Before Easter, the streets are decorated with elaborate, colorful alfombras de aserrín – made of sawdust, flowers, palm leaves, and other organic matter – that feature religious and cultural figures. The tradition, which combines Indigenous rituals and Christianity, dates back about 400 years. Guatemala Easter Festival. The air, filled with the musky mix of flower petals and incense, carries the heaviness of sorrow. Men dressed in purple robes and hoods, carrying floats (andas) with large sculptures of Jesus on their shoulders, step in tune with the somber beat of the marching band.
