Las ruinas de la catedral de noche

The churches of Antigua are especially lovely during Semana Santa, when they are specially adorned and decorated. One night while we were out with Irene and Sherman, the sound of some beautiful chanting stopped us in our tracks. We had come upon the "ruins" of La Catedral de la Antigua Guatemala, which was inaugurated in 1680 (I think...) and later badly damaged by an earthquake in 1773. Most of the ceilings had fallen in.

From inside, we could look up and see the dark night sky and bright pin points of stars through the cathedral's soaring arches. These angel statues were on display, along with a candlelit alfombra (carpet of flowers) created for the occasion, and the music that first drew us in reverberated against the ancient walls.

It was a truly beautiful moment.



History buffs, read more from UNESCO: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/65