Artesanía and Tourism in San Pedro la Laguna

Hillary Ossip Mount Holyoke College

Purpose and Abstract

Tourism has greatly affected San Pedro la Laguna in a variety of ways and has now become one of the

most important staples of the local economy. The tourist scene in San Pedro is continuously transforming the

local scene, especially as some locals attempt to cater to tourists and tourist needs in order to take

advantage of the new economic possibilities tourism offers. As such, the purpose of this study is to

investigate what kind of artesanía1 sales market has emerged and grown as a direct result of tourism in San

Pedro. This project examines the presence of artesanía in San Pedro la Laguna and its relation to the growth

of tourism in town. The focus of the study is on the local scene at the time of the study, using it as a base

point to understand the changes occurring in San Pedro. Through interviews with local artisans and store

owners, street vendors, extranjero2 artisans and vendors, and tourists, as well as on-site observations, this

project attempts to analyze how artesanía presence in San Pedro has changed and where it might be heading

in the future.

Definition of Terms, Theories, and Research Concepts

As Walter Little writes, “Tourists regard marketplaces in terms of authenticity” (Little 200: 114). I

myself am guilty of this, at first trying to approach my research by studying concepts of authenticity and

commodification of culture through the lens of artesanía sales to tourists in San Pedro la Laguna. Realizing

the great scope of this research along with the time constraint of the program, I narrowed down my research

to studying solely the tourist artesanía market in town at the time of research rather than delving into the

intricacies and complexities involved in understanding what is “authentic.”

Little writes about vendors, explaining that, “…the social relationships in which they participate span

three overlapping social spheres: those with persons from their hometowns; those with other vendors,

middlepersons, and craftspersons in the handicraft market; and those with consumers – usually foreign

tourists but also Ladinos and occasionally other Mayas” (Little 8). As Nash points out, “people from different

cultural traditions are linked through commodities, as when ‘consuming elite’ travelers ‘search for identity

thought consumerism’ and form strange alliances with ‘producing communities’ that lead to new forms of

handicrafts that are still perceived as ‘traditional’” (Little 2004: 9). I began my research with this in mind,

acknowledging that through artesanía sales, a number of different groups of people who would perhaps not

normally interact were brought together.

Artesanía literally translates into English as handicrafts. For the purpose of this study, it refers to

handmade artwork made specifically for tourists to purchase. The definition of a tourist for the purpose of

this essay is, “anyone who spends a certain amount of time or travels a specified distance away from home”

(Chambers 2000: 18). When writing about extranjeros, those who are not native to San Pedro, they fall into

the category of tourists.

Research Methods

The methodology utilized in this study includes formal and informal interviews, observational studies,

and questionnaires. Using these methods of ethnographic study, I attempted to grasp an understanding of

the local artesanía presence in San Pedro la Laguna. Interviews were conducted with local artisans, owners

of artesanía shops, street vendors, estranger artisans and vendors, and tourists. I primarily came into

contact with artisans and vendors by walking into their stores or up to the tables where they sell and

introducing myself. Using interview techniques, I would question each of my informants, trying to

understand their experience and thoughts about artesanía in San Pedro la Laguna. In order to understand

the tourist opinion of artesanía in San Pedro, I used a questionnaire, asking a random convenience sample of

tourists near the embarcadero a Panajachel as well as the snowball effect to distribute my questionnaire. I

was also able to utilize the snowball effect, for example, with my host family in order to interview the first

shop owner I met. However, the most successful tactic used to meet those I interviewed for my study was to

merely walk up to them and begin conversing, stating that I am an anthropology student primarily interested

in art and tourism in San Pedro.

When not interviewing, I would employ observational methods, spending much time sitting on the curb

of the road and walking around, observing interactions between different local vendors, as well as between

vendors and tourists, local vendors and other local passersby, local vendors and estranger vendors, and

amongst estranger vendors. I also conducted a time allocation study, sitting outside an artesanía shop on

Calle Gringo for approximately five hours in order to observe what a typical day might be like at a shop in

this area. In terms of location, my focus was along the street along the beach near the muelle a Panajachel,

the primary sight of tourism activity and recent growth of artesanía presence in San Pedro la Laguna. I also

studied a few sights of artesanía closer to the town center. I limited my study specifically to shops, vendors,

and artists working with tourists. My study excludes galerías and local stores selling only traje típico or

specifically catering to locals and not tourists.

Research Site: San Pedro la Laguna

San Pedro la Laguna, a Tz’utujil Maya town of over 10,000 people is located at the base of Volcán San

Pedro on the western side of Lake Atitlán, Sololá, Guatemala. While some streets are paved, on those near

the town center, the hub of Maya life in town, smooth pavement is replaced by cobblestone streets. In the

town center, one may observe the hustle and bustle of women in traje3 and men in more westernized

clothes passing by, children running down the street, ancianos4 sitting on the curb watching as people walk

past, and the occasional few extranjeros watching their every step so as not to trip in one of the many

cracks between each stone. The town center, or centro, primarily serves the locals, with a market, shops,

and facilities catering to locals.

