Learn Guatemala before you go

10 phrases to learn

In Spanish (Guatemalan). Capital letters show the stressed part. Tap the heart to practise a phrase later.

At the table

• Greet everyone when you arrive, with 'buenos días' or 'buenas tardes'. In small towns people also greet strangers politely in the street, and it is good to answer.
• Tortillas are eaten at every meal and are often served in a covered basket or cloth to keep them warm. Close the cloth again after you take one.
• Say '¡Buen provecho!' (enjoy your meal) to people who are eating when you come into or leave a room, even in a restaurant.
• It is polite to wait until everyone is served before you start eating, and to thank the cook at the end.
• In many restaurants a suggested tip (propina) of about 10 percent is already on the bill. Check before you add a tip of your own.
• Drink only bottled or purified water (agua pura), and ask for drinks without ice if you are not sure where the ice came from.

Local tips

Dishes to try

• Pepián: Often called the national dish: a thick, rust-coloured stew of chicken or beef with potatoes, chayote and green beans. The sauce is made from pumpkin and sesame seeds, dried chillies, tomatoes and tomatillos, all toasted until dark and fragrant before being ground. It is served with rice and tortillas or small tamales.
• Kak'ik: A red, spicy turkey soup of pre-Hispanic origin. Turkey pieces are cooked in a broth coloured with annatto and flavoured with tomatoes, dried chillies, garlic, coriander, mint and a herb called culantro. It is served with rice and white tamales wrapped in leaves.
• Tamales colorados (Tamal colorado): Large red tamales of soft cooked corn dough topped with a tomato and annatto sauce, a piece of chicken or pork, a strip of red pepper, an olive and sometimes a caper, then wrapped in leaves and steamed. Many families eat them on Saturday nights and above all on Christmas Eve.
• Chuchitos: Small, firm tamales of corn dough with a little meat and tomato sauce inside, wrapped in dried corn husks. They are served with a simple tomato salsa and a sprinkling of hard, salty white cheese.
• Paches: Tamales made from mashed potato instead of corn, mixed with a tomato sauce and a piece of chicken or pork and a hot green chilli, then wrapped in leaves and steamed.
• Fiambre: A huge cold salad made only once a year for All Saints' Day on 1 November. It can contain dozens of ingredients: sausages and cold meats, chicken, pickled vegetables, baby corn, beetroot, olives, cheeses and the edible flower of the pacaya palm. It is fiambre rojo with beetroot and fiambre blanco without.
• Hilachas: Boiled beef pulled into shreds and simmered in a sauce of tomatoes, tomatillos and mild dried chillies, with potatoes and carrots. It is eaten with rice, black beans and tortillas.
• Tapado: A rich seafood soup of the Garifuna people. Whole fish, crab, prawns and other shellfish are cooked in coconut milk with green plantain, tomato, onion and coriander.

Cities to see

• Guatemala City (capital): The National Palace of Culture and the cathedral on the central square, Zones (zonas): addresses such as '7a Avenida 1-17, Zona 4', Museums of Maya archaeology and Indigenous textiles.
• Antigua Guatemala: The yellow Santa Catalina Arch, Holy Week processions over carpets of coloured sawdust and flowers, Coffee farms on the volcano slopes.
• Quetzaltenango: The name Xela (SHEH-lah), Belle Époque buildings around the Parque Central, The Santa María and Santiaguito volcanoes nearby.
• Flores: Its island setting on Lake Petén Itzá, Trips to Tikal and other Maya sites, The Mundo Maya airport, with flights from Guatemala City.
• Chichicastenango: The market on Thursdays and Sundays, The church of Santo Tomás, where Maya prayers and incense fill the steps, Carved wooden masks and woven textiles.
• Panajachel: Views of three volcanoes across the lake, Boats to the lakeside villages, Street stalls of Maya textiles.

Landmarks and the city map are on the Guatemala trip