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Sábado de Gloria is a quieter day with only small processions carried by women known as Las Dolorosas (The Grief or Suffering women) follwing the Vía Dolorosa. Sábado de Gloria is also the day when Judas’ Will (testament) is read, a sort of farcical speech or a neighborhood chisme speech. Kids and teenagers also play at getting each other wet with water balloons. Although I have not seen these two traditions in many years; I wonder if they still exist.

Today we take the opportunity to share various Holy Week vistas from La Antigua Guatemala.

Enjoy your weekend and set your timer for the 5-year anniversary of AntiguaDailyPhoto.com on May 1st. What should we do?

Also, remember that you can check out what is happening during Holy Week in XelaDailyPhoto and GuatemalaDailyPhoto.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

Today the whole Church mourns the death of our Savior. This is traditionally a day of sadness, spent in fasting and prayer. The title for this day varies in different parts of the world: “Holy Friday” for Latin nations, Slavs and Hungarians call it “Great Friday,” in Germany it is “Friday of Mourning,” and in Norway, it is “Long Friday.” Some view the term “Good Friday” (used in English and Dutch) as a corruption of the term “God’s Friday.” ["Viernes Santo" or Holy Friday in Antigua Guatemala] (source: CatholicCulture.org)

Do not underestimate the power of catholic imagery. You see, the world-famous Antigua Guatemala processions are about showing the devoted images as a reminder and representation of the crucifixion of Jesus. Revue Magazine has an article by Dwight Wayne Coop that chronicles how the Jesús Nazareno de la Merced was taken to Guatemala City in 1778 in order to force people to abandon Santiago de Guatemala (La Antigua Guatemala) in favor of the new capital Guatemala de La Asunción (Guatemala City).

Here’s a fragment of the chronicle, make sure your read the entire article which is funny, historical and an eye opener:

The killer quake that rattled Panchoy Valley (La Antigua) in 1773 led to the founding of a new capital in Ermita Valley in 1776. But even then, most Santiagans refused to move. Similarly, after Hurricane Hattie ravaged Belize in 1965, the government of Belize founded Belmopán—only to see the population of Belize City stay put.

The job of moving La Antigua’s masons, maids, porters and wet nurses to Ciudad Real (Guatemala City) fell in 1778 to viceroy Martín de Mayorga. His biggest card was the bond that Santiagans felt to Jesús Nazareno and to another wooden statue, Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes. Move these images, Mayorga reasoned, and you move the people. (source: Revue Magazine)

Also, today all Stations of the Cross altars will be open and many if not all procession will pay a visit to El Calvario Church, which is located on the southern outskirts of La Antigua Guatemala. El Calvario or Calvary (Golgotha) is the name of the mount on the outskirts of Jerusalem where it’s believe Jesus Christ was crucified. This church with its three arches provides a symbolic representation of the crucifixion; with each arch representing each cross.

Here’s a panoramic view of the culmination of the Good Friday procession as it enters the Antigua Guatemala cathedral.

Also, remember that you can check out what is happening during Holy Week in XelaDailyPhoto and GuatemalaDailyPhoto.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

Cucuruchos with their purple or violet cone-head rebes are another prominent element of Semana Santa in Antigua Guatemala. Purple is worn as a sign of penitence. As a matter of fact, processions are a sign of penitence as well, heck the whole Semana Santa is a penitent act.

Not only Cucuruchos have to observe penitence during Lent (Cuaresma) and Holy Week (Semana Santa), but they also have to pay if they want to get a chance to carry the enormous floats, known here as andas. According to Nelo, each turn costs around Q60 (around US$8), there are around 60 turns and each float has somewhere between 80 and 100 spaces for the Cucuruchos. You make the numbers…

Also, remember that you can check out what is happening during Holy Week in XelaDailyPhoto and GuatemalaDailyPhoto.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

There’s nothing more impressive during the Holy Week in Antigua Guatemala than seen these massive floats, andas in Spanish, being carried by 80 to 100 cucuruchos. Click on any of the images to get a slide show started with larger versions of these images.

Needless to say we’re in debt with Nelo for sharing these incredible photographs, for going the extra mile to capture these unusual perspective and for spending over 12 hours per day to follow the processions through out their entire route. If you have anything to say to Nelo, please do so in the comments area.

