Charlie, Nick, Alisha, and I traveled to the town of San Juan Sacatepequez on Thursday, June 24, to observe a festival in honor of their patron saint, John the Baptist. There were costumed dancers on the town square. This young fellow was happy to pose for a photo in exchange for Q1. He and his two friends seemed to enjoy the attention.
The masked dancers were wearing elaborate and beautiful costumes with feathered headdresses.
The men were dancing to the music of the marimba, Guatemala's national instrument.
We walked inside the Catholic church, which was decorated with fresh flowers and many candles.
At noon, there was a procession. Unfortunately, we just caught the tail end of it. We arrived just in time to see this float carried by on the shoulders of many men. I assume it is their patron, Saint John.
This lady is wearing the native costume of the town of San Juan. Nearly every women and girl we saw was wearing native Mayan dress, one of the reasons I find this town so fascinating.
The 'food court'. We saw lots of interesting foods for sale, including iguana meat. Charlie bought some deep fried pacaya. This unusual plant grows on the slopes of the nearby Volcan Pacaya, thus giving the mountain its name.
We saw several vendors selling live chickens.
Several blocks from the square there was a small fair with children's rides. We were amused by the merry-go-round. Some wooden horses were missing, so they simply strapped plastic riding toys in their place.
Charlie bought french fries from this food stand for Q3 ($0.35). They actually were not bad.
Charlie, Nick, Alisha, and I traveled to the town of San Juan Sacatepequez on Thursday, June 24, to observe a festival in honor of their patron saint, John the Baptist. There were costumed dancers on the town square. This young fellow was happy to pose for a photo in exchange for Q1. He and his two friends seemed to enjoy the attention.
The masked dancers were wearing elaborate and beautiful costumes with feathered headdresses. 
The men were dancing to the music of the marimba, Guatemala's national instrument.
We walked inside the Catholic church, which was decorated with fresh flowers and many candles.
At noon, there was a procession. Unfortunately, we just caught the tail end of it. We arrived just in time to see this float carried by on the shoulders of many men. I assume it is their patron, Saint John.
This lady is wearing the native costume of the town of San Juan. Nearly every women and girl we saw was wearing native Mayan dress, one of the reasons I find this town so fascinating.
The 'food court'. We saw lots of interesting foods for sale, including iguana meat. Charlie bought some deep fried pacaya. This unusual plant grows on the slopes of the nearby Volcan Pacaya, thus giving the mountain its name.
We saw several vendors selling live chickens.
Several blocks from the square there was a small fair with children's rides. We were amused by the merry-go-round. Some wooden horses were missing, so they simply strapped plastic riding toys in their place.
Charlie bought french fries from this food stand for Q3 ($0.35). They actually were not bad.
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