Last month an unseasonable thunderstorm dumped rain and hail on us while we were lunching at Casa de Aves out near Atotonilco. The incongruity of a couple inches of frozen precipitation covering ground underneath cactus and mesquite inspired me to stop and shoot a few frames.

We had been dining on a terrace beside a lovely pond when the hail started. Sudden gusty winds blew rain under the sun umbrellas. Diners sprinted for the hotel a couple hundred meters away where, after some delay, the kitchen staff set us up to continue our meals.

The drive home afforded us views of—what? Not exactly a winter wonderland, but white vistas reminiscent of snow days where as children we were excused from school.

Darned if I know how this cow managed to cover its head with wet straw. Was it trying to dampen the impact of hailstones?

Of course not. Mexican farmers don't de-horn cows like those in the States do. So when foraging, cows sometimes get tangled up in long grasses.

From my home in California, I always thought of Mexico as a land of cactus and deserts and haciendas with bougainvillea dripping over stone walls. That there can be hail and snow and ice opens my mind to the incredible diversity of this land.