Guatemala's History

Kaminaljuyú, one of the first important cities in the Mayan region, flourished two thousand years ago. It was located in what is now known as the western part of Guatemala City. By the time Spanish conquerors arrived in the 16th century, only overgrown mounds where left. The site remained insignificant until the earthquake of July 29, 1773, when much of the Spanish colonial Capital, Antigua Guatemala, was razed to the ground. The authorities decided to move their headquarters near Kaminaljuyú, to La Ermita Valley, hoping to escape further destruction. On September 27, 1775, King Carlos III of Spain signed a royal charter for the founding of La Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción. Guatemala City was officially born.

Unfortunately, the colonial powers didn't move the capital far enough, for earthquakes in 1917, 1918 and 1976 rocked the capital and its surroundings, reducing buildings to rubble. The 1976 earthquake killed nealy 23,000, injured another 75,000, and left an estimated one million homeless.

And with this background, people still ask why we panicked a few days ago when we had around seven strong tremors. Even though we are kind of used to it, there were two tremors that made us tremble with fear. There were a lot of people hurt, buried and some of them died, given that the places were they live were not the best, nor the safest.

So now that we are talking about people in need, Guatemala, being a 3rd world country, has a lot of volunteer work and needs your help. So if you are planning on traveling, getting to know another culture and helping the ones in need, this is your chance. Give meaning to your trip. Travel towards cooperation.

I leave you with this link: 
http://www.cooperatour.org/proyectos-de-cooperacion/por-estancia/


And remember if you need information or you have any other question, don't hesitate in contacting us.
We are happy to help you! Also follow us at: www.facebook.com/tripinvent

Number 20 & more..

I would never had guessed number 20... 

Mayan Numbers!

Mayan were great in Mathematics and astronomy! 

Here we show you the way there numbers were written!! 

How do you think the #20 was written??

Volcanoes

Volcanoes are great to look at, fun to climb, but they can be really scary when they erupt. Guatemala has four active volcanoes: Pacaya, Volcán de Fuego, Santiaguito and Tacaná. The nastiest event was back in 1902, when Santa María erupted, taking over 6,000 lives. It lasted 19 days and the ash reached a height of 28km. In 1922, a new volcanic vent formed in the enormous crater, and formed a new volcano, Santiaguito, which has been erupting ever since and now it is possible to climb to the summit of Santa María and look down the eruptions active in this volcano, a very unique experience. Since late 2006 Pacaya has been acting up, with increased lava flow and ash. But this volcano is special, in 2005 it was declared National Park and has become a tourist attraction. It is located 47.5 km south of Guatemala City, but you can arrive through Antigua Guatemala as well. One of the most recommended volcanoes, because of its easy rising and beautiful view. If you are lucky, you will get to see some lava really close and take some amazing pictures.

Our Culture

You will be amazed when you first reach Guatemala by just how helpful, polite and unhurried Guatemalans are. Everyone has time to stop, chat and explain what you want to know. Most Guatemalans like to get to know other people without haste.
Violence is what explains why some people show caution when meeting a stranger, but usually this doesn't happen when meeting a tourist. Most of us love meeting people from all over the world and learn about other cultures and traditions.
Few Guatemalans exhibit the stress, worry and hurry of the developed nations. They're people who don't expect wealth or good government but make the best of what comes their way in friendship, family, a good meal, or just appreciating good company.
Guatemalans are a religious bunch. People's faiths give them hope, not only of better things, but for some improvements in the future. The majority would be either catholic or evangelic and we celebrate a lot of festive dates based on our religion.
It is said that Guatemala has no middle class, but even though the comparison is big, I believe that is not true. The truth is Guatemala is divided in Mayas that covers approximately 80% of the population and they tend to be poor and poorly educated, and the Ladinos which is the minority group, working-class and middle-class. Typically catholic and family oriented, but usually influenced by education and the media.
Both groups do agree in something, Guatemalans are known for having this strong relationship with their families, community and specially their traditions. There is a common tradition among all of Guatemalans, every Sunday we spend it with our own family, each family goes to a restaurant, or just to grandma's house where they make their own typical food, but the truth is we love spending time together.
You should visit us, that way you'll make sure that Guatemala (even though it has its issues, like any other country) has some great people waiting for you to arrive, some pretty cool and unique traditions which will make your experience incredible and of course some beautiful scenery and places to visit.
Who knows maybe you decide this is where you really belong.

Guatemala's Map

Don't know where to start?!? We created a map with the places you MUST visit and a small description about this roadtrip! We also added the places where you could sleep.

If you need a larger version to print it or any other information, contact us:
m.abascal@tripinvent.com
info@tripinvent.com

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Guatemala

Guatemala is a beautiful but unknown country. Usually people ask, which part of Africa is it in? They actually have NO idea about where it is located. For all of you reading this, I'll save you from searching; we are right beneath México, which means we are part of America… No!!! Not the United States, we are actually another country in the same continent, Central America to be specific.
Well, what we are trying to do through our webpage, blog and other social networks, is to make Guatemala visible to everyone. To know that we exist, and that even though we are a third world country, we have some GREAT stuff no one should miss.
We have Antigua Guatemala located about 30 minutes away from the city or the airport. This is a city with 500-year-old constructions built by the Spanish colonies. If you visit Antigua you will find it relaxing with lots of things to do and places to visit, such as museums, spas, coffee farms, lounges (if you are a night person), and one of the biggest golf course in Latin America is close by. We have a lot of ecological places where you could enjoy camping, nature, rafting, hiking and other outdoor activities. In the northern part of Guatemala, you can visit the ancient Mayan city of Tikal, where you will be amazed by the pyramids, the jungle, the views and all the intellectual things they had, like a better calendar than the one we use today or the fact that there is going to be a change in the year 2012. Some people even say it is going to be the end of the world, I prefer to think of it as a great change for humanity, and I'm actually looking forward to it.
We have some lakes as well, lake Atitlán (one of the wonders of the world), lake Amatitlán, lake Izabal and a few others. People also travel from all over the world just to come fishing in the sea. There is a whole other list of places to stay and things to do depending on what you prefer, like enjoying our black sand beaches or hicking a couple of volcanoes watching the lava rolling down right beside you. As you can see, Guatemala is a beautiful country with great things to do.
I guess what we are trying to say is that you really need to visit Guatemala to have an experience you won't find anywhere else. We'll leave you with this small introduction and some pictures about the sights you could enjoy.