By Mayra Beltrán de Daetz

Guatemala -- Lake Atitlán, located in the Department of Sololá, has one of the most beautiful landscapes found anywhere in Guatemala. Its beauty has been compared with Switzerland's lakes.

Along the margins of the lake, there are three imposing volcanos: Atitlán, Tolimán and San Pedro. The lake is located at 1,560 meters at sea level and is 18 km long. Its depth varies and at many points it is not known, but drilling has reached depths of more than 350 meters.

In reviewing the history of the scientific origin of the most beautiful "Lake of the World," as Atitlán is called, there are two versions. One version says that the lake is an old dead crater. The other is that the sprouting volcanoes interrupted the course of three rivers coming from the north. When the rivers reunited, their waters created the lake. The lake does not have visible water drainage.

The lake is surrounded by 12 colorful little towns that are called the twelve apostles: Santa Catarina Palopó, San Antonio Palopó, San Lucas Tolimán, Santiago Atitlán, San Pedro the Lagoon, San Juan the Lagoon, San Pablo the Lagoon, San Marcos the Lagoon, Santa Cruz the Lagoon, Panajachel and others.

The Lake, located only two hours away from Guatemala City, takes longer to arrive at by bus. To get there, it's necessary to cross very mountainous terrain and so travel is very slow. When arriving at the lake, the first town that you find is Panajachel. It is the place where all travelers vacationing in the region can find the hotels and chalets.

The meaning of Atitlán comes from Atit, the feminine word meaning Moon, and Ala, meaning masculine man. The first Spaniards, in the 16th Century, put the two words together and named the lake Atitlán.

While the scientific version of the origin of Atitlán leaves nothing to the imagination, a legend of how the lake was formed is more popular and romantic among Guatemaltecos. It is said there existed an impossible love between the Sun and the Moon and that throughout the eternal ages they have been forced to live separated by an evil spell.

While one commands the day, the other endures its dark sadness at night. They undergo the separation in silence with the unique hope of an eclipse, thus to be able to see one another. They say that the Moon's lovesickness ended with a single sweet tear. The tear fell on the same side of the Earth as Guatemala and formed the lake of Atitlán.

I'm sharing these stories because it is a pity that this site of national pride with its tales of heavenly origins which has been the inspiration for so many painters, writers and singers is dying. It is dying from neglect, either from the residents of the area or from the government's own disinterest.

The lake suffers with cyanobacterium contamination. It's a bacteria that transformed the pristine waters of Atitlán into a stinky, greenish mess. The contamination was first discovered three years ago by biologists. Ever since then, the biologists tried to warn the government and local communities of the bacteria's threat, but no one listened. So nowadays, the biologists refer to the case as "the history of an announced death."

The popular theory is that the contamination stems from a variety of factors: the widespread use of inorganic fertilizers, the dirt blown into the lake from Hurricane Stan, the growth of the local population around the lake and the nonexistence of water treatment plants needed to cleanse the sewage coming from the chalets, hotels and local communities.

Finally, people are paying attention. Sectors of the civil society have had meetings to discuss the problems caused by the bacteria. The Atitlán Foundation, the mayors of the nearby towns, the government's vice-minister of atmosphere, along with, nongovernmental organizations and biologists have met to discuss what can be done.

Continue reading "Guatemala: A national natural treasure is almost lost because of government indifference" »

Filed 21 de Enero, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Martha Ramos

MEXICO CITY: For some strange reason, I happened to hear a David Foster CD and heard a song that touched me so deeply that I couldn't help but cry: Bridge over troubled waters, sung by Josh Groban.

For no reason at all, I felt myself in a vulnerable position when thinking of my country, my family -- who lives in Chihuahua -- my friends, and how we all live under this constant fear of being a living target.

Innocent lives routinely get caught in the crossfire between the drug cartels and law enforcement.

In the last weeks of 2009, a big fat narco dealer was killed during a very impressive bullet-storm between navy soldiers and narco cartels. It happend in Cuernavaca, where my family and I go for relaxing weekends -- the land of eternal spring, flowers wherever the eye turns, people partying and laughing. And the next weekend nobody was there.

Neighbors were afraid to go out. People who have vacation homes there simply decided not to travel -- and it's only 30 minutes away from Mexico City.

