Noche de Rabanos (Night of Radishes) 2016

Noche de Rabanos (Night of Radishes) is a splendid one day creative extravaganza unique to the city of Oaxaca. Imaginative people from around the state have been working on designs for many months, and on December 23 they display their artwork for the enjoyment and amazement of thousands of onlookers, plus they have a chance to win a prize!
Click on any image to enlarge or see a slide show.

Photo by Rick

We begin our day by eating breakfast in one of the outdoor restaurants that surround the zócalo, the main plaza of Oaxaca where the event takes place. We enjoy watching people construct and put the finishing touches to their depictions of daily life, history, religion, and culture. Some of the radish carvings are done at the last minute!   Every tiny piece of the work must be of natural materials – no wire or plastic – and most of the radish figures are held together with toothpicks.

There are three categories of materials: specially grown giant rabanos (radishes), flor inmortal (looks like what I know as straw flowers), and totomoxtle, or corn husks.

Some photos show entire displays so you can see how elaborate they are, and some are of small sections to show the incredible detail. Photographer friend Rick Impett contributed some excellent photos – thanks, Rick!

MERCADOS (MARKETS)

Photo by Rick

MUSIC AND DANCING

Photo by Rick

Photo by Rick

Photo by Rick

RELIGIOUS LIFE

 

Photo by Rick

Photo by Rick

Photo by Rick

WEAVERS

Photo by Rick

NEFARIOUS CREATURES!

Photo by Rick

Photo by Rick

Living lives surrounded with artisans creating textiles, carvings, metalwork, pottery, painting, music and dancing, children of Oaxaca learn to become artists, musicians and craftspeople at a very young age. It’s wonderful to see!

SPECTACULAR PIECE and the ARTIST

Cee’s Photo Challenge: Contrast Colors

Contrasting colors in Oaxaca? Too easy.  Oaxaca is awash with bold color combinations. It could be the birthplace of color contrasts! A one hour walk around El Centro provided more photo ops than I imagined.  I did not have to find them – they found me!

Click on any photo for a slide show

If you just can’t decide what color to use…why not use them all!

Photo taken in San Martín Tilcajete

Throughout the day and even at sunset, the colors that surround us are intensified by the beautiful Oaxaca blue sky.

 

Oaxaca Bloomers

Seasons drift by subtly in Oaxaca, often defined by the blooming trees and bushes that delight us as the color palette changes throughout the year.

Primavera amarilla, Guayacá, tabebuia chrysantha

Frangipani, Flor de Mayo, plumeria rubra

Frangipani, Flor de Mayo, plumeria rubra

Pochote, Palo Borracho, ceiba speciosa

Jacaranda, jacaranda mimosifolia

Primavera rosa, Amapa rosa, tabebuia rosea

Bougainvillea and Primavera amarilla

These are only a few of the many colors of bougainvillea!

Flamboyán, Tabachín, Royal Poinciana, Arbol de Fuego, delonix regia

Poinsettia, Flor de Pascuas, euphorbia pulcherrima

Poinsettias grow outside and are often more than 10 feet tall!

Tulipán africano, African Tulip Tree, spathodea campanulata

Flower of Flamboyán

Caesalpinia pulcherrima, a variety of Flamboyán

Clavalina, Shaving brush tree, bombax palmeri

Arbol sombrilla, Umbrella tree, schefflera actinophylla

Calistemo, Limpiatubos, Bottle brush tree, callistemon viminalis

Colorín, Tzompantle, erithrina americana

Clavalina in white

Flame vine, pyrostegia venusta

I used the following books for identification:
Arboles de México by Luis Lesur 2011 online store: http://www.etrillas.com.mx

Tropical Flowering Plants by Kirsten Albrecht Llamas, 2003 amazon.com

HIKING OAXACA: Zegache to Ocotlán

All dressed up for the Day of the Dead festivities, this happy couple greeted us in the village of Zegache, where our hike began.

click on any photo to enlarge it   

 

The group gathered in front of the spectacular church of Santa Ana Zegache. No matter how many times I visit this church, its vivid colors entice me to take just a few more photos!

We headed out across a  flat and peaceful agricultural valley toward the villages of San Antonino and Ocotlán.  It’s wonderful to see small fields with several  varieties of vegetables instead of gigantic agribusiness farms. People grow many vegetables for sale in local markets, and they use oxen and horses to pull plows and wagons. Farmers in some villages collectively own a tractor and everyone can use it!

Cabbages and beans

Red flowers are Cockscomb

Minding the goats

Picking radishes, field of onions

Washing and bundling delicious Oaxaca radishes

Always there is corn…

Brilliant marigolds and red cockscombs are the favored flowers for Day of the Dead celebrations, and people were cutting them and hauling wagon loads to the cemeteries to use for decorating the graves of their ancestors.

Yet another beautifully painted church in San Antonino

Ocotlán was the home of well known artist Rodolfo Morales, and these are sections of a huge mural he painted behind the portico of the municipal building.

And then… what luck! We spotted a sidewalk mezcal bar and joined some locals for a welcome and unexpected end of hike treat!

For more photos of this and other colorful churches: https://alaskamexicoandbeyond.wordpress.com/2013/03/18/painted-churches/
For a short biography on Rodolfo Morales: http://www.indigoarts.com/gallery_oaxaca_morales1.htm
For interesting information about the saints inside the church: http://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.mx/2013/10/painted-churches-of-oaxaca-santa-ana.html

Daily Post Photo Challenge: VIVID

Travel theme: Pink

OAXACA DRESSED IN PINK!

Pseudobombax ellipticum is the scientific name for this flowering tree, but I don’t know the local name. It also comes in white.

Hibiscus

The delicate pink of the Rosa Morada trees (tabebuia rosea) are telling us it is spring in Oaxaca!

Scattered throughout the pine forests of the Sierras northeast of Oaxaca are these huge (4-5 feet tall) plants which appear to be a variety of thistle.

Hibiscus with a Blush

Reflection of a Sunset

Look here http://wheresmybackpack.com/2014/03/21/travel-theme-pink/ for more interpretations of PINK.