Beagle Channel in the Patagonia

Beagle Channel in the Patagonia

February 24, 2013

GUATEMALA, A COUNTRY IN SPANISH AMERICA




INITIAL IDEAS: A SIGN!



A few days ago, I was looking through some photos collected in a Blog Hop called Wordless Wednesday on Pictimilitude,  and I saw one fantastic scene in which a youngster is diving into a lagoon during a holiday in a Central American country.  I took this as a sign telling me to move out of the Andean Region of South America that has been providing inspiration for my latest Blogs. 


Indeed, it was time to move further north, and I chose Guatemala as my next focal point, right up next to Mexico! I started researching and collecting photos at once. 


Then I read the prompt for my next Blog Hop: The Writer’s Post, and lo, it is “The Sign” 


This was certainly an uncanny coincidence! So here I am, writing about Guatemala, there is much to tell.


POLITICAL MAP OF CENTRAL AMERICA



 Source: Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons




THE REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA.



This country has a very mixed historical heritage  which has produced a rich and varied tapestry in all areas, be it political, artistic, industrial, literary, and so on.


From the pre-Columbian periods of its history, Guatemala can proudly show us some of the more spectacular monumental Mayan structures, including El Mirador, one of the most famous sites. El Mirador is said to have been the most populated city of pre-Columbian America.



A SCENE FROM THE RUINS AT TIKAL







Source: J-F.desvignes, CC BY SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons



A VERY SHORT HISTORY OF MODERN GUATEMALA.



Some highlights of Guatemalan history are as follows:


  • Independence from Spanish rule in 1821.

  • A long period of Dictatorships that culminated around 1901 with the arrival of the American Fruit Companies.

  • The principal fruit producer was the United Fruit Company, which helped to turn Guatemala into a Banana Republic.

  • A long Civil War that extended from about 1960 to 1996, when a peace treaty was signed under the auspices of international institutions.

  • During the Civil War period, in 1992 the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Rigoberta Menchú for her work in fighting the oppression and genocide against the indigenous people of Guatemala.

  • Development begins in 1996 in all the important areas of Guatemalan life, and has been relatively rapid, although this country is still one of the poorest in Spanish America.



PRESENT DAY GUATEMALA.


Today Guatemala is a constitutional democratic republic. The country is exerting great efforts to make up for lost time in its development. At present, there are important plans to grow and export an increasing amount of raw materials for bio-fuel. Tourism is also expanding as a source of revenue.


HANDICRAFTS ON SALE







Source: Hermann Luyken, CC BY SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons


MUSIC OF GUATEMALA.


This is the most exciting topic I found! It seems that as Guatemala was one of the first regions of the New World to be exposed to European music, by the 16th century the Roman Catholic liturgical music had become an important cultural element.


LA MERCED CHURCH IN ANTIGUA






Source: David OOms, CC BY SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons


It seems also that the development of music has never stopped since that date. Guatemala has a number of performing institutions, such as orchestras, choirs, operas, soloists and many, many rock bands!

Their star element is without doubt, the MARIMBA, the national instrument.


A BEAUTIFUL CONTRA BASS MARIMBA







Source: Xylosmygame, CC BY SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons


There are a lot of attractive pieces of music written for the Marimba that have been popular for over a century. 

The marimba is a percussion instrument that is meant to be played by several interpreters at the same time. Each player performs on a specific section of the instrument. The tone varies according to the sector. The most able players actually use two mallets in each hand! How they can do that is beyond me! 

The Marimba is very versatile. After a lot of debate, I have chosen two videos. 

One is a “classic” interpretation, it is the Ave Maria


THE AVE MARIA 








The second one is a popular group playing in a restaurant. The video is a bit wobbly, but well worth it! In this one, if you look closely at the elderly white-haired gentleman at the end of the marimba, you will see he is using three mallets! Enjoy!








SOME FINAL THOUGHTS.


The Marimba just made my day! I am a musical person, I studied piano for about 8 years, and I still play. I had heard the Marimba before (anybody remember the Third Man’s Theme…”when marimbas start to play…?), but I had never really looked at it nor wondered how it was played. I found it astounding! I hope you like it too!







SPANISH VERSION

(This Blog is bilingual)


Este post responde a un Blog Hop de mi grupo, que tomó como tema “La Señal”. En efecto durante los días recientes, mientras revisaba unas fotos, recibí una “señal” que me indicó que ya era tiempo de dedicarme a la América Central, después de desarrollar varios temas referidos a los Andes de América del Sur.

Por tanto aquí estoy, escribiendo sobre Guatemala. ¡Hay mucho que contar!


LA REPÚBLICA DE GUATEMALA.


Este país cuenta con una herencia histórica de lo más variada, que a su vez ha producido un rico tapiz en todas las áreas, ya sea en lo político, cultural, industrial, literario y un gran etcétera.

De su época pre-Colombiana, Guatemala nos muestra con orgullo algunos de los monumentos más espectaculares de la cultura Maya, que incluyen El Mirador, unos de los sitios más famosos.



