If you have ever consider end visiting Guatemala - do it! And do it in Antiga during Semana Santa (holy week) which culminates in La dia Pascua (Easter). This is a week of rest. Very few people work Thursday-Sunday. Instead Guatemalans (Catholic Guatemalans) spend most of this week in church and participating in / watching the processions.
In the processsions men/boys always go first carrying the float with Jesus and the women follow carrying the float La Virgen. Someone made the (very true) observation that when men/boys are carrying the float they look like they are about to die it is so heavy, but the women (carrying a float of similar weight) look just fine. Typical.
Miercoles Santo (Wednesday - the real start of holy week celebrations) there was the processions of kids in Antigua. Three of my host siblings participated in this event. Children of all ages took turns carrying the floats down the street.
The Saturday before Easter (Dia Pascua) there is a ritual in Guatemala where kids are held up in the air (sometimes upsidedown) while their parents (gently) hit them. This is to help them grow in the upcoming year. I find this ritual ammusing because Guatemalans as a whole are generally short. As in I (at 5 feet 3 inches) am tall compared to most men and women.
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| My host siblings in the procession! |
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| Baby Cucuruchu |
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| Meta Alfombra |
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| Jesus entombed |
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