Today I will let you guys caption this picture. I am excited to read what creative stories you guys can come up with for this picture of a little girl barely reaching the lavadero. Next Sunday I will pick the most creative caption send a photo post card to the winner. As in previous photo … Read more
I have always called this monument Tanque de la Unión because that’s what everybody calls it. However, I learned during my Antigua Guatemala’s history certificate course, that most historians call it Pilas o Lavaderos de Santa Clara. I believe both names are correct, but Pila de Santa Clara is probably more correct since these washbasins … Read more
This is what a typical laundry day looks like at any of the public washbasins and water tanks in and around Antigua Guatemala. What’s not so typical is to see a man doing laundry in one of the lavaderos (washbasins). Este es un típico día en los lavaderos públicos en las aldeas de Antigua Guatemala. … Read more
As I mentioned in “Nobody walks in LA…” in Antigua Guatemala is the opposite. People enjoy walking and with such small grid (about 10×10 block), you can certainly do just about all your chores faster by walking than by driving. Besides many blocks are one-way only which means you have to drive four to six … Read more
We call them lavaderos in Spanish, pila is also used, pila is actually the water tank. and I believe I have posted at least 6 o 7 entries about the public washbasins and water tanks as I have found them around Antigua Guatemala. The first person who can correctly list all the different posts that … Read more
Public laundry washbasins (sometimes river and lake shores) serve as the gathering place for news, gossip and community building through the interactions that take place there. In many places in Guatemala public washbasins could be considered the first news broadcasting sites or rural social media networks, similar to Facebook or Twitter for people with computers … Read more
I have mentioned it a few times, but let me repeat it again. There’s are aesthetic principles which are used and apply to design and architecture to make then look and fit harmoniously and coherently into the Antigua Guatemala enchanting environment. Take this water tank and washbasins for instance, which I am not sure it’s … Read more
Don’t ask me, but how did the venerable utilitarian pila (water tank) and lavadero (washbasin) became decorations elements or design accents? In The Venerable Colonial Pila is Now Used as Decoration I introduced you to the washbasins and water tank inside McCafé in La Antigua Guatemala with the following words: What’s a pila (pee-lah), I … Read more
Palo de Izote is the Mesoamerican cousin of the Joshua or Yucca tree. I have a fascination with the Izote tree; I don’t know why, maybe its many branches that look like arms and hands. Anyhow, I like it and it’s used often in the hedgerows around Antigua Guatemala. Its white flowers are edible and … Read more
The venerable colonial pila from Guatemala is often in my focus, don’t you agree? Now, if you can tell exactly how many pilas, washbasins, have appeared in AntiguaDailyPhoto since May 1, 2006, I will mail you a post card made from the washbasin photo you choose. Good luck to all players! [gmap]
The first step of making the Guatemalan washbasin is to set the concrete mold pieces and then filling it with concrete. The concrete mold pieces are covered with burnt oil so they don’t stick to the fresh new concrete. The whole process from setting up the mold pieces to putting the final details like white … Read more
Actually, I should say removing the mold pieces. Basically, to manufacture pilas, washbasins, there four basic steps: Set the mold pieces and iron rods pieces to serve as skeleton. The mold concrete pieces are applied a light layer of burnt oil so they don’t stick to new concrete structure. Fill it with concrete and wait … Read more
These pilas go for a little over Q500/$60 because they use higher quality paint and more cement in the concrete mixture. Cheaper pilas can be had for a little as Q300/$36. Don Eduardo González shared with me that he knows people who have over 20-year old pilas manufactured by him. Also, he made it very … Read more
First of all, I read ALL your comments. I don’t always find time to reply every single comment, but I do read each one. Second, I keep requests in my to-do list. Third, eventually I get to your requests as time and circumstance allow. Fourth, I don’t follow a logic order; what can I say, … Read more
I have shown you before the Tanque de la Unión public washbasins, but I don’t think I ever showed you what they look like in a typical laundry day in Antigua Guatemala. Below you can find two different takes on the same Tanque de la Unión from Upside Down Arches and Arches Reflected. [gmap]