“Gringolandia”

The majority of town caters primarily to local Mayan residents, save for the area near the shore of Lake

Atitlán running between the muelle5 a Santiago and the muelle a Panajachel. This area, known by locals as

“Gringolandia” caters to tourists who are showing up in greater numbers each year.

As I walk down Calle Gringo at 9:30 on a Thursday morning, the street is just beginning to stir. Store

owners selling cosas tipicas, such as traditional clothing, woodcarvings, beadwork, and paintings, sit on the

steps outside their stores, scattered up and down the street. It is a bright, sunny morning, a relief after a

week of constant rain. Outside, a few vendors set up tables along the street, placing coco-wood carved and

tree-resin decorated pipes, bracelets, and necklaces in place in anticipation of tourists passing by

throughout the day. In terms of market streets, this street is pretty quiet and calm, with a steady but not

overwhelming trickle of people passing by throughout the day. I keep walking past, greeting those I pass,

either saying “Buenos días” meaning “good morning” in Spanish, or “Naa’n,” meaning “goodbye” in the

local dialect, Tz’utujil. Outside the travel agency Big Foot, two boys in their teens lean out the second

story window, hanging up a glossy sign advertising San Pedro as well as excursions to Volcan San Pedro and

Nariz del Indio with images depicting the tranquil water of Lago Atitlán and the mountains surrounding it.

As I turn to make my way towards the muelle a Panajachel, I hear a woman call out to me, “¿Quieres pan?”

I then sit down near the embarcadero to Panajachel, where the majority of San Pedro’s tourists first

experience the town as the get off the lancha and step onto the uneven cobblestone steps that serve as the

entranceway to San Pedro. I look out towards the docks, then across the water to the Nariz del Indio, as

clouds slowly glide past the mountain peaks, the sun’s rays breaking through the fog, sparkling as they

reach the water’s surface. The “Huracán” glides up to the dock completely packed with passengers as its

wake cuts through the twinkling water, making new patterns of waves in the water. Passengers stream off.

Local woman in cortes and blusas gracefully get off the boat. As the passengers line up to pay, a man in his

twenties in a blue shirt with a Scottish flag on it, khakis, and a large black traveler’s backpack cautiously

steps off the lancha. As he reaches the front of the line to pay for the boat ride from Panajachel to San

Pedro la Laguna, he fumbles slightly with his wallet, hands the lanchero his money, slowly flips through the

change he receives and then puts his wallet back in his pant pocket and walks away, up the steps leading

towards the center of town. If he continues straight up the steep cobblestone road, he will arrive in San

Pedro’s center, and if he turns, he will find himself in what the locals call “Gringolandia.” As I crane my

neck, looking behind me, I see him turn and head into Gringolandia.

In this part of town, much of the economic activity and social institutions that exist are interconnected

with the fact that this is where tourism is centered in San Pedro. Hotels abound, as do bars, clubs, and

restaurants, all serving tourists passing through San Pedro. Hotels and hostels line the beach and path

running parallel to the beach, which eventually opens up to what some locals call “Calle Gringo,” which is a

street leading from the tourist side-path to the muelle a Panajachel, where most tourists first enter town.

Along Calle Gringo as well, many new hotels line the beach and road, and others are in the process of

construction, foreshadowing an even greater increase in tourism.

Along these tourist-frequented roads, many new tiendas are opening as well. Some serve as travel

agencies, booking day trips to hike Volcan San Pedro, go kayaking, or to visit the market at

Chichicastenango. Other new tiendas [6] target tourist consumerism, selling handicrafts, or artesanía, such

as weavings, jewelry, and stones, with the specific goal of selling to tourists. Internet cafes are springing up

as well, catering to the tourist demand to have internet access.

Located on the narrow path running from Calle Principal and the muelle (dock) a Santiago to Calle

Gringo is a large Evangelical school for local children, with a massive mural depicting a lake view and with

the words, “Jesus es el hombre de San Pedro.” Diagonally across from this school is a new museum, Museo

Tz’unun Ya’, which tells the story of San Pedro, costing extranjeros 35 Quetzales7 and free for locals, in an

effort to encourage locals to learn about their cultural past.

While Calle Gringo is already lined with many restaurants, hotels, internet cafes and shops, there still

remains a great deal of space yet to be developed. Cement shells of buildings stand on the beach,

construction of other buildings is taking place at this moment, and it is probable that in a matter of years,

these empty spaces will be filled with more sites serving the increasing tourist population in San Pedro. As

locals anticipate this increase in tourism, it will be interesting to see if this site develops, as expected, and

how it will change this area of San Pedro.

“En poco tiempo, todo ha cambiado.”

There exists the idea among local Pedranos of “antes,” referring to the time before tourism took a

major grasp on local life and economy. Of those I interviewed, most mentioned that, before tourism locals

worked in agriculture above all else, such as with café, maiz, and frijol, to name a few. In some of my

informants’ opinions, if tourism did not exist, the community would still be completely dependent on

agriculture.

