Costume Society of America and Maya World Tours Guatemala and Honduras Costume and Cultural Awareness Study Tour May 15-27, 2018 Day 1, May 15, Arrival Day Nineteen CSA colleagues and friends gathered in Guatemala City where we were quickly immersed in the cultural experience of a lifetime! Participants traveled from their home towns to Guatemala City Aurora International Airport. Study tour coordinators Vicki and Roger Berger met arriving participants at the gathering spot outside the airport terminal. By 9:30 PM, everyone had arrived and all were settled-in at the Hotel Las Américas. Day 2, May 16, Introduction to Guatemala City Our tour guide and interpreter, Mario Soto, of Maya World Tours, led us on a wonderful tour of Guatemala City. The tour included a stop at the Parque Central and the Catedral de Santiago de Guatemala. Seen behind Mario are the memorial columns for victims of Guatemala s Civil War during the years 1960 to 1996. It was an honor to view the statue of Our Lady of during processions. Leaving the Catedral, we visited El Mapa en Relieve, a large topographical map of Guatemala and surrounding border countries. This experience helped us understand the geography of this area of Central America. LEFT: Liwy Grazioso, Director of enthusiastic introduction to the Kaminaljuyu culture. RIGHT: At Parque Arqueológico Kaminaljuyu, participants explored excavations at this major Maya site located in present-day Guatemala City.
Day 3, May 17, Museums of Guatemala City Example of storage techniques displayed in a conservation exhibit. We visited the campus of Universidad Francisco Marroquín to experience the premier costume museum in Guatemala, Museo Ixchel. Museum Anthropologist Lucia Jiménez led an excellent guided tour in English. One of many mannequins dressed in traditional traje. Note inverted clay pot used for the head of the mannequin. Participants anxiously await their special behind-the-scenes tour! After lunch, we returned to campus to visit Museo Popol Vuh to learn about Guatemala s archaeological past and colonial history. The exhibitions included exquisite Maya jade jewelry. CSA participants gathered on the steps of the museum complex our exploration of Guatemala City. At night, we prepared for our trip to Honduras and the Maya ruins of Copán.
Day 4, May 18, Travel day to Copán Ruinas, Honduras We traveled in style, thanks to Fidel Ovalle s skilled driving and the comfort of our Yutong Turismo Yawhe Nissi Motor Coach. Participants spread out with the luxury of two seats available for each person. A surprise morning break was a stop at El Chayal, an ancient Maya obsidian quarry. At Hotel Copán Marina in Copán Ruinas, joined the group for the Honduras visit.
Day 5, May 19, All-day visit to the archaeological ruins of Copán Scarlet macaws rule the entrance to the ruins. Roger Berger brings up the rear of the column of would-be archaeologists. Copán ruins. Participant Karrie Porter-Brace, who completed her out regalia details on Stela N. In the Main Plaza of the Acropolis there are several stelae dedicated to late rulers of the Copán Dynasty. Uaxac Lajun U baj K awil, commonly known as 18 Rabbit. His regalia centralization of power in the social and religious activity of the ancient Classic Period polity. [From Karrie Porter-Brace]
At the end of the day, Raúl explains the history and Stela M is the portrait of the 15th ruler, K ak' Yipyaj Chan K awil. By this time in the polity history, the social and spiritual responsibilities were spread among members of the ruling elite. His regalia was still very focused on the spiritual power of the central ruler, but there were others who participated in this ritual activity. Copán royal headdresses were made of long green quetzal feathers, with the central symbol a zoomorphic patron of the family lineage. Regalia also included collars and bracelets of jade beads. Elaborate sandals held feet in the mouth of earth monster patrons. [From Karrie Porter-Brace]
Day 6, May 20, Travel day to Guatemala City Our travel day to Guatemala City had three wonderful breaks. At a Shell gas station, Mario pointed out a cashew tree. This tree is working very hard to produce each and every cashew nut. No wonder they are so expensive! Down the road, we stopped in Estanzuela to visit the Museo de Paleontología, Arqueología, y Geología. In the main gallery, we encountered these extinct New World giants, a mastodonte and a Pan- American ground sloth. Before returning to our hotel in Guatemala City, we visited the park and church called El Cerrito del Carmen. We joined the Sunday paseo in the park and enjoyed Albert Celoza s rendition of Bésame Mucho while Connie Houde videotaped the performance. Click here to watch the video: https://youtu.be/srar3cjznqm. In the evening, we unpacked, repacked, and prepared for our Lago de Atitlán adventure.
Day 7, May 21, Travel day to Lago de Atitlán and Panajachel Our adventure around the shores of Lago de Atitlán was home-based in the town of Panajachel. From Pana we explored the towns and villages around the lake by boat. As we left Guatemala City behind, the beautiful countryside became our classroom. More and more, we saw people wearing their regional traje, such as this woman with her huipile (blouse), faja (belt), delantal (apron), and corte (skirt). Along the way, we stopped at the archaeological site La Ciudad de Iximché. In the up-close view of the beautifully decorated, former school buses, so prevalent in Guatemala. Iximché served as the Kaqchikel Spanish kingdom of Guatemala in to plaza, explaining the features of each area. Our group settled into the Hotel Regis in Panajachel, where the comfortable bedrooms and dining room were decorated with framed huipiles.