In ten years, the drug cartels have climbed into the fifth position in world rankings of criminal groups. They have expanded their power to 47 countries involved with committing felonies in 22 different criminal activities.

They pose the worse threat on the continent. They infiltrate political circles and buy policemen at all levels.

Last March, almost a year ago, authorities announced 10,475 people died because of the war against the drug cartels.

So now, I'm not sure who's winning, but I am certain who is losing this war -- us.

Continue reading "Mexico: Living in Mexico is like walking on a bridge over troubled waters" »

Filed 6 de Enero, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Cecilia Mansilla

Five years ago on December 30, 2004, the most cruel, unimaginable tragedy to hit Argentina happened when during a rock concert 194 people died. The case is still on trial.

ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires is a rock music capital. People here love the music. Rock and Roll shows are common, especially for teenagers. There are always big shows in stadiums for well-known bands (this year we had AC/DC, Depeche Mode, Kiss... and Metallica is coming in a few weeks).

Buenos Aires is also home to the big "National Rock" movement. And Callejeros, the headlining band on that tragic night, was part of this movement. At the time, Callejeros was a band growing in popularity and fans.

The nightclub, Cromañón, was allowed to have 1,031 attendees -- that night there were almost 3.000 teenagers. Four of the six doors (some of them fire exits) were chained shut so that "people won't enter without paying."

It proved to be a deathtrap.

With almost three times the amount of people legally allowed into the concert that night, the show began with Omar Chabán (the owner of the place) announcing to the screaming crowd: "Do not use pyrotechnic flares, they will burn." In spite of this warning, a few minutes after the music started the fire happened.

This is the typical Cromañon picture. The shoes are the symbol for that night... this is because the place is still full of shoes of the victims.

It's usual in Argentina to use fireworks during rock shows, but in outdoors places, not inside a club. But someone used fireworks.

The décor inside the disco proved to be extremely flammable. With the place full (almost 2,000 people over the permitted limit by the government), the doors closed and the disco dark, people could not get out.

It was impossible to escape, even though some of the same victims got back into the club to save others, some of them died trying. Omar Chabán, the owner, disappeared.

Unlike most accidents of this type, the victims did not die from being crushed by falling debris or burning, they died from inhaling poisonous gases, smoke and carbon monoxide. They died because the people in charge didn't care.

Continue reading "Argentina: Families challenge government corruption in seeking justice for children killed in horrific concert fire" »

Filed 30 de Diciembre, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Jennifer Barreto-Leyva

VENEZUELA: "Venezuelans, check yourself, you are way too fat"

Those were the -- once again -- wise words of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez on his very own 5 hour-long TV Show "Alo Presidente" broadcast every Sunday on National Television.

"Venezuelans are way too fat, well not the female ones, they are pleasantly plump. I don't know what's going on in this country, but people are fat, way too fat and that's not a good thing."

Those are the words of an obese Hugo Chavez.

Someone who has gained a tremendous amount of weight since he has been in power, living la vida loca and traveling all over the world, paid by us -- our taxes, tears and pain...us, the people, the suffering people.

While he said such a ridiculous statement, we overweight Venezuelans are living in the most fat-phobic country, under the most abusive and unacceptable conditions, where being overweight is worst than being a drug dealer or a delinquent.

We are humiliated, abused and discriminated all the way and no one seems to care.

Hugo should find someone to tell him the truth.

The truth is that more than 80% of the Venezuelan population is "overweight" (this according to the paranoids).

Continue reading "Venezuela: Hugo Chavez now weighs in on being a "size activist"" »

Filed 4 de Diciembre, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Cecilia Mansilla

ARGENTINA: Milan has La Scala. New York City has the New York Metropolitan and then there's the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, the Munich National Theater and the Paris Opera. In Buenos Aires, we have the Colon Theater or better known here as Teatro Colón.

Teatro Colón was opened in 1908 and is considered one of the main theatres in the world. The acoustics are considered one of the five best acoustics for opera in the world.

An American friend of mine, David, asked me last week: "What about the Teatro Colón? Some friends are here and I want to show it to them... but it's still closed!" And he was right.

It's been closed for over three years. Different governments have promised that they will finish the reconstruction work, but it never happens.

