The 7,000 people in Santiago Chimaltenango, Guatemala, are very attached to tradition and uniformity. They all speak the same Mayan language, Mam. They build their houses of adobe brick.
Every meal includes black beans and tortillas.
Whether their music comes from the bars or the churches, it sounds the same. All the women wear the same garb and a red ribbon in their hair. The older men retain traditional dress, although younger ones prefer blue shirts and baseball caps. Few townspeople have ever made the trip to this Central American nation's capital, and some haven't even visited the nearby provincial capital. But yesterday I saw a young man with a ring in his ear.