As transportation developed from cayucos8 and caballos9 to motorcycles, cars, buses, and lanchas10,

more people were able to travel to San Pedro. The change and growth in transport allowed for tourists to

come to San Pedro, which served as a source of work and development, and some locals took advantage of

the new opportunities opened by greater accessibility, thus beginning to set up an infrastructure for tourism.

Beginning in the 1940s, anthropologists, missionaries, and then later hippies started flowing in to San Pedro.

In the past ten years, San Pedro has seen a boom in tourism. The people in San Pedro are building more

hotels and bars as tourism grows. Much of the land near the shoreline that was once used solely for

agricultural purposes has now been converted to uses for tourism. One informant, the owner of the first

travel agency in San Pedro, which opened ten years ago, believes that tourists come to San Pedro because it

has cheap hotels, lots of restaurant variety, and it is tranquilo. “That’s what people want.” A tour guide

explained to me, “We want tourism because it helps the people here…We need tourism…Tourism is a “parte

de necesidad de nosotros,” meaning necessary for us Pedranos.

Who are the Vendors?

Those who sell artwork to sell to tourists can be placed into categories, which occasionally overlap: the

artists themselves, Pedranos, extranjeros, Mayas from elsewhere, and re-sellers. These vendors sell the

tourist artwork at tiendas and on tables and clothes on the street, primarily on Calle Gringo and on the

street leading to the centro. In the following section, I will briefly describe each of these types of vendors,

their relationships amongst each other at the time of research, and the setting in which they sell the

artwork.

Tienda Owners

Of those I interviewed for my project, all those who owned or rented space in order to sell artesanía in

a store were from San Pedro except for one family. The majority of store owners and renters I interviewed

had opened their stores near the research site within the past 2 years, many within the past six months.

Those who owned or rented tiendas did so with the hope and expectation that the already existing tourism

in San Pedro will grow and investing in a shop will lead to a better and more stable economic future. As

expressed by one informant, the economic factor of owning a business is a problem. “¿Que voy a hacer si no

hay negocios?” (What am I going to do if there are no sales?) It was a great sacrifice economically to open

the shop, but they hope it will make more profit than what they sacrificed to make it (Fieldnotes 2 July

2008).

Tienda owners often make a portion of their own products, as well as re-sell the work of fellow

Pedranos and from elsewhere in Guatemala. One of my informants told me he and his family make all of the

products sold at their store, using weaved material made in town to sew together the clothes they sell,

finding seeds to make their bracelets and other jewelry, and weaving together the hammocks, purses, and

everything else they sell. Another store owner informant told me that his family makes all the jewelry and

pipes for the shop, but purchases carved stones with Maya symbols, among other products, from elsewhere

in Guatemala. Another shop owner I spoke with did not make any of the products she sold, however much of

the artesanía sold was made by other Pedranos, and the rest by people around Guatemala, which she then

resells. What this means is that each shop differs in whether they produce their own tourist merchandise or

if they resell the artwork of others.

Table Vendors

Vendors selling artesanía to tourists at tables are only seen along the street parallel to the playa, Calle

Gringo. Both locals and extranjeros sell at tables. The majority of items sold at tables are jewelry,

sometimes made with stones and beads, and often using knotting and weaving techniques. The vendors

themselves often make most or all of the products sold at their tables.

Extranjeros Selling Artesanía

While many of those who sell artwork around my research site are local Pedranos, I would estimate that

approximately a fourth to a third are extranjeros, all of whom sell at tables, on clothes spread on the street,

or display their merchandise wrapping jewelry around wooden poles they carry with them from place to

place. Some extranjeros who sell artesanía are merely passing through San Pedro, staying for between a few

days and a few weeks, then moving on to other places to travel and sell. Others come to San Pedro, start

selling, and decide to stay for months, and, like one of my informants, years. They come from as close as

Xela and Guatemala City to as far as the United States, Argentina, and Europe, to name a few.

Reasons for Selling Artesanía – Do they Differ?

Of my local informants, all but one table vendor said they work selling artesanía to tourists primarily

out of necessity, because it is a way to earn money to support themselves and their families. The

extranjeros I spoke too were less concerned with supporting their families, as many were traveling alone or

as couples. Some planned to settle down in San Pedro, while others planned to continue traveling on

through Latin America. The money they earned from selling their artwork served as income to finance them

while traveling, spending as little as possible. The motives for earning money were less out of necessity to

live than that of local vendors.

Relations among Vendors

Relations between local vendors reflect one of a trusting community. This I was able to observe during

my time spent at the research site. Vendors would leave their stores and tables unattended with the

assumption that someone around (someone who is local helping another local, or someone who is an

estranger helping another estranger) will assist in making a sale if an interested consumer passes. The local

vendors all seem to know each other, say hello when passing each others’ stores and tables, and even leave

their own stores unattended to go visit the stores of other locals. Moreover, after interviewing the majority

of local vendors on Calle Gringo, I learned that many of them are related. For example, to which one family

I spoke own a shop selling cosas típicas, or typical Mayan clothing and weavings in the centro, which has

been open for some time, but it is smaller and tourists didn’t notice it. Referring to their shop in the

centro, I was told that, “Ellos no pueden mirar lo que hicimos.” (They, tourists, cannot see what we

make).11 The centro, they said, is more for locals and less for tourists, and there is more money in tourism.