Elsewhere in Guatemala, you can check the procession in XelaDailyPhoto and GuatemalaDailyPhoto as well.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

The processional carpets are among the most creative and colorful elements of the Holy Week in La Antigua Guatemala.

As I’ve mentioned before, the making of carpets from sawdust, pine-needles, flowers, vegetables is a community-forming tradition. People get together by block or near-by neighbors to create the carpets on which the processions will pass by. Sometimes the making of the carpets is done at night, all night so they are ready for next day’s procession. The colorful processional carpet elaboration process involves the whole family, close friends, the neighborhood and the entire community. It does not matter if it’s just grandma throwing some corozo (corozo palms) and dried purple flowers to elaborate a humble alfombra in front of her home or it is a team of members of the cuadra (the block), or if a son lends a hand to a dad to put the final touches on the brightly-colored sawdust carpet, the devotion and the do-good spirit are present everywhere you look. This is the week of the year when Guatemalans stand as one people!

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

Okay, the 365-day wait is over. The world-famous Holy Week in La Antigua Guatemala is here. Get your cameras ready and join the hundreds if not thousands of photographers and cucuruchos populating the 10-block colonial town of Antigua Guatemala. If under normal circumstances there are plenty of photographers capturing every conceivable vista from La Antigua Guatemala, in Semana Santa photographers are found in every street, many chasing one or more Holy Week processions. You can also find news casting crews and documentary crews from corner of the world. Some photographer even carry more than one camera to catch all the fleeting moments.

Of course, this is easy to understand, after all the Holy Week in Antigua Guatemala is the most colorful and surreal cultural and religious event in Guatemala. Make sure you put it down in your things to do and places to visit at least once in my life list; you won’t regret it!

In the meantime, follow the white rabbit to the Holy Week Elements series to get an overview of the elements of Semana Santa. Just remember, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

Today’s Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday) which means we are at the commencement of the world-famous Holy Week in Antigua Guatemala. We carry on our series Antigua Lent Processions thanks to the wonderful imagery of our friend and collaborator Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos who has taken to the task to document every Lent procession in La Antigua Guatemala in the last decade.

As I mentioned a few days ago, Nelo Mijangos goes to the extremes to get new angles and perspectives. Oftentimes he climbs electric poles just to get a bird’s eye view of the processions. For the San Bartolo procession Nelo hopped onto an helicopter to give us never seen aerial shots of a procession in Antigua Guatemala.

Don’t you ever say we don’t go to the extreme to bring you the most unique and exclusive imagery from La Antigua Guatemala. The same rigor and dedication you can expect from XelaDailyPhoto and GuatemalaDailyPhoto. If you have not yet visit the other two daily photo websites from Guatemala, take your time to smell the Guatemalan coffee… and enjoy the vistas from other Guatemalan cities.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

The San Bartolo procession is among the biggest from the Antigua Lent Processions series. In fact, I remember publishing in previous years that San Bartolo and San Felipe procession were the biggest of all the procession in Guatemala. So, I will split the all the photos in two days.

When we started the Antigua Lent Processions series I mentioned that processions leave the church on Sunday around mid-day and heads over to La Antigua Guatemala takes a winding route all around Antigua for about 12 hours. This means that at least half of time the processions are on the streets is night time and that’s what we want to share with you today.

By the way, tomorrow is Palm Sunday, which basically means we are already on Semana Santa.

Come back tomorrow to see the second half of the San Bartolo procession which will include some new perspectives and angles.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

We continue our series Antigua Lent Processions thanks to the wonderful imagery of our friend and collaborator Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos who has taken to the task to document every Lent procession in La Antigua Guatemala in the last decade.

Santa Ana is another village of La Antigua Guatemala that is so close that you can walk out of Antigua Guatemala and into Santa Ana without realizing it. In fact, if you take the street behind San Francisco El Grande church south towards El Calvario church you go by the streets that are part of Santa Ana and take you to the main plaza there if you walk east. Santa Ana looks just like another part of La Antigua Guatemala.

Have you ever visited Santa Ana? If not, make sure you put Santa Ana in your list of places to visit while in La Antigua Guatemala.

