Totonicapán Feria, 24 September 2011
Christina & me with our CTA David Xiloj, Festival de Bandas
Teatro Municipal
September in Guatemala, especially in Totonicapán, is a month of cultural activities and celebrations. As the academic year winds down, the Ministry of Education hosts several important municipal-wide events for the schools. Once again, Christina and I led the desfile (parade) alongside our CTA (counterpart) down to the complejo (athletic fields) for the Festival de Bandas. We sat through over five hours of band performances. The following week, the abanderados were honored in the beautiful annual ceremony in the Teatro Municipal. Abanderado comes from the word bandera (flag) and is the student who has earned the most points during the school year (more commonly know in the U.S. as the valedictorian). This student marches carrying the Guatemala flag in this ceremony and all subsequent parades, flanked on either side by the second and third place students. All básico institutos por cooperativo participate and, interestingly, what appeared to be about three-quarters of the students of this highest academic achievement this year were female.
Relocation Celebration
On September 11, Guatemala held its presidential and local elections. In anticipation of civil unrest, nearly half the population of Peace Corps volunteers was relocated for nearly a week. I hosted two refugee friends, Linnea and Kiernan, new YD volunteers living in Sololá and Baja Verapaz. While we were unable to go anywhere, we spent a fun and relaxing few days celebrating Kiernan’s birthday, watching movies, and whipping up delicious meals.
I marched in yet another, local parade with one of my schools in the community of Nimapá, on September 14th.
Abanderados in the Nimapá desfile (School where I work to the right)
Toto site mates in Parque Central, Xela
Guatemalan Independence Day is September 15th and the night before, Xela hosts one of the biggest parties in the nation in celebration of Independence Day, as well as the Xela feria.
The Totonicapán Feria, celebrated in coordination with the feast day of our patron saint, San Miguel the archangel, begins on September 24 each year. Once again I marched in this long parade with my schools, but this year clad in traje tipico. My students and teachers loved it. And I enjoyed it too.
Me with my students from Xenajtajuyup who were elected as the señoritas del instituto
View of Toto from the Ferris Wheel
The feria in Toto is enormous and generates the most enthusiasm I ever see in town. Currently, the streets are clogged with people and venders selling crafts, food, Guatemalan sweets, clothing, and a million other things. Every morning begins with firecrackers erupting in the streets and each day ends with concerts and fireworks in the Parque Central. There are various juegos electronicos (rides) in the terminal – ferris wheel, bumber cars, the “zipper,” and various other scary and dizzying rides.
Julio and me on the Rueda
