In this morning’s procession, hundreds of people dressed in deep purple robes as psuedo-Israelites to accompany the religious floats. The participants in the Procession of Roman Soldiers run around the city’s streets in the early morning hours, announcing the sentencia, the death sentence for Jesus. Others gallop on horseback.
Marimba bands play all over town, so some participants stay up the entire night. Restaurants and bars are open 24 hours during this time. The soldiers then lead off the first procession of the morning, which covers much of the city and finally ends about 3 PM! During the evening, many inhabitants lay out even more perishable carpets in front of their shops and homes.
We were enthralled as the morning’s procession ended with the dramatic float of Jesus bearing His cross, just as the sun burst over one of the city’s two volcanos: Agua. (The other one is Fuega; the names mean water and fire in Spanish). Never to miss a selling opportunity, the street vendors followed along behind the procession hawking balloons, rattles of purple-robed figures, and cotton candy.
We stopped at a coffee shop for much need cappuccinos, then wandered to the Parque Central, the heart of the city. The Park is handsomely landscaped around a central fountain. The four of us, Jean Claude, Claudie, Gunter and I, relaxed on a park bench for some time, watching the action. Guatemalan families strolled in the park, grandmothers proudly showing their grandchildren in colorful attire and round knit caps. One girl braided another’s hair. A shoeshine boy spruced up Gunter shoes. It is a cozy square, with the grandiose cathedral on one side, the City Hall on another, the Palace of the Captains General on the third side, and a shopping arcade on the fourth.
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