Coven on Calle 2

We arrived in Antigua two days before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent.  This is an enormous deal here (they claim that Antigua has the largest Lenten celebration in the world, and we are beginning to believe them).  There is also a very strong Maya influence, which is every bit as spiritual, and apparently far more prevalent than the church or the government will admit.

When we rented our apartment we met Astrid (our real estate agent) and Maria Jose (the apartment manager) at our new digs to sign the rental agreement.  It is a three-apartment compound.  We have only one neighbor, a single woman from western Michigan whom we had met briefly when we first looked at the apartment.  Maria Jose felt a full disclosure was in order, and she talked earnestly, with Astrid interpreting.

“Your neighbor is very strange,” Astrid said.  “I would have told you before but Maria Jose is just telling me now.”

Linda and Roger exchange glances.

“She has many people who come to the apartment and…they do rituals.  Maria Jose says they stick things in each other.”  Astrid looks around furtively, then says  in a conspiratorial stage-whisper “We think she is a witch!”

Roger and Linda exchange glances again, struck with the same thought:  is this great BLOG fodder, or what?

We have since met Renee, and she indeed has lived up to all our expectations.  She has been here for three weeks, studying the Maya Path of Water, which is a part of the Maya Cosmo Vision (soon to be released at IMAX?)  Renee has been studying with her priestess, Carla, and her husband priest, Joselo, a course of instruction that would culminate with Renee being inducted as a Maya Priestess.  This is not quite as goofy as it sounds.  We met dozens of people in India on similar spiritual quests.

Maya Priest Joselo

The Maya Cosmo Vision philosophy is simple, at least as it was explained to us.  While it is rooted in Maya numerology and astrology, its philosophical tenets are basic:

Do your best

Don’t assume

It’s not personal

Accept responsibility

Carla, Joselo, Renee

Roger is a strict adherent of the John Delaney School of Philosophy, whose basic tenets have guided his life as by a true compass.  (Never be worth more dead than alive; never have sex with anyone crazier than you are; and never mess with anyone from Downriver [Detroit]).  But the Maya Vision may give it some competition.  Last night was Renee’s final night in Antigua, and we were invited to her apartment to witness her induction ceremony, her priestess graduation commencement, if you will. It was actually quite moving—dozens of candles, garlands of flowers, and much chanting.  We then went back to our apartment with much to think about.  If Renee, Carla, and Joselo then “stuck things in each other”, as Maria Jose intimated, Roger and Linda were not invited. Renee returns home this morning.

Catholic Lent in Antigua

…and behold a Pale Horse: and he that sat on him was named Death

Well, Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore. Our first Friday here was the first Friday in Lent. Every year, there are 50 separate activities held around town as part of the Lenten observance. Friday’s was a doozy. Let us preface this by saying that we were both raised Catholic. We have visited churches in a number of countries, and recognized the rituals and behaviors that we thought were universal in the Catholic Church. HAH!!



"The Seven Seals"

Two beckoning men stood at the entrance of the Cathedral, one playing a Maya flute, and the other playing a small drum. A steady stream of locals and tourists entered, some piously, others curiously. A paper mural designed to be used only this one day covered the back of the altar, and the Four Horsemen in life-size paper mache stood in front of it. A large “carpet” of dyed sawdust stenciled into intricate floral designs and made by the church brotherhood lay in front of the horsemen. It is surrounded by fruits, vegetables, and burning candles. We had learned in our walking tour that the church incorporated many Maya traditions into their rituals. These edible offerings must be part of the Maya influence.  Smoke rises behind the horsemen while dramatic music and a deep, booming voice tells the story of the Apocalypse from Revelations (we think; it was in Spanish, after all!). Some people sit in pews, others crowd the altar taking photos, some mill around and chat, and a few are eating?!?. We puzzle over the content of the message... how, exactly, does all of this relate to Lent? 


This evening spectacle was preceded in the late afternoon by an elaborate procession from the Cathedral in which a 17^th century life-sized statue of Christ bearing the cross was carried by a dozen school girls (yes, in uniform) down the steps of the cathedral and paraded around the town.  Similar pageants will be staged throughout Lent from various churches every Friday, with the big event on Good Friday, where the procession starts at 3:00 AM and covers the entire last day of Christ, complete with mounted Roman soldiers reading His sentence, and a re-enactment of the crucifixion in the central square.  The guidebook says it draws 30,000 people, but we don’t see how that is possible.  A local ex-pat resident told us it draws 500,000 people, but that is beyond comprehension.

These Lenten observances are far different from those of our past experience, like giving up Diet Coke (now THAT’S a sacrifice!), or trying not to eat meat on Friday (which we remember on Saturday). Apparently this vacation might be a tad more religious that we anticipated. Madre de Dios!  We’ll let you know.



On the Road Again

                         Agua Volcano, from our Antigua rooftop this morning

We are on the road again, this time on a two-month jaunt to Guatemala.  We arrived in Antigua yesterday, our home base for two months,  planning to travel as far afield as we feel safe.

When we retired, we knew that a second home in a warm climate probably wouldn't happen for us.  Let's face it; we can barely take care of the one we already have.  We toyed with the idea of renting a place in a better climate every year, giving us a chance to escape winter and see places more interesting than southeast Michigan.  This year was slated to be Thailand, but events conspired to keep us in the Western Hemisphere, just a few hours from home.  So here we are in Antigua, Guatemala.  Since our arrival 28 hours ago, we have checked into a hotel, looked at four apartments, begun negotiations for our Spanish language classes, weasled our way into a two-month guest pass at a five-star hotel spa, walked over 20,000 steps, and aliented a half-dozen natives.  A good beginning.  We clearly have to pace ourselves, though.

Tomorrow, we move into a lovely 2-bedroom apartment.  Many of you will be surprised and pleased that Roger didn't jump on the cheapest thing in town, and we mean that figuratively. The runners-up in our Apartment Hunters International quest were larger and some were quite spectacular, but this one is halfway between beautiful and adorable, with a terrific location.  It is colonial style, with dark open beams, rough stucco walls, and a plant-filled courtyard.  It is in the center of town, just steps from restaurants and the central plaza. The rooftop jacuzzi (which the natives pronoune yackuzzi--how quaint!) and terrace were a big selling point. 

We are anxious to get to a place where we can cook and where Roger can have his bottomless coffee (his only vice, other than the S&M thing).  So now the challenge of grocery shopping. We made a quick pass through the local "supermarket".  It took Linda 20 minutes to find what she thinks might be oatmeal. The dairy section was WAY too big.   How many types of milk do these people need?  What kind of mammals are we talking here?  The meat was scary: lots of processed sausage-like meat of undetermined origin.  This is going to take some work.

This will be a great trip, no doubt, but it will be hard to top India. It was not only an amazing adventure, but it was fun. The Indians may be an impoverished and downtrodden people, but they are so damned optimistic about everything.  And the Guatemalans are...well...so Catholic.