These aren’t in order and I’m too swamped with work to fix ’em. Hope you don’t mind the chaotic manner these are placed. I’ll try to explain them thoroughly though. The
Hacienda El Carmen is about 1.5-2 hours outside of Guadalajara, Mexico. It is surrounded by giant walls with two secure gates, ensuring safety. That’s how it used to be in the old days when it was built. Several families lived within the walls, taking care of each other. These aren’t gussied up with any editing. Pretty much straight out of the camera.
From the inside of the hacienda looking at the front desk.
From the inside of our room looking out the back door at one of many orange trees in the morning (we had fresh squeezed OJ all day long; sometimes they’d switch it up and make lemonade or watermelon juice too).
Our main dining crew (I just know the guys names; what’s with me and male servers, eh?… Carlos on the left is about to be a 1st time daddy any day to daughter Scarlett and Chepe in the middle). They were VERY gracious and extremely accomodating to our large group.
This was our classroom… yeah, freakin’ sweet! There was a beverage bar off to the side that was constantly stocked with fresh made cookies, coffee and hot cocoa (yummy).
On the top of the hacienda.
On the top of the hacienda looking toward the outside of the gates. It was really neat to hear them worship in their church Sunday morning. The songs could be heard outside the brick walls.
Our classroom was on the right, the steps went up to a VERY narrow edge that the peacocks liked to climb. Through the gate is where the center of the hacienda is, where we’d eat and get to some of our rooms.
Cute little statue that seemed to be central to a garden.
Inside the center of the hacienda toward where they did the wash, BY HAND.
The center of the hacienda. The office hall is at the middle and we ate on the right side (inside for breakfast and outside for lunch and dinner – the food was included in our room rate and was absolutely excellent as well as beautifully presented).
Check out the oranges in the tree and on the ground. They’d gather these all day long as they found them and squeeze them into the juice containers.
On top of the hacienda in the morning.
Looking out the front of our room at the constantly running fountain. We could hear it through the open window above the shower that was covered in screen to keep out the bugs.
Looking out the back of our room during the day.
The mariachi band arriving to entertain us one day. This is the front of the hacienda. I should’ve framed this better so you could see the tops of the arches upstairs. Dangit.
The front porch of the hacienda. Those ferns, as well as all vegetation on premise, was real and just mammoth compared to any ferns I have seen before.
Hope you enjoyed some images from my trip to Mexico. I have some more of the roaming peacocks (none in full spread, sorry, but I do have a complete white one), in town, of the other attendees and the model shoot. You’ll have to hold your horses for those :o)
EDIT, MORE PICS: Here is the next post of pictures from our stay, the third with brides and fourth with brides.
