CIELO Y TIERRA TOURS
Maya Culture in Highland Chiapas
Cielo y Tierra Tours S.A de C.V.
San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico
Email: info@cieloytierratours.com
Content and images © Copyright Cielo y Tierra Tours 2009
Our Tours: Highland Maya Villages
San Andrés Larráinzar (33 kilometers northwest of
San Cristóbal de Las Casas) is a Tzotzil village that sits high on a ridge in pine and oak-forested mountains. It has one of the oldest weaving traditions in the Chiapas highlands, with beautiful and elaborate designs that date back to the Classic Maya period. San Andrés is also well-known for its stunning religious festivals.
Due to its remote location the community is surprisingly untouched by tourism. Sunday is market day, a Maya tradition that dates back centuries. It is a vibrant, colorful market that also serves neighboring Maya communities.
SAN ANDRÉS LARRÁINZAR
There will be fruit and vegetables, local pottery, stalls selling brightly-colored balls of wool, men selling Maya wooden crosses, food stands with an array of exotic-smelling food ... It is a unique opportunity to truly experience a local indigenous market.
We also visit the main church of the community, in which villagers blend Maya and Catholic beliefs, and the home of a family of weavers. Here you will have a chance to admire their huipiles (traditional blouses) and other work up close, and learn more about the art of backstrap weaving.
SUGGESTION: We recommend visiting San Andrés in a tour with Chamula and Zinacantán. On Sundays, this gives you a chance to explore two fascinating, traditional Maya markets.
Day of excursion: Sunday and Festival Days
Duration: Approx 5 hours
From the early hours of the morning the plaza and surrounding streets fill with hundreds of villagers (many in traditional clothing) coming to buy what they need and sell what they have grown or produced.
