In Guatemala you learn to live not knowing what’s around the corner. As we headed home last night we were about to turn on the corner of Seventh Street when we saw the ethereal glow of the statues of Mary and Joseph surrounded by floating candles and propped up on the shoulders of four young boys in the center of a large group moving as one large unit of candlelight, soft chatter and anxious children bursting out in song before they approached the door of a neighbor. It was our first posada in Antigua and quickly I rushed out of the car with my camera.
Posadas are different in many Latin American countries as Rudy writes in AntiguaDailyPhoto back in 2006. Having seen them in Mexico and Spain I was surprised at how quiet and small the posadas here can be, with very little in the way of histrionics or the building of the psycho-drama before the nacimiento when the pequeño Cristo is then added on to all the floats and nativity scenes. This progression is described well here. Perhaps by the time they get to the ninth house the momentum has built up and the fireworks will be ready to roll. I can tell you that from Chiquimula we’ll be adding some noise to the mix.
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