A Little Piece of Guatemala

If you want to go to Guatemala and you are planning to stay just for a few days in the city, Antigua Guatemala is the best choice to go visit, have some fun spending the day there. The city of Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala, which is the official name of Antigua, is a small city that has a temperate climate and is surrounded by three volcanoes, known as The Guardians of La Antigua Guatemala: Volcán de Agua, Volcán de Acatenango, and Volcán de Fuego. Of these three, Volcán de Fuego is in activity most, if not all year. This magical city is well known by its Spanish Colonial buildings, it was the first city established by the Spaniards in Guatemala between 1541 and 1776. After the city suffered from three major earthquakes and a vast flooding caused by the rupture of the Volcán de Agua's crater, which was full of water for the continuous rain, the city, first capital of Guatemala, was transferred to El Valle de la Ermita that is now the actual capital of Guatemala, Guatemala City.

Several years after the city was moved, the town of Antigua was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979.

Semana Santa (Holy week)

Antigua Guatemala is recognized by the solemn processions of Semana Santa (Holy Week) that are held annually ever since before the transfer of the capital to the new City of Guatemala. Usually, this holiday takes place between March and April of each year. So, if you're planning to travel this year to Guatemala, the holy week will be from Sunday March 25 - Saturday March 31, but I have to clarify that this is celebrated throughout the country and it is performed in different ways.

Also, if you'd like to find and buy beautiful and typical souvenirs from Guatemala, you can find them at the famous Mercado de Artesanías and mercado El Carmen where they sell a variety of typical things. You'll also be able to find a lot of hotels and restaurants with international gastronomy.

Arch of Santa Catalina

While you walk through the arch, you'll be able to find in the main street and surroundings, amazing places like Chocomuseo, Jade Museum, and others; Central Park, Convent Las Capuchinas, church La Catedral, and church LaMerced. You can also find in front of La Merced an outdoor market with Guatemalan food. These are some examples of wonderful locations that you can enjoy and learn about the history of this extraordinary city. Otherwise, if you're looking for something different but always near La Antigua, you can go to Cerro de la Cruz (a look out point) and Château DeFay, a vineyard, where you can taste their delightful wine and cheese.

What are we going to eat?

When is time to eat, there's nothing better than enjoying a delicious dish. In La Antigua, you can find many restaurants with international and local foods that you probably wouldn't even know they would have. Well, I'll leave here a list of some of my favorite well known and popular restaurants for you; I know you would love 'em too.

I recommend as well two of THE BEST places you shouldn't miss, the traditional Guatemalan candies, you definitely should try it.

A. María de Gordillo ★★★★★

B. El Sombrerón ★★★★

Both are in the main street exit from La Antigua.

Restaurants

1. Casa Santo Domingo (Hotel, Restaurant & Museum) - El Tenedor del Cerro (Typical food from Guatemala) ★★★★
2. La Casa De Las Sopas (Typical food from Guatemala) ★★★★
3. 7 Caldos (National & International food) ★★★★
4. Finca Filadelfia Restaurant & Museum - (National & International food) ★★★★
5. La Reunion Hotel & Restaurant - (National & International food) ★★★★
6. Tre Fratelli (Italian food) ★★★★
7. El Cazador Italiano (Italian food) ★★★★
8. Quesos y Vino (Italian food) ★★★★
9. Welten (Gourmet) ★★★★
10. Kloster (Swiss cuisine) ★★★★★

As well as other places, this marvelous city has many urban legends.

Have you ever heard about...

A. La Llorona

B. El Sombrerón

To find more about this, I recommend you to buy:

1. Por los viejos barrios de la ciudad de Guatemala (For The Old Neighborhoods Of Guatemala City). Author - Celso Lara
2. Leyendas de Guatemala (Legends of Guatemala). Author - Miguel Angel Asturias

Finally, I hope you liked it, and find this guide to be of great help when you think about traveling to Guatemala and to know a little more about my country.