One of the city's loveliest streets is the Avenida Reforma, which has a grassy median dotted with trees, flowers and monuments and is lined by office buildings, hotels, condominiums and embassies. Charles V fountain in Guatemala City's Zona Viva. Cultural life in the city revolves around art galleries, museums, theaters and the nation's five universities. There are frequent lectures about pre-Hispanic art, anthropology and ethnology, textiles, popular culture, Colonial art, and modern art. Several art galleries promote Guatemalan paintings, photography, engraving and sculpture.
Theaters present a wide variety of plays, including many by national playwrights.
At the Miguel Angel Asturias Cultural Center, activities range from chamber music recitals to performances by the Guatemala Ballet to rock concerts in the center's amphitheater. Historic Center Guatemala City's oldest quarter, or Zone 1, is known today as the Historic Center. The heart of the Historic Center is the Central Plaza, where the cathedral and the National Palace can be found. On Sundays, the Central Plaza is converted into small fairground with textile vendors, music, fortune-telling birds and stands selling native foods. The Palace, built in the early 20 th. century, is an impressive building constructed to house government offices.