Thus, this family opened a shop on Calle Gringo four months prior to our interview. Soon after conducting

this interview, I spoke with a young couple in their twenties who were selling at both a store selling modern

clothes as well as a table in front of it selling jewelry and clothing for tourists. They informed me that they

are related to the store down the street’s owners. Thus, three stores are connected to the same family.

Other such incidents were common, in which two stores would be owned by two brothers, and so on.

Beyond family ties, the bond local vendors in general had with each other created a tight sense of

community with minimal competition amongst Pedrano vendors.

Relations amongst extranjeros differ from those among local vendors for a number of reasons, the

primary one being that many estranger vendors are only in San Pedro for a few weeks at most. About half

the estranger artesanía vendors actually live in San Pedro, some for months, others for years. The other half

only pass through, making a small sum of money on tourist purchases and using that money to travel on to

other places. As such, there exists some tension as the estranger artesanía vendor population is somewhat

more divided into these two groups, depending on length of stay. It is common to see estranger vendors sit

on the curb of the road, waiting to make a sale while sitting by their products. On a daily basis, one might

observe them chatting to each other, sharing a liter beer, and smoking cigarettes together as the day passes.

Local and estranger vendors’ relations are peaceful for the most part. Both groups are trying to sell

their products and have the same goal in mind to make a sale, but as between local vendors, there does not

exist any sort of extreme competition in this market. Some local vendors are even friends with estranger

vendors and can be seen walking past each others’ stores and stands, saying hello and staying to chat.

Types of Artesanía: Traditional, Fusion, Estranger

Artwork sold to tourists exists in three categories: traditional, fusion, and estranger artesanía. While

these three categories are present in the market, the lines between them are not rigid. As Chambers writes,

“Eric Hobsbawn and Terence Ranger (1983) argue…that traditions are always invented and continually being

reinvented. Their approach centers on the agency, or deliberateness, that informs the construction of

traditions” (Chambers 2000: 97). Traditional artesanía sold to tourists includes weavings and mostacilla

(beadwork). This traditional artwork is sometimes warped into products such as weaved wallets and purses

for tourist use. Moreover, untraditional tools and methods are sometimes used to make traditional types of

artwork, such as sewing machines. As extranjeros began selling alongside locals, locals started using not

only traditional forms of artwork to make products to sell to tourists, but also began utilizing estranger

techniques and making different types of artwork to cater to tourist demand. This merging of traditional

and other craftsmanship may be referred to as “fusion.”

In fusion artwork sold to tourists, there exists an interchange between tourists and locals in which each

learns forms of artwork from the other. It is a combination of traditional and tourist artwork. For example,

locals may make jewelry out of beads, or seeds from local trees. Yet, they might use pliers or wire cutters

to mold the jewelry, which are not traditional tools found in Mayan cultures. Pipes are another example of

this fusion, using traditional wood carving techniques to make a product that is perhaps not traditionally

used by Mayans. Pipes are carved out of coco-wood. Tree resin is then placed around the wood and molded

into faces, designs, and even symbols of marijuana. There is a demand from tourists for pipes used to

smoke, to drink, or just for decoration. Another example of the mix of new and traditional is in ceramics.

Ceramics has always existed in Mayan culture, but now it is being used to create products tourists want in

order to increase sales. According to one local informant, when the market presents more products, there is

more for people to choose from to buy. There is a fusion of artesanías as well as an interchange. “We learn

from extranjeros and they learn from us. This is good as we learn from them, but we have different styles of

art. We want to improve the “calidad del producto y de produción,” meaning the quality of the products

and of production. (Fieldnotes 24 June 2008).

“In the tourism/típica market, Maya weavers make goods that are consumed by non-Mayas but rarely

used by Mayas themselves” (Little 2004: 98). As one informant said, artwork for tourists is now incorporating

more creativity than before. An interesting point he made was that they make items out of what they

consider trash, such as wood from a coconut, and make it look like artwork. “Para nosotros es como basura

pero para ellos, es como ‘wow.” He then pulled a necklace with a dolphin carved out of wood as the

centerpiece, at which point I said that it was beautiful. He responded saying, “Exactamente” (Fieldnotes: 2

July 2008).

Tourists and How they Perceive San Pedro’s Artesanía Market

Using a tourist questionnaire, I was able to gain a better sense of the tourist experience of artesanía in

San Pedro la Laguna. The questionnaire provided information on tourist perceptions and impressions of

artesanía in San Pedro la Laguna. Of those I interviewed, only one was just visiting San Pedro. Many of my

informants were including Antigua and Chichicastenango, among other places, on their trip itinerary. The

majority of tourists interviewed, 68%, were planning on being in San Pedro for less than two weeks. When

asked what kind of traveler they were, the majority identified themselves as independent travelers, and

many were Spanish students at a variety of the schools around San Pedro la Laguna. Of those I interviewed,

six planned to visit the artesanía market in Chichicastenango, six planned to visit the market in Antigua, two

to visit Panajachel (others listed San Pablo, San Pedro la Laguna, Zunil, San Juan, Santiago, and Xela as

places they plan to purchase artesanía in Guatemala).

