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In my never ending quest to bring you unique and different perspectives of this enchanting 500-year old colonial town which we know as Antigua Guatemala, I bring you this photograph taken by one of my co-workers at Revue Magazine and fellow photograhy enthusiast César Tián. The photo above could be the facing view of the picture shown in Almost Ready for 2012. Obviously, César knows people in higher places than I do because I have never been to the roof top of the Muni building. I’ve gotta fix that! In the mean time, let’s thank César for sharing this rooftop panoramic vista of Central Park with us. Make sure you click on top of the photo above to look at a larger image.

Photo by César Tián

Not even a week had elapsed since I shared with you the incredible vistas from La Casaca as shown on the post Having Breakfast in Antigua Guatemala when my friend Norman Avila decided to come up to the terrace and make this panoramic vista of Parque Central. We should thank Norman for sharing this unique perspective with us.

Photo by Norman Avila

Guatemala’s Channel 7 News, Noti7, was filming the year in news summary tonight at Parque Central and I was able to get a few shots. I also recorded a short video clip since some of you have asked to get sounds and moving pictures as well. For sure the video will give you a sense of the sounds and atmosphere that we’re experiencing in Antigua Guatemala.

There’s been live Andean music at the Plaza Mayor for several months thanks to this band who a few times a week set up a live show of classic Latin American songs and covers of popular music played with the distinctive Andean music style. Live music at the park is always a hit and everyone enjoys it. I am glad to see more free culture manifestations at the Main Plaza. Remember that every Friday at 4 p.m. you can enjoy the Municipal Band recital.

People watching at the main plaza is quite possibly the favorite pastime of locals and visitors in Antigua Guatemala. Here I was able to capture some people watching people… a sort of follow up to Watching the Watchers Watch. I am also reminded of that I wrote in Street Photography Is Like Hunting:

“Stare. It is the way to educate your eye, and more. Stare, pry, listen eavesdrop. Die knowing something. You are not here long.” —Walker Evans (source: Photo.Net)

I have said it often and I even declared it as irrefutable fact: the best place to have ice cream in Antigua Guatemala has to be the Plaza Mayor (main plaza), better known as Parque Central. So, it comes as no surprise that there are seven ice cream shops within one block from parque central; maybe more. Still, if you don’t believe me ask these three happy-ice-cream-eating nuns.

One more thing, remember that the ice cream in Guatemala is unbelievably delicious because it is the real McCoy.

If you don’t know the Guatemalan artists Ricardo Arjona and Gaby Moreno this is your chance to catch them both doing a duet arrangement. They are the most famous and popular Guatemalan artists abroad. (more…)

It’s your turn to write the caption. The most original caption will win this photo as a post card. Good luck!

In my humble opinion, I believe that La Antigua Guatemala is among the best places in the world to live, don’t you agree? I mean you get some of the benefits of living in a big city while retaining the colorful and peaceful aspect of a little town embedded in the highland of Guatemala.

The people and organization involved in the creation of the Antigua Guatemala Brand want to take advantage of some of the unique and enchanting features of La Antigua Guatemala to easily promote and market the colonial city under one brand; similar to a product. The Antigua Guatemala Brand is, in other words, a touristic marketing and promotional tool. It will be interesting to see how effective Antigua Guatemala Brand becomes as well as to see the different manifestations of it in the promotional campaigns.

I will not bore you with all the glory details of the event. Suffices to say, that there were speeches, folkloric dances and marimba music. The event lasted a little over four hours. I am taking advantage of newly acquired skill to compress most of it under one minute through the use of a time-lapse video made from 525 photos taken through the night. Enjoy!

Also, below you can watch the 15-minute photographic presentation with nearly 250 photos from AntiguaDailyPhoto.com projected over a giant screen hanging next to Palacio de los Capitanes as part of the event. I am sure many of you will remember some of the photos here.

Last but not least, here’s a sample of the Antigua Guatemala brand so you can see the proposed logo and color palette.

What do you think?

Okay, I guess you guys are right, a little rain in the dry season should not be reason enough to blow the whistle on climate change and the weather manipulations that occur up north. A little rain in the dry season is certainly better than 10 inches of snow.

I figured I ought to share with you a vista from Parque Central 30 minutes after the rain had stopped. Enjoy!

There are several jacaranda trees in Parque Central which make a gorgeous display of purple or violet during February and March when they are in bloom. I will try to get a panoramic shot so you can see the jacaranda trees in bloon at Central Park.

Well, perhaps it is the fact that gorgeous pale violet colors of the jacarandas trees are more obvious in February, just in time for the beginning of the Lent season in which one starts to see doors and windows adorned with purple or violet bands. Purple is the official color of the Lent season; do you know why?

Jacaranda trees can be found all over town as well. I will be in the look out for other jacaranda trees around town. Stay tune!

