This past Sunday it seemed as every village and town around Antigua Guatemala was celebrating its patron saint day. Well San Juan del Obispo and San Pedro de las Huertas were, but all other towns were celebrating Corpus Christi and confirmations. Here we see a few Maya Kaqchikel girls waiting for the confirmation mass just … Read more
A quick visit this Sunday to Santa María de Jesús, the municipality south of Antigua Guatemala and the highest community on the skirt of Volcán de Agua was very gratifying due to the friendliness of the people living there, especially so the Maya Kaqchikel, who are the majority. I say it was quick because it … Read more
This past weekend the municipal government promoted the work of the artisans from the villages around Antigua Guatemala through handicraft fair at the Plaza Mayor and what better sound track than to have live marimba music. That’s why the Kaqchikel Marimba played at the Main Plaza; normally they are found at Calle del Arco on … Read more
As I said a few weeks ago, often in Antigua Guatemala people when they think of tourists, they think of foreigners who visit Guatemala while in reality the largest number of tourists come from other parts of Guatemala. Here I photographed a group of Guatemalan tourists from San Juan Comalapa, a village famous for its … Read more
Some of you may or may not know that La Antigua Guatemala is located within Kackchikel territory, one of the largest Maya groups in Guatemala. The Maya K’iche is the second largest group one can find in La Antigua. Although this colonial city is such a popular destination that through the year one is bound … Read more
Slowly but surely, many of the highland mayas are moving to La Antigua Guatemala. Soon enough all tortillerias and tienditas will be run by mayas from the highlands, from Sololá, Quiché, Totonicapán, etc. La Antigua Guatemala and its surroundings are Kaqchikel territory, so, it attracts more Kaqchikel people, but the K’iches are also coming. Today … Read more
There are now several street performers in Antigua Guatemala. From the mime Tamagochy to the live Andean music band, which, by the way, plays mostly classic Latin American songs and covers of popular music with the distinctive Andean music style. There is also the recitals of live music by the Municipal band on Friday’s at … Read more
Very often I see women on their way to the maize mill to turn nixtamalized maized into masa dough to make tortillas. As I have mentioned before, in Guatemala freshly baked/cooked tortillas are sold three times a day (los tres tiempos). Yet, there are many people who still like to prepared their own tortillas at … Read more
This Sunday afternoon at Calle del Arco was just as guest contributor Arturo Godoy said in The mime just wants to get married post, “Often it’s a bit complicated to go out on Sundays because La Antigua Guatemala gets crowded… Remember that anything and everything can happen as you walk around Antigua Guatemala on any … Read more
These caramelized apples are a good example of the syncretism found in the Guatemalan gastronomy. As Pascu mentioned yesterday, “I find Guatemalan cuisine unique: the blend of three cultures, each completely different. Mayan heritage brings the slow cooking stew style with thick sauces. African, the taste for deep fry food. Finally Spanish culture brought the … Read more
Play it and wear it with pride, I am sure, is the advice this father tells his sons. Did I mention resilience as one of the qualities of the indigenous people of Guatemala? What do you think, am I wrong? These indigenous musicians appeared before in LAGDP, can you tell me when? VIDEO UPDATE: Thanks … Read more
Sure, you say, the traje indígena is a far out outfit, but are there really symbols encoded in these garments? Once again, I will let Julia Montoya answer: “An ever present motif is the zig-zag horizontal stripe, which in Kaqchikel is called Kumatz (serpent or snake). There is also the star or flower which has … Read more