In trying to get a sense of what artesanía tourists are noticing in town, I asked, “What type of

artesanías have you seen available for purchase in San Pedro la Laguna?” The chart below displays the

responses.

Graph 1

This indicates that beadwork, jewelry, woodwork, and paintings are more visible to tourists than

weavings and leather goods.

I then wanted to know what, or if, tourists were buying artesanía in San Pedro, and thus asked, “What

artesanías have you bought or plan to buy while here in San Pedro la Laguna?” The response is represented in

the chart associated with this question below.

Graph 2

From the results, one may infer that jewelry and beadwork are the most common purchase for tourists.

Looking at what is offered on the street near the dock to Panajachel, this trend correlates with the high

amount of jewelry and beadwork offered directly on the street (on tables, often outside of stores, with

other goods set inside). It also indicates that the majority of tourists questioned were not planning to buy

any of these forms of artesanía in San Pedro, excluding those wanting jewelry, which was tied between yes

and no. This reflects what an expat described to me when discussing the new artesanía shops opening near

the Panajachel dock, as she said, “Who knows if the shops will make money because people don’t come to

San Pedro for art…they see this art and think, ‘I like this but there’s much more variety in Santiago and

Panajachel and probably cheaper.’”

When asked where the tourists buy artesanía in San Pedro, over half who chose to respond noted “on

the street” and almost a fifth cited “close to muelle a Pana.” Of those interviewed, 40% of the responses

referred to wanting to buy artesanía as gifts, another 35% for personal use, and 23% as recuerdos/souvenirs.

Graph 3

In order to understand how tourists compare San Pedro’s art market to that in other cities in

Guatemala, I asked, “What do you think of the artesanías available in San Pedro la Laguna as compared to

those you may have seen in other places in Guatemala (Circle the best answer)?” The graphs associated with

this question show their opinion on San Pedro as compared to other communities.

Graph 4

Note that the majority expressed that San Pedro’s market is smaller. Despite it being a smaller market,

the majority of those taking the questionnaire expressed that the quality of products is the same, although

the prices are cheaper.

From the questionnaire, I can deduct that tourists in San Pedro la Laguna might also visit

Chichicastenango and/or Antigua for their artesanía markets. None of those questioned expressed that they

came to San Pedro specifically because they wanted a piece of artwork. Those questioned ranged in age

from 19 to 60 years, although the majority were between 21 and 31 years old. 12 Males and 10 females took

the questionnaire, and 16 of the 22 were from the US, the others from Norway, the UK, Israel, and Canada.

The majority of those questioned were at an intermediate Spanish language level, only one marking fluent

and two not able to speak Spanish. All but three of those questioned felt that San Pedro was lacking in any

artesanía they wanted to buy. Of those three, one wanted more skirts and more instruments, the other two

marking skirts and better quality jewelry and beads.

I also included a rough map of San Pedro and asked those filling out the questionnaire to mark on the

map where they remembered seeing artesanía as a way to understand where tourists go and what/where

they notice art. I split the results into three groups. The first is the group that did not know San Pedro

enough to fill out the map or chose not to fill out the map. There were six questionnaires falling into this

category. The second category is those who circled or marked the street going up towards the centro as

well as the main street heading through Gringolandia from the dock to Panajachel. There are 14 maps

included in this group, meaning the vast majority of those interviewed are primarily focused on the center of

town and Calle Gringo. The third group marked the same spots as the second, but also a few other shops on

sidestreets or mentioned Calle Principal, leading up to the centro from the dock to Santiago. The two

people falling into the third category were both going to be in San Pedro for over a week, one for over a

month. I asked one local artesanía shop owner to mark on the same map where he thought there were

places selling artesanía, just out of curiosity to see if it differed greatly or not. He marked along Calle

Gringo and the road heading towards the centro, although he did not mark anything in the centro. He

marked a couple places at the base of Calle Principal near the Santiago dock, as well as on the other side of

Calle Gringo as it heads towards the road to San Juan.

Limitations in my methodology include that I am at the mercy of what tourist season it is (right now it is

vacation for US, hence the majority of surveys were done by Americans, who might have a different opinion

on San Pedro than, say, Israelis), who I randomly happen to ask to take the survey out of convenience, as

well as a limit on time and thus on receiving a substantial amount of questionnaire responses to make this

study more accurate. Some of those doing the questionnaire had only been in town for an hour and did not

know much about the town, although they were planning on staying longer and thus would get to know the

scene. It is important to note at what point in a person’s vacation here they are in, because if they have

been in San Pedro for a longer time, they are more likely to have noticed something about artwork than

those who are passing through for a day only. I also worry about the accuracy of data because of the small

number of informants.

