Photo Project Looking for Survivors

Photo of the backstage of a theater in Madrid, for the project "Looking for Survivors", by Oscar Howell (2011)

Dia de Muertos

The Day of the Dead (Dia de Muertos) is a very special celebration in Mexico. Everywhere people build "ofrendas" (offerings) in honor of the family dead. They visit the cemetery to wait for the dead to come and share a couple of hours with them.

This is a picture of our ofrenda at home. Sugar skulls, pan de muerto, skeletons, photos, coffee, tequila and water. The yellow flower used is Cempazuchitl. The ofrenda is both a ceremonial an religious offering; and a part of a very colorful and traditional celebration....

Tepoztlan, Morelos

Last weekend we were in the town of Tepoztlan, state of Morelos. The town has a dominican church and convent dating from the 16th century. It is part of the "Ruta de los Conventos" in Morelos and Puebla. This picture is the main entrance to the church, with the huge pila bautismal in the center of the circle.

American Precision Museum, Windsor, Vermont

In Windsor, Vermont, of all places... a small town on the banks of the Connecticut River on Highway 5 North, is one of the most astonishing museums I have ever seen : The American Precision Museum. This is surely the most complete collection of machine tools in America (and probably the world) covering manufacturing and metal working techniques from the early 18oo's to the era of mass production.

The current exhibition is just a small part of the pieces in the collection, put together by a former curator of the Smithsonian Museum. The museum itself is housed in a building that was an armory during the Civil War.

I was allowed to enter the basement of the building, where the water-wheels operated. The pictures here are of the basement, a place more astonishing than the museum itself...

Vermont, Green Mountains

Last weekend we made a trip to the Green Mountains in Vermont. The initial idea was just a day trip from Boston, but it became a whole weekend. We found a place to stay in Chester (the Hugging Bear Inn) and visited Brattleboro, Hapgood Pond and the Griffith/Baker Trail (photos below). Driving Highways 5 and 12 on both sides of the Connecticut River was wonderful.

Provincetown, Cape Cod

We went whale watching while in Provincetown, Cape Cod. The day was cold and rainy, but we had the opportunity to see many whales. The tour guide counted in total 39. We could approach them with the ship and take photos like this one:

This picture is from the beach in front of Provincetown with low tide. You can walk to the other side...

Central Park in Spring

New York, May 4 2009, a rainy and cold Spring morning. The first picture is near Bethesda Terrace, the second of the American Elms at the end of the Mall