TRIP TO GUATEMALA
Unearthing the Root
By Pablo Sierra del Sol
Photographs by María José Girón Lambour and Juliana Skaggs

The question has been echoing inside our heads since we were kids. Why do we do what we do? Uncovering our roots may be the only way to answer one of life's great questions. Understanding ourselves means revisiting our beginnings. This can be done literally, by physically crossing the map. And that was the idea behind the creation of Las Dalias Around the World, one of the most symbolic and heartwarming projects of a story that began in Sant Carles de Peralta on 4 November 1954. Maybe because of its simple premise: a journey through the countries of origin that gave birth to, housed or shaped the minds of the people who work at the Las Dalias flea market. A geographical area of a different continent each year, starting with the one featured in this edition of Las Dalias Magazine: Latin America. The chosen destination was Guatemala, the cradle of Mesoamerica.

“Las Dalias has always been a crossroads for people from every corner of the world. Since we opened the market forty years ago, this fusion of cultures has continued to grow. I think it is wonderful that we can strengthen the relationship between our home and the cultures that we are so closely connected with. It made perfect sense for us to start Las Dalias Around the World with a visit to Guatemala. This was a trip that I will remember for the rest of my life”, Joan Marí points out.

Isabel Lambour, the flea market coordinator, has achieved a dream: “For me it was very special and moving to bring these two worlds together; I've seen my country through different eyes. I came to live here, but my past, my history, my family and my roots are all there. When I left Guatemala and came to Ibiza, I got my first job at Las Dalias, and before I became the coordinator, I worked in the kitchen, the restaurant and the bars, and I worked as a vendor in different stalls, until I opened my own stall, almost twenty years ago. The flea market is not only staffed by other Guatemalans; there are also several vendors who make their products in our country with the help of the Maya communities, using traditional materials. This project was born out of the need to broaden the connections of the Las Dalias family with the rest of the world. As to the aim of our journey, in addition to sharing the magnificence of the country, we wanted to meet and express our gratitude to the Guatemalan hands responsible for the products created there”.

As part of that gratitude, the Las Dalias Around the World expedition made a donation to the JUN Imox Association. This is a Tzutujil community led by the Ajq'ij (spiritual guide) Nana Marina Cruz and her family: they work to hand down the ancestral Maya healing methods in San Pedro la Laguna and they intend to build a healing centre and a school to generate income for the community and pass on the heritage to new generations. “I met the late Tata Pedro Cruz, the father of this family, more than twenty-five years ago. He was a passionate advocate of the Maya cosmovision, and his family are now devoted to sharing this knowledge. They have come to visit us in Ibiza a couple of times and we have hosted them at Las Dalias, sharing their wisdom,’ says Isabel Lambour.

That was one of the stops on a journey spanning 100,000 square kilometres through every landscape and climate imaginable, and coming into contact with 23 different ethnic groups. Below is a chronicle of the eleven days during which the Las Dalias expedition sailed volcanic lakes, wandered through colonial cities, discovered pyramids in the rainforest and honoured the Pachamama with authentic ancient ceremonies. Pure magical realism!

ANCIENT GUATEMALA
After landing at La Aurora International Airport, the first stop on the Las Dalias Around the World minibus was the ancient capital of the Captaincy General of Guatemala. Mariam Rosales (a vendor at Las Dalias and a native Guatemalan) was waiting there to walk them through this colonial city surrounded by volcanoes. The history of its architecture never fails to amaze those who visit it. Baroque echoes bounce off the colourful walls of this Central American cuzco or cradle of the world, while legends roam its cobblestone streets. One of the largest colonial cities in Latin America, this is a World Heritage Site.

CHICHICASTENANGO
The first bends in the road led the minibus to one of the most authentic supply and handicraft markets in Latin America. It was here in this K’iche village that the Popol Vuh, the Mayan book that tells the story of the origin of humanity, was written. Claude Aern, who is originally from France, showed the group where they could see the güipiles, the traditional woven blouses with ethnic motifs that she customises and shapes into the handbags that line her stall at Las Dalias. Claude has been travelling to this unique market for thirty years. We visited the workshop where for two generations she has been producing these handbags with the help of a kaqchiquel family.

