The Market
Chichi, situated in a mountain valley in the western highlands, is a Quiche Maya community famous for its dazzlingly colorful markets, held every Thursday and Sunday morning in the main plaza. This is one of the largest markets in Central America; the choice is overwhelming: textiles, wooden dance masks, leather goods, superb hand-embroidered huipiles, jewelry, pottery, machetes, gourds and other craftwork are found here in abundance, along with flowers, fruit, vegetables, and other domestic items. Since the 1200s, Chichicastenango has been a trading center, mainly because it historically occupied a kind of neutral zone between the domains of the frequently squabbling Quiche, Cakchiquel, and Tzutuhil Maya.

Preparing for the market day begins the night before, and good bargains can be found at this uncrowded time, when poles and canvas are erected to shelter the individual stalls. Many traders sleep out on the plaza, ready to start the selling early on the morning. About 9 or 10 AM tourist buses arrive and prices go up: be ready to bargain hard. The chances for a really good price are better the night before, before 10 AM or in the late afternoon, once things have started to quiet down.

Church of Santo Tomás
Over the years Indian culture and folk Catholicism have been treated with a rare degree of respect in Chichicastenago. At the main Santo Tomás Church, the Indians have been left to adopt their own style of worship, blending pro-Columbian and Catholic rituals. The free mix of Indigenous and Roman Catholic customs is shown openly, and on Saturdays you can see a Maya priest (chuchkajau) doing a pagan ceremony inside the church, just in front of the altar, while the catholic priest officies the official service.

This whitewashed church was built in 1540 on the site of a Mayan altar, and rebuilt in the 18th century. Non-Indians should enter the church only through the side entrance, never through the front, since the Quiché believe that permission must be obtained from the guardian spirits of the massive front door -something you will see each Indian do as he or she approaches the doorway, while a holy man swings a perforated coffee-can censer full of smoking pom (copal incense) or tends a perpetual fire in a concrete altar called a quemada, at the base of the steps. This practices leaves a cloud of thin, sweet smoke hanging over the entrance. Inside is an astonishing scene of avid worship. A soft hum of constant murmuring fills the air, as Indians kneel to offer candles to their ancestors and the saints. For these people the entire building is alive with the souls of the dead, each located in a specific part of the church. Catholic saints receive the same respect and are continuously appealed. Certain areas within the church, and particular patterns of candles, rose petals and chicha, are used to invoke specific types of blessings, such as those for children, travel, marriage, harvest or illness. Photography is not allowed inside Santo Tomas without permission - and don't expect to get it.

Beside the church is a former monastery, built in 1542 which is now used as a church office. It was here that the Spanish priest Francisco Ximenez became the first foreigner to be shown the Pop Wuj, the holy book of the Quiche.

The shrine of Pascual Abaj
The churches and cemetery are certainly not the only scenes of indigenous religious activity, and the hills that surround the town, like so many throughout the country, are topped with shrines. The closest of these is known as Pascual Abaj (Sacrifice Stone). It's important to remember that these ceremonies are deeply serious and you should keep your distance and ask permission before taking any photographs. The shrine is laid out in a typical pattern with several small altars facing a stern pre-Columbian sculpture. Offerings range from flowers and candles to sacrified chickens, always incorporating plenty of incense, alcohol and incantations. In 1957, during a bout of religious rivalry, the shrine was raided and smashed by reforming Catholics, but the traditionalists gathered the scattered remains and patched them together with cement and steel reinforcing rod.

El Calvario
Facing Santo Tomas on the opposite side of the plaza is El Calvario, a smaller Catholic church used exclusively by the Maya for special prayers and services, particularly during Holy Week. Traditionally closed to outsiders, it should not be entered without permission or accompaniment by a local. Inside there is a large image of Christ in a glass case that is paraded though the street during Holy Week.

Cemetery
The town cemetery, down the hill behind El Calvario, offers further evidence of the strange mix of religions that characterizes Chichicastenango. The graves are marked by anything from a grand tomb to a small earth mound, and in the centre is an indigenous shrine where the usual offerings of incense and alcohol are made.

Rossbach Museum
On the south side of the plaza, this museum houses a broad-ranging collection of pre-Columbian artifacts and jewelry pieces, mostly small pieces of ceramics that had been kept by local people in their homes, some as much as two thousand years old. The collection is based on that of Indefonso Rossbach, an accountant turned priest who served in Chichicastenango from 1894 until his death in 1944. Most of the pieces here were donated to him by local people.

Bibliography:
Mark Whatmore and Peter Eltringham: Guatemala and Belize. The rough guide.
Richard Mahler: Guatemala. A natural destination.
Paul Glassmann: Guatemala Guide.