The Guatemalan shuco hot dog comes with guacamol (avocado sauce), boiled cabbage, mayonnaise, tomato sauce, mustard, hot sauce, and one or more of the following: chorizo (Guatemalan red sausage), longaniza (Guatemalan white sausage), salchicha (normal hot dog sausage), ham, bacon, pepperoni, german ham and sausages, chichen breast, beef steak fajitas, polish sausages, et-cetera. Well, at … Read more
These colorful Guatemalan eggshells filled with confetti are known as cascarones and are the sure sign that marks the arrival of carvinal and then Ash Wednesday (Miércoles de ceniza), which is the first day of Lent (Cuaresma) which in 2009 will be celebrated on February 25th. That’s right folks, on Wednesday 25th we will begin … Read more
What better photo to wave goodbye to the Casa Antigüeña series than an image of the balconies against cloud-free deep blue sky, tell me? Balconies are not very common in walls that face to the outside, unless of course they are on a second floor, like in the entry Sun-bathing in La Antigua Guatemala. However, … Read more
We are just about done with the Casa Antigüeña series. Here you can see the master bedroom which basically has two large doors; one that opens into a balcony that overlooks a common area garden and the other (not seen) door opens to a private garden. Once again you find a fireplace which get very … Read more
The tragaluces (sky lights) are those crystal blocks you see at the far end. Craig was asking if the the light washing the back wall in the kitchen was coming from the cupola. I promised Craig I was going to show the origin of the light washing the back wall in the kitchen. Well, the … Read more
The pila is basically a Guatemalan home staple. Normally the pila design has a water tank in the center and two sinks, one on each side of the water tank. One sink is for hand-washing your laundry and thus its surface is ribbed. The other sink is for doing dishes and the surface is smooth. … Read more
Of course, big part of the beauty of the Casa Antigüeña is found in its details, like the niches that can host angels, owls, figures of Santo Hermano Pedro, Jesus, Virgen María, et-cetera. It is nice to have a spot light to illuminate the niche at night, but during the day, the wonderful filtered sun … Read more
Well if the panoramic view of one volcano is astonishing, the view of two volcanoes, Fuego and Acatenango, is breath-taking, especially at sunset and when Volcán de Fuego is putting up a show. Just give me a hot cup of authentic chocolate from Antigua or a cup the best coffee in the world (from La … Read more
It is quite obvious that when one lives in the land of the eternal spring, one would like to have a nice rooftop living room to enjoy all the wonderful sunsets and fresh air. But what if the land of the eternal spring also came with astonishing panoramic views of three volcanoes, one of them … Read more
The cúpulas (cupolas) has to be among the most distinctive architectonic elements of the Casa Antigüeña. Originally design as chimney for the kitchen or to provide light and air to a room, nowadays the cúpulas are mainly decorative pieces. The cupolas break the otherwise flat rooftop line of the La Antigua Guatemala. Don’t you want … Read more
From the attic, it is only a matter of a few steps to reach the terrace or perhaps veranda would be more appropriate term. Since the weather in La Antigua Guatemala is Spring-like year round, well it only makes sense to make the terrace or veranda accessible through stairways. From the terraces of the Casa … Read more
Finally, we reached the loft in the second floor… oops, I meant the attic. Remember the building codes in La Antigua Guatemala prohibit new construction of two-story houses (wink, wink). They say nothing of really high ceilings in single story homes. 😉 Anyway, you can see how the attic-turned-loft can be used for a guest … Read more
In this escalara de caracol (winding staircase) you find the same repetitive azulejos (ceramic tiles) found in the stairway details photo from yesterday. And I wonder aloud, how can things so simple be so beautiful? ¡Qué alguien me lo explique!