Antigua

 

Magun's Compass
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La Merced, Antigua. Copyright Michel Guntern

La Merced:
Over half the population of Guatemala today is pure Indian, descendants from the great Maya Civilization.

In 1523, Guatemala was discovered by Cortes' lieutenant, Alvarado, seeking precious metals to finance the Spanish war effort in Europe. Some silver was found at Huehetenango, but little else, and so few conquistadors stayed.

Thus the indigenous people survived in larger numbers than elsewhere.

By the sixteenth century, Antigua was a major centre. The Spaniards set about building churches, and converting the Indians to Catholicism.


Today, they still devoutly remember the last days of Jesus' life by putting on a week-long spectacle of colour, and character.

 

Nomadic Gatherings - Travels in Asia and Australia

Travel on trains and buses in Asia, then jump into cars with complete strangers in Australia and New Zealand as Michel introduces you to a collection of characters that bring Nomadic Gatherings to life.

If you can't afford to buy a copy of Nomadic Gatherings, the chapters are slowly being made available online - for free.

You may even decide that it really is worth having a hard copy in your hands; a useful read for those long bus journeys being written about, and for endless waits at ferry ports.

Nomadic Gatherings - Online Chapters.

Find out more about Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, The Middle East, and The Americas.
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