The Process of Selling

Vendor and Consumer Interactions

Four Israeli women in their twenties walk to up to the table outside the store to look at jewelry.

Roberto, the store owner, says “shalom,” meaning “hello” in Hebrew, to them without asking if they are

Israeli, but correctly assuming so. As Roberto walks outside to them, he holds a line of in string in his

hand, bites it, and then wraps it between his hand and arm in a circular motion as he speaks with the

women. The women keep calling Roberto “Amigo” in a condescending tone, saying, “look, amigo.” They

bargain down the price to 30 Quetzales. There is a lot of tension in this negotiation, which I can sense

through the way the Israelis and Roberto speak to each other, and their body movement, which is very stiff.

The women remind me of a pack of wolves on the hunt and trying to make a kill on buying things cheap.

They are very demanding, never pausing once in their chatter. After about five 5 minutes, they go inside

the store, glancing at the items placed on the center table. Roberto says, “Barrato” and explains what

items are made of to two of the women, while the other two go back outside, look at the jewelry, then

look at a turquoise necklace, holding it up to one of their necks and looking in a mirror. Roberto then

comes back out to them after noticing they are looking at the necklace saying, “¿Cuánto, cuánto ofrecen?”

The girls set down the necklace when he says this, and walk away. Roberto says to them as they walk away,

“muy barrato,” smiling hopefully. After they are gone, he says again, “muy barrato,” out loud but mostly

to himself, smiling again, then walks back in the store, whistling and holding his string. (Fieldnotes: 4 July

2008).

In terms of communicating with tourists, vendors often use a calculator to communicate because it is

hard to speak in other languages. They use the calculator to negotiate and haggle, but will also use a paper

and pen at times. Vendors are very reliant on hand motions and voice fluctuation when a language barrier

exists. For example, one informant demonstrated how he communicates with tourists, making the motion

for “I need money,” pointing to himself, making his eyes bigger and rubbing his thumb across his other

fingers in the universal sign of “money.” He then said he might ask, “Help me,” and as he enacted this, his

voice rose higher, almost in a begging tone. It is the tone I had heard so often from other street vendors.

(Fieldnotes: 27 June 2008). This kind of interaction puts consumers in a hegemonic role over vendors as they

have the power to decide whether or not to spend their money purchasing an item or not. After this

demonstration of interaction between vendor and consumer, I became even more aware of how dependent

vendors are upon consumer demand, just by hearing the disparity in the voice of my informant.

The Art of Waiting: Time Allocation Study

As I sit, talking with a local vendor she says hi to locals in Tz’utujil and to tourists who glance our way

in Spanish, occasionally saying, “Hola. ¿Necesitas algo? Buen precio.” She then watches as tourists walk

slowly past and move by without ever completely stopping, their eyes sticking on certain products, dragging

behind the rest of their bodies until the displays are behind them.

While interviewing offered insight into the process of selling, it was not until I conducted my time

allocation study that I was truly able to grasp what vendors meant when explaining that there are times

when sales are low. It was very common during interviews to discuss tourist seasons, down time, and what

vendors do when they are not making many sales. All my informants told me that, when sales are slow, they

continue making more products to sell to tourists in the hope that more tourists will come in the future and

buy their products. Using the time allocation study, I was able to experience first hand what it means to

wait for a sale, and what vendors do as they wait for the moment when a tourist chooses to stop at their

store to browse and/or buy something.

For the time allocation study, I sat outside an artesanía store on Calle Gringo near the muelle a

Panajachel that opened two months prior. I sat next to the store entrance, in between the tables the store

owners had set outside to attract passersby to their merchandise. I watched as people walked past, as

people would, on occasion, interact with the store owners, and what store owners did in the meantime.

This location was convenient in that I could observe not only the owners of this store, but also other vendors

in view, as well as tourists and locals passing by. It gave me a sense of a day in the life of this tourist street

and what it might be like to work as a vendor. Moreover, it gave me insight into how people interact, and a

sense of what I’d learned through interviews about a day in the life, but firsthand, by experiencing sitting at

a shop waiting for a sale.

After conducting this study, I noted that there is a trend among consumers in that they like touching

the products. Almost every passerby during the day who took the time to stop, walk up to, and look at the

products sold reached down and touched the item/s they looked at. Even if they weren’t planning on buying

anything, while they looked, they always touched.

It’s interesting to note that it seems to be okay to leave stores and tables unattended with the

assumption that someone around (someone who is local helping another local, or someone who is expat

helping another expat) will help out with making a sale if an interested consumer passes. They all seem to

know the prices of each others’ work. Moreover, vendors do not seem concerned that passersby will steal

anything.

I realized that Calle Gringo in San Pedro is not a bustling market area and not teeming with tourists

wanting to buy products from all the artisans. The street was very “tranquilo y callada,” very quiet, with

occasional locals and tourists walking past. Often though, the same tourists continue to pass, always in

opposite direction from the 1st time they passed. They usually only pass twice, once coming, once going,

although some pass multiple times back and forth. While doing this assignment, I felt very tired by the end

of it as not much really happens at the store. There are only isolated incidents, by chance of who passes, in

which customers are present in the store. The rest of the time is just sitting, waiting for the isolated

incidents when passersby do choose to browse the selection of art here.

