Navidad or Christmas is an easy-going day in Antigua Guatemala. Except for the burning of firecrackers and fireworks at noon and at 6pm and mass services, the day goes by in recovering mode from parting all night long. Christmas is also a day of feasting on tamales, chompipe and ponche. Feliz Navidad everyone!
Did you know that the official name for Antigua Guatemala’s parque central is actually Plaza Mayor? Also the benches around the Fuente de las sirenas, mermaids fountain, in Parque Central, are a great place to enjoy the spirit of Navidad, especially at night with all the Christmas lights providing a beautiful enchanting atmosphere.
The burning of fireworks and firecrackers for Christmas Eve is less than for New Year’s Eve, but impressive nonetheless, especially when you consider people all over are burning pólvora [fireworks powder]. Here are two images showing the burning of fireworks in the village of San Pedro Las Huertas. There’s the audio again so you can … Read more
Guatemalans begin putting up their Nacimientos (Nativity Scenes) around December 15; a tradition that was brought to Guatemala by Santo Hermano Pedro de Betancourt and then spread to the rest of America (the continent). One important aspect of nacimientos is that baby Jesus is missing from the scene since his actual birthday is on December … Read more
Poinsettias or Flor de Pascua are in full bloom in The Land of the Eternal Spring for the Christmas season. The most common color is red, but now you can find yellow, white, pink and mixed at your local nursery and shops. Pascuas are an integral part of the Guatemalan decoration for the Christmas season … Read more
The installation crew for the Christmas lights is hard at work to have all 600 series installed before December 3 and that’s when the all the trees and plants at Parque Central will be lit at night. To see how the main plaza looks like with all the lights on, follow the white rabbit to … Read more
Christmas is such a quite and relax day in Guatemala, except for the burning of fireworks and firecrackers at noon and 6 p.m., most Guatemalans stay home watching movies, sleeping, eating and spending time with the family. How does your family celebrate Christmas?
Christmas Day is a very quiet and easy-going day in Guatemala. But, it does not begins like that. On the contrary, right at midnight and for what seems like forever, Guatemalans burn firecrackers, fire whistlers, fireworks and every kind of pyrotechnic stuff; the list is long. This pyromaniac act repeats again at noon and at … Read more