The strangest sight so far on our trip. This is a Mayan saint in Guatemala, recreated with a plastic mannequin. He had a smoking cigar in his mouth. This effigy is moved to a different house in the town of Zunil each year. People pray to San Simon and offer him rum, cigars, cigarettes and more. It was so strange to see. The Mayans are also mostly Catholic, so this is particularly strange. Many Mayan towns in Guatemala have an effigy of San Simon, but he sometimes is referred to by different names.
From the link on wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Guatemala
"Roman Catholicism combined with the indigenous Maya religion to form the unique syncretic religion which prevailed throughout the country and still does in the rural regions. Beginning from negligible roots prior to 1960, however, Protestant Pentecostalism has grown to become the predominant religion of Guatemala City and other urban centers and down to mid-sized towns.
The unique religion is reflected in the local saint, Maximón, who is associated with the subterranean force of masculine fertility and prostitution. Always depicted in black, he wears a black hat and sits on a chair, often with a cigar placed in his mouth and a gun in his hand, with offerings of tobacco, alcohol, and Coca-cola at his feet. The locals know him as San Simon of Guatemala."
We all agreed (Melissa and I went there with four new friends), that this was extremely strange, yet worth the trek all over this small indigenous town. We'll give more details on Guatemala soon.
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