GuatemalaDailyPhoto

No matter how rainy a day is, stores never close, street trading activities continue in the best way they can ’cause they have mouths to feed.

Once upon a time there were a variety of prosperous small businesses all over the City. Globalization and malls makes now harder for them to grow or even to continue. However La Juguetería (Toy store) is an old company that remains after so many time.

Do you remember some local stores you visited when you were a child?

One of the advantages of paper book is that you can carry it anywhere without worrying it can be stolen. It is nice to see Guatamalan readers in places like this, a camioneta, an opportunity to expand your mind while waiting to get to your destintation.

Laguna Lachua by Nicoletta Fabbri.

Guatemala is magical and enchanting. Just take a trip Alta Verapaz, one of the provinces of Guatemala to get your dose of magic and enchantment.

Below is the short description by INGUAT about Laguna Lachua.

A place worth visiting while in Alta Verapaz is the Laguna Lachua. Lagoon Lachua looks like a little Caribbean sea set down in the tropical rainforest. The lake is surrounded by lush green vegetation including mahogany and cedar trees, and fauna such as jaguars (whose footprints can often be seen around the lake), giant shad which frequently jump out of the crystal clear waters, and colorful birds such as parrots and toucans.

If you’re still not bewitched, oops I meant convinced, take a look at this slide show about Laguna Lachua:

And a youth said, “Speak to us of Friendship.”

Your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.
For you come to him with your hunger, and you seek him for peace.
When your friend speaks his mind you fear not the “nay” in your own mind, nor do you withhold the “ay.”
And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;
For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires, all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.
When you part from your friend, you grieve not;
For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.
And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit.
For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught.
And let your best be for your friend.
If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.
For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill?
Seek him always with hours to live.
For it is his to fill your need, but not your emptiness.
And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.
For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

Khalil Gibran

I was in the flat roof of a friend’s house when I saw this treasure, a reminiscence revealed as if it were a dream.  I imagine children laughing, playing for hours, oh the school years, the games and the sense of freedom, all hidden in a flat roof.

The way children have fun nowadays is far different from what it used to be. As shown previously  Malls are everywhere  Now children can be sealed inside a plastic bubble and float around in a pool without getting wet.

Sipacate by Karlbert.

Sometimes you don’t need any words. The picture speaks for itself.

Seeing life through a child’s eyes makes the difference between ordinary and extraordinary.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

Labor Day?

In Guatemala hip hop is not just a dance or lifestyle; hip hop is a way out; a way out of gangs and violence, a way out of red zones and dangerous neighborhoods.

A quick Google search about hip hop in Guatemala took me to the website GuatemalaHipHop.com from where I grabbed the song above. Also, in the results I found this interesting article about Trasciende, an organization who teaches youth about hip hop and promotes peace, love, unity and enjoyment. Below you can find a fragment of the article and an overview video clip about Trasciende and hip hop in Guatemala.

… In the context of this reality one would not expect the youth to organize nonviolent actions, workshops or, as we shall see, an academy that teaches the principles of nonviolence. Yet, if we were to take a stroll down Calle 12 and 6ta Avenida, of Zone 1 in Guatemala City, we would find a group of mostly young men who celebrate the spirit of nonviolence every day.

Trasciende, an organization founded in 2009 by a group of five B-boys (break dancers), is a hip-hop academy that offers art workshops as a means to draw the youth away from violence and into a peaceful environment. Mr. Fer, the head of the academy, meets regularly with those who attend the workshops to discuss the four values Trasciende promotes—Peace, Love, Unity and Enjoyment… continue reading the entire article at Waging Nonviolence.

photo by Leonel [Nelo] Mijangos.

There’s always someone running in the streets of Guatemala. Probably practicing for a race or just for exercising. Nowadays we have more races than we used to and therefore more Guatemalans are running. If you wanna start running, the “Dirección Técnica de Carreras de Ruta” gives you the following recommendation:
- Learn to breath properly while running
- Eat healthy meals
- If you don’t feel you have the physical condition, start by walking every day
- Discipline
- Determine the reasons why you wan to run
- Good shoes and light clothing

I love running and I’ll try to show you more pictures of this beautiful sport. The most famous races of Guatemala (and the oldests) are:

• Carrera Max Tott (January)
• San Marcos: La Carrera de la Primareva (April)
• Media Maratón Internacional de Cobán (May)
• Media Maratón De las Rosas de Antigua Guatemala (July)
• Carrera Patzún (September)
• Maya Maratón Internacional Amatitlán (November)
• Carrera San Silvestre (December 31)