Religion in Monterrey

My fleeting bout of cowardice upon invitation to Monterrey to screen some of my films gave way quickly after my arrival. What follows is the second half of my photo diary of this trip (read the first half here), which, in spite of the drug wars, shows a city full of life, culture, stunning art, and great food, and it is all well worth visiting. Let's start with some local faggotry in Monterrey. The two excellent gentleman on the right own a great restaurant in the heart of the Barrio Antigua called  that serves delicious Southern Mexican food. On Sunday, upstairs in the Loft bar, there’s one of the hottest gay club nights in town.

One of the many cool pieces of art in La Casa del Maiz.

The old steel mill in the massive Parque Fundidora in the heart of Monterrey that also contains the Cinetica and the Centro de Las Artes. The old foundry building also houses galleries and a restaurant.

The Cola de Caballo, the horsetail waterfall in nearby Santiago.

Cute Mexican kid selling stuff at the Cola de Caballo.

The mind-blowing Grutas de Garcia, the mountain caves one hour from Monterrey that were discovered by a priest. I’m standing by one of the only known instances in the world of a stalactite and a stalagmite perfectly lining up. It would probably not have been good if I’d knocked it over.

The formation known as The Devil’s Finger in the caves, which appropriately seems to be giving visitors the finger. My host, Alejandro, who had a dry sense of humor, kept sassing the guide about how most of the formations in the cave are named after Catholic signifiers—crucifixes, the inferno, the altar—and asked him why they weren’t named after political figures, or movie stars, for example.

Graffiti is everywhere in Monterrey. It seems to be considered less vandalism than art.

Soldiers of Christ. Presumably in opposition to the Narcos of Christ.

Hot logo of the Soldiers of Christ.

Another hot logo of the Soldiers of Christ: an angel grenade!

Small town outside Monterrey.

My host, Alejandro, left, and our trusty taxi driver, Javier.

A gnarly Christ wearing what appears to be a girdle in a Monterrey church.

My host Alejandro was constantly texting, even in church.

Viva la Revolucion!

Another view of Saddle Mountain, named obviously because it’s supposed to look like a saddle.

Another mountain overlooking Monterrey is the Cerro de las Mitras (Mountain of the Miters), which is supposed to look like a miter, a kind of Catholic Bishop’s headgear. To me it looked more like a giant breast.

Me posing with a fake nun outside a fake religious restaurant.

Exterior of the Iguana Café, now closed down, the music venue outside of which four people were gunned down last year in cartel violence.

Detail of the painted gun holes pock-marking the exterior of the Iguana Café.

I love this lizard-covered vase I saw in an amazing museum of folk art called Museo El Ojo in Garcia Village outside of Monterrey.

Another hot sculpture in the same museum of a peasant woman breastfeeding her baby.

Another sculpture in the Museo El Ojo. Death, particularly related to religious representation, is ubiquitous in Mexico.

Previously - An Invitation to Monterrey