Ice cream vendors like the guy in the picture above are not only typical stamp of La Antigua Guatemala. As matter of fact, they are pretty much everywhere I visited in Guatemala; including here in Xela, where I now live; also in Huehuetenango, in Lake Atitlán, in Guatemala City, everywhere… really. On this one particular afternoon I saw this guy in front of the Central Park in Antigua Guatemala, and I started to think about my childhood. I am not from Guatemala, I am from a small southern town in Turkey. Ice cream is, however, a universal thing, that can take you all the way back in your memories, it doesn’t matter where you are in the world. He reminded me of those childhood days, when I would buy cheap and colorful ice cream in the streets when I was a little kid. I kinda miss them…

text and photo by Pinar Istek

About Guest Contributor: Born and raised in Turkey, Pinar Istek is getting her masters in photojournalism at Missouri School of Journalism. In May 2010, after she arrived in Huehuetenango, she decided to extend her stay in Guatemala to one year. Currently based in Xela, Pinar is working at a hostel, teaching English, freelancing for several publications and looking for short stories from Guatemala. You can browse Pinar Istek portfolio at her picture blog.

On October 1 Guatemala celebrates Día del niño translated Child’s Day or Children’s Day. I grabbed my camera and went to the Plaza Mayor (the Main Plaza) to see if I could captured some pictures to show you some happy faces. I am happy to report a mission accomplished and then some. I probably have about 20 good images with lots of smiling faces.

After I had finished taking pictures I sat a bench to enjoy a rainless moment in Parque Central with lots of really good vibes. I could almost say I had a happy instant and I am sure I must’ve smiled. I had my shoes shines and then a conversation with a couple and their daughter who came from Chimaltenango to compartir with la familia (to have a good time with the family). The father was a fellow park photographer from Chimaltenango and we obviously talked about the quick labs and the cost of park photographs costs in La Antigua Guatemala and Chimaltenango. I recommend a few places they must see and enjoy before they left Antigua Guatemala and said our good-byes. The couple look very similar to the parents in the main photo above.

Children came and went smiling, eating candy and ice cream. Some came with their parents, others came as part of a school activity yet others just wondered around with their friends. All in all, Parque Central was a good place to recharge the hope and optimism batteries.

Nevertheless, we should not forget, as my friend and colleague Luis Toribio said in his personal blog, the high levels of misery in which the children of Guatemala live. Guatemala is among the top countries in the world with malnutrition. There are many children who lack health services and education. Many children spend their days on the streets working instead of being in school as I mentioned in Antigua’s Child Labor back in May 2006. Let’s not forget… but for now let me savor the happy smiles around Parque Central!

When is Child’s Day celebrated in your neck of the woods?

Llanto sobre la ciudad colonial.

About four weeks ago I declared that this is The Rainiest Year Ever out of frustration with the seemingly non-stop rains. Later that week I learnt I was not mistaken and this has been the year with most rainfall in decades since 1959, which accumulated like over 1,700 mm/67 inches of rain. My good friend Norman Ávila from ClimaYa will provide us with the actual figures later today. When I made my frustration public, we were close to surpassing the 1,700 mm of rain. Certainly, after four additional weeks of intense rains, we can now declared this as The Rainiest Year Ever.

It seems only appropriate I share with you two songs from the El Hacedor De Lluvia (The Rain Maker) from Ranferí Aguilar, an excellent Guatemalan musician. Below the two songs, I am also sharing with you two video clips I recorded back in 2006 for a live performance of Ranferí Aguilar at the Jamtigua music festival. I hope you enjoy them and let me know your thoughts.

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Today I was driving around Antigua Guatemala’s Central Park and I was not allowed to continue towards the Palacio del Ayuntamiento (Municipal building) because the Tuk Tuk taxis had taken the entire street to park their units. As soon as I found parking, I grabbed my camera and decided to take some repetition shots (you know how much I love repetition). I looked for the best angle and snatched a few shots before finding out why the tuk tuk taxis were there.

It turns out, the tuk tuk taxi drivers were protesting the high number of traffic citations they are given by the Antigua Guatemala traffic police (policía de tránsito). They felt they are being targeted unfairly by the traffic police.

Now, if you have driven a car or motorcycle or simply walked around La Antigua Guatemala you would have realized how bad the tuk tuk taxis drivers are; they don’t respect or obey the traffic laws and they are NOT civil with pedestrians and other vehicles on the streets. I am sure most people can not feel empathy for their cause. “If they don’t want too many traffic tickets, they should obey and respect the traffic rules and laws…” was the general sentiment I gather from other people I talked to afterwards.

What are your thoughts regarding the tuk tuk taxis?

The fountains around the Plaza Mayor provide the perfect sound track for spending a relax time sitting on a bench and watching the world go by… especially during the lazy afternoons.

Can you hear the water falling and murmurs of the people near-by?