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XELA PAGES GUATEMALAN NEWSLETTER http://www.xelapages.com/ Issue #11, November 1, 1999 Current Subscriber - 710 ================================================== Copyright 1999 By Tom Lingenfelter -- Xela Pages Please forward this Newsletter to 2 Friends and
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This is the October issue of Xela Pages but I could not help waiting until November 1 to send it out. Today is "Dia de Los Muertos or Day of the Dead" and I live in front of the Cemetery. There is a steady flow of people passing my door as I write this. Most are carrying an armload of flowers of all colors, shapes and sizes. Some have beautiful handmade pine needle or flower wreaths in heart shapes, while others have a variety of adornments for the gravesite of their loved ones. For the weeks leading up to today, the cemetery was a busy place. Families cleaned and painted the gravesites and vendors were selling the wreaths out in Parque Calvario (right in front of our office). All leading up to today when everyone comes to the Cemetery to pay their respects and remember the dead. Quite a special day, November 1, 1999 in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. *************************************************
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This article first appeared in the "Revue" Guatemala's English-language
Magazine.
The Archaeological Sites of Guatemala's Highland and South Coast
Twenty-five years ago the condition of some of Guatemala's roads and the lack of signs made it difficult to get to the Highlands and South Coast archaeological sites. I remember trying to find my way to Abaj Takalik, near Retalhuleu, in my Chevy Vega. At the entrance to a dirt road a sign read, El Asintal, solo 1km. After a half-hour's nighmarish drive I was nowhere close and after asking for directions it took another half-hour to get there. Now all of that has changed. There are decent roads to and signs for almost every one. So what's close and worth a visit? In the Highlands the major points of interest are the old capitols or sites occupied by the main Indian nations prior to the Conquest: The Pocomán (or Pocomám), the Kaqchikel, The Q'iche', the Tzutujil and the Mam. · Mixo Viejo, old capital of the Pocomán kingdom, is 20km from Chimaltenango near San Martin Jilotepéque. · Iximché, old capital of the Kaqchikel kingdom is just outside of Tecpán Guatemala. · Utatlán ( its Tlaxcala name) or Gumarqaaj (it's Q'iche' name), old capital of Quiche' kingdom, is off the road between Chichicastenango and Santa Cruz del Quiché. · Cerro de Oro, off the road between Santa Lucas Tolimán and Santiago Atitlán was one part of the Tzutujil kingdom. · Zaculeu, just outside the city of Huehuetenango, was the captial of the Mam Kingdom On the south coast the main sites are associated with the Olmec and Pre-classic Maya. The park and museum in La Democracia off the highway between Escuintla and Retalhuleu hold the huge Olmec-type stone heads. As has been written about in many issues of the Revue, Abaj Takalik, outside of Reu, is the major Pre-classic Maya site on the south coast. So get in your car, get on a bus, or check with your travel agent and go see a bit of Guatemala's pre-colonial history. José E. Benítez
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Olmeca you ask ? But Guatemala is the heart of the "Mundo Maya". Yes, Guatemala is the heart of the Mundo Maya with such archaeological sites as: Tikal, Quirigua, Iximche, Mixco Viejo, and so many more. So what is with the "Mundo Olmeca" ??? The part of Guatemala referred to as the "Pacific Coast and Maya Highlands" includes the areas from Escuintla and Puerto San Jose in the south to Retalhuleu and into Mexico in the west. Artifacts found in the Pacific coast area include monumental sculpture and carved stelae bearing Long Count dates and hieroglyphics that mark the beginning of the Late Preclassic Period (100 AD - 100 BC). Early in the Christian area strong influences from central Mexico created a hybrid Maya-Mexican culture. The most notable site in the area is 30km west of Retalhuleu - Abaj Takalik. Found here have been large "Olmecoid" stone heads along with many other objects that date this site as one of the earliest in the entire Mayan world. This site is still active and you can see the excavations in process. Because of this, Abaj Takalik is not restored and "pretty" for tourism as are Tikal and Copán. Further east, towards Esquintla, is the Guatemalan town of Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa. There are 3 interesting sites in the area. Finca Las Ilusiones and its museum house hundreds of objects, large and small that have been collected from the finca over the centuries. Bilbao is a large ceremonial site that dates back to about 600 AD. The site consists of several separate sites all within tall stands of sugar cane. The stones there, although weathered, are elaborately carved. El Baúl is on a hilltop and has similar stones and figures as Bilboa. El Baúl is particularly interesting as it is still used by the locals as an active place to conduct rituals. Finally, the town of La Democracia - like Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa - is in the middle of the ancient Mexican-Mayan civilizations. Great Olmecoid heads are arranged in the main plaza of town and the small museum has many artifacts collected locally. A four-hour public bus ride from Guatemala City to Retalhuleu can make for an interesting cultural experience. You can get there from Quetzaltenango in a couple hours by bus. If you prefer more comfort and security, VISION Travel has a 2 day/1 night "Mundo Olmeca" package visiting the 4 locations mentioned above, as well as spending time at the Xocomil Water Park near Retalhuleu. Stop by the office for more information about our tour, or plan your own itinerary using some of the many guidebooks we have in our resource library. However you travel there, Guatemala's south coast is a special place. VISION Travel 3a. Av. Norte #3 (behind
the cathedral)
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This article first appeared in the "Revue" Guatemala's English-language
Magazine.
Abaj Takalik is one of the earliest known sites in the Mayan world. Located 30km west of the city of Retalhuleu, near the village of El Asintal, the ruins are set in an area of tropical vegetation. Trees and plants hang over the weathered temples, altars and stelae. The more than 160 stone sculptures indicate that the symbolic representation of opposites - life and death, light and dark - was significant to their creators. A frog, symbol of fertility, looks to the east, witnessing the birth of the sun each morning, while an owl, whose call is thought to announce death, looks west to the setting sun and the world of darkness beyond. The open mouth on many figures is thought to be the interface between dark and light. Other sculptures, based in the Olmec culture, show bot bellied humans with baby faces and oriental eyes, and feed speculation that Central America was visited by men from Asia well before the arrival of men from Europe. Then there are sculptures of bizarre hybrids: parts of one animal carefully combined with parts of another. We can only speculate on their significance. While Abaj Takalik is off the beaten track, a day's outing from your base in Retalhuleu will show you much about the Maya of Guatemala's south coast. James Sim [Editor's Comments]
Abaj Takalik is 30km west of Retalhuleu on the way to Coatepeque. You need to tell the driver you want to go to the ruins of Abaj Tkalik or to the village of El Asintal. You will be dropped off at the entrance road to El Asintal. The ruins are 5km down that road. From here you can catch a bus, pay for a ride in a pickup or walk. ===============================================
Thanks for your great newsletters. I'll be leaving for Guatemala
City for a
I am writing with an unusual request. I am a freelancer whose also been assigned the task of a story focusing
in
Thank you in advance for your consideration. Sincerely,
[Editor's note] If anyone has an answer for Iyna please email it to mailto:ilinemedia@aol.com, your help is greatly appreciated. ===============================================
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Have a great trip!! Tom Lingenfelter - Editor
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