Guatemala English language Magazine
Featured Articles
text and photos by Jennifer Rowe If you are new to Guatemala, on a budget, or just having trouble coming up with unique ideas for gifts this holiday season, do not fret! Here are a few suggestions of what is available to you from some of the merchants in Antigua. If there’s someone on your shopping list that enjoys setting […]
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The celebration of La Concepción in Ciudad Vieja, near La Antigua Guatemala, is incredible! Everyone enjoys beginning the Christmas cycle by “burning the devil” on Dec. 7. Many will gather at La Concepción in Antigua at 6 p.m. to burn an effigy of the devil enhanced with a sign notating local gossip. After the reading of his “will,” the image […]
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Regardless of its origin, fiambre, in my opinion, is the supreme Guatemalan plate. If this is not the food of the gods, it must be something very close. Fiambre is only eaten on November 1st, the Day of All Saints, and it is so complex that it can easily take as many as 50 or more ingredients.
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Written by Ignacio Ochoa The history of kite making in Santiago Sacatepéquez On November 1 and 2, a powerful force stirs in all the towns of Guatemala. Traditional markets are filled with flowers of sempa (orange marigolds), chrysanthemums, wild daisies and the smell of copal—a pre-Columbian incense made from pine resin. People clean family graves and adorn them with cut-out […]
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I tried to ask Rosendo about the quetzal. “Rochoch Li Quetzal?” I asked, reading from the list of phrases I had in my notebook. This was supposed to mean “quetzal nest” but Rosendo just sat there smiling and nodding at me.
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The apparition appears as a young girl with long, shiny black hair and a beautiful figure, though her face is always veiled in shadow.
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One of nature’s marvels unfolds nightly this time of year on Guatemala’s Pacific coast—a beautiful yet awkward ballet of emerging life that, within minutes of existence, is challenged for survival against natural predators.
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This is first in a series of Sacred Animals & Exotic Tropical Plants which will cover ethno-zoology and ethno-botany as related to Mayan archaeology
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What started as a blank square in the original drawings, La Antigua’s Parque Central grew and morphed in fits and starts for 467 years to meet the needs of each new generation.
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These republics did not have to fight either Spain or Mexico for their independence. But they did fight each other during the Federation period (1824-1839).
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In the dense jungle of Guatemala, in the Petén Basin region which is home to the ancient Mayan city of Tikal, looming pyramids, looted tombs and overgrown paths that once served as Mayan superhighways speak of an era of ancient kingdoms and powerful warring dynasties. It’s easy to die and be forgotten here for thousands of years amid the thick […]
Read morewritten by Dianne Carofino photos: George Carofino What makes a farm “organic,” one that grows organic produce? We put that question to Alex Kronick as we tour Caoba Farms, his five-acre organic farm on the outskirts of La Antigua Guatemala. Alex began his business six years ago, originally selling organic produce to one restaurant, and then quickly adding a second. […]
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Eight Spanish soldiers of fortune commanded by Capt. Pedro de Herrerías arrived in the valley of Tactic. They had been following the Cahabón River to its source, in the hope of finding the Fountain of Youth, which the Indians of Cozumel had told them was located in this area.
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Exactly where was the center of old Santiago? Traditionally the honor has been assumed to belong to the urban center of Ciudad Vieja, the Old City. But was it? Tropical storm Agatha raged throughout Guatemala in May, déjà vu of 9/11/1541 for the hard-hit area east of Ciudad Vieja. Weeks later, the church of San Miguel Escobar still sheltered people […]
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The oldest cookbook Carole has utilized, Lybro de Cocyna, which dates from 1844, is an anonymous compilation of recipes published by the University of San Carlos
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Mayan Hands is a small, fair-trade organization that has been working with Mayan artists since 1989. It works with approximately 200 weavers, organized in groups of 12 to 50 women in 11 western and northern Guatemalan highland communities. Its mission is to assist these women by providing the skills and markets necessary to earn a regular income, enabling them to provide for their families and gain control over their lives.
