We've spent the last couple of days seeing
Chichicastenango and Lago Atitlan.
We managed to arrive in Chichi on Sunday, one of the 2
(along with Thursday) big market days there. Chichi
is famous for it's huge market - everything you could
possibly want from clothes to food as well as the most
wonderful crafts in Guatemala. Guatemalan fabrics are
absolutely incredible and it's difficult not to spend,
spend, spend and fill up the van. I can see how many
people become US importers since their work is so
beautiful. The indigenous people wear beautiful,
woven clothes with the most sensational colors. Only
the Peruvian and Bolivian women come close to the
Guatemalans. We also walked up to the shrine to
Pascual Abaj, hoping to get to see a Mayan ritual.
The shrine is a very Easter Island-like rock, before
which the people burn candles and other offerings,
including, I am told, an occasional chicken. Our
guide told me that there are actually 2 types of
religious leaders, the curanderos (curers) and brujos
(witches). The curanderos only help the sick but the
brujos cast spells to hurt other people. This
generally takes the form of an illness. If someone is
ill and they believe that they've been the subject of
a spell, the only way to remove the spell is to hire a
stronger brujo, sometimes from as far away as
Guatemala City, to perform a counter spell. When we
were at the shrine, there were fires still smoldering
and a candle still burning but we missed the ceremony,
more's the pity.
In town, next to the market, is the Iglesia San Tomas.
The people here have a hybrid religion, part
Catholicism and part Maya. When we walked by the
church, the people were burning corn on the steps of
the church - a Mayan ritual. A very interesting town.
We spent the night in Panajachel on Lago Atitlan,
reputedly the most beautiful lake in the world, and, I
must say, it comes close. The water is crystal clear
and the lake is ringed by volcanos.
We are actually a little anxious about our time now
and want to see Tikal and spend a little time in
Belize before heading for Mexico, so we headed out
this morning. We're spending one more night in
Antigua, which we really love, and then will pass
through Guatemala City on our way north. It's
starting to seem unlikely that we will manage to see
Linn and Mariella.
Jeanne
