Santa Eulalia
Pictures from the beautiful town of Santa Eulalia. More and more, it reminds me of a small mountain town on the Western Slope of the Rockies in Colorado. The nights are cold, but the days comfortable. The air is crisp and clear, there are trees everywhere, and the rain is not so unwelcome, for when it clears, it leaves the countryside green and fertile--the corn shooting up as if from nowhere, patching the hillsides and empty lots in rows like a verdant quilt. February and March were still pretty cold, but April and May have proved to be quite comfortable. The quality of the rain changed. No longer cold and drizzly, but bold and determined--coming in spurts in the afternoons and evenings as if clocking in for 8 hours of good focused work in the fields and then leaving in time for people to wake up to sunny mornings, hordes of new bugs, and proud tall corn stalks.
View of the Calvario, rooftops, and the mountain "Yaxkalamté" on the horizon, a nostalgic icon for many Ewulenses. |
Feria Titular de Santa Eulalia
The fair week for Saint Eulalia starts Feb. 7th and goes until the 12th. I enjoyed the week of processions, the temporary "fairground" set up just down the street, and the nightly marimba dances where I got to show off my new "traje típico."
Preparing for the procession from Jolom Konob' to the calvario |
Transporting the sacred candles |
Performance of the "Baile del Torito" in front of the Calvario |
Daily life in Santa Eulalia
Antonio, Juan, and Arturo Díaz, of the marimba group Hermanos Díaz, with whom I've been studying. |
My room, finally decorated with my creative solutions for wall hangings. The only pictures you can find in shops are of religious sayings, so I filled a few frames with things like wrapping paper and one of my huipiles. I kept the retro Virgen de Guadalupe in tact though. |
Making tamales for Hayden's 5th birthday. Could I make them again for you folks when I get home you ask? No. It takes way too long and I missed a lot of what Maria did to make it good |
Can't get enough of Maria's adobado! |
The birthday tradition here is to shove the birthday boy/girl's face into the cake once they've blown out
the candles. Hayden isn't too fond of that tradition from the looks of it...
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On the drive from Santa Eulalia to Huehuetenango you have
to go over the summit of the Cuchumatanes mountains, where
it often hails so much it looks like snow. Not too far off from
the real thing.
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Huehuetenango
Huehuetenango is the capital of the department of the same name. It's a 2 1/2–3 hour drive south through the Cuchumantanes mountains from Santa Eulalia. It's not very touristy, but has the things I require for respite and relaxation every once in a while: good coffee, good pizza, and warm weather. Once I got my car I started driving down for weekends to write, relax, and consume. Here are some highlights!
Zaculeu
Zaculeu ("White earth") was one of the last strongholds to fall to the Spaniards. According to the story, the leader of the Mam kingdom was the warrior Kaibil Balam. He held Zaculeu against the Spanish, but were eventually starved and had to surrender. It is a little-known, but impressive complex of ruins that is actively used by Mam people today . . . but not without pesky reminders that the colonizers still control the way in which it's done.
Ritual items "allowed" in the ruins |
I couldn't resist taking a shot of this boy playing with his ball on the 500-year-old Mayan ball court. I wonder if he appreciated the significance of his recreation. |
A very pithy public service announcement painted on the wall of a high school Translation: "He who does not adore his land nor loves his culture is an asshole" |
#RenunciaYa protests in Huehuetenango. Part of the national wave of protests that led Vice President Roxana Baldetti to resign after being implicated in a large-scale operation that robbed the govt of $millions |
VacApril
Two envoys of family and friends planned to visit me during my 8 months in Guatemala. Turns out that they both had to schedule for April, so I spent almost the entire month vacationing. It was a much-needed break from life in the mountains.
Semana Santa
First, a group of college buddies joined me for Antigua's famed holy week festivities. We had a wonderful time relaxing, enjoying cultural activities, and Jon got enough earfuls of historical facts to last him for a while. Highlights pictured below include the Eco Lodge, rooftop bar at El sueño after walking tour, and climbing Pacaya volcano (with Yanique's new best friend, Buddy). For more photos, see the FB album.
Calle Abbey |
Even though we didn't wake at 5:00 a.m. like the die-hard Semana Santa pilgrims, we managed to
see a good number of the sawdust "carpets" before they were processed upon.
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Family Vacation
The next troupe to come down south were the fab-4 family faction: Mom, Dad, brother Anderson, and cousin Mira. We spent 4 days taking in Antigua, and then went to the Caribbean coast--Puerto Barrios, Livingston, Rio Dulce--which was a first for me. They were lovely to survive the bugs, bathrooms, and buses, among other Guatemalan "experiences" that don't start with "b"; even though it wasn't the type of vacation they were used to, they were very willing to get to know what it is I love about this country.
We offered a free drink to anybody who could get my dad to actually smile for a family photo. The Clarks always pay their debts. |
Lounging goddess at the Hotel Catedral, where we stayed in Antigua. |
Out and about in Puerto Barrios! |
Mom and Mira at the "7 altares" natural pools in Livingston Trying to ignore the annoying Russians who kept hitting on Mira. |