Desde Monterrey, Mexico a Monterey, Louisiana

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Last January, you may recall,  I traveled to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico for a birthday getaway vacay. When not lounging on the terrace, I visited Galeria Photo/Graphic in the Centro and learned about an upcoming summer juried exhibition called Interpreted Reality.  I submitted to the show, got in (!), then went on a road trip with a friend, driving from New Orleans to SMA to attend the opening in July.  

The drive from the border to San Miguel de Allende is a breathtaking odyssey, parts of it include the Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range.  Mexico has a great system of toll roads but they go around the city of Monterrey, sad face. Knowing that there was a Monterey, Louisiana I was a little disappointed to not drive through the city.  (Ok, so the disappointment lasted about half a second as I was preoccupied with one spectacular view after another)

On the way back...I was navigating....we took a right...oops, i mean wrong ..turn

and ended up in Monterrey!  Though I SWEAR it was an accident..~there are no accidents~.. I was not-so-secretly thrilled to get a glimpse of this worldly metropolis...because that meant that I was headed north when I got home, straight to Monterey, Louisiana.  

If you search for Monterrey, Mexico on the innerwebs, you will surely find out it is one of Mexicos largest cities, both industrial and cosmopolitan with plenty of natural areas and parks.  We drove in just long enough to find a spot for a questionable u-turn, so we only got a peek of the impressive outskirts.  Grabbing the shot with the city name was the peak of the drive para mi. 

Back home in Louisiana, it was time to hit the road again, this time to Monterey, Louisiana.  Monterey is located in the  eastern central part of the state near the Mississippi River - east of Alexandria and South of Sicily Island for reference.  It was exciting to travel to this unexpectedly new  location on the World Tour, because it took me along both familiar and unfamiliar routes. Hwy 1 is a favorite of mine - sugar cane, random crop duster,

and the Morganza Spillway.   

In contrast to the soaring Sierra Madres of Mexico, there are the flat floodplains of Louisiana.  

Though for what Louisiana lacks in elevation, the ginormous cumulus clouds make up for it. 

For a moment driving north in Louisiana didn't seem much different from driving in north Mexico. 

Louisiana

Mexico

Hwy 15 takes you through the Red River State Wildlife Management area

 Past the Old River Control Structure (to match Morganza)

 And then to the unincorporated town with a post office I didn't photograph, Monterey. 

In Monterey I photographed all the usual suspects. 

The Water Tower,

 the market,

the fire truck,

and then I cooled off at the church. 

(I do have a tale about a Very Curious Monterey Resident, but much like the Transylvania Bat, some stories are meant to be sung.)

I have to admit I was wondering what I was going to think of  Monterey, Louisiana after my trek through Monterrey Mexico. How would it hold up?  Turns out,  like the rest of my travels, my favorite part of both Monter(r)eys was the journey itself.  I was as awe-inspired in Louisiana as I was in Mexico, verifying once again that the World is as Large or as small as you want it to be, how we choose to perceive it is entirely up to us.  

Til next time...

All content (c) Natasha Sanchez

www.nattie-concepts.com

*Shout out to Alex Bosworth for the use of her iPhone in Monterrey as my camera battery died and my phone was the GPS. 

Up Next:

The Ancient World Tour returns!

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The Louisiana World Tour, a philosophical and photographic road trip through the state of my world, began in 2011 under the premise that the world is as large or as small as you want it to be. Since that time, over 20 "international" destinations have been visited in Louisiana. The Ancient Louisiana World Tour began in 2016 and aims to complement the Louisiana World Tour by honoring the  natural landscape and those who came before us.  Follow the blog for more exciting adventures! 

Check out a preview of the Louisiana World Tour on my website
http://www.nattie-concepts.com/portfolio_-_photography/world_tour

You can also purchase The State of My World songbook, a printed version of my one-woman show, "Louisiana:The State of My World" on blurb.com

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Check out my other books available on blurb:

Nattie at the DMV

Crescent City Illumenations

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Adventures in Alexandria & Turkey (Creek), Louisiana

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Oops.  I forgot about Alexandria.  I've been so busy this summer preparing for upcoming World Tour Presentations, that posting my latest blog slipped my mind.   I kept putting off Alexandria because it seemed the most obvious.  When I told people I was on a Louisiana World Tour, many responded with "so you're going to Alexandria, right?"  I guess it lacked the intrigue of Poland or China in my mind.  In fact, I passed through Alexandria many times en route to other destinations like Athens and Vienna.  