However, this week, Mauricio Macri, the governor of Buenos Aires, announced that it will be opened next year!

Even though we have already heard this a lot of times... we will believe in him!

As one of the most important national monuments, it is located in the heart of Buenos Aires. With over 2500 seats, it was built to demonstrate power and independence and fulfill a rich cultural aspect of Argentina.

With excellent acoustics and modern stage areas, the theater's interior design features a rich scarlet and gold decor. The cupola contains frescoes painted in 1966 by the renowned 20th century artist Raul Soldi during the renovation work.

The theater opened on May 25, 1908, the Día de patria (Motherland Day) in Argentina, with a performance of Verdi's Aida. It quickly became a world-famous operatic venue rivaling La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera in attracting artists.

Celebrities like Arturo Toscanini, Enrico Caruso and Titta Rufo, Maria Callas and Maia Plissetskaya, Plácido Domingo and even Luciano Pavarotti. Pavarotti is considered by many to be the greatest tenor in history, and he said about the theater: "... it has a very big defect, the acoustic is simply perfect. Imagine what that means for a singer: if one makes a mistake, it is noticed immediately..."

This icon of Buenos Aires culture will finally be reopened on May 25, 2010, the 102nd anniversary of its original opening. Having been closed for over 3 years, we cannot wait for the reopening. There are already tickets sold for the first show.

So maybe, if David's friends come back next year, they will be able to enjoy one of the most amazing theaters in the world -- along with the rest of us.

Learn more about Cecilia:

Cecilia Miguel Mansilla is a 24-year-old student who lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Filed 16 de Noviembre, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (1)

By Martha Ramos

MEXICO CITY: A dear friend of mine says that the problem with us, women, is that we have a lot of "accessories" and, of course, after our 40th birthday everything needs, at least, maintenance.

That happened to me. But I wasn't able to see it. Mi gynecologist found a strange thing in my right breast that I couldn't feel in my self-exam.

So she sent me to the oncologist. He said it was nothing but... he found something strange in my left armpit that I couldn't detect either. In three months, that strange thing was 50% bigger.

Next step: Take it out!

Continue reading "Mexico: Breast cancer deaths continue to escalate in spite of prevention campaigns" »

Filed 5 de Noviembre, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Cecilia Mansilla

ARGENTINA: The death of the "voice of Latin America," Mercedes Sosa, was an Argentinean story. As a result, October has become a really sad month for us. We lost one of our biggest artists.

She was best known for her great songs such as "Gracias a la vida" ("Thanks to life") and "Si calla el cantor" ("If the singer is silenced").

"I didn't choose to sing for people", Sosa said in an interview, "Life chose me to sing".

Mercedes was born on July 9th, 1935 in the province of San Miguel de Tucuman (north of Argentina) and she is considered one of the most important exports of our music.

During the last dictatorship, her records were forbidden, but even under those awful circumstances she stayed in the country until 1979.

"I remember when they took me prisoner", she told The Associated Press in late 2007. "I was singing for university kids who were in the last year of veterinary school. I was not political".

With three suitcases and a handbag she emigrated to Europe, where she stayed until 1982.

She was the recipient of several Grammy Awards and nominations. She served as an ambassador for UNICEF. She worked with performers across several genres and generations, including Andrea Bocelli, Silvio Rodriguez, Pablo Milanes, Caetano Veloso, Joan Manuel Serrat, Gal Costa, Ismael Serrano, Charly Garcia, Luciano Pavarotti, Julieta Venegas, Joaquin Sabina, Calle 13, Sting and Shakira.

Argentina, is really sad for the loss, we are really sad for our loss. But we will always remember her, and appreciate all that she did for those who couldn't talk at the worst times of our history. When our people was silenced by the dictators, she was singing for us, for our freedom, for our voices.

We will miss you, Negra.

Song in the following video is Todo Cambia:

Learn more about Cecilia:

Cecilia Miguel Mansilla is a 24-year-old student who lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Studying journalism, Cecilia has been a TV news and radio producer for two years. These days, however, she finds herself working for an information technology company and isn't finding the experience as rewarding as journalism.

I'm trying to get back to my profession, to what I really love -- journalism.

Filed 24 de Octubre, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (3)