Retirement/Spring Break Trip

It would seem that I have a bit of an addiction.

And photo taking whilst on a trip 

is right up there on the top of the list 

(probably located right next to my obsession with Pinterest)

I thought- 
" Today I'll just go quickly thru photos

to choose a "few" to post about our trip to Guatemala.

TWO HOURS later...

 I FINALLY made it to the end of them - 

and I didn't spend massive amounts of time gawking at them either.

You have been warned and with that said...

Here are a "few" images of our trip.

First up
Guatemala City
We arrived after traveling all night at the Barcelo, a swanky hotel.

This carpet was in the main entryway. 
It was cordoned off because it is made out of colored sawdust. 
It's a tradition to make these every year for Easter.
No colored eggs for them!

Here is the view from the fifth floor,
and the plethora of grooming amenities available to keep yourself looking spiffy.
Shined shoes are a big deal in Guatemala- hence the brushing machine.

We saw more armed guards on this trip than I have seen in my entire life.
This particular contingent was there because 
the Queen of Spain happened to be staying at the hotel.

And here she is - well the backside of her anyway.
She was shopping at hotel's jewelry store.
I had to take the photo all sneaky like.
Note the guard at the doorway. There was security everywhere.

And this is Virginia.
The best tour director of all time.
No kidding. She was AMAZING! 
Much more impressive than the queen of Spain.
She was able to talk for hours at a time, 
in depth about pretty much every aspect of historical, political, 
social, familial, agricultural and economic condition of the country of Guatemala.
 And the incredible thing was she kept it entertaining.

We started out at a museum with Mayan artifacts at the university called 
Popol Vuh which is the name of one of the few (as in like 5) remaining "books" 
left of the Mayan history after the priests burned them for heresy.
It gives a great background of the people and their history.

Virginia explained all about the significance of different animals - 
jaguars, turtles, crocodiles, monkey, birds - in the Mayan culture.

 
I was impressed by the quality and detail of the figures and the designs which told stories.

This is a burial urn. It is about 3 1/2 feet tall.
They would put the dead in a fetal position and put them inside.
Pretty cheery eh? 

After the artifact museum we went to a textile museum.
We couldn't take photos because it would damage the cloth.

I did however, take a photo of one of the watercolor paintings on display.
(Yeah, I'm a rebel like that- there was no flash involved).
There must have been about 50 painting by this same artist, Carmen Petersen.
She was originally from England but moved to Guatemala as a child.
When she was in her late 70's she realized that the way the indigenous people were dressing was going to become lost. So, she spent the next 20plus years of her life making lovely watercolor paintings of people in traditional clothing - for weddings, funerals, religious and political occasions. It was an impressive body of work.

And Hey!
Did you know that the Eiffel Tower is NOT in France?

Well, at least the "replica" from a world's fair is not in France 
it is located in downtown Guatemala City.

Oh yeah.

After changing some dollars into "quetzales" 
(7.5 of these = $1.00)
we were ready to leave the city and explore some ruins, temples and natural wonders...

But I'm afraid that will have to wait for another day.

(I know the anticipation is a killer!)




 

Guatemala City