This week's Photo of the Week was taken by me, Cynthia Davis, in January of 2007 of these two sweet amigas going to school in the town of Chuitzanchaj. Chitzanchaj is a remote village above the Lake this is part of the Santa Cruz la Laguna district.
View the Photos of the Week archive at: http://santacruzlalaguna.weebly.com/photos.html
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- 13 June, 5:30 - 9 p.m., Literary Reading with Zacc Dukowitz, The Panajachel Center, Calle Principal, Panajachel (see details below)
[email protected]. I need to receive your submission no later than Sunday afternoons as this Blog comes out on Monday mornings.
Check out regular event listings on the Lake Atitlan Events Calendar, http://ev-cal.com/fb/106177
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Local writer Zacc Dukowitz will Be reading in Panajachel this Saturday, June 13.
Zacc Dukowitz is a writer from Gainesville, Florida who has been living here in Santa Cruz with his wife, Spenser, for about a year and a half. He's been writing fiction for the last nine years, and since moving here he's had 12 short stories published in various literary magazines.
Zacc's work is eclectic, ranging from humor to science fiction to more serious pieces about death and loss. Despite the wide-ranging styles he employs, a uniting vein runs through his fiction in his abiding interest in identity and the ways that stereotypes can limit and define us, whether in our conceptions of masculinity and femininity, or in our conceptions of ourselves.
A good example of his exploration of identity can be seen in his most recent publication, "Robert and the Maximón", which takes place here in Guatemala, in the cities of Xela and Santiago. The story opens: "Everything smelled new in Xela. The burnt wood and the rain and the cheap gasoline, the sweet bread baking in the panaderias in the early morning and the wet cobblestones in the afternoon, all of it almost familiar, almost like home, but then twisting just so on the wind to reveal itself as altogether different." Read this story here, and check out more stories by Zacc at www.zaccdukowitz.com.
If you'd like to attend Zacc's reading, it will be held at the Roots Cafe, inside the Panajachel Cultural Center, this Saturday, June 13th at 6:30 p.m., with a dinner to follow at 7. Please mark "Going" on the Facebook event if you are interested in attending, so we can get an accurate headcount:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1522781867968628/. Thanks!
- 5:30-6:30 Happy Hour and meet the Author
- 6:30-7:00 Book reading
- 7:00 Dinner Party "Southern Eclectic" (by RESERVATION ONLY) - 7762-2936
Tomato-Watermelon Salad
Fried Chicken and Waffles with Bourbon Maple Syrup
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Frozen Key Lime pie
Vegetarian, Vegan/gluten free also.
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There are several items of interest here and I will number them. Most of this I gleaned from a discussion on the Facebook Guatemala Expat's page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/GuatemalaExpats/?ref=br_tf
1. The following came from a Guatemala immigration service Facebook page: (first in English translation, then in the original Spanish): https://www.facebook.com/img.serv
ATTENTION!
To all our customers, we inform that Immigration is making some sudden changes. Those who have children under age, are asked to add to the visa extension application a complete legalized copy of passports of both parents.
Also I advise to start the process 3 weeks before the expiration date for under age children to avoid paying fines and now is required a certified copy of the birth certificate of the child in the country of origin by the Embassy of Guatemala and the foreign ministry in Guatemala.
Please take note. Thank You.
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ATENCIÓN!
A todos nuestros clientes se les informa que el departamento de Migración está haciendo algunos cambios repentinos. A quienes tienen hijos menores de edad se les pide copia completa de pasaportes de ambos padres legalizadas.
Además se conseja renovar visa de menores con 3 semanas de anticipación para no tener que pagar multas pues al momento de tener multas, es necesario presentar una copia legalizada de la partida de nacimiento del menor en el país de procedencia por la Embajada de Guatemala y por el Ministerio de Relaciones exteriores en Guatemala.
2. Debit cards are no longer accepted for payment for visa renewals. Only credit cards or cash.
3. For visa renewals of underaged children it is obligatory that you provide a certified copy of the birth certificate.
4. If you use a courier to go to the border or to the Guate Migration office to get your visa renewed, do the following:
- Get a photocopy of the dpi of the individual who is the actual courier in case the passport goes missing.
- Ask courier to get a receipt which is stamped with the date and time of receipt
5. Plan ahead to get your visa renewed. People think that it will be better if they drop the passport off at the last day, but is not. Migración will add 90 days on top of the days one has left.