Finally though, the day came where I would visit the largest town on the World Tour, and I happily encountered an adventure in getting there.  It was late last spring when after photographing the China Cemetery, I decide to venture off to Alexandria.  What I didn't realize was that I was going to pass through another venerable town - Turkey Creek, Louisiana.  

I found this especially exciting, because in just a few short months, I will be visiting the country of  Turkey.  I wonder how it will compare to Louisiana's Turkey Creek.

In Alexandria, I knew I wasn't going to find Egyptian Antiquity, but I did find a colonnade:

Colonnade

Okay, so really it was an LSU building. 

But with its history, it was easy to capture an historic feel.  

Arch

Tree & Window

Alexandria Museum

The downtown area has a lot of quirky architecture, and I was drawn to photographing shapes...

 as well as the government buildings.  (Alexandria is the parish seat of Rapides Parish).

Rapides Parish Courthouse

Alexandria US Flag

Court House

Alexandria may be the most populated destination on the World Tour, but it definitely retains its small town feel. 

Red River Candy Co.

Daily Town Talk

Weiss & Goldring

Even the graffiti seemed harmless:

I ended my visit to Alexandria with a walk to the Red River.   

Red River

I found it humorous that the city I most avoided going to was the one i photographed the most.  Maybe it was because Alexandria was the largest, maybe it was how I chose to photograph it, or maybe it was because part of the World Tour is about opening up to new experiences and perceptions.  Yes, I think that's it.

Downtown Alexandria

(c) Natasha Sanchez

www.nattie-concepts.com

***You can help support the World Tour by purchasing a one of a kind liquid emulsion photograph from my Authentic Shoppe

or log onto to Etsy.com and take a trip with a triptych!  

Poland is in Louisiana???

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Yes, Virginia, there is a Poland,  Louisiana..and it looks a lot like this:

Polish Cow,  2012

But before I get to the Polish Cows, let me explain as to how I came to know about Poland in the first place.  I'm chatting with a friend a few months back who begins telling a story of someone she once knew - from Poland, Louisiana.  Her mannerisms and laughter indicate that the story is a humorous one, but I am unaware of the particulars, as I've stopped listening and my mouth is hanging open in disbelief.  All I could think to say was..."There's a POLAND in Louisiana????"  After all, I had been on tour since July and even passed near Poland, unaware of its existence.

It was a dark and stormy day, when I set out to see Poland for myself.  Not quite Mid-March, yet the ides were near.

The Ides of March photos were taken at a cemetary in (or near) Effie, Louisiana.  Stopped to take photos and get directions.  

Poland proved itself to be very hard to find - like it didn't want to be found at all.  The only acknowledgement of its actuality on Google Maps was the location of Poland Jr High School.

 I had, as usual, gotten off track, thank you Google, and ended up on the wrong side of the Red River.  I was told by the nice gentleman I met at the cemetary in Effie to "Get back on 1, pass through Echo, and you will see the sign to Poland."  When I found the sign, I turned right, just as the arrow pointed, and drove.  

I saw no other sign for the infamous school, but I did start to doubt my geography...

Finally, I saw signs of life. 

Yes, cows.  Cows are a plenty in Poland, Louisiana. I ran into quite a few.  

Just when I was content with the cows being my only sign of Poland - the Fire Station appeared. 

And then the Baptist Church.

And there, hidden amongst the trees, so often noted when Poland is mentioned, was the school.

Pleased that I had found evidence of civilization (outside of the cows, of course), I left the rural countryside and headed up back up the road towards Highway 1, where I would make my way to whereever the world leads next. 

I really enjoyed the landscape as I cruised about, and I can appreciate, and relate, to a town not wanting to be found. Sometimes we need to just get away...

all content (c) Natasha Sanchez

www.nattie-concepts.com

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