We were up and ready to go at 7:00 a.m. for our tour of Chichicastenango (also known as Chichi) and Lake Atitlan. Chichi is the most colorful open-air market in Guatemala. It is a 3 hour drive from Guatemala City on winding roads through the mountains. We were able to see much of how the people truly lived in the rural areas. Most do not have cars and ride the “chicken” buses. These are cheap public transportation buses that travel from town to town. They have rails on top of them for storage of their goods. These buses in years past were filled with passengers carrying their live chickens, ducks and geese to the markets in the city. Hence, the name chicken busses. We stopped along the way to view Lake Atitlan. We were not able to go down to the lake-side village because it would take too long due to road construction this month. Lake Atitlan is known as one of the most beautiful places in the world. The lake is surrounded by volcanoes. We were disappointed that we didn’t get a closer look at it. During the trip our guide, Sam, explained some of the Mayan Indian history to us as well as facts about the different towns we passed along the way. Guatemala has 22 Departments (states). There are 40 volcanoes in Guatemala and 3 of them are active volcanoes. It was a clear sunny day today so we actually were able to see some smoke billowing out of the top of one of the active volcanoes. The further we drove away from Guatemala City the more we were able to see the true Mayan culture. We passed a town called Santiago which is known for it’s beautiful handmade kites. On November 1st they fly these kites at their cemeteries to make contact with the spirits. Our guide explained that when the Spanish missionaries invaded Guatemala they forced the Mayan Indians to accept their Catholic religion but most still believe in pagan worship. They also believe that each person has an animal spirit that is their personal protector. Chichi is located up in the mountains where 90 % of the Mayans believe in pagan worship and 10% are Catholics. Our driver climbed a very steep grade and then parked our bus. We then walked the very narrow cobblestone paths of the market that were filled with native Mayan Indians wearing their traditional clothing and carrying their loads on their backs. There was no way you could have pushed a stroller through this mass of people so we had to carry both girls. At times our guide told us to push our way through the crowd down the paths. He told us to guard our purses and wallets closely. There were many booths filled with hand woven and embroidered goods, jade jewelry, baskets, produce, meat, etc. There was always someone who would try to stop us and get us to purchase their wares. Our guide told us we could shop the market after lunch. We then visited the 400 year old church of Santo Tomas. The Spanish had forced the natives of Chichi to convert to Catholicism or be killed. The Spanish built the church of Santo Tomas for them to practice the Catholic religion in. Many today actually worship their pagan gods while in this catholic church in hopes that the “lords” of one of these religions will protect them if the other one fails. They burn candles and incense on slabs all around the floor of this church. The natives worship in this church when they come to sell their goods at the market on Thursdays and Sundays. It is interesting but sad to watch! We had lunch at a beautiful restaurant where the male waiters still dressed in traditional costumes (the native men of Chichi no longer wear the traditional costumes daily only the women do). We were served lentil soup, a tortilla filled with lettuce, meat, tomato, beats and onion with a slice of a hardboiled egg, filet mignon smothered in mushroom gravy, french-fries, coffee and some wonderful vanilla bean ice cream for dessert. After lunch Sam had a designated guide waiting to assist us in making our purchases at the market. Our first purchase was hand woven Mayan carriers for the girls. Our arms were getting tired and sore from holding them for so long. Our guide, Mario helped us make all of our purchases and carried them back to the bus for us. We then made the 3 hour drive back to Guatemala City. The girls were unbelievably good today. Holly slept during most of the rides to and from Chichi. She was happy and didn’t fuss except when I changed her diaper (she doesn’t like to have her diapers or clothes changed). Hannah was exceptionally good. She didn’t particularly care for the baby carrier though. It was interesting to learn about Holly’s native culture. It was quite an enjoyable day. We were very tired after our trip so we ordered McDonalds delivered for dinner (Hannah’s request) and got the girls bathed and ready for bed. Holly actually started crawling/scooting around the floor of our room tonight. She was also standing and holding on with only one hand tonight. She is accepting Hannah more and more each day. Holly is a happy baby but she does have a temper when things don’t go her way. Tonight, Hannah asked about her bed and her panda bear that are at home. We are all ready to go home. Thank you for your continued emails and prayers. We really appreciate them! We are so very thankful that we have the Lord Jesus Christ as our protector watching over us!
From Guatemala With Love
Ann, Tracy, Hannah & Holly