6. Here is a link to the page that has all of the different types of visa and residency applications:
http://www.migracion.gob.gt/index.php/descargas/category/27-formularios-extranjeria-2014.html
7. And finally, there is a new director of Migration:
http://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/politica/destituyen-al-director-general-de-migracion
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Ayuda Para la Salud de Peros y Gatos needs your help! They have raised less than 1/2 of what they need for their annual operating expenses for the year. Ayuda director, Selaine d'Ambrosi, says that each donation of $35 usd provides for the following treatments:
- Sterilization
- Vaccinations to prevent: Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Parvo, Rabies, and other deadly diseases
- Treatments to cure and prevent external parasites such as: fleas, lice, and ticks
- Treatments to cure and prevent internal parasites such as: Hook Worms, Round Worms, Whip Worms, and other types of internal parasites
- Follow-up care
- Nutritional food supplements as needed
- Website: https://ayudagt.wordpress.com/donations/
- Go Fund Me: http://www.gofundme.com/79groc
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ayuda-Para-la-Salud-de-Perros-y-Gatos/800000160107476?fref=ts
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If you want to get an organic chicken to eat, Shad Qudsi of Atitlan Organics is now selling them at Q20/lb. He also has organic chicken eggs for Q30/doz. Call 4681-4697 to place your order!
And if you would rather raise your own, Shad has a great introductory page to chicken breeds at Lake Atitlan:
http://www.atitlanorganics.com/blog/keeping-chickens-in-lake-atitlan-using-permaculture-principles/
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Beginning June 18, low-cost Mexican airline Volaris will be expanding it's service to include Guatemala City. In addition to cities in Mexico, Volaris also serves many cities in the United States, primarily on the West Coast, but also NYC, Chicago, Miami and Orlando. Beginning September 10, their service will also include San Jose, Costa Rica.
http://www.volaris.com/en/home/travel-with-volaris/our-Destinations/cities-you-can-reach-with-volaris/
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Comedor Comunitario ACÁ recently opened in Panajachel. Located on Calle Santander in the Centro Commercial Plaza Atitlán (next to Marco Polo Ice Cream and Banco Industrial). ACÁ not only translates to "here," but also is the acronym for Alianzas Comunitarias Atitlán. This comedor is owned and run by ACÁ, a local women's cooperative and boasts healthy, clean, economical food. Open Monday - Thursday. No hours are listed on the poster.
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Wonderful home for rent in Santa Cruz. Lovely views of lake, volcano and mountains. FULLY furnished with new beds and bedding. Also includes American-made washer and dryer. Full kitchen and fireplace. 2 bedrooms. 2 minute walk to beach and about 8 minutes to public boat dock. Owner lives close by and maintains everything to high standards. Gardens are fully fenced in and secure. $400/month and electricity is included in rent. Internet is available. No pets as garden is fully developed. Please see the website http://colinmacneil58.wix.com/lake-atitlan-house or you may also call Dennis at 5885-8379 or email at [email protected].
You can view more listings on this website at: http://santacruzlalaguna.weebly.com/rentals-property-sales.html.
Listings are free, so if you would like to list a property, please contact me via the Contact Form on this website. Please keep your listing brief and no photos please. I will link to a website that has photos and more description. If you already have a listing, please look it over and let me know if you need any changes.
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Trolling Facebook and the Internet I often find sites and pages that are of interest to Atitlaners....
Atitlán WebCam: Steve Ward of Panajachel has set up a webcam view of Lake Atitlán. The webcam is situated on a tower 600 meters above Panajachel located at 14°45'31.52"N 91° 9'10.07"W Altitude 2660 M. http://panajachel.biz
You can view an interesting YouTube video of the installation of the webcam here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQ5oMTqDWfQ
GUATE Rides: A new Facebook group if you are looking to share a ride or looking for a ride. This is a closed Facebook group so you not only have to be on Facebook, but you need to be approved. https://www.facebook.com/groups/GUATErides/
Salvador Abel Chavajay Bixcul, Pianist: You've got to check out this YouTube video of this brilliant indigenous pianist from San Juan la Laguna!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWzP0n1oPn0&feature=share
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Rainfall in Paxanax for the week of June 1-7, 2015: 4.7 inches or 11.9 cm.
And here's a report from John Berry, the "official" keeper of the rainfall report:
"A very unofficial rain gauge is installed on our front porch railing. One of the small pleasures is checking it each morning, then entering the results in our simple rainfall spread sheet:
http://santacruzlalaguna.weebly.com/rainfall-report.html
We started May 9, 2014 so we have just over a year of records. Talk about cheap thrills!! Here are a couple of trivia facts from the record.
- most rain in a 24 hour period -- 6” --6/3/2014
- most rain in a week -- 10.65” -- week ending 8/31/14
- most rain in a month -- 21.75” -- September, 2014
Click this link to view the Rainfall Report on this website:
http://santacruzlalaguna.weebly.com/rainfall-report.html
*** The Mayan glyph Kawoq symbolizes rain, lightning and thunder, water and air. It also represents the collective consciousness. ***
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