The Rough Guide to Guatemala 4 (Rough Guide Travel Guides)

492 Pages·2009·13.41 MB·English

by  Iain Stewart

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I SB N 978-1-84836-017-4
5 2 1 9 9
9 7 8 1 8 4 8 3 6 0 1 7 4
The Rough Guide to
Guatemala
written and researched by
lain Stewart
NEW YORK • LONDON • DELHI
www.roughguides.com
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Contents
Colour section 1 Contexts 389
Introduction ............................... 6 History ................................... 391
Where to go ............................... 7 Chronology of the Maya......... 415
When to go .............................. 12 Chronology of Guatemala ...... 419
Things not to miss ................... 14 The Maya achievement .......... 421
Indigenous Guatemala ........... 429
Basics 25 Human rights in Guatemala ... 435
Rigoberta Menchú and the
Getting there............................ 27 Nobel Peace Prize ............... 439
Getting around......................... 31 Landscape and wildlife ......... 441
Accommodation....................... 34 Books .................................... 449
Food and drink ........................ 36
Health ...................................... 40 Language 457
The media ................................ 43
Festivals................................... 44 Maya languages..................... 460
Sports and outdoor pursuits .... 46 Spanish words and phrases... 460
Culture and etiquette ............... 47 Menu reader .......................... 462
Shopping ................................ 48 Glossary of frequently used
Study and work........................ 49 terms ................................... 465
Travel essentials ..................... 52 Maya architectural terms ....... 467
Guide 61 Small print & Index 469
1 Guatemala City, Antigua and
around................................. 63 Indigenous costume
2 The western highlands ..... 119 fcoollowuri nsge cpt
.i1o8n4
3 The Pacific coast .............. 219
4 East to the Caribbean ....... 243
5 Cobán and the Maya architecture
Verapaces ......................... 277 colour section
6 Petén ................................ 303 following p.344
7 Into Honduras: Copán and the
Bay Islands ....................... 355
3
왗왗 Antigua 왗 Woman wearing traditional costume, Ixil
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| CONTENTS |
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| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
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Introduction to
Guatemala
Spanning a mountainous slice of Central America
immediately south of Mexico, Guatemala is loaded with
incredible natural, historical and cultural appeal. As
the birthplace and heartland of the ancient Maya, the
country is in many ways defined by the legacy of this
early civilization. Their rainforest cities were abandoned
centuries ago, but Maya people continue to thrive in the
Guatemalan highlands, where traditions and religious
rituals, mingled with Catholic practices, endure to form
perhaps the richest and most distinctive indigenous
identity in the hemisphere.
Guatemala today is very much a synthesis of
Maya and colonial traditions, fused with the
omnipresent infuences of twenty-frst-century
Latin and North American culture. Baroque
churches dating back to the Spanish conquest
coexist with pagan temples that have been
sites of worship for millennia. Highland street
markets prosper alongside vast glitzy shopping malls, and pre-Columbian
festival dances are performed by teenage hip-hop fans.
Guatemala is still very much a developing nation, a young democ-
racy with a turbulent and bloody history that’s beset by deep-rooted
inequalities. And yet, despite alarming levels of poverty and unemploy-
ment most Guatemalans are extraordinarily courteous and helpful to
6 travellers, and only too eager to help you catch the right bus or practise
your Spanish.
04 Guatemala Colour section.indd6 6 11/17/08 3:38:38 PM
| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
It’s this genuine and profound hospi-
tality combined with the country’s Fact file
outstanding cultural legacy and • The republic of Guatemala is
astonishing natural beauty that situated at the northern end of
makes Guatemala such a compelling the Central American isthmus.
place for travellers. Its 108,890 square kilometres
include dozens of volcanoes
(four are active), 328km of
Pacific coastline and 74km of
Caribbean coast.
• Guatemala’s population was
Where to go estimated at 14.6 million in
2008, with a growth rate of 2.4
uatemala ofers a startling
ipne trhce nWt epsetre arn nhuemm i(sthpeh ehrieg)h. est
range of landscapes, defned Over a million Guatemalans live
by extremes. Most travellers in the USA and Canada.
G frst head for Antigua, the • Ethnically, the population is
delightful former colonial capital, its almost equally divided between
refned atmosphere and café society indigenous Maya and ladinos
(who are mainly of mixed race),
although there are tiny numbers
of black Garífuna (about 8000
in all), ethnic Chinese and non-
Maya Xinca. Though Spanish is
the official language, 23 other
languages are spoken, including
K’iche’, Mam, Kaqchikel and
Q’eqchi’.
• Tourism is the nation’s main
income earner, followed by
coffee, sugar, clothing exports
and bananas.
• About 60 percent of Guate-
malans are nominally Roman
Catholic – the lowest figure in
Latin America – though many
highland Maya practise a unique
mix of religions that’s heavily
dependent on ancient religious
ritual. Most others worship at
US-based evangelical Protes-
tant churches.
• Guatemala’s 36-year civil war
ended in 1996. The nation is now
a democratic republic, headed
by a president who is head of 7
both state and government.
04 Guatemala Colour section.indd7 7 11/17/08 3:38:43 PM
| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
왖 Chichicastenango market
contrasting with the chaotic fume-flled streets of Guatemala City. Next
on your list should be the Maya-dominated western highlands, a region
of mesmerizing beauty, with volcanic cones soaring above pine-clad hills,
traditional villages and shimmering lakes. The strength of the Maya culture
here is evident with each village having its own textile weaving tradition
and unique festa celebrations.
Lago de Atitlán, an astonishingly beautiful lake ringed by sentinel-
like volcanoes, is unmissable. The shores of the lake are dotted with
charming indigenous villages such as Santa Cruz La Laguna, where
you’ll fnd some fne places to stay and breathtaking shoreline hikes,
and San Pedro La Laguna, with its bohemian scene and rock-bottom
An archeological hotbed
The remote jungles of Petén are one of the most exciting archeological
zones in the world, the target of more than a dozen ongoing digs that
have unearthed several revelatory findings. Major progress in the reading
of Maya glyphs has meant that the history and the nature of Maya
society is becoming increasingly clear. Ruling family lineages, dates of
accessions and wars and the key political alliances are being steadily
chronicled. Meanwhile, it’s been established that blood-letting and
human sacrifice were pivotal to Maya religious life. In the last few years
discoveries have included a 2500-year-old ball court at Nakbé, some
stupendous Preclassic murals at San Bartolo, thousands of ceramic
8 pieces at La Blanca and even a complete “lost city” – Wakná, located
near El Mirador, found using satellite imagery.
04 Guatemala Colour section.indd8 8 11/17/08 3:38:48 PM
왔 Nebaj
| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO