off-the-ground

Some more shots from the break dance battle.

carlos

Carlos. 40 years-old. He has been working since age 14 and has been living in the streets for 10 years. When I asked him if he had a family, his response was: " I don't have anyone. I don't know anyone. I don't remember anyone".

working

I saw this little boy during that break dance battle. When I asked him why he painted his face, he said "I am working right now". He is 10 years old.

ser joven no es un delito

Last weekend in Xela, there was break dance/hip-hop battle. I got the chance to document a part of it.

He was actually off the ground for a little bit.

Photography is beautiful. Because it gives me the opportunity to capture such a gentle touch like this, that would occur only for a moment.

mano duro

Partido Patriota organized La Noche de Paz – Peace Night. Communications Director of Partido Patriota, Flor Escobar said that this is their third year of organizing this event. The purpose is to say “Welcome” to the end of the year parties, she commented.

Songs of Claudia Rebecca Samaya, that started the night, was followed by younger tune of Five Gas Band. And before the awaited concert of Marimba La Voz de Los Altos, we listened to the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. I felt sorry for the Youth Orchestra, because in the first place sound system had a lot of issues during their session and I don’t think they received the interest of audience that they deserved.

Marimba, the traditional Guatemalan instrument. LaVoz de Los Altos is a famous marimba band.

I went there, not knowing that it was organized by a political party. The whole purpose of me being there was to photograph La Voz de Los Altos. It was kind of a surprise, a visually rich one. Apart from all the political connotations, I have to tell that they have one of the (visually) best political campaigns with catchy color choice.

Lupercian Lopez Orozco, 70, looked beautiful among the shades of orange.

This orange color with a white fist on it started to appear on it, signifying the "mano duro" policy, that Partido Patriota has. Members of this political party is usually retired from the army. And their discourse is all about "peace and solidarity".

While one of the bands was playing, some of the kids were amazed hearing the type of music, that was played. Except for pop song covers, their music had a heavy touch of jazz.

Skarlett, 8, was at the concert with her mother, Azuceva. While another chico was playing with her face with strawl, she was trying to tell me that she liked the concert. After a while she came back with a phone number, written on her arm with a red lipstick. So eventually we exchanged phone numbers and she asked me where I am from. We did a little chit-chat before I continued to take photos.

Josefina

Josefina Limatuj, 36, is selling Christmas decoration at the market in La Democracia. She said that depending on the season, what she sells changes. In December, she and her husband sell things for Christmas and New Year, in January, school supplies, in February, things for Valentine's Day. They have been doing this for 14 years. They work from 7 a.m. to 9 or 10 p.m. And they have four children.

colors of shadows

I shot this photo on the day of Virgin of Guadalupe at the Cnetral Park of Xela. It looked like a waltz of Shadows to me.

Smoke of the procession

Parroquia de Santiago El Mayor

Parroquia de Santiago El Mayor is the second oldest church in Central America. It is located in San Cristobal in the department of Totonicapan. It was constructed between 1535 and 1567. It is recognized as one of the seven wonders of Guatemala. It's known with its well-preserved decorations.

Acampar en volcán Tajumulco

The Volcán Tajumulco is the highest of Guatemala and Central America. The altitude is 4220. It is located in the department of San Marcos, which is 1-hour bus ride from where I live, Xela. Yesterday I took a hiking tour to this volcano. Even though it is higher than The Volcán Santa Maria, it is an easier hike. Because it is less steep and there is actually a road for the half of the hike. On the other hand, Santa Maria is almost like a jungle.

Today, Tajumulco is not active. Even though there were several eruptions reported, none were officially confirmed. In 1956 it was announced as one of the protected areas of the country.

On December 20, 2009, for the first time ever the temperatures dropped below zero and a snowfall took place on the peak of Tajumulco.

Raisa Bingelli, 20, of Switzerland is trying to sustain the campfire by blowing in it on Volcano Tajumulco. She took a hiking tour with 4 other people from Europe and Middle East on October 27, 2010. While she found it extremely challenging due to cold weather and steepness, she said "it was great". Raisa has been traveling for two months now. So far she has visited only Utila, an island in Honduras, where she got her dive master class and Xela, where she studied Spanish for two weeks. She said "It's the most beautiful language in the world", for her motive to study Spanish. In Central America she has two more months to go.

