Corozo Palms and its Smell are a Staple of the Holy Week

Just like the Christmas Season comes with its own set of smells, flavors and color palette, so does the Holy Week celebrations. I can bring to you still photos, slide shows, video clips and sounds. But I can not bring you the smells. Like I said back in the Virgin of Guadalupe Day, … the incredible power of the sense of smell can detonate nostalgic memories… if only the smells could be seized like Patrick Süskind suggested in his masterpiece Das Parfum (Perfume). How could one go about imprisoning the mixture of the smells of copal incense, corozo palms, fireworks, pine needles, moisten saw dust, fresh tropical fruits, palm flower arrangements and sweat into a digital format readily available to download onto your own computer?

Only in Star Trek that is possible… we must wait for the future to arrive. In the mean time, we wave good bye to Arthur C. Clarke as we thank him for allowing us to dream of the future. Until the future arrives, you must pack your bags and head down south where you can be free! 😉

Kris says:

March 20, 2008 at 4:00 am

What do they do with them after this?

sompopo says:

March 20, 2008 at 7:00 am

Now thats a plant I have never seen before. Looks like it could come from the sea.

Pennie says:

March 20, 2008 at 11:03 am

come on! give us a hint of what they smell like…please???

Geoffrey says:

March 20, 2008 at 4:09 pm

well stated rudy! smell can really awake the memories, i was at an Ethiopian restaurant a few weeks ago and as i walked in a could smell an incense that instantly took me back to when my grandma used to take me to the “brujos” for “limpias”. keep up the good work

coltrane_lives says:

March 20, 2008 at 7:28 pm

Not familiar with this palm. Always an educational stop on this blog, Rudy. Appreciate the explanation. So, what do they smell like? Sandalwood, pine, cedar…?

Rudy says:

March 20, 2008 at 11:51 pm

Kris, honestly I could not describe it since its smell is very peculiar and it does not smell like anything else.

Sompopo, the shape is very similar to pacayas which are edible, but corozo is used mostly for its smell and for decoration purposes.

Pennie, honest, I can say what corozo smells like since its scent is very unique. Perhaps other Guatemalans can come up with an answer. 🙁

Geoffrey, I believe the sense of smell is under rated most of the time.

Coltrane_lives, corozo smells like corozo. 🙁

Manuela says:

March 21, 2008 at 7:22 am

Hmmmm… nostalgia. I am an antigüeña and have now been living outside of Guate for 10 years and I always visit over Christmas. Oh, how I miss the smells of Semana Santa… especially corozo, I just LOVE its smell. I don’t think you can compare its smell to anything, but I can say it is strong…
Thanks for the pictures, it’s so great to see a bit of Antigua every day.

Claudia says:

March 22, 2008 at 3:44 pm

sorry on this one – I can’t really describe the smell . . . I asked my parents yesterday if they knew what corozo would be in English or if they’d seen any here but my uncle told me it grows on palm-like trees. It has a very distinctive recognizable smell. My grandmother would set up a whole new altar (besides the regular one) with fruits, flowers and offerings. The fruit, I was told, we were not allowed to eat (at least until Semana santa was over) was to represent “el huerto” which I believe is where Jesus prayed right before he was taken away – I hope I am right on this, it has been so long. Holy Week just doesn’t feel like Holy Week here in the states.

Corozo Palms and its Smell are a Staple of the Holy Week

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