Sumpango, Sacatepequez, 1.11.11 ... more and more giant kites, and more elaborate, there is "new product development" even in the kite business. This panorama was made from 25 photos ... this goes to show that Photoshop is getting better and better, the photo below, in 2009 was not assembled as well by an older version of the program. The next version will allow me to remove the telephone tower ... click to see a larger image
Sumpango, Sacatepequez, 1.11.11. We made a trip with 25 friends and 125,000 other visitors to see the kites that groups in tow work on months ahead.
Some kites compete in the "over 10 meters category" and others in "new and unusual design". Others are the 2-6 meters and "children's kites"
Barbara with ladies from Santiago Chimaltenango, a town in the department of Huehuetenango, near the Mexican border. The ladies wore the most beautiful "huipiles" of their home town and were visiting Sumpango for the first time. By the way, Santiago Chimaltenango, although far away in a remote mountain area, has its own page on Facebook.
Guatemala is certainly colourful.
People come to decorate their loved ones' graves and to have lunch with them
All Saints' Day in a cemetery in Sumpango, 1.11.11
Sumpango, Sacatepequez, November 1, 2009 ... a panorama made from 5 photos ... this goes to show that Photoshop is getting better and better, the photo at the top of the page is made of some 25 photos and is made seamlessly ... click to see a larger image. Photos from here down are from earlier visits.
Jenny with a walking advertisement in Sumpango ...
... this kite the shape of a butterfly, "I am hungry, don't let me die", it said
Sumpango, Sacatepequez ... November 1, 2009
Like in computers, there appears technological innovation, from year-to-year in kite building ...
... this year, there were many new shapes and designs, some extremely elaborate.
Sumpango, Sacatepequez ... November 1, 2009. The number of kites is growing, it seems
Sumpango, Sacatepequez ... November 1, 2009. A beautiful kite. From here on down are kites from our 2008 trip.
Sumpango, Sacatepequez ... the photos from here on down are from our 2008 trip to Sumpango, where we saw a kite flying competition, as well as these huge stationary "barilletes"
This is how the large kites are built, with huge bamboo sticks, lots of rope and thin paper ...
... and each kite carries a message, this one talked about Guatemala's illegal immigrants in the United States, "our brothers, they cry out blood", it said
Can you see the size of the kite, compared with people in front?
The "new technology", gigantic kite that would have dwarfed all the others being raised in the center, snapped in two. Next year, better design
Jennifer & Monica came along to Sumpango
Watching kites also means eating fried corn with salt and lime, delicious!
This year, Sumpango was clean ...
... although a lot of food and drink was being sold
Here goes up another kite, with its own group of people ...
... and it looks almost as if Frida Kahlo painted it
Hello from Sumpango ...
Jennifer wanted me to pose for a Gallo beer ad and took the photo ...
... as more and more gigantic kites were being put up, while smaller ones flew overhead
This kite was flying really high above the stadium and all way over the other kites, on a strong rope, you can see it flying above all the ladies in the photo just two rows above, the kite just stayed really high up there ... and I got a chance to try and hold it for a while ...
... and the Guatemalans were laughing at the "gringo"
Jenny & Monica, now friends since 2003, enjoying the kites ...
A wonderful day in windy, sunny, cloudy, Sumpango.
Everyone got a big suntan. 1st November 2008.