Feast of St. James, patron of Antigua (July 24, 2010)

Cathedral in Antigua

This has been a week long celebration of the feast of St. James, culminating tomorrow, which is the actual feast day.  Antigua was originally named Santiago de los Cabalerros (St. James of the Gentlemen), and still holds St. James in a place of special honor.

I'm learning that every festival here has three constant components:  food, music and dancing.  Once again, we ate "street food" from a vendor Mari knew.  The ever present elote (corn on the cob) was supplemented with wonderful pork and beef  "tacos."  The drink was the traditional arroz con leche (rice and milk).  This may be my favorite part of the festivals.

The music this time was provided by four marimba bands, playing the same music in unison.  It's like having live stereo.  And the dancing this time was a bit different.  Los Viejitos (The Old Men) did their own version of  "line dancing" with the added attraction that they were all dressed up as old women.  This was really fun to watch, as they circled Central Park, performing different dances on each side of the park.  I had no idea these were men dressed up as women until Mari told me so--I thought they were young girls!  Their dancing was very entertaining, and we followed them as they moved around the Park.

The evening was capped off with fireworks.  Though I missed them on the Fourth of July in the States, I got to see some great ones up close and personal.  They were set off from the street on the north side of the Park, and we were standing in about the middle of the park.  Better view than I ever had at home, and not nearly as crowded as Rosenblatt on the Fourth!

The lives of the people of Guatemala seem very difficult to me.  I've noticed, though, that they never miss an opportunity to celebrate life.  Maybe that's why walking through the streets of Antigua is so enjoyable--they are filled with life.  What a wonderful way to live.