Archive for March, 2009
Culture Unshocked
Written by Ana Flinder Culture shock is a strange phenomenon which most of us have experienced in one way or another. For those of us who travel outside of our own countries infrequently, arrival in a new and foreign culture can be absolutely overwhelming; every moment is filled with so many new sights and sounds, [...]
Pat Crocker, Artist and Architect
If you lived in La Antigua Guatemala after World War II and before 1972 you would have known Pat Crocker for his work in the restoration of colonial houses and for his exquisite watercolor paintings of Indian costume. Frederick Siddartha Crocker Junior, or as he would sometimes introduce himself “Frederick, ‘The Enlightened One,’Crocker,” was born [...]
The Heartbreak of HDD
Some simple steps to avoid the dangers that Hemispherical Discognizant Disorder can cause. If you are a foreigner in Central America, some people in the home country think that you spend Christmas in sweltering heat and humidity. “Oh, yeah,” they say. “Down there, the seasons are reversed and all that.” The charitable response, the one [...]
The Riecken Foundation
The Riecken Foundation establishes and supports community libraries in Guatemala and Honduras. The network of 11 community libraries in Guatemala provides dynamic programming for people of all ages and free access to information resources, including Internet, reading programs, youth clubs, technical workshops and cultural events. Mission: To promote democracy and prosperity in Central America through [...]
A Journey through Sweet Waters
Written by Gregory Kipling photo: Scott Drennan Exploring Río Dulce Past and Present Measuring a mere 42 kilometers from source to mouth, Río Dulce is hardly one of Central America’s great waterways. However, despite its small size the river has attracted a great deal of attention over the past 500 years. Conquistadors, scientists, pirates and [...]
10 NGO’s Dealt a Winning Hand at Vegas in Antigua
Written by Jennifer Holden The inaugural Vegas in Antigua fund-raiser was a sure bet for 10 non-governmental organizations that provide an array of services throughout Guatemala. Held last month at the Casa Convento Conception in La Antigua Guatemala, the event combined games of chance and intrigue for an exciting afternoon of fun and fancy. From [...]
Nurse Pain is At Large in Panajachel
The Panajachel Players bring mirth, music, farce and Vaudeville to Lake Atitlán. If you are Dr. Willard Dillard, the sobriety-challenged President of the Herbaceous Succulent Society, it may be hard to cast someone to play you in a skit. After Dillard emerged from the recesses of Barbara Ramey’s gauche imagination, the man tapped to play [...]
Out of the Blue
Written by Terry Kovick Biskovich Dateline: 1987 Northern California Grandpa Jones, 93-year-old tribal medicine man. From the Files of G.W. Sweetwater and B. Yates-Penny “It’s a matter of belief, there’s nothing else. You get what you give out or what you’re afraid of. Did you know that everything out there is a reflection? Let me [...]
The Festival of Consciousness 2009
Written by María Elisa Murray Presenting new solutions for a better world What does it mean to be conscious? How conscious are we in our lives? How can we become more conscious as individuals, as a community, as a planet? To answer these questions and more, the inaugural Festival of Consciousness will be held in [...]
La Antigua is No. 1 Destination Among UK Travelers
La Antigua Guatemala has been named the top city overall in the Wanderlust Travel Awards 2009, based on the votes of some 3,000 travelers. Wanderlust is a leading magazine for adventure travelers in the United Kingdom. Placing second was Kyoto, Japan, followed by Boston, USA. The previous first-place destination, Luang Prabang, Laos, was knocked down [...]
The Nahualá Table
Written by Tony Pasinski While textiles form one part of Guatemalan Style, another major element is furniture. And there the Nahualá table is probably king. No home in Guatemala is complete without one. How it got its name is a mystery since in the town of Nahualá, it’s known as a mesa de cocina. The [...]
The True Adventures of Taymor
Written by J.B. “So this is what quicksand feels like,” thought Taymor. He was waist-deep in mud and sinking slowly. With two miles of jungle between him and the resort, yelling for help would waste needed energy. His legs were completely pinned beneath the weight of the slick gray mud, and even with his machete [...]
The Winds of Change
The only constant in the world is change, and it’s the nature of all things to be transient and impermanent. Cycles of change are evident everywhere—in the seasons and climate, the changes in society, in the rise and fall of countries and economies and in the stages of life from birth through death. Change is [...]
Puppies in Purses
My daughter bought a Chihuahua puppy to “carry in her purse” as an accessory. Apparently, it is one of the latest fads among teenagers. Is being carried around so much bad for the dog? When dogs are puppies it is common to carry them around (especially with the small breeds) since they are not yet leash [...]
The Stela and the Wasps
Written by Dennis Wheeler There we were, playing charades with a man who we feared wouldn’t live past sunset. One day, late in 1966—while surveying land the government had granted to our cooperative—instead of returning to base camp on our own trail, we decided to angle off and explore some more of the jungle. Much [...]
Coffee: The Joy of the Harvest
In El Salvador, every year starts with fireworks, traditional meals and family gatherings. But also with the hope and joy of coffee harvesting, which is still going on, especially in the highlands. Coffee trees become bright and red, and between shade trees, sunlight gleams over the hopeful faces of producers and pickers. They’ve already begun [...]
Sensuous Guatemala: White
OK, so if you really must bring it up and insist on being scientific, white is officially an absence of color, and our editor wants these “sensuous” comments to be about Guatemala’s rich palette of all the colors in this land of rainbows. So maybe you’ll allow us to think of white as the framing [...]
March 2009 in Revue Magazine
Welcome to our anniversary issue. We are so thankful for the incredible support the REVUE has received for the past seventeen years—from readers, advertisers and the community in general. Six of our current sponsors have been with us from Day One, when the magazine consisted of 10 black and white pages, and we would like [...]
