Back to Mexico. I Miss You!

I was looking for a photograph that I took of Victoria from our trip to Mexico about 5 years ago. I love those pictures and she is so wonderful in front of the camera. And then I came upon these.

 "Joshua on His Couch", Yucatan Coast, Mexico, 2006. Juliana Beasley

I had brought my first dSR with me-- a Canon 3D. I had only shot with it maybe once before and I thought the trip down to the Yucatan Coast would be a great opportunity to pull it out of my Domke bag. After all, I knew I would have some time alone while Victoria went scuba diving. And it has just become impossible to go on any trip without wanting to stop the car and get out and take a photograph. My brain spins into creative mayhem once I get outside the urban jungle.

I was riding a bicycle along the dirt roads of a small fishing village not far from the Belize border. I passed a soccer field and saw a group of young teenagers training and suddenly, a fair skin kid with reddish hair caught my eye. He was completely out of place, as much as I was. He was lanky and taller than the rest of the Mexican kids and his skin was burnt. At first, I thought he might be a girl. I was intrigued.

I approached him and began to speak to him in the Spanish I had concocted from years of Italian lessons and French conversations. He responded in English.

"My name is Joshua," he told me.

I sat down next to him on the sidelines and he eagerly asked me many questions about the United States and specifically, New York City.

When I was getting ready to leave, he invited me to his house to meet his family the next day.

Here are some of the pictures I took. I had previously posted one of the images. More to come. I miss Mexico.

 "Portrait of Joshua's Mother as a Young Woman", Yucatan Coast, Mexico, 2006. Juliana Beasley