The Real Antigua

I spent two weeks in La Antigua, and I loved every minute. I would have stayed longer had there been room at my hostel through the New Year festivities. I loved my daily routine of enjoying meals and the view from the rooftop terrace, getting my morning coffee from the toothless yet always smiling barista (there was a diploma on the wall) at my favorite panadería, studying my Spanish while working out at the gym via subtitled Law & Order and CSI episodes, and walking the streets looking for the perfect photo op. After my first week there, I realized that it is somewhat difficult to know what the real Antigua is. It is definitely a tourist town with restaurants serving an international fare at inflated prices and a plethora of tour agencies offering pricey tours to the other main attractions in Guatemala. When you walk around town, you see people sporting modern, stylish fashions and hairstyles, cell phones, and digital cameras. Everyone speaks English. But somehow it does not take away from Antigua’s charm.
You still see the indigenous women in traditional Mayan dress that come into the city from their homes in the villages on the outskirts to sell their wares at the market and on the streets. The brightly decorated chicken buses pass constantly. In the wee hours of the morning, the milk man delivers bottles of fresh milk on a bicycle. You can walk the cobblestone streets admiring the colonial architecture, brilliant colors, and crumbling ruins around every corner. You can sit at a cafe enjoying a cup of coffee and a conversation with the views of tree-covered mountains and volcanoes surrounding you. You can eat a $1.50 breakfast or $2 lunch in the market if you’re willing to wander through the maze of vendors to find it. You can buy a 50 cent tostada or tortilla snack from one of the many women who set up their grills everyday around the parks and in front of the churches.
But in reality the people that own homes in Antigua are rich or at least “well off.” The people that come to work in Antigua from the outlying towns are not. I think that the real Antigua lives behind large, wooden doors (yes, those doors that we foreigners love to take pictures of) where the families that can afford property here have created beautiful, cozy spaces with lush gardens and nice homes. I think much of the social activity happens in these private spaces where families and friends share meals and conversations. The panaderías bustle everyday with locals buying cakes and sometimes up to 20 rolls or baguettes preparing for their evening meals. I of course am making a lot of assumptions, but this is what I saw.

I usually am not a fan of touristy towns, but La Antigua definitely captured a bit of my heart. It is such a beautiful town; I could not stop taking photos. And it’s such a relaxing place to be. I do not know how they’ve managed to keep the charm, but they have found the secret that so many other tourist attractions have lost. Maybe it’s because everyone seems to have an extreme appreciation for not only Antigua but also the rest of Guatemala, especially the culture of the indigenous people, the farmlands, and the diversity of its geography. Perhaps it’s because the Guatemalan people are just so friendly, and that friendliness rubs off on even the foreigners that have moved here to establish new homes and businesses. Whatever it is, I’m happy to have called La Antigua my home for a small period of time.

Check out photos of this beautiful colonial town.

Check out Travel Tips for La Antigua, including where to stay, what to do, what to eat and drink, and how to do it on a budget.