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Could two common weeds hold the keys to Guatemala’s independence from petroleum imports? Chances are you’ve seen them, just not recognized them as you drive about Guatemala, especially since one flourishes in the coastal lowlands and the other is widespread in the highlands.
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Threatened by years of abuse and neglect, the Mirador Basin needs help and it needs it now. The 400-year sliver of history between the biblical Old and New Testaments, sometimes erroneously called the ‘silent years’, packed Planet Earth with progress. Alexander the Great studied at the feet of Aristotle and, zealous to unite the world under Greek culture, conquered his […]
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Etched by nature and bathed in mystique, the winding network of caves known as Actún Kan in Petén truly earned its place in Mayan legend as the Cave of the Serpent’s Mouth.
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I certainly didn’t expect to get a free lesson of what I call Chapiñol, it is maybe 50 percent Spanish and 50 percent Chapinismos. His name was Miguel and he started throwing phrases like: tengo un gran clavo or me echan el muerto. I simply replied yes and/or no, but in truth I had no idea what he was talking about, “I have a big nail” What ???
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written by Ignacio Ochoa In the Mesoamerican cosmology, the word nahual signifies “moment of radiance.” It refers to the essence or the spirit of a person, animal or thing, living or dead. This spirit is believed to function as the protector of a person, animal or plant. It is believed that humans have an animal spirit counterpart, received at birth, […]
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Turning a short visit into a long-lasting memory Volcanoes. Lakes. Archeology and architecture. History and culture. Ziplines. Coffee plantations. UNESCO World Heritage sites. Plus, of course, shopping. Guatemala has all these attractions for tourism. But what about the tourist who has only a few days and less than $300? Yes, with planning and time management, that tourist can have a […]
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In the kitchen with Asmena Pankanea written by Dianne Carofino Cooking with Asmena Pankanea makes me want to go to India. She seasons her dishes with stories of the people of that country and how they live. Of kichri, a combination of white rice and split mung beans cooked almost to mush, she says, “This is a comfort food. In […]
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For starters, El Mirador covers 38 square miles; it is larger than the city of Los Angeles. The temples at El Mirador are huge. El Tigre is larger than all of Tikal’s temples 1, 2, the acropolis and the central plaza—combined!
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written by J. Claire Odland Curating a double show like this is a double joy: Here are glimpses of two great, archival collections on view through April in the Gallery at Indigo Artes. This show, 70 plus 30 Years of Mayan Culture, represents selections from 70 years of Mayan textiles and 30 years of Mayan photographs from the hands of […]
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Treasures of the La Merced Church formed the largest collection of those brought from the churches of Santiago. Some were lost with the passing of time, starting with the move in 1778 and including political changes during which artworks were destroyed or distributed, even to individuals.
Read moreMany factors influenced Guatemala’s first building boom Poet Robert Burns was voted Greatest Scot of All Time in 2009. Burns was born in 1759 in a thatch-roof cottage built by his father and lived there for seven years, a hard life of farming and poverty. He went on to live a fast life of carousing and died at age 37. […]
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Coconut palm…royal palm… date palm…coyol palm…uh, coyol palm? WordWeb Online calls it a tropical American palm with edible nuts and yielding useful fiber. In some countries of Central America, especially Costa Rica and Honduras, it is known for the sweet liquid that flows inside its trunk and is extracted to drink as a 100 per cent natural liquor. Be careful, […]
Read morePanajachel is firstly a walking city. If you drive in it, you soon tire of the paucity of two-way streets. And every rocky contour of those streets registers on the pant-seat of every chicken-bus rider. Tuktuks look fun, until you actually ride in one. And much of Pana is not overly bike-friendly. So, unless pogo sticks catch on, feet remain the preferred vehicle.
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A rewarding excursion to Guatemala’s first winery to produce wine from locally-grown grapes since colonial times text and photos by Ira Lewis Hidden behind a coffee finca on the lower slopes of volcano El Agua is the first winery to produce wine from Guatemalan-grown grapes since colonial times: Chateau DeFay. Jacques and Angie DeFay recently presented their first vintage after […]
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