The Highlands - Guatemala - page 295

At the lower end of the village the road passes through Los Baños , an area with natural
hot sulfur springs. Several little places down here have bath installations with private tiled
tubs available for Q20 an hour. Baños Termales San Silvestre has one of the better set-ups, in-
cluding an 80°F pool with waterfall.
Zunil
POP 14,199 / ELEV 2262M
As you speed downhill toward Zunil from Quetzaltenango, you'll see this pretty market
town spreading across a lush valley framed by steep hills and dominated by a towering
volcano, its white colonial church gleaming above the red-tiled roofs of the low houses. A
road on the left bridges a river and, 1km further, reaches Zunil's plaza.
Founded in 1529, Zunil is a typical Guatemalan highland town, where traditional indi-
genous agriculture is practiced. The cultivated plots, divided by stone fences, are irrigated
by canals; you'll see the farmers scooping up water with a shovel-like instrument and
tossing it over their plants. Women wash their clothes near the river bridge in pools of hot
water that come out of the rocks.
Sights
Zunil boasts a particularly striking church . Its ornate facade, with eight pairs of serpentine
columns, is echoed inside by a richly carved gilt altar, with saints garbed in silver-em-
broidered robes. On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, the plaza in front is bright with the
purple-striped huipiles and richly patterned cortes of the local K'iche' Maya women buy-
ing and selling.
Half a block downhill from the church plaza, the Cooperativa Santa Ana ( 8am-6pm) is a
handicrafts cooperative made up of more than 600 local women. Finely woven vests, jack-
ets and traditional huipiles (from Q400) are displayed and sold here. Weaving lessons are
offered, too.
While you're in Zunil, visit the image of San Simón , the name given here to the much-
venerated non-Christian deity known elsewhere as Maximón (see the boxed text, Click
here ) . His effigy, propped up in a chair, is moved each year to a different house during the
festival of San Simón , held on October 28. Ask any local where to find him.
Sleeping & Eating