Day 8, May 22, Group visits to San Juan La Laguna and Santa Catarina Palopó Lago de Atitlán has been called one of the most beautiful lakes in the world. Situated at an altitude of With Mario s help, we boarded our blue and white boat, El Jefe (the boss). After arriving at the dock in San Juan la Laguna, we changed transportation to small, three-wheeled vehicles, called tuc-tucs. Participants Ann Braaten, Ann Zavoral, and MeeAe Oh-Ranck are ready for the bumpy ride. It required six tuc-tucs for the CSA procession from the water front to the women s textile cooperative, Casa Flor Ixcaco (House of the Ixcaco Mexican Cotton Flower), founded in 1996 by Teresa Ujpan Perez. member of the coop for eight years. Photo by MeeAe Oh-Ranck, participant.
After beating the cotton, a spindle. Photo by MeeAe Oh-Ranck, participant. Meanwhile, the Mexican cochineal dye boiled in the dye pot. After enjoying the rest of the demonstration and the requisite shopping, we boarded El Jefe and motored across the lake to the village of Santa Catarina Palopó. Above: Pintando Santa Catarina Palopó is a local program that encourages residents to paint their homes and businesses with motifs inspired by designs on women s huipiles. Right: After lunch, we visited El Centro Cultural Santa Catarina Palopó, a small cultural center. Here we tasted atole, a warm corn drink, and enjoyed a demonstration of back-strap weaving. Colorful fajas (women s belts) provided shopping opportunities. After a full day on the lake, we still managed to explore Panajachel during free time. Participants visited the Museo Lacustre de Atitlán- Arqueología Maya SubAcuática (underwater archaeology), shopped, and/or basked in the hotel s spa.
Day 9, May 23, Group visits to Santiago de Atitlán and San Antonio Palopó Another glorious day on the lake. As we approached the Santiago de Atitlán dock, we observed women doing the family laundry. A parade of seven tuctucs delivered us to El Parque Padre A plas, a park named after a local priest, Blessed Stanley Rother of Okarche, Oklahoma, who was martyred during Guatemala s long civil war (1960-1996). In this shady, quiet, and peaceful setting, we met with local members of Mayan Hands, a bi-national, fair trade, to empowering Maya women. Presently, there are communities in the Guatemala Highlands. Mayan Hands artisans demonstrated how to wrap the local headdress called a tocoyal. The narrow ribbon that creates the tocoyal is approximately ten yards long. The artisans Tz utujil Mayan language commentary was translated into Spanish by group leader Myra, and then encounter with three-level sequential translation. After completing their headdresses, four artisans modeled the regional traje. Before we re-boarded our tuc-tucs, Mayan Hands photo moment. After lunch in Santiago de Atitlán, we headed across the lake to San Antonio Palopó. San Antonio Palopó is known for its ceramics workshops. Participants learned about the ceramics process... and boosted the local economy by purchasing the During evening free time, we sampled local restaurants and repacked for tomorrow s journey to the mercado
Day 10, May 24, Chichicastenango and Antigua In the city s basketball gymnasium, we enjoyed the colors, smells, and Our gathering spot in Chichicastenango, Department of El Quiché, was the lush interior courtyard of Hotel Santo Tomás. From this beautiful space, Mario Soto, our guide, led us to the huge public market, held on Thursdays and Sundays. Leaving the gymnasium, we navigated the narrow passageways of the market and observed products such as yarn and wooden textile production items and kitchen utensils.
Mario snapped this impromptu group photo just before turning us loose for some free time.
The steps leading to La Iglesia (church) de Santo Tomás copal resin incense. On the road again, we stopped at Restaurante Pueblo Real in Tecpán, Department of Chimaltenango, for lunch. With much anticipation, we continued to Antigua, Department of Sacatepéquez, and our luxurious lodgings at Hotel Casa Santo Domingo. This 5-Star hotel was built on and around grounds. Lush gardens and fountains welcomed us. Seventeenth century art and thriving plants decorate the covered walkways. including made-to-order omelets. line the walkways.
Day 11, May 25, Antigua Thanks to Mario s network of colleagues in Antigua, we traded our free time for a morning visit to Jade Maya, the premier jade distributor in Guatemala. We were welcomed by the owner, archaeologist Mary Lou Ridinger. Mary Lou and her late husband Jay discovered an outcropping of jade near the Motagua River jade factory and retail store that same year. She also invited our group to return that evening for a reception and series of lectures about jade. Many of us did so. After Mary Lou s lecture and Shopping ensued. After our jade experience, we traveled a short plantation and museum. Mario led our tour of the Museo del Café and the roasting facility. After the music performance, we continued our tour of La Azotea, including the gallery of musical instruments and the gallery featuring environments and costumed mannequins. This wedding party is from Sumpango, Department of Sacatepéquez. After a typical Guatemalan lunch, a musical group from San Juan Comalapa, Department of Chimaltenango, played traditional Maya music. Música Maya AJ is led by Luis Calí, accompanied by his two brothers.
Day 12, May 26, Antigua and Guatemala City Saturday morning was devoted to exploring downtown Antigua with freedom to stop and enjoy the unexpected, such as this marching band from Jocotenango, Department of Sacatepéquez. During free time at Nim Po t Centro de Textiles Tradicionales, participants added Guatemalan textiles and handicrafts to their luggage weight allowance, including crocheted balls, placemats and napkins, and second-hand aprons. After free time, we continued to Guatemala City where we rechecked into Hotel las Américas. Nothing ends a supper more quickly than Roger and Vicki s announcement of tomorrow s airport departure schedule. Only a few hours of sleep for the early birds! Day 13, May 27, Guatemala City s Aurora International Airport and HOME! 9:30 AM with the third and last group. By the time we returned to the hotel, the Sunday promenade on Avenida sleepily, on the amazing adventures of the past two weeks. We wondered what travel experiences await CSA colleagues and friends on the next study tour. ~Vicki and Roger Berger, Study Tour Coordinators Unless otherwise noted, photographs by Study Tour Coordinator Vicki Berger.