Antigua, Guatemala

Peter and I have left the beauty and comfort of our home in Gold River and abandoned our friends and our daughter again, off to see more of the world. We flew to Guatemala City yesterday (Friday, Jan. 31) and picked up a rental car and a passenger! There was a nice young man from British Columbia seated with us on the flight from Houston. He was also heading for Antigua but had no arrangements for getting there from the airport, so we invited him to join us for the ride. Traffic in Guatemala City was horrible, and taking side streets did not seem to help, but we finally escaped the congestion and smog after sunset and then made it quickly to Antigua. After dropping Luke off at his hostel, we drove to our hotel, which is in a lovely old colonial home with a central courtyard. We were too tired to go out for dinner even though we were hungry, but the hotel staff prepared a basic meal for us.

This morning, we were out on the cobblestone streets by 7:30. Laid out at its founding in 1543 as the third capital of Guatemala (which included Belize, Honduras and El Salvador then) on a north-south grid of surprisingly wide streets and avenues, historic Antigua is easy to navigate (although the cobblestone streets are not necessarily easy on the soles of the feet). Throughout the day, we visited many churches, which is practically unavoidable since there are, in fact, many churches, at least one every two blocks. The first was Iglesia de la Merced, which opened in 1767. The interior, like most of the churches, is stark white with minimal ornamentation other than the main altar and the alters in chapels off the nave. The exterior, particularly the front facade, however, is truly Baroque. Almost all the Catholic churches in Antigua are designed in what is referred to as the Squat Baroque style, with substantial foundations, large buttresses and impressively thick walls and columns. La Merced has perhaps the most beautiful exterior; it is painted golden yellow and highlighted with white filigree-like designs.

Facade of La Merced

Main altar, La Merced

The church, like most of the buildings in Antigua, sustained damage during the earthquakes and tremors that shook the city but survived the devastating one in 1773, the fifth large quake in that century. The extensive destruction in 1773 caused the Spanish Crown to abandon Antigua and create a new capital in Guatemala City. Although most of the 60,000 to 70,000 inhabitants left, a few stayed and cultivated the surrounding hills. Eventually, in the 19th century, the population grew again. Fortunately, the people chose to maintain the historic integrity of the structures, rebuilding in the same style and leaving some ruins for their cultural and historic value.

Our next stop was the market, a large city block of criss-crossing dark alleys with colorful goods spilling out of every stall and tiny store. This is where the locals shop for everything--food, clothing, household goods, toys, pet supplies, tools and other items. We only stayed long enough to absorb the atmosphere and then came back out into the sunshine. As we walked toward the Parque Central, we passed the ruins of an enormous Catholic complex, built between 1690 and 1698, built on land that belonged to the family of Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a conquistador and later governor of Guatemala who is most known for his memoirs The True History of the Conquest of New Spain. The sheer size of this and similar complexes is amazing.

Main market in Antigua

Church and Convent of the Society of Jesus ruins

We continued on to the Parque Central, at the center of which is a large fountain with mermaids. On the east side of the plaza is the Cathedral, our next stop. It also suffered extensive damage in 1773 and the part that is still in use is a fraction of the original place of worship. Large pieces of buttresses, walls, domes and vaulted ceilings as well as heaps of brick are still where they fell over two centuries ago in the sections that were destroyed, revealing fine construction details that would have been obscured behind stucco coverings.

Fountain in Parque Central

Facade of the Cathedral

Altar in the Cathedral

Even though it is not yet 9 p.m., I am falling asleep, so I will add a couple of photos and continue with the rest of today's adventures tomorrow some time.