Madeira and Guatemala - what do they have in common?

Is there anything that Madeira and Guatemala have in common?

As you probably know, I am a Czech girl who lived in Madeira for some time and after spent some time in Guatemala. Even though these countries (again, I know Madeira is a part of Portugal) are very far from each other and their cultures are very distinct, I found many things that these places has in common. Lately, I shared many articles about what surprised me in Madeira. It was also connected with different cultures, but really – Guatemala and Madeira could substitute each other in some cases.

Where are these places?

Before we get into the topic completely, let me just make sure that everyone who is reading the article right now knows where these places are.

Madeira is a small island in the Atlantic Ocean. Even though it is a part of Portugal, it is actually closer to the African Continent. The official language is Portuguese, but they have their own way of speaking in Madeira. I mean, their accent is slightly different from the accent from continental Portugal. People from continental Portugal laugh at people from Madeira because of the accent and people from Madeira laugh at people from Azores. They have got also their specific way of speaking.

Guatemala is a small country in Latin America. It shares borders with Belize, Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras. The official language is Spanish and then their other languages which are different in many parts of Guatemala. I was living in Santiago Atitlán and children were learning Tzutujin at school.

Things in common

“So, Iva, what are the things that these places have in common?” you are asking (maybe). It is time to share. If there is someone who knows these places, I wonder whether you noticed as well.

Estrelicia

Estrelicia is the national flower of Madeira. I saw it for the first time in my life right when I was in Madeira. Then, I did not expect I could find it anywhere else (it was just too connected with Madeira in my head).

When I left for the Czech Republic, I found one artificial strelicia (estrelicia in Portuguese) in a shop as a decoration and I was so happy to see at least that artificialversion.

Picture: Estrelicia in Guatemala.

When I got to Santiago Atitlan in Guatemala, I could not see anything but corn. Corn, corn, corn! Corn is very important for Guatemaltecos, they have got four colours of it (red, black, white, yellow). I saw also avocado trees but strelicia was nowhere. Then, I went for a trip to Antigua. As it is quite an important town, everything there was quite nicely organized and decorated. Antigua is the place where I saw the flower again. Since then I saw it in other places as well and then I understood that the climate in Guatemala is similar to the climate in Madeira. That is probably why it can grow easily in these places.

Mountains everywhere

Madeira is definitely not boring with its hills and roads leading you up and down. Guatemala seems to be the same. There are not mountains as such but they are volcanoesin fact. However, you can climb them as well as you can in Madeira.

Picture: Volcanoes are everywhere in Madeira.

Dogs

When you are in Madeira, you can notice many dogs and cats, too, running freely in streets of Funchal and other places. Especially in Zona Velha, there are many cats wandering the streets and dogs are just in front of the Residencia Universitaria in the part where the beach starts.

You would not believe how many dogs that do not belong to anyone are in Guatemala. I saw them everyday putting their heads into trash binslooking for something to eat. When I went to do a trip once, I just sat down in a street and started to eat. A dog came immediately and wanted to eat with me. When there is a bin outside, they destroy the plastic bag so they can get inside and search something to eat as well.

Picture: Dogs are everywhere.

Dogs above your head

This was one of the points which I included into What surprised me in Madeira article. Dogs in Madeira are often seen at terraces which are above people’s head (I mean when people walk on a road). These dogs start barking like crazy usually and it often looks like they are going to get over (or under) the fence of the terrace.

In Guatemala, I saw the same. Once, I even saw a dog sitting on a bus. It made me laugh. It looked so funny!

Picture: Can you see the dog sitting on the roof of the bus?

Is that all?

No, I have got another list of common things prepared. I hope you enjoyed reading and that you are willing to discover what else these two place which are so far away from each other have in common. I am really excited about telling you!

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