in a sprawling metropolis as far as the eye can see
the city is a mix of old and new
i seemed to have chosen a hotel in the more developed part of town
where costs for luxuries can rival anywhere in the first world
a nice martini on this rooftop bar commands first world prices
but the nice breeze in the tropical weather and the view of the early christmas shopping is a nice perk
there are french colonialization influences - here the central post office offers tourists and post users a reason to visit
notre dame church in the high-rent district stands out amongst the newer glass and steel structures
the food is tasty and comforting in this part of the world
fish for sale at a local market - perhaps sorted by geneology ....
this is the center of the back-packer district - where cafes and restaurants place their customers facing the entertainment provided by the cacophony of passing scooters and street hawkers
an impromptu sunday morning concert by a flamenco troupe creates a jam of moped music-lovers who stop in the middle of the large intersection to listen for a while
passed a small family on a moped in the countryside just outside the city
an old man cycling along the dirt road pulling his cargo of plant matter
a father and son sharing a moment on the streets near the main marketplace
everywhere i go - there are always brides and grooms posing for wedding photos alongside municipal parks and monuments
not the most aerodynamic form of transportation - someone should have told him that there was a rather large bundle of helium-filled balloons attached to his bike
half the local people wear face-masks to ward off some of the larger particulates in the air but the air pollution is quite severe and unavoidable
i think the city is named after this man
i think i had walked past him earlier in the day by the market
happened upon a calendar photo session where i snapped a couple of photos myself
passed a row of shops with artisans that make the most amazing model sailing boats
a photo of a photo on exhibit at the war remnants museum -
a picture from times past