UNA MUY BREVE HISTORIA SOBRE LA GUATEMALA MODERNA.


Algunos puntos a destacar son los siguientes:


  • La independencia de España se obtiene en 1821.

  • Se sucede un largo período de gobiernos dictatoriales que culmina en 1901 con el arribo de las Compañías Fruteras de Estados Unidos.

  • La más poderosa de estas compañías fue la United Fruit Company, que se esforzó en transformar Guatemala en una República Bananera.

  • Una larga Guerra Civil se extendió desde 1960 hasta 1996, año en que se firmó un tratado de paz bajo los auspicios de instituciones internacionales.

  • Durante el período de guerra civil, en 1992, Rigoberta Menchú recibe el Premio Nobel de la Paz por su lucha contra la opresión y el genocidio de la población nativa de Guatemala.

  • El desarrollo comienza en 1996 en todas las áreas más importantes de la vida en Guatemala, y ha sido relativamente rápido, aunque el país todavía presenta uno de los mayores niveles de pobreza en la América Hispana.



LA GUATEMALA ACTUAL.


Hoy en día Guatemala es una república constitucional y democrática. El país realiza grandes esfuerzos por cerrar la brecha en su desarrollo. Hay importantes planes para exportar materia prima para la producción de biocombustibles. El turismo también crece como fuente de recursos.


LA MÚSICA EN GUATEMALA.


¡Este es el tema más interesante que encontré! Al parecer y debido a que Guatemala fue una de las primeras zonas en entrar en contacto con la música europea, ya para el siglo 16 la música litúrgica de la Iglesia Católica se había transformado en un elemento cultural importante.

El desarrollo musical no se ha detenido en ningún momento desde entonces, tal es así que Guatemala cuenta con orquestas, coros, óperas, solistas y ¡múltiples bandas de rock!

Su elemento estrellas es sin duda la MARIMBA, el instrumento nacional.

Hay muchas piezas musicales compuestas para la Marimba que resultan muy atractivas y que han sido populares por más de un siglo.

La Marimba es un instrumento de percusión que está diseñado para ser tocado simultáneamente por más de una persona. Cada intérprete toca en un determinado sector del instrumento. El tono varía también según cada sector. Los intérpretes más diestros utilizan dos mazos en cada mano. ¡Me causa admiración verlos!

La Marimba es muy versátil. Tras largo debatir el tema, elegí dos videos.

El primer video es un clásico el Ave María.

El segundo video muestra un grupo popular tocando en un restaurante. El video no es muy bueno, ¡pero vale la pena! Se observa que el caballero de pelo blanco ¡está tocando con tres mazos! ¡A disfrutar!


ALGUNAS IDEAS FINALES


¡La Marimba me dejó extasiada! Soy una persona con alguna trayectoria musical, estudié piano durante unos 8 años y todavía toco. Había escuchado los sones de la Marimba con anterioridad, pero nunca había observado realmente este fabuloso instrumento ni sabía como se tocaba. ¡Lo encontré admirable! ¡Espero que a ti también te guste!



More about similar topics in a future post.    Más sobre temas similares en un próximo post.





LANGUAGE TIPS FOR ENGLISH



Words that go together!  * Have a bath   - * Make room   - * Break the ice    - * Take a taxi   – * Save space 





LANGUAGE TIPS FOR SPANISH.



Expresiones de uso frecuente: * A rey muerto, rey puesto - * Al pan, pan y al vino, vino  - *  Me suena





How is your level of comprehension?      Cómo está su nivel de comprensión?





© 2013  joanveronica  (Joan Robertson)





I will be very happy to receive your comments! Just click the word “comments” lower down.

8 comments:

  1. Rigoberta Menchu is one of my heroes. Not only that, I researched - for my Spanish major - the US role in the Guatemalan Civil War - and wrote a 25 page paper in Spanish. US and Guatemala relations - wow. Now there is a sinister role and there are some incredible facts about it all. Such a fascinating world in Guatemala and it's one of my goals to make it there someday soon. I LOVE Latino culture - it's part of who I am and the Guatemalan people are so beautiful and colorful.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Cyndi, what an interesting comment! I had some trouble deciding what to write, I do want to avoid controversy! I can quite understand your points, though, and I would love to read your paper! There is certainly a lot to write about, so I will go back at some moment and write some more! I'm so happy with my general topic, I think I made a good choice. Did you have time to listen to the videos? They are quite something extraordinary! I hope you saw that the post is linked up to Pictimilitude. Have a good day!

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  2. Great website. Plenty of useful info here. I'm sending it to some buddies ans also sharing in delicious. And naturally, thanks to your sweat!

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    ReplyDelete
  3. Great site. Thank you for visiting my blog today.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Judy! You're welcome! I love blog hops and visits! I try to comment as much as possible, too. Hope to see you here again!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for sharing on The HomeAcre Hop! See you on the next hop at:
    http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/03/the-homeacre-hop-9.html

    When you get a chance, check out The Linky Love Party for new places to share your posts!
    http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/03/lets-party.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi there, thanks for inviting me! I will certainly try to be there. And I will also check that link! Have a good day!

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