Let Me Show You My Guts
There are still many walls in La Antigua Guatemala made from stones. The lucky owners of such wall choose to show the …
Flowers for the Innocent
Flowers for the innocent who died yesterday in the Virginia Tech college and everywhere in the world.
Maize Cane Fence
Not all the walls in La Antigua Guatemala are made from stones, bricks or pumice blocks, some are actually made from organic …
Opposite ends of life #2
The original post Opposite Ends of Life, in La Antigua Guatemala DP, was published on May 23rd, 2006 and it was about a little girl and an old lady helping each other cross the street. It is an interesting shot, if I may say so, you should see if you haven’t done so already.
Today’s entry is about different women and their opposite position in the spectrum of life.
Making a Living with Polaroid
Two things still with us after we considered them long-dead: Polaroid and Polyester. Here and in many parks of Guatemala you can …
Welcome to the Laid-back town of La Antigua Guatemala
Almost everyone who visits La Antigua Guatemala is taken by its laid-back atmosphere. It is almost like when you first approach La …
Perfect Weather for Retirement
One aspect of life in La Antigua Guatemala which drives many people to move here is the temperate weather. Even in the …
Even the Fountains Take a Break
Fountains come in all shapes, but one thing is common to all of them: they need maintenance. Here you see La Antigua …
Burger King’s Fountain in Antigua Guatemala
Even fast-food restaurants have a nice atmosphere in Antigua Guatemala. Here you can see the fountain inside the Burger King restaurant. Fountains …
Voters Registration Campaign
A new roller-coaster ride has began in Guatemala: it is once again election year. Guatemala has election every four years. Normally people …
Holy Week Elements: The Churches
Churches serve as terminals from which processions depart or arrive. Churches also serve as home-base for all the brotherhoods of cucuruchos and sisterhoods. Churches also put their best face for the Holy Week and many get a paint job and/or restoration works in the weeks prior to Semana Santa.
With this photo we wave goodbye to Semana Santa and to Holy Week’s processions. I was told the last procession, the Resurrection (Resurección) procession comes out on Easter Sunday (today) a 6 a.m. and its back in the church by 10 in the morning.
Holy Week Elements: The Sorrowful Mother
La Dolorosa or The Sorrowful Mother is the biblical figure of sorrowful mother Mary which follows Jesus in his way to his crucifixion. This act is represented by a smaller anda (long carved wooden flatbed image-carrying float [*]) —carrying the effigy of sorrowful Mother Mary and other female biblical representations— which is hauled exclusively by women who mostly dress in black or white as this is the appropriate dress code for a funeral. Jesus’ funeral.
Holy Week Elements: The Cross
Nevertheless, Good Friday is the culmination of the Holy Week Celebrations and the processions end at the Calvario Church (Calvario is the Spanish word for Calvary or Golgotha). The entrance of the Calvario Church in La Antigua Guatemala is a yellow façade with three arches, topped by three bells and three crosses —one larger than the other two— with a very large concrete cross in front. Can you see the obvious architectonic reference to Jesus’ crucifixion?
Holy Week Elements: The Crowds
Thanks to Byron Ortiz for lending his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can get a better picture of the …
Holy Week Elements: Cucuruchos
Cucuruchos with their purple or violet cone-head dress are another prominent element of Semana Santa in Antigua Guatemala. Last week, Santiago Durham asked what its the significance of the color purple or violet in the dress and banners during Semana Santa, well it took a lot of digging to find out (I turned around and asked my office coworker), but I can now tell you the purple is worn as a sign of penitence. As a matter of fact, processions are a sign of penitence as well, heck the whole Semana Santa is a penitent act.