Festival de Barriletes

Barriletes are kites. The kite festival is held in Santiago Sacatepequez, every November 1, the day of the dead. Some say the kites help the souls of the dead to reach the heavens. We also heard that loved ones send messages to passed souls by way of the kites. The kites are made of bamboo and paper. The day we went was not quite windy enough to fly kites, though. The one you see pictured soon crashed down onto the crowd. The larger ones standing up measure at least 20 feet in diameter. Luckily, they did not attempt to fly the larger ones. By attempting to fly, we mean setting them up and then sprinting through the cemetery while pulling the kites' strings. It is quite a sight to see a team of locals (with gringo tourists mixed in) running hurdles over the tombstones.

Our trip to the festival was actually organized by our school director, who was kind enough to provide a free bus for us. Unfortunately, the bus driver did not have the sense to avoid the small town's traffic nightmare. When it was time to depart, the bus was blocked in on three sides by doubly parked cars and a line of cars behind a half mile long. Diana, Shalom, and I decided to try our luck finding a taxi back to the city about 45 miles away. As we looked for the taxi, a police officer pointed out that the local bus would be leaving shortly for less than a dollar. These buses, known as "chicken buses" for their frequent cargo, are infamous around here. They are retired US school buses that have been put on steroids of some mechanical sort and then given flashy paint jobs with odes to either Jesus or some senorita that inspired the artist. We would like to have a picture of the bus, but our camera had been stolen earlier in the day as we made our way out of town in the packed crowds. The pictures included here are from our friend Kari. The bus drivers pack on the locals like sardines, with at least 3 to a seat and another 30 people standing in the ailes. Tourists are repeatedly warned to avoid these buses because of the risk of theft. Well we were SOL without a ride an not many options, so we went for the adventurous ride home and truly enjoyed it. The street wise bus driver avoided all the city traffic by taking a dirt mountain road back to the highway. Shalom worked her magic on the bus by charming everyone and keeping the faces friendly. She is like our good luck charm.