I shot this photo at 4220 altitude, when we went up to see the sunrise at 4:30 a.m. I have no clue what this thing is on the top. And I was too cold to investigate it. I could barely took some photos.

This is the crater on Tajumulco. At the far right end, it is possible to see another volcano, called Tacana. Because of its high cost, there aren't tours organized for Tacana. When I shot this photo, it was possible to see a slight shadow of Tacana at the background.

Homesick(?)

My lovely country is famous for its food, Kebab. It's a dish, of which main ingredient is beef or lamp. And there are many different types of Kebab. But in the simplest form, it is known as Shish Kebab. In Turkey, pretty much wherever you go, you will find kebab restaurants. Some of them can have this kitsch/cheesy design art on their windows or walls.

The store you see in this picture is right in front of my place. And it is a jewellery store. But lately i have been having these hallucinations, that make me think that this word "KEDAR" is actually "KEBAB". And every time this happens, I get excited with the idea of eating kebab for a few seconds and then I face with the green reality of the building, where I live. So I feel like I am missing Turkey a little bit...

Aceite de Oliva Español

How can I not like this place?

Altar en La Pedrera

A while ago when my friend, Giovanni and I climbed to La Pedrera, we came across Diego, practicing some kind of Mayan spiritual ceremony by himself. Diego, 23, has been practicing this for almost three years now. He said he used to have a hard time sleeping and had nightmares. One day, while he was hiking in the mountains, he got lost and ended up in La Pedrera. He saw an "altar" where some people were also practicing a spiritual ceremony. He got close to them and started to talk about what they were doing. Eventually this conversation lead him to a peaceful night sleep. Since then he learned more about the practice itself and has kept doing it.

Los colores

Just beautiful...

vista de Xela desde La Muela

This morning, my Spanish teacher, Martin Díaz, who is also a tour guide, and I decided to do our class in a different environment. So we met at 6 a.m. and hiked at La Muela. It is relatively an easy one. The hardest part is at the end, where you need to climb on the rocks to reach the highest point of La Muela. But this part is quite short. It took us three hours to climb up and come back with extensive breaks to enjoy the views from different spots. It is definitely worth to take some time and visit. In addition to the beautiful views that you will encounter every once in a while, there are some surprises, waiting for you, on the way to the top, too.

otra feria desde Xela

la parada

Another rainy afternoon in Xela lead us to a rainy evening. Today, on my way from San Miguel Siguilá, I took a bus to central park in Xela. As you can imagine, with the rain that has been going on since mid-day, there was an incredible rush-hour traffic . The bus stopped frequently. During one of those stops close to the terminal, I was watching people, running under the rain. This woman stood out for me with her calmness in contrast with the rush that everybody else had.

azul y el arco iris

Tonight was the night of saturated colors for me. Another sharp contrast that was created by the bells and the sky stood out on my way back.

Start of the month of Virgin Rosario brought a different liveliness to the center of Xela. Normally, on the way to central market from the cathedral side, there were already many food stands. With the celebrations for the Virgin Rosario, the number of food stands severely increased. From the cathedral's front yard, I came across all these umbrellas, mostly in rainbow colors. I like the contrast they created against the darkness of the city view.

Mario. Isabel y Zuyly

Wandering around the city center of Xela, I saw Mario, while he was trying to warm up his hands over a fire, that Isabel has on her stand where she sells Guatemalan buñuelos. She said this is her job. She comes in front of Iglesia del Espíritu Santo every night all year long. She sells buñuelos from 5 -11 p.m. Tonight she had her daughter Zuyly and her husband with her. When I told them I was from Turkey, like many Guatemalans, they just said "oh! OK.", meaning "I have no clue what you are talking about". I tried to explain where my country is. The only reference I could use to explain where my country is, was Europe.

la feria de independencia en Xela

September 15 is the Independence Day for Guatemala. This year it is the 189th anniversary. Among the celebration activities there is a week-long fair in Xelajú.

While I was wandering around, I came across with this indigenous woman, who carries her baby in an American flag at the Independence Fair of Guatemala.

The exposition hall hosts many companies to promote their products. Many Guatemalan kids take the opportunity to make some money while helping the companies with promotion of their products.