Blog

The Rotary Club of Antigua hosted its annual MotoPoker event Saturday with over 230 participants from Guatemala, Mexico, and Salvador. The event is not a race, but rather a tour for motorcycle enthusiasts beginning in Guatemala city, running through el mirador de Santa Elena Barillas, Asiole, Esquintla, and ending with a breakfast at Santo Domingo el Cerro. At each check point the participants receive a poker card, and at the end those with the best hands win the big prizes. Thanks however to many donations from businesses in Antigua and Guatemala City, no one left empty handed. The event was a huge success raising money to support the Antigua Rotary Club's scholarship program for children in need. 

Two of our Dutch students, Daan and Regina, spent the afternoon helping an organization called From Houses to Homes. The project which was founded in 2004 by New Jersey Native Joe Collins, has improved the lives of thousands of Guatemalan's by providing new homes and, therefore, better living conditions for some of the country's poorest inhabitants.   

A short 30 minute drive from Antigua, Pacaya is one of thirty-three volcanoes in Guatemala but one of only a few active ones. The hike is about two hours up and an hour and a half down with spectacular views of the surrounding country side, complete with an amazing sunset. Depending on the day as lava flow varies, the adventure gives you an opportunity to see lava up close and even cook on the hot lava rocks. Pictured is one of our students Andrew from Atlanta Georgia who came to study Spanish with us during his spring break.

Louise, Sarah, and our Spanish instructor Soledad making tortillias today at el Frijol Feliz cooking school where our students have a weekly cooking class. Today's menu was pepian de pollo (quite possibly Guatemala's most famous dish), guacamole, tortillas, and rellenitos!   

A few of our teachers Paolo, Miriam, and Soledad relaxing during break time, enjoying the nice weather. Actually the weather's nice ninety percent of the time! 

Jasmin one of our Australian students studies Spanish in the morning and works in the afternoons for Project Seres, an environmental volunteer project based here in Guatemala.

Academia Colonial welcomes Ms. Ana Isabel Diaz as our new Administrative Director in charge of the daily operations of the school. In this role, Ana will be the primary contact for new students, and will be responsible for the coordination of students, teachers, family stays, and activities.    

Ms. Diaz who is a graduate of the University of Francisco Marroquin with bachelor’s degree in Organizational Psychology has worked in a wide range of industries including executive recruitment with Manpower Guatemala and as Human Resources manager for Banco Americano. Prior to her HR related activities she worked extensively with children with learning disabilities and holds an associates degree in learning disabilities from Unidersidad Rafael Landivar. We are very excited to have Ana on board and apart of our team. 

We’ve moved! Academia Colonial is now located inside of Casa Convento Concepción, a very beautiful and historical building which was, back in the Colonial era, Antigua’s oldest convent dating back to 1578. Antigua which was itself founded in 1543 was well on its way to becoming the most prominent city in Central America being the seat of Spanish power in Central America. At that time Antigua was home to massive mansions, churches, and monasteries, most notably the Franciscan and Dominicans orders. Antigua however lacked a convent. It was then in 1578 that four nuns came down from Mexico, founded the Conception order and began construction of the convent and church. The first phase of construction took 50 years, but then it was expanded and deemed complete in 1694. The convent was then badly damaged in the earthquake of 1717 and then subsequently rebuilt in 1729 to a grander scale covering two square blocks and featured over twenty fountains in the interior spaces.

Unfortunately earthquakes stuck again in 1773 leaving everything in ruins. It wasn't until 2004 that much of the convent and cloister were rebuilt. 

It was a beautiful Friday afternoon for a school party at JP's RumBar. We cooked fried shrimp po’boys, a New Orleans style French bread sandwich, steak fajitas, and enjoyed some cold Gallos (our national beer). The teachers were laughing that the po’boys reminded them of a Guatemalan sandwich called a “shuco” which is slang for dirty or in this case messy. Nonetheless they were a big hit. The students had a great time cooking!