Blogs from Capital Region, Guatemala, Central America Caribbean - page 116

In Spanish Antigua means literally antique. Antigua until 1773 was the capital of Guatemala. In 1773 Antigua was devastated by an earthquake that all but destroyed the city. The Guatemalans decided to move the capital of the country to the present location of Guatemala City. Meanwhile the citizens of Antigua rebuilt the city in the colonial Spanish style that had existed before the destruction. Now Antigua is a world heritage site, meaning that special laws regulate any renovations, or new buildings in the area. Nestled between three volcanoes Antigua is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever visited. Scattered throughout the town are ruins from the 1773 earthquake, colonial buildings now converted into restaurants, shops and Internet cafes. I had only planned to stay in Antigua for a few days but due to being ... read more

No, your eyes do not deceive you, it does say 1988. As my project here in Germany, I’ve begun to go over our travel journals started in 1988 when we left Alaska for our first long adventure. We went to Antigua, Guatemala first to study Spanish, then traveled through Central and South America for about a year and one-half. So as to have an accurate, historical record of our journals, I’m re-typing them “as is” so to speak. Therefore, the narrative might only be interesting to those of you who want to know what it was like in these places so many years ago. Important note: I do not have access to my original photos, so am using newer ones (from our visit in 08) or ones I've scanned - plan to put in the original ... read more