This kind of research technique gives insight into the work of waiting, which is what selling artesanía is

in many ways. Much of this seems to be about waiting for the right moment for a tourist to walk by who

wants to consume. The shop owner or someone else who can sell always needs to be around because they

need to be present in the case that a passerby does want to buy something. Sometimes the waiting can be

for hours, as it was when I was there, and sometimes it can be for days, weeks, or even months. When sales

are low, some informants told me, they make more products while they have the time, in hope of more

tourists coming and buying in the future, even if times are rough now. Much of having a shop and selling is

about waiting, and thus there is not much to do besides make more artwork and people watch in the

meantime, which is what most vendors do throughout the day as they wait in hope of making a purchase

(examples: 1) “We put the table of quartz inside and out of the rain. Dora keeps knotting for a minute, then

continues again after taking a few minute break to people watch.” 2) “Dora sits, biting the nail of her index

finger, staring at passersby and people watching, like me, minus taking notes. It seems that this is a big part

of the day, as I mentioned before, just sitting and waiting, trying to make eye contact or catch the attention

of tourists who might want to buy something from the store”).

There is great value to the information gained through this method. I observed the scene of art shops

from a distance and only for short spurts of time previously, but by actually sitting at a store and seeing how

it operates and what it feels like to be there for a shop owner waiting for tourists gave me greater insight

into the people I am studying and the life they lead. If I had more time, I would want to sit at this store on

other days, and other times, to see if business truly is always this slow. It would also be useful to observe

other shops located in different places on this street, to see if the atmosphere is different for them if they

are located closer to or farther away from the muelle.

Problems and Challenges for Vendors

Vendors face a number of challenges in their work, most falling under the umbrella of increasing

dependency on tourism. The first challenge is having the means to set up a store. If one wants to sell

artesanía from a store rather than just using tables set along the side of the road, they need the capital to

do so. Moreover, once they obtain a shop, they rely on tourist purchases to be able to maintain the shop.

One vendor said, to make things even more challenging, there is little to no government support and each

family must work for themselves to succeed.

The local vendors I spoke to were all very thankful to tourism for providing a source of income for

themselves and their families. “Gracias a turismo” and “Gracias a Dios que hay turismo,” meaning, “thanks

to tourism,” and “thank God there is tourism” were common phrases to hear during interviews with local

vendors.

Another issue affecting local vendors is tourist seasons. As Chambers writes, “All industries are subject

to patterns of supply and demand. The tourism industry is particularly vulnerable to shifts in demand.

Travel patterns and tourist interests change over time, sometimes quickly and dramatically, as they might in

response to changes in the political climate, health or security crises, or as a result of economic problems

experienced by those countries that “supply” the most tourists. Small-scale and local tourism initiatives are

often particularly vulnerable to shifts in demand…In many places, tourism demand is also subject to

considerable seasonal fluctuation” (Chambers 2000: 35). Locals cite June to August as the season for

tourists from the United States, August through Easter usually brings in Europeans and tourists from Oceana

and there is a steady flow of tourists from Israel as well. Yet, the vendors explained that, after Easter,

there is minimal tourist movement in San Pedro. It is a very difficult time for them, as are all slow times,

which can occur based not only on tourist seasons, but also on factors like the weather, tourists and if they

choose to buy artesanía or not, or even global problems such as the price of gasoline and events such as

September 11, which cause a decrease in the amounts of tourists and thus domino into a decrease in sales of

artesanía to tourists. When the market is slow and vendors are unable to make sales, they either have to

look for other markets to sell their products in the meantime, or spend their time making more products so

that, when tourists do come, the will have more choices and are thus more likely to buy something.

There also exists the problem that artwork is being sold very cheaply, and thus there is not a significant

profit for the vendors or artisans. “As a rule, where producers have direct access to the marketplace, and

can therefore negotiate prices directly with tourists, the profit seems to be reasonable. On the other hand,

where the producers have to rely on intermediaries to bring their goods to market, the producers are often

exploited.” (Chambers 2000: 112-13). A disadvantage of the system of reselling artwork is that, those who

make products for vendors get paid significantly less by vendors than the vendors do by tourists buying the

products. Thus, artists themselves often make less than store owners who sell the products. Moreover, one

informant mentioned that products are more expensive in Panajachel and Antigua because often the prices

are in dollars and not in Quetzales. The exchange rate from most foreign currencies to Quetzales and the

weak value of the Quetzal means that vendors are not earning very much money.

To add to the problem of the weak value of the Quetzal, extranjeros often try to haggle prices down as

low as possible before making purchases. Examples listed by one informant are that tourists will offer to buy

more of one product, and then pay less for each item than if they bought one item individually. “Eso es una

perdida para nosotros…desventaja porque desvalarecen el trabajo…problema que tenemos,” meaning, “This

is a loss for us…it is a disadvantage because they devalue the artwork…it is a problem we have.” He then

mentioned the case of when people pull out their wallet, pull out a bill and say, “I just have this much.”

