. A friend of mine spent her first Mexican Christmas in hospital after being rendered unconscious by an-over enthusiastic blind-folded child wielding the stick like a baseball bat!! I also witnessed a young English child, who hadn't quite got the concept of pinatas, absolutely traumatised by the sight of poor Winnie the Pooh's four limbs sailing off in all four compass directions leaving him quadraplegic and a child sobbing on her first birthday - the joy of cultural exchange totally evading her!!

But aren't they vibrant and beautiful? - their bright colours and shapes are an iconic sight on the streets of Mexico City. For more global glimpses around the world today check out the My World Tuesday postings by clicking here. Enjoy!

Shadow Shot Sunday 108 - West Coast

Where would you find this gorgeous clapboard house with the palm tree imprint splashed over its facade on such a bright and sunny morning??


















Well, walk a few minutes further on and its location should surely need no further introduction.......

If you get the weather, strolling along the promenade and the waterfront around the Golden Gate Bridge is certainly a lovely thing to do in San Francisco. Enjoy other shadow shots from around the world by clicking here.... Where is your favourite place to stroll to blow away the cobwebs, or to sit and admire the view??

Roaming the Roma - Cultural Corredor

Every so often the gallery doors in the Roma are flung open for the very popular event "Cultural Corredor" and crowds of art enthusiasts take up the challenge of trying to visit all of the galleries on this one Open Day. Crowds mill the streets, the mood is infectious, the gallery owners hospitable with their offers of cool drinks and refreshments, plus the work on display shows remarkable variety from photography to painting, textiles to sculpture, and fashion to design. The Anonymous gallery (Colima 179A) exhibited work by two Brazilian artists - the naive painter Poteiro shown above contrasted with the more funky Pitasnas shown below.....

The work below at the Traeger Gallery (Colima 179) is by Argentine textile artist Silvina Ibanez whose painted 3d draperies are highly reminiscent of the Old Masters themselves....

Then we have the intriguing plastic sculptures by Nicola Lopez on display at the Arroniz Arte Gallery (Plaza Rio de Janeiro 53)....

The event always includes some very interesting design work, hence the furniture below displayed at C208 (Colima 208)....

A lot of these galleries are private and usually by appointment only, so part of the treat of the Open Day Cultural Corredor is to actually step inside some of these gorgeous colonial mansions and observe all the subtle architectural details, that can usually only be viewed from the outside. What wonderful exteriors and interiors these colonial architectural gems do indeed reveal

From the last few posts, you can see that I am a huge fan of visiting art galleries and appreciating the work of a wide range of talented artists. My favourite here?? Poteiro the Brazilian naive artist is the work I would choose to hang on my own walls - which is your cup of tea?? For more global glimpses this week, check out My World Tuesday by clicking here. Enjoy!

Shadow Shot Sunday 107 - Hector Velazquez

Welcome to the unusual and rather haunting world of local Mexico City artist Hector Velazquez, whose work is currently on display in Colonia Roma at the Terreno Baldio Arte Gallery as part of the Open House Day entitled "Corredor Cultural". He is primarily a textile artist who produces these sculptural floating heads and body parts coming through the wall in tightly bound silk and cotton.....

The effect is both beautiful and disturbing at the same time, but what is most interesting is that the strong patterns of shadows that the faces and hands create are integral to the works of art themselves, due to the specific use of lighting....

I especially like this one of the dress hanging up with its shadow twin faintly discernible on the wall behind....

Here are some of the art enthusiasts out and about in Colonia Roma strolling from one gallery to the next to take in all the exhibitions and make the most of the "Corredor Cultural"on a fine, sunny evening. I hardly ever submit shadow shots of people but I especially liked this particular gentleman and his dapper outfit complete with a leafy pattern of shadows....

For more shadow shots from around the world, click here for Shadow Shot Sunday. Enjoy!