The second day of our tour again began very early. The plan was to go to Teotihuacán and take a tethered hot-air balloon ride up at sunrise where we would be able to see the two large Aztecian pyramids (the Pyramid of the Moon and the larger Pyramid of the Sun). The place where the balloon was launched had a bit of a carnival atmosphere, with displays, animals, and Aztec cultural performances. Contrary to our plan, we were nearly the last group up, a while after sunrise, so it wasn’t really necessary to get up so early. Nonetheless, it was a fun environment and it was good to get up in a balloon again after 40 years.
Hotel Shoot with Snakes and Birds
After the balloon ride, we went and got some breakfast at a nearby hotel where Humberto had rented a room for a photoshoot. He had arranged for the guy who ran the balloon events to bring over his animals for us to shoot with. After breakfast, while we were waiting for the room to be readied we took a nice walk to a downtown area and saw a beautiful old church, which was having services. Back at the hotel, we were able to shoot with a couple of the models with three different constrictor-type snakes. We then went outside in the plaza and shot with a variety of eagles and owls that the fellow had brought along. Our outside shoot drew quite a crowd from a gender reveal party that was going on at the hotel.
Hacienda Shoot with Birds
In the afternoon, we headed to Hacienda De Soapayuca, in Axapusco. It was in quite a state of disrepair, but they were working on slowly renovating it. We did some architectural photography and shot the models around the place. The fellow with the birds also came along so we got some more shots with the birds at the place. We also took some shots with his assistant, and I got to have a few pictures taken with one of the birds. The people there were very friendly and brought us out snacks and drinks while we were there.
