Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Village Life
Guatemala's rural areas, while undoubtedly her most picturesque, are the epicenter for
many of the country's persistent problems. Life in many villages has barely changed over
the last hundred years, as subsistence farmers eke out a daily existence on tiny plots of
land. The precariousness of this life is emphasized with every flood, drought, plague or
crop failure - the smallest of any of these being enough to place entire families in danger of
starvation.
Guatemalan governments have ignored villages, and infrastructure levels can be dire.
Many children have to travel for hours to attend the local school and what they call a
school may not be something that you recognize as such. Access to health care is equally
limited - at best a village will have a small medical clinic, capable of dealing with minor
complaints. Patients requiring hospitalization may need to be transported several hours
away. Many smaller villages don't even have a doctor, and medical care is provided by
cur-
anderas
(healing women),
comadres
(mid-wives) and maybe a pharmacist.
Despite all of these drawbacks, Guatemalan villages are often stunningly beautiful - sur-
rounded by lush countryside, with dirt roads winding between adobe huts. An old colonial
church on the plaza and chickens and horses roaming about, as barefoot children play in the
streets in a carefree way unseen in the rest of the country.
While many rural houses now have running water, the village
pila
(communal laundry trough) remains a
place to get together and exchange gossip.
