How do you turn a living city into a shopping mall? Well, unregulated businesses will pay top money for real estate and in places where there are no city ordinances dictating how much of the real estate can be use for housing, schools, parks, business, et cetera, many houses become businesses. That’s is the sad … Read more
Nearly ten years ago I promised I would share with you in a daily basis slices of quotidian life from La Antigua Guatemala and its surrounding areas. I hope you still enjoy these slides of daily life from this charming colonial town on the high lands of Central America… let me know either way.
You can sense the Christmas spirit already in and around La Antigua Guatemala, alright. From the processions, the convites, the town fairs, the food, the Christmas baskets, the poinsettias, on and on. Soon the posadas will begin as well, in fact, I believe they start on December 15. Anyhow, here I captured the moment before … Read more
Convites are a very unusual kind of parade from Guatemala. The most famous convites are from Ciudad Vieja, Sumpango, El Tejar, Villa Nueva, but there are convites en many places in Sacatepequez and the entire country, for that matter. Convites started as sort of announcement parades for religious festivities and civic activities in some municipalities … Read more
As every December 12, Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe is observed in Guatemala. Unlike other years where I normally head to Iglesia de La Merced to capture the activities held there as part of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, this year I decided to document the convite parades and costume dances from … Read more
Well, I don’t know the answer because I have never been to a town fair in Guatemala that didn’t have table football areas such as the one shown here. By the way, I am really enjoying these street photography stamps of daily life from Antigua Guatemala where I anticipate and approach the image so quietly … Read more
Garnachas quetzaltecas are quite the food attraction at the town fair of Ciudad Vieja. Interesting enough, hardly ever you find at the fairs in and around Antigua Guatemala. On the other hand, I could not find buñuelos, molletes or torrejas in the entire fair campground. I didn’t see mole either. Garnachas are a typical street … Read more
Ferias, or town fairs, would be quite boring if fair rides were not there to light up and make for a fun experience for the dare devils. As shown here, the different fair rides are big magnet for children and adults alike. In the background we can see the temple of Ciudad Vieja. By the … Read more
Here I captured the look of the façade of the temple of Ciudad Vieja, about 4 kms from La Antigua Guatemala during the night celebrations and mass service of Virgen de la Concepción. Ciudad Vieja, the former capital before La Antigua Guatemala, celebrates its patron saint day with observance of Virgen de la Concepción festivities, … Read more
El hombre propone, Dios dispone y El Diablo lo descompone. What better way to caption these portraits of strangers at the Burning of the Devil festivity in La Antigua Guatemalan than with this famous saying that roughly translates as “Man proposes, God disposes, and the Devil counterposes.” Let me explain. See a Russian couple and … Read more
Well, not really. See you see all these masks are for parades celebrated through out Guatemala, but prominently at Ciudad Vieja and now in San Pedro Las Huertas, so I have been told as part of the dance-drama called “Danza de la legión de los 24 diablos” or “Dance of the legion of 24 Devils” … Read more
Guatemalans love color, the more the merrier, right? See even in this Santa Clause helper’s costume, the usual red and white, is added the Guatemalan passion for color by having a colourful Maya textiles belt and details. It’s a simple addition to the traditional costume, yet it places as something Guatemalan, don’t you agree?
What a wonderful decoration piece for a bakery, don’t you think? This vintage bicycle with its bread baskets hangs at the entrance of the new Antigua Guatemala branch of the San Martín bakery and restaurant. Boy, this place is packed. If you didn’t know, you would think there were not bakeries/restaurants prior to San Martín … Read more
This first week of December has been a week full galaxies, stars, planets, and such at the Compañía de Jesús building, La Antigua Guatemala’s de facto cultural center. From a showing of the film “Interstellar” to hanging planets and images of faraway galaxies decorating the corridors. Today there was a conference about the “Dark side … Read more
If you want to know more about these devil masks, let me know and I will tell you the story behind them.