Today I bring you a vista of the quotidian life of Antigua Guatemala framed within one of the arches of Pilas de Santa Clara. Inside this frame we can see two students practicing their musical instruments while a traditional ice cart passes by. Enjoy!
Even though I have shared with posts about this lavadero público, public washbasins, in San Pedro Las Huertas, the largest village of Antigua Guatemala, I don’t believe I have mentioned that this quite possibly the largest lavadero in the entire municipality of Antigua Guatemala. Correct me if I am wrong. Below you can see a … Read more
The washbasins at Pilas de Santa Clara, better known as Tanque de La Unión, must be the most photogenic laundromat in the world, don’t you think?
Believe it or not, that yellow structure houses public washbasins, sort of a laundromat, used everyday by people to wash their clothes until about five years ago. Nowadays, it is used infrequently as a washbasins, but still people use it for hanging our and chilling. Photographers, like myself, use this monument as a photogenic backdrop; … Read more
Even the most mundane activities of our lives have been affected by the pandemic Covid-19, as you can see in this photograph of woman doing laundry at a public washbasins in the village of San Pedro Las Huerta, Antigua Guatemala. How are public laundromat in your city affected by this pandemic?
I believe this photograph shows the best possible way the actual lavaderos, washbasins, of Pilas de Santa Clara better known as Tanque de La Unión. It is too bad that you rarely see people washing clothes at these lavaderos. If you would like to see people washing laundry at public washbasins, hop over a bus … Read more
We continue the 5-day countdown to the 11th anniversary of AntiguaDailyPhoto with the miniseries of street photography slices of daily life through out Antigua Guatemala. How about snapshot of a laundry day in the village of San Pedro Las Huertas, where mother and child move to the rhythm of water and clothes being washed by … Read more
Years ago the Pilas de Santa Clara used to be a very busy place with Maya women doing laundry. Most women came from the town of Santa María de Jesús because the water distribution there was inadequate. Nowadays, only a few people use the the washbasins to do laundry, most people come here to take … Read more
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
I pride myself of knowing every little corner of La Antigua Guatemala so whenever I discover a hidden aspect in this colonial town I get excited. This was the case, when I made a wrong turn and walked into this pila I could not resist pulling my camera and making a HDR photograph. See, for … Read more
Often photography enthusiasts and photographers taking a photo walk with me ask if the people still do laundry at the public lavaderos at Tanque de la Unión, Pilas de Santa Clara is the proper name. Well, I was asked that this weekend and sure enough we get there and this woman from Santa María de … Read more
The other day while scouting for new locations for the Artistic Photo Sessions I now offer, I came across a large garden area with many fountains which are simply decoration pieces. It got me thinking that most fountains around Antigua Guatemala are simply decor pieces; don’t you agree?
This is the top view as seen from the spiral staircase of the washbasins and water tank at Casa Herrera. Although, as we can see from this perspective, the washbasins and water tank are only decoration pieces now since they have electric washer and dryer in the kitchen; as shown in the corner of the … Read more
A couple of years ago, I made the declaration that public washbasins, lavaderos, and water tanks, pilas, are the current social media networks of the villagers around Antigua Guatemala. Well, while talking the ladies in this public washbasin in San Juan del Obispo, I can reiterate that this declaration still holds true. Public laundry washbasins … Read more
As I have mentioned before, it doesn’t matter what day of the week one stops by the public washbasins, lavaderos around Antigua Guatemala, one will always find the ladies doing the laundry either their own or somebody else’s. I have chatted with several of these women and I’ve asked what were some of the reasons … Read more