LAKE ATITLÁN
The shores of this lake sit 1,500 metres above sea level. The volcanoes around it (and which inspired Saint-Exupéry to write The Little Prince) tower at 2,400 metres, separating the lake from the Pacific Ocean and its black-sand beaches. Hailed by many as ‘the most beautiful lake in the world’, this is the country’s deepest lake (it plunges to depths of over three hundred metres) and a storehouse of tamal-wrapped traditions. Led by Hugo Natareno, a native of the region and a member of the Las Dalias family, Las Dalias Around the World came in through Panajachel or ‘Pana’, the gateway to the lake, which is inhabited by the kaqchiquel people.

SANTIAGO ATITLÁN
It would have been a much longer journey by land; the road around the lake is beautiful but convoluted. The travellers were able to see Maximón as they crossed the waters by boat. This figure symbolises the syncretism of the Mayan cosmovision and Catholicism. The Nahual deity Rilaj Maam merged with Simon Peter, the fisherman-apostle, giving rise to a character who takes on many different forms to protect different trade guilds. Here, faith is organised by trade guilds, who are the custodians of the Maximons and who bring them offerings of liquors and candles in the same village where Gus and Claudia produce the Laturquessa jewellery that they sell in their stall at Las Dalias.

SAN PEDRO DE LA LAGUNA
In this riverside village, the group made their offerings, guided by Isabel Lambour, immersed in the mysticism that still pervades this Tz'utujil community, one of the Maya groups that inhabit this privileged highland region, where corn and beans grow naturally when dropped on the ground. An act of giving thanks: the offerings were placed on a sacred fire to invoke the twenty protectors, the nahuales of the Tzolk'in, the Maya calendar. The Cruz family embraced them at this ceremony, allowing them to enjoy a healing experience. They went inside the Tuj temazcal, a traditional sweat lodge filled with the steam of water infused with medicinal plants that is poured over red-hot volcanic rocks. The cleanse with local herbs left them feeling invigorated.

GUATEMALA CITY
At dawn, they set off for the capital city. After a quick tour of the historic quarters, the central market displayed its diversity of vegetables, fruits and handicrafts from all around the country. Guatemala City currently has a population of nearly three million. Its location and international airport make it the country's central hub. Known locally as ‘Guate’, the city is a melting pot of old and modern neighbourhoods, offering two very different facets.

RÍO DULCE
It was a long drive in the minibus to reach Lake Izabal. Arriving there was like stepping into another world, as they travelled through mangroves, jungle and tropical vegetation. This natural gateway to the Caribbean is a protected nature reserve. The wildlife, including birds, fish, crocodiles and manatees, abounds in impressive canyons inhabited by the Garifuna, a highly mixed ethnic group. In the 16th century, the indigenous Arawak people encountered African slaves near the saltwater bridge that joins Central America with the Antilles.


THE PETÉN
On their way north, Las Dalias Around the World expedition passed through Poptún, the home of Isabel's family, who treated the visitors to kak ik, a typical dish made primarily from turkey that is bred on a diet of chili peppers and corn kernels. The expedition then went on to El Remate, a village on the shores of Lake Petén Itzá. This department is the lung for Latin America and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. It houses immense archaeological treasures. The Las Dalias family ventured into the jungle towards the heart of the Maya world, Tikal, to reach the Temple of the Great Jaguar (Tikal's main pyramid). Beholding the legacy of Temple IV amid the immensity of nature was a truly awe-inspiring experience.

The group spent their last night in Flores, a city built on a tiny island in Lake Petén Itzá. Its streets reminded Juanito of those of Macondo, the town dreamt up by author Gabriel García Márquez. There were even more colours to round off the experience of a jungle steeped in history. The group took a flight from the airport here to Guatemala City, the second-to-last stop before returning to Ibiza via Madrid. The dream was over, but the memories of such an inspiring and emotional experience would remain.