Local Crime Wave Hits Duo; Having Fun Anyway

Our adventures continue.  The story is best told in pictures, though, and Linda has put together a couple of albums whose links can be found below in this post.    

We took a three-hour bus ride last week to Chichicastenango on their market day—the world-famous local market was an amazing spectacle of sounds and sights.  They were selling all manner of local fare—Linda wanted to buy a live turkey, but Roger prevailed (would they have charged us additional bus fare on the return trip?). Santo Tomas, the main church in Chichi, was quite amazing. It is a Catholic church built in 1545 on the base of a Maya temple the Spanish destroyed. The Maya influence survives and it is incredible. Both sides of the cathedral are lined with small shrines to various saints, where one can light a candle or give a cash offering and perhaps get a little saintly intervention. This is pretty normal for a Catholic church.

However. The center aisle leading to the main altar has about a half-dozen low stone slabs, and they are most definitely Maya.  Each wax-coated stone slab has a particular purpose: prosperity, health, fertility, and anything else one might worry about. Local families can contract with their local shaman (there are lots of them) for help with their particular problems. The shamans light candles and stick them in dripped wax on the slabs, surround the candles with flower petals, and sprinkle the petals with quetzalteco, a cheap local liquor. They then chant and pray. The local Catholic priest is good with this, and the combined Maya/Catholic rituals coexist quite happily. This is a far cry from Linda's personal Priest Pet Peeve: not letting non-Catholic baptized Christians take communion. End of rant.

We are hiking around town like Sherpas—we found a four-mile hike up the mountain above Antigua where the views are stunning and the roadside thieves so far have kept their distance. Not so in town.  Roger had his pocket picked at the Lenten Procession yesterday.  It was a fabulous experience (the Procession—not so much the pocket picking).  Roger has become something of a professional victim, having had his pocket picked twice in Rome and now once in Guatemala.  “I felt the hand in my pocket rummaging around,” Roger said later.  “I thought it was Linda.”  They only got about eight bucks, though.  Roger is planning ahead, thinking of places to stash the cash where the thieves can’t reach it.  Linda shudders.

Antigua is WAY more comfortable than we imagined.  It has an awesome colonial charm, and far too many great restaurants set in magnificent courtyards.  We hope the hiking equalizes the increased calorie intake.  We have a great and fascinating neighbor, Joan, who is here from New York studying Spanish FOR TWO MONTHS for the second straight year.  We hold her power of concentration and intellectual stamina in considerable awe. Not to mention her tolerance of obnoxious neighbors.

Our journey takes an exciting turn this week, as we entertain a succession of guests from the US, except for Ralf and Jane who are Canadian.  The Sizemores come down on Wednesday for a week, Ralf and Jane Lauermeier after that, and our friend Gail Nawrock the week after that.  We look forward to showing them some of the wonderful things we have seen, sharing some of our favorite restaurants and churches, and suggesting interesting places to hide their valuables.

See our Market album at:

https://picasaweb.google.com/110361796458981119336/2012TheMarketInGuatemala?authkey=Gv1sRgCIrsobr109XWRA&feat=email#
and a general Guatemala album at:
https://picasaweb.google.com/110361796458981119336/2012Guatemala2?authkey=Gv1sRgCJjMzoDA0YDRjAE&feat=email#