This is a problem for him as well. (Fieldnotes: 27 June 2008).

Conclusions, Applications, and Limitations

By conducting this research, I was able to understand the local market for tourist artesanía that exists

in San Pedro at the time of research. From what I learned, the scene is constantly changing, growing, and

adapting as a result of the increase in tourism in San Pedro la Laguna. Locals and extranjeros I interviewed

all foresee a growth in artesanía tiendas in the future. One informant told me, “I am certain that there will

be more stores in San Pedro in the future. There are already more tiendas on this street and towards the

embarcadero a Panajachel (Fieldnotes: 2 July 2008). Another informant explained, “Aquí es mínimo, es

pequeño, pero en el futuro, va a crecer más,” translated as, “Here it, artesanía, is minimal, it is small, but

in the future, it is going to grow more” (Fieldnotes: 24 June 2008). As an estranger vendor who has been

living in San Pedro for two years hypothesized, “more and more tourists are coming each year and I bet in a

couple years, this place is going to be the new Panajachel.” (Fieldnotes: 20 June 2008). While the data I

gathered through my research will be useful when comparing San Pedro’s artesanía and tourist scene in the

future to what is was in the summer of 2008, much more needs to be researched in order to complete this

study, which barely scrapes the surface of the complexities of selling artesanía to tourists and the effects of

tourism on San Pedro as a whole.

The greatest limitation to this study was time limit. While the program was seven weeks, my indecision

on a topic hindered my study in that I had only a few weeks to conduct my study. As such, I chose to

exclude art galleries in town as well as shops selling artesanía in other places in town. Moreover, with such

little time, while I was able to grasp a general sense of daily life, a more longitudinal study would better

represent the changes. Moreover, approaching the scene with a more historical background rather than just

looking at the scene now might place the scene now in better perspective. Another issue faced is that two

of the stores I wanted to interview that were at the top of the hill on the road leading from the Panajachel

dock to the town center were closed every time I passed. Language issues with Spanish and Tz’utujil served

as another hindrance to my project as I speak Spanish only at a high intermediate level and know only a few

phrases in Tz’utujil, although this was less an issue when working with those involved in tourism who knew

Spanish and thus could speak with me.

Possibilities for Future Research

Combining a strong historical background with a longitudinal study would best serve a study of effects

of tourism for artisans and vendors in San Pedro. It would also be interesting to compare artesanía shops

catering to tourists as opposed to those catering towards Pedrano customers to compare success, product

types, and location in order to analyze Gringolandia versus more local areas such as tiendas and the market

in the town center. It would also be wise to include art galleries, women’s weaving collective, sales in the

local museum, and flow of items to and from San Pedro on an international, national, and local level.

To expand this research beyond the narrow realm of tourism and artwork, it would be significant to

look at the cultural implications of increased tourism in San Pedro. One could study how tourism affects not

only the local economy, but also language use, looking at the use of Spanish versus Tz’utujil, drug use,

maintenance of traditional culture, and education, for example. Moreover, one could look at the ways a

changed economy affects the local people, how it affects facets of society from education to politics to the

upkeep of town. Chambers expands these topics to add further questions about changing traditions,

commodification of culture, and authenticity, which might also be interesting to study, as he writes, “In

what ways does tourism contribute to the maintenance, destruction, or reinvention of a people’s traditions?

Do so-called traditional societies that are subject to tourism and other acts of modernization lose their

authenticity as a result of these relationships, or is that even a relevant question?” (Chambers 2000: 98).

Walter Little addresses questions of identity and “how Mayas construct and maintain their identity within a

globally oriented tourism market” in which they may or may not choose to participate (Little 2004: 8).

Endnotes

1. Artesanía literally translates into English as handicrafts. For the purpose of this study, it refers to

handmade artwork made specifically for tourists to purchase.

2. Estranger may be translated as Foreigner in English.

3. Traje refers to traditional Mayan clothing.

4. Ancianos may be translated as elders.

5. Muelle refers to the dock where one goes to take a boat to another town. In San Pedro, the two muelles,

also referred to as embarcaderos, are to Panajachel and Santiago.

6. Tienda may be translated as store or shop.

7. The Quetzal is the currency of Guatemala.

8. Cayucos are traditional wooden fishing boats.

9. Caballos may be translated as horses.

10. Lanchas may be translated as boats.

11. Fieldnotes 27, June 2008.

References Cited

Chambers, Erve.

2000 Native Tours: The Anthropology of Travel and Tourism. Long Grove, Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc.

Cohen, Erik.

1988-91 Tourism Research. The study of touristic images of native people: Mitigating the stereotype of

a stereotype. (No other source information).

Herrera, Mónica.

2002 Estudios para el Desarrollo Turístico: Estudio del Mercado Turístico, estudio de Potencial Turístico

y Perfil de Factibilidad San Pedro la Laguna, Sololá, Guatemala, C.A. Guatemala: Consultoría en

Desarrollo de Turismo Sostenible.

Little, Walter E.

2004