We’re lucky to be getting a glance at first time published photographs by Nelo Mijangos who goes to the extremes to get new angles and perspective. Oftentimes he climbs the electric poles just to get a bird’s eye view of the processions. Other times he gets so low to the ground so we can get an ant’s eye view of the colorful alfombras (carpets). Talking about the world-famous Lent and Holy Week carpets from La Antigua Guatemala, take a look a the recycling of the CD and DVD discs found in the carpet below. See, in Guatemala we do our recycling share.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

The village of Santa Inés is located on the edge of La Antigua Guatemala, to the right of the road that takes you to Guatemala City. I shared with you a photograph of the road taken from Santa Inés on April 1, 2011. I would venture to say that because Santa Inés village is located on the exit road to Guatemala City many people do take the time to visit, myself included. It’s a shame because Santa Inés has an interesting layout, mostly a strip on a downhill. Also, Santa Inés is very rich and colorful with a strong sense of community as these photos show.

I will try to convince Nelo to share his photos of all the other velaciones and processions from the other villages or churches for the upcoming weekend; with three more days of Semana Santa photos we’ll be in tune for the Holy Week which is fast approaching upon us.

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

North by Northwest, that’s how you get to Jocotenango from Antigua Guatemala’s Plaza Mayor (main plaza). Jocotenango is not a village of La Antigua Guatemala. Jocotenango is a municipality with its own elected mayor and all. Jocotenango is so close to La Antigua Guatemala that when you take La Calle Ancha which becomes La Calle Real you enter Jocotenango without knowing it unless you look for the welcome sign. Jocotenango is also famous for its giant Jocote Monument. Have you visited Jocotenango before? If so, what things did you do in Jocotenango?

One of the reasons our friend Nelo wanted to share these photos is to let people know that there are processions throughout Lent, so you don’t have to wait until the Semana Santa (Holy Week) to come La Antigua Guatemala to watch and participate in the world famous processions from Antigua Guatemala; the best if you ask Nelo and me.

I wonder if they have processions in Quetzaltenango or in Guatemala City, I haven’t seen anything in XelaDailyPhoto.com or in GuatemalaDailyPhoto.com; we should go ask them what’s up with that!

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

First thing first, my dear friend Nelo informs me that on the first Wednesday of the Lent period, also known as Ash Wednesday, the first velación (wake ceremony I believe is the translation for it; correct me if I’m wrong) is organized for the following Saturday at Santa Catalina Bobadilla, which is ALWAYS the first procession of Lent in La Antigua Guatemala. See, there’s an order not imposed by anyone for all the processions to follow during Cuaresma and Semana Santa. After the velación, on Sunday the procession leaves the village church around mid-day and heads over to La Antigua Guatemala takes a winding path all around Antigua for about 12 hours. Each week the process repeats to the T, except it is different village and church where the procession leaves.

Nelo has offered to share these fabulous photos with us for the very first velación and procession of 2011 as well as the following weeks. I will publish one week’s processional photos per day beggining today.

Do you know what’s the second Lent procession in Antigua Guatemala?

All photos by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos

Every week, many more houses and buildings are putting up their Lent decorations. This house located on Calle de Los Pasos, which is basically the route for the Stations of the Cross, which goes from the San Francisco El Grande church to El Calvario church.

We can take the Lent decorations as a sure sign that there will be a Lent procession passing by this house this coming weekend.

Do you think we should have some Velaciones or Processional photos this weekend? After all, we’re almost half-way through Lent. It is up to you!

You think Antigua Guatemala is just processions for the Semana Santa? Wrong. There is more… there are also plays, like this one. This play was being performed parallel to the procession of La Merced this past Sunday.

Can you tell what’s the play all about?

text and photos by Arturo Godoy. Check out Arturo’s portfolio to purchase photos from his massive photographic bank.

Okay, we have a new dialogue game. Those of you who have followed AntiguaDailyPhoto for a while know the rules. This simple image will allow us to play a creative game. Taking the two men as our characters we will write up one of many conceivable dialogues as the interaction between them. To get ideas or inspiration check out these previous entries: Arch-framed Women in Jocotenango and Opposite ends of life #2. The best dialogue will receive this photo as 4″x6″ post card.

Good luck to all the participants!