Palenque a graveyard. Mexico. Not suitable for those who suffer from Coimetrophobia.

Not many wondrous monumental marble graves in the Municipal graveyard. Poor people make the most of what they have, as best they can.

What goes through the mind of the tombstone tourist?

A feeling of curiosity and excitement: Is it unmaintained and in disrepair; or filled with a collection of flowers, photos and personal effects from the lives of the dead?

Who will we find, a single graves or ones for an entire family? Young old, when were they born, how old were they when they died?

So many questions, often no back story, no answers; all adding to the wonder of walking with the dead.

Mexican graveyards... unashamedly in your face, colourful, celebratory, and definitely less inhibited than here in the UK.

The chaos and lack of order in Palenque made stumbling amongst the dead a memorable few hours. It was full, to the point of claustrophobia, it was full to the point that any footpath that once existed has now been claimed by the dead.

Mausoleums

The few more affluent townsfolk had modest mausoleums, family affairs, bearing photographs of the dead, fresh flowers along side plastic ones bring colour.

Cans of beer, bottles of coca cola, if they were part of the resident's life then, they too are placed by family members.

Time and tide for no man waits

Wrought iron crosses from another era, rusted, like memories their paint faded. The story unknown, no visitors, no love. Lives once lived.

A cross of leaves carefully placed, windblown, Fernandez now returned to his parents.

Flowers

Quite relaxed, some Mexican graveyards forbid the placing of fresh flowers, here no such rules are in place or if they are, they are openly ignored.

As well as blue for males and pinks for girls, colour plays a big part in Mexican culture in general, shades predominantly used in Mexican graveyards often are symbolic.

Purple hues signify pain, suffering, grief, and mourning and is used to acknowledge the loss of loved ones.

Pinks, are on of celebration a tribute to the deceased.

Purity and hope are represented by the colour white, believed to bring new beginnings for the souls who have gone to the next life.

Red represents blood ties, a link that the dead once shared with the living.

Orange/ yellow as in the use also of marigolds shows the the pathway, the colour of bright sunlight for the souls of the dead to follow so they can to be re-untied with their families.

Melted candles and simple gifts of a couple of lollipops on an unmarked grave, someone must have recently visited.

A football , woody and a guitar all part of a short time on earth.

"Always in our hearts, mom and brothers"

A nameless child, two days old, a grave.

For people like myself, who are just visitors, they are a beautiful and at times a humbling reminder that we are all here for just a short time.

Try to be nice, be kind, be slow to judge and quick to forgive, and never miss an opportunity to encourage or lift someone up.

Don't shed crocodile tears for people in the news you do not even know existed, nothing worse than the "diana factor".

Give your own kith and kin a hug at every opportunity. tell them how much they mean to you when they are here, they ain't gonnna hear you when they are dead.