Panajachel & Lake Atitlán

On July 17th Neil and I left the big city and headed northwest along the Pan American Highway to find the city of Panajachel and beautiful Lake Atitlan--about a 3-hr drive. (Some say that this is the location of the Waters of Mormon.) We stayed in a hotel called The Posada of Don Rodrigo and this was the view that we had out of our side door. This is a view of Cerro de Oro (the small one), Volcan Toliman, and Volcan Atitlan behind it.

Each morning the local kids would be jumping in the water and swimming along the boat dock. Many larger boats take the tourists to visit the villages along the shores of Lake Atitlan where they find different types of handicrafts.

All of the volcanos surrounding Lake Atitlan are dormant and make a lovely frame for the lake. The one on the right is called Volcan San Pedro.

These kids looked like they were really enjoying themselves!

We haven't found out the name of this little bird yet, but he had such a wonderful song to sing to us. Maybe our son-in-law, Tyler, might be able to find out what kind it is....?

This was the back door of our hotel room where you could just walk right out into a garden area and look out on the lake and volcanos. Neil seems to be studying our Guatemala guide book so that he could tell me more about the area.

We passed this scenic waterfall on the steep and windy road that led to the town of Panajachel. There were other ones also along the way.

These Mayan clay masks are made and sold by the people living along the shores of Lake Atitlan.

We were very impressed with the many, many shops and stalls where you could buy colorful hammocks, dresses, fabrics, belts, huipiles, and bedspreads, like this one.

We can never take enough photos of the children. These boys knew that a wheelbarrow had many uses---to help with their parents work, and as a place to play.

Now here is a picture with a story. These are shoeshine boys. They were probably about 8 or 9 yrs. old. The one on the left came up to us (with an angry look on his face) and said, "You take our pictures and you pay us." I (Kathy) looked at him and said (of course, in Spanish), "Why would we want to take pictures of boys who don't know how to smile?" The boy on the left looked a little confused while the one on the right began to smile a little. I told them that we only took pictures of boys who had smiles on their faces and that I didn't know if they could smile. I started to see that they didn't really speak much Spanish---just the little bit needed to make money with doing shoeshines. I again told them that I needed to see some smiles if they wanted to be paid for their photos being taken. They finally both understood and gave us these beautiful smiles. It was good to see the angry look leave the face of the little boy on the left.


Neil asked this little boy if he could take his picture while he was eating a snack of "mango on a stick." We really had a wonderful time in this area.

Solola Locals

Neil and I find the customs and dress of the different Guatemalans so very beautiful and interesting. Every time we go to a different part of the country we can find differences in their
native dress and in the type of fabric worn by the women. The variety of colors is wonderful! Many of the women carry their loads on their heads. Needless to say, they have very good posture.

We drove through the town of Solola (located northwest of Guatemala City) and nearly drove right into the middle of Market Day activities. The colors of their clothing caught my eye immediately. These women wore beautifully embroidered "huipiles" (blouses) and their skirts were a very different type of woven fabric.

The women carried so many different things on their heads. We wondered if they thought that the "gringo" women were strange because they (or we) carried so many things in their arms!

These ladies were off to the market with their loads on their heads---also wearing their very best fancy aprons. The further north we go the less we see of the aprons worn nearer to Guatemala City.

What wonderful colors! The fabric, the embroidery, and the vegetables!


Now here was a very different native dress for the men of the area of Solola. The shirt is like a cowboy shirt except with wonderful embroidery. The hat is much like the cowboy hats in the USA. His pants are made of a colorful woven fabric. Then there is the "skirt." We haven't quite figured this out yet. It is a heavier fabric in brown and white checks. Some of our friends wonder if maybe this took the place of the "missing" aprons of the women. I just thought that they were wonderful and so very different. I hope to learn the story behind them.

One of the mainstays of the Guatemalan diet is corn. It is ground to be used in making their tortillas. These women at Market Day were making and selling their blue corn tortillas.

This is one of our favorite pictures. The load on her head is quite big, but every hair on her head is beautifully in place. Many of the women weave lovely ribbons into their long, dark hair.


With different areas came different patterns of woven fabrics---and another way to carry things.

We have probably placed pictures of mothers carrying their little ones in different places on our blog, but we couldn't resist this picture. They always have their children with them.


Not only do the women carry things on their heads, but this man has also "used his head" in order to get his bananas to Market Day to be sold. (Gives me a headache just looking at it.)

"This little piggy went to market".....or rather, these BIG piggies went to market! I wonder if that is why this little Toyota truck is leaning?

Main Plaza and Central Market

This is La Catedral Metropolitana---begun in 1782 and completed in 1815---situated on one side of the Plaza Central in the older part of Guatemala City. On the pillars of this cathedral are etched the names of many of those Guatemalans who have disappeared during times of political unrest.

There are many vendors trying to sell their goods in the Central Plaza. Among other things, this woman was selling crocheted hats that I found really interesting. Neil calls me an easy target. I just need to learn how to "admire" their goods without having to end up buying them!



This is a great view of the Central Plaza with its magnificient water fountain. It was a beautiful day and many people were just enjoying the sunshine and watching the pigeons. There were many kinds of vendors also enjoying the weather.

These men were selling pineapples in the Plaza.


On one side of the Central Plaza is a beautiful old building that used to be the Presidential Palace. It has not housed any president since the early 1990's, and is now an important museum. The Palacio Nacional de la Cultura tells the story of Guatemala's colonial history and of its leaders. Although the president doesn't live here, it is often used to host special visiting dignitaries.


A short walk behind the Cathedral brings you to the Mercado Central (located within an underground building constructed to replace the market that was destroyed during the earthquake of 1976). There are several levels to wander through where you will find handicrafts, fabric, clothing, and more. The basement is a produce market where you can find fresh fruits and vegetables, flowers and plants. We enjoy coming here, but the parking is very limited.

A few weeks ago I (Kathy) came to the Central Market with some friends looking for some baskets for our home. My friends (who had been living in the country for a year) said that they had never seen any baskets in the Central Market. Well, we went down a couple of levels and.....BINGO! I couldn't believe how many types of baskets and woven items I discovered! And there were stalls and stalls of them!

Happy 4th of July!

No matter where you are on the 4th of July---you have to have a BBQ! And being in Guatemala is no exception! We had a wonderful BBQ on the top of our apartment building with our other friends and there were pies, hot dogs, hamburgers, watermelon, potato salad, and you name it!
Everyone chipped in to pay for the little grill that Neil bought at Cemaco (like a Target store). Sister Barney (an LDS missionary, previously from Orem, Utah) and Sister Baldwin (the wife of the president of the Guatemala City Central Mission, from Arizona) did a nice job of arranging everything---even the American flag centerpiece!



We all enjoy the times when we can just sit down and talk with each other. This is Bro. and Sis. Bawden (the Central America Area Humanitarian Specialists, from South Jordan, Utah) and they travel alot, so this gave us time to catch up on what they had been doing. The lower right is Bro. Tilley (in charge of Church Security for Central America, from Montana)---our BBQ man for the day. Upper right is Sis. Barney again (a missionary working in the Guatemala City Central Mission Office).


We have a tremdous 360 deg. view from the top of our building and July 4th was a beautiful day for a celebration. Speaking of celebrating....Neil took this photo just as I pulled the string on my popper! Can you see the streamers flying away at the top of the photo?? Sis. Bawden and her husband were at the same table with us.


What happy ladies! From left to right---Sis. Oreamundo is a new missionary from Alajuela, Costa Rica and is working in the Guatemala City North Mission with her companion Sis. Bingham (on far right--from St. George, Utah). Sis. Tilley is in the middle.


Isn't this a great view? You can see mountains (on a clear and not raining day) all around us and also some of the volcanos that surround Guatemala City. We had a nice relaxing time together and now we are looking forward to Pioneer Day---July 24!

Antigua, Guatemala

On Saturday, July 4th, Neil and I went for a drive to see the old city of Antigua. It was the original capital of the Spanish kingdom of Guatemala in the 1600's, but when it was destroyed by earthquakes the present capital of Guatemala City was built in the late 1700's. We found these women selling their beautifully woven crafts in front of one of the old ruins of a church.



Aren't these colors just gorgeous? This gives you an idea of the colors and beautiful work done by the Guatemalan women. Most of the weaving and embroidery is done completely by hand.



We saw piles of handmade dolls, table runners, bags, purses, placemats---you name it!


There were also many varieties of handmade jewelry---bracelets, necklaces, earrings. It was amazing to see so many wonderful colors, and to think of all of the hours of work that went into making these things.


I was impressed with the strength of the Guatemalan women. They carry their babies in a bundle hanging from their shoulder and also carry many things on their heads. (I think that some of these ladies just wanted to get out of the sun.) We hope you take note of the beautiful woven skirts that the women wear and their wonderful embroidered blouses, called "huipiles."


In the center of Antigua there is a beautiful plaza. On one side of the plaza is a large, very white Catholic cathedral. On another side was a large Spanish-style building that was being renovated.


This is Agua Volcano. Anywhere you go in Antigua there is a great view of this volcano.



It was a beautiful day to be wandering the streets of Antigua. We could see other volcanos in the distance and in the plaza were numbers of palm trees and other varieties that provided some wonderful shade on such a hot and sunny day.


This photo has a story. Neil and I were walking the perimeter of the plaza taking pictures and enjoying ourselves when this women walked up to us and began showing us her jewelry. Well, I thought I would buy a couple of necklaces....when all of the sudden she says, "'caminamos, caminamos." We was asking us to walk along with her because the city police were coming over to us. We found out that there is a law in Antigua that states that the venders cannot sell their wares anywhere near the plaza---so as not to bother the tourists. We still followed her and bought some of her necklaces.


These four pretty young ladies were also trying to sell things in the plaza. They worked in pairs and would show things to us, but would quickly hide them whenever they would see the police. When we asked them if we could take their picture, they said, "OK, if you will buy some things from us." They knew what they were doing!


We have found the Guatemalan people to be warm and friendly---and very strong. We often see or meet old men and women who can carry very large loads on their backs or their heads. The lady standing by me was quite the saleswoman.


Neil knelt down to try and take a picture of some kids playing at the edge of the fountain in the plaza. Before he knew it this little girl came up to him and asked if she could take a picture too. So he showed her where to look and how to push the button---TA DA!