N'awlins April 2005

New Orleans has a long standing reputation for it's mysterious religions, cults and outre personalities. Many many MANY books about the living dead are set in New Orleans and for good reason. It's history is packed with bizarre tales, rituals, and people---the dead among the most famous.

I have been to NoLa quite a few times and have yet to scratch the surface of its amazing cemeteries. Easy Rider made this particular cemetery very famous as well as the local permanent resident Marie Laveau.

Similar to Paris, NoLa cemeteries are used like parks and often contain benches and tables where families visit and picnic. Visitors leave everything from bottles of wine to beads, shells and coins for the dead. Flowers wilt too fast and visitors know that the Spirits here would prefer a drink or beads anyway!

Vandalism and graffiti is tolerated and the decay of the long lost tombs among the new expensive crypts just adds to the atmosphere and is an obvious metaphor of the city.

Of course Katrina made fascination with the local dead a bit---inappropriate. However I had the pleasure of being in NoLa a few months before the disaster which is when I took these shots. I returned there a year later but was so saddened by what I saw I didn't take a single picture. It just didn't seem right after what happened. Long live the spirit and Spirits of New Orleans...

(Grave robbers often crack open the tops of the crypts seeking lord-only-knows-what, therefore you can see into some of the crypts. Thankfully it's usually just rubble or small tokens left by visitors that you can see inside. However even life creeps in some of the spaces.)

Howington Cemetery Nicholson GA 2010

I spent a lot of time in this cemetery when I was a kid. It may be the reason why I am so fascinated with cemeteries today. My Grandmother and Aunt would take me on their visits to put out flowers and I was allowed to roam around but not allowed to walk over anyone's grave or be loud and disruptive. I would walk through the rows and ask my grandmother if she knew the deceased. Sometimes she did and would tell me about them (or she may have made it up for all I know). I learned that even though they were no longer living, every one of these plots have a story beyond what was written in stone.

 Although this cemetery doesn't have any really unique or interesting stones, famous tombs or fascinating history it does have some personal history...including my great grandparents (below)...

Paris 2003

My first trip to Paris was not going to be complete without visiting a few of the cemeteries (which are hard to avoid). Much like New Orleans, cemeteries in Paris are social sites. People take their lunch there, lovers canoodle on benches and pooches are welcome off leash.

A totally different atmosphere than the catacombs these cemeteries tucked behind high walls and wrought iron gates feel more parks for the living than plots for the dead.

I hope to some day have many more photos of Paris' famous cemeteries and permanent residents...one day...

Even Dita gets to know the Permanent Residents of Paris at the tomb of Victor Noir.

Paris Catacombs 2003

If you aren't claustrophobic, necrophobic or just not phobic in general, I highly recommend the Parisian Catacombs. Nothing is more outre like being trapped far under the city with millions of bones and skulls of "whatever-century dead people from plague-war-disease-poverty and they have no where to put you".

This place is literally chock full of bones, skulls and death. It. Was. Awesome.

There were plenty of "chapels" and creative designs throughout. 

Just some FAQs: it was not stinky, it was not damp, it wasn't spooky or creepy and the bones are not cemented down (as we found out by picking up one--however there is little temptation to take one while you are there...it just feels WRONG). It's deafeningly quiet. I kept whispering as if I would what--wake the dead? The lighting is poor so keep this in mind for photos and sneaking up on folks.

The weirdest part of the whole thing was running into other tourists. It seemed unnatural to see living flesh after an hour or so of wandering through the dead.

BTW once you get down there and panic, there is NO escape route. You commit to the whole journey (just not the sort of commitment the residents are held too. :)

Much of the place is floor to ceiling and as far back as the paltry light will allow your eyes to see, packed with bones and skulls. And the ceiling is only about 6 feet high in most places. It's tight. It's packed.

If only they piped in Swedish Death Metal to complete the mood...

Maysville & Jefferson, GA 2007

On my way to visit my mother's school I passed by the Oconee Baptist Church on the Maysville road and snapped a few shots.

Again had I been taking these shots after the Weeping Angels had aired on Doctor Who, I wouldn't have gotten so close. 

Below are photos from a family plot that were taken near Thyatira Church Road in Jefferson, GA. The plot is right across from several houses just off a dirt road. I imagine the kids that live there might have been a little creeped out by it---or maybe that's just me.

ATM Belize 2010

I insisted on this trip to undo the trauma I sustained in 1983 when I forced my mother to stand in line for hours at the World's Fair so we could see the mummified Peruvian girl. I had nightmares forever that she was coming after me in my sleep (the mummy not my mother).

So, on our last full day in Belize we decided to cave it. A much recommended activity when you visit the Belizean rain forest. Also a very wet experience (Gus' socks are still wet). 2 miles or so of swimming, sloshing, foot slipping, rock scrambling, shin cracking, melon whacking, toe stubbing and oh yeah---to the point...an ancient mummified Mayan girl at the end.

 Yes those are bones. Yes that is a skull. Yes we were close enough to touch them. And, no we did not touch them.

(R) The mouth of the cave. You start by swimming through it (oh only after and hour ride in a van and then hike for an hour through the forest and cross a pretty perky river a few times to get to said cave). TOTALLY worth it.

San Pedro, Belize 2009

Mom and I stayed on Ambergris Caye for a week. We kept walking past a very tall concrete retaining wall on our way down the beach every day. On the last day I decided to see what was on the other side of that wall. **Poof**a cemetery.


It was very small and crowded and clearly on a very expensive plot of land sandwiched between two resorts. The ground is mostly sand and the tombs very elaborated decorated with enormous amounts of tropical plants and bright silk flowers. Although small it was quite elaborate. Since we were there right after Christmas it was apparent from the burned out candles and flowers that the tombs had seen a lot of visitors.


If you look through the small square windows in the concrete wall you can see the ocean in some of the shots.