The most important day at the Basilica of Esquipulas is January 15, when many thousands of pilgrims flock from all over Latin America.

Ask most Guatemaltecos what is in Chiquimula and you will invariably receive the reply: “El Cristo Negro,” often followed by, “That is all there is in Chiquimula …” Undaunted by such disparaging remarks and the prospect of a long journey, I set out from Guatemala City on a trip that would end in the Basilica of Esquipulas, face to face with El Cristo Negro (the Black Christ).

The city of Esquipulas is a five-hour drive from the capital in the department of Chiquimula, which is in eastern Guatemala, close to the borders with Honduras and El Salvador. The Catholic faith arrived in the region in 1525, brought by the Conquistadors, and, after intense resistance waged by the indigenous inhabitants, a peace treaty was signed in 1530. After this reconciliation, a church was founded in honor of Santiago, the patron saint of Spain, and it was here that the rise of El Cristo Negro was initiated in 1595.

The sculpture was commissioned the previous year by Bishop Morales, from a Portuguese artist, Quirio Catano, a long-term resident of the area, who was familiar with its particular history.

Two competing versions account for the color of El Cristo Negro. The first explanation suggests that it was the result of an administrative oversight, and that the required color and characteristics of the figure of Christ were not specified to Catano. Catano delivered the finished sculpture in the naturally dark color of the wood it was made from and it was accepted. Another version credits Catano as being a man of grand philosophical vision, who clearly conceived of the black Christ as a work of national importance, a uniquely Guatemalan symbol, that would fuse the suffering inflicted on the native population with that endured by Christ. On a more practical level, he also thought his creation likely to prove a sensation with pilgrims, a presentiment borne out in the five centuries since.

Made from lemon wood and darkened further with the fumes from incense, the Cristo Negro was installed in March 1595. For the next century and a half, it resided in the church of Santiago until, in 1759, it was transported a kilometer or so to the newly built Church of Esquipulas, where it stands today. Upgraded to the status of basilica in 1961, the imposing church was financed by a group of men from La Antigua. Maintained in pristine white with a wonderful brown-orange dome, the Basilica of Esquipulas stands in its own gardens, where visitors relax shaded by enormous palm trees.

Throughout the centuries, numerous miracles have been attributed to El Cristo Negro, and large displays inside the church document these personal stories. In recognition of divine assistance, pilgrims have presented small plaques, expressing gratitude or simply small silver images of the particular body parts healed by El Cristo Negro, and these can be viewed on the approach to the statue itself. While for many centuries, visitors were at liberty to approach and kiss the statue, and did so, fervently, wear and tear (and perhaps common sense) have since dictated that El Cristo Negro retire behind a glass screen; he is now watched over by a security camera.

As I stood there, waiting my turn, pigeons flew in from a hole in the dome, swirling in circles and swooping into the midst of an ongoing service. Nobody paid any notice. The man in front took care as he photographed the statue with his cellphone, and then, after a few silent moments before the figure, he retreated, walking backward away from El Cristo Negro, a traditional Catholic show of respect when visiting such icons.

Walking around the outside of the church, visitors may be surprised to discover a second El Cristo Negro, in a covered area where thousands of candles burn, these offerings tended diligently by a priest. This El Cristo Negro is a recently commissioned replica, a practical measure that permitted the candles to be relocated outside, as over the years they had caused significant damage to the floor of the basilica.

The most important day at the Basilica is the 15th of January, when many thousands of pilgrims flock to Esquipulas from all over Latin America, in scenes reminiscent of Semana Santa in La Antigua. The people come both to request assistance from El Cristo Negro and to fulfill promises to return, made in exchange for assistance that was gratefully received. In years past, it was common for cars and buses to park inside the gardens in the days preceding the 15th, stretching out sheets of tarpaulin and creating an impromptu settlement. Today, a perimeter fence thwarts vehicles, but it is still common for pilgrims to camp in the grounds, to secure a prime spot on the big day. Another practice that is observed is that many visitors, in a display of humility, approach the basilica on hands and knees, crawling the few hundred meters or so, from the entrance to the park, up the steps, and to the church itself, before joining the long lines waiting for their turn with El Cristo Negro.

Having made the journey myself, without knowing what I would find, I was delighted to discover such a magnificent building and so many rich details of the experiences that have occurred there. One cannot help but be impressed by the atmossphere that centuries of reverence and awe have created around the figure of El Cristo Negro, and with the thought of the many thousands who have passed here before, each with their own unique story. While there may be a grain of truth in the notion that all Chiquimula offers visitors by way of attractions is the Cristo Negro at the Basilica of Esquipulas, the church stands as a singular statement of religious faith in Guatemala and a visit there can be at once a pleasure and an inspiration.

The hum, the charm, the colors

If Copán is a quarter-sized version of La Antigua Guatemala, San Cristóbal de las Casas, one of the few remaining colonial gems of Mexico (founded in 1528) is Antigua times three. And, whereas the good people of Antigua seem to revere their city’s signs of age, in San Cristóbal, they have painted, patched and applied mascara. The inner center of the city is designed for walking, shopping and eating, with several streets closed to cars.

The buildings are painted intense reds, purples, serious blues. Perhaps the population feels the need for stimulation because of the often-overcast weather. Yet you’ll need sunglasses to walk around town.
Located in the central highlands of Chiapas, San Cristóbal offers much to see and do and only so many hours in the day. And all the hotels are offering half-price specials.  

An excellent, close-in posada is US$25 a night. Good, nice bath, hot water but no glass for the evening cocktail. The price is right. The arts and crafts here are extensive and beautiful. The shopping is over the top—dresses cut to the navel, more amber than Poland and more shoe shops than Miraflores or anywhere else.

They had a six-day jazz festival in mid July, staged in a spectacular theater built in 1931.
It’s all about color, and not only on the buildings. The tourist guides wear flamingo-colored pantsuits (photo above). The native women wear glow-in-the-dark purple rebozos (shawls). The half-size stoplights at the major intersections flash in red, UNO, UNO.

There are a few hundred expats scattered about, including about 200 Italians who have settled here. The real estate broker at the second office I visited explained: He married an Italian, who had a mother to bring, and so on.

At 6,000 feet plus, the evenings will be chilly: Take a sweater and a jacket (Xela weather).

For travel options, check the Revue travel section for tour operators, shuttles and bus services.

Especially the chicken molé-drenched version from Tequila Vallarta on Calle El Calmito east of the Parque Central, swimming in several different layers of chocolate and spiced with just enough molé sauce to require one of their delicious margaritas to cool your tongue.

Yes, the owners really are from Puerto Vallarta and on Sunday evenings, as the weekenders from Managua pass by in their shiny SUV’s, sitting at a table on the sidewalk in Granada, Nicaragua is a very good place to be. It will still be warm and humid from the earlier heat of the day but that’s why we have margaritas. The tourists walk by, ducking into the doors of the three- block-long stretch of restaurants, glance at the menu board and look around to see what’s on the nearest plate.

The margarita is perfect and frosty. A visit to Granada is well worth staying a day or two or more: the easiest way to go is to fly either COPA or TACA, you’re less than an hour away from Guatemala City. Take a USD $5 dollar bill to pay for the right to enter Nicaragua, and there will be taxis outside. If you book a room in most of the better hotels in Granada, they will arrange to have a car and driver waiting for you: it is usually a $35 ride, past the dusty streets of eastern Managua and out into the green-and-brown fields of the countryside. The road is good, and it usually takes 30 minutes to reach Granada.

A bit of history: Granada is the oldest city in Central America, founded in 1524 by Francisco Fernández de Córdoba. Time has not been kind to the “Great Sultan,” named in honor of its Moorish namesake in Spain. The city has suffered the slings and arrows of fortune, ranging from devastating earthquakes to the likes of that infamous pirate Henry Morgan, who sacked the town in June 1665. The last of the external pirates was invited by Granada’s traditional rival, the city of León, who imported William Walker from New Orleans with his band of mercenaries known as “the Immortals.”

He and his band of merry fellows defeated the city in 1850; he declared himself president and then launched a failed conquest of the rest of Central America. Twice. The second time he was captured and shot by a firing squad (in Trujillo, Honduras)—a lesson to some of us in the case of being called an immortal.

What is there to do in Granada? The central park is surrounded by beautiful colonial buildings, restored to hotels or Spanish schools. The big yellow building on the corner is the Italian Embassy. Horse-drawn carriages of various bright colors wait listlessly in the noonday sun, waiting for the slow tour of the city to begin. Arts and craft vendors line the outer edges of the park, and some very good embroidery can be found. Two of my favorite panamas now sport Granada-woven hatbands ($30 and a day to produce). There are a few museums, a few art galleries and several magnificent churches to visit. There is a new chocolate store on the south side of the park with enticing displays. There are local and city tours, lake tours (Lake Nicaragua) and the islands thereof, canopy tours of Volcán Mombacho and beautiful countryside to explore. Masaya, nearby, has a large marketplace of craftwork, ranging from woodwork to embroidery. When it gets to be too much, there is always Roxanne’s Massage on Calle El Calmito, up the street from Tequila Vallarta.

Don’t feel like another night of Mexican food? Try Jimmy Three Fingers BBQ on Calle Consulado, east of El Parque Central: The fish, chicken and beef are excellent and inexpensive. When Jimmy isn’t cooking, you’ll find him at the bar holding court, poking holes in the filter of his cigarette with a paper clip. “I’m trying to quit: I promised my Mom I’d quit after the first of the year.” He is a character, as are most of the ex-pats in Granada. For breakfast, it is practically mandatory to stop in at Kathies Waffle House, two blocks northwest of Parque Central, on the corner of Calle El Arsenal. The #24 on the menu is three eggs (anyway you like and done to perfection), four strips of bacon, hash browns and a big slice of freshly baked, whole-wheat bread.

Granada is a walking town. Take sturdy shoes and avoid the pitfalls and the occasional open holes in the sidewalks. Banks are close by for ATMs, and there are money-changers in the vicinity. Choose a hotel with a swimming pool, if possible. The days can get a bit warm when the breezes from the lake aren’t wafting through the trees. Relax: Granada is a smaller version of La Antigua Guatemala but with Lake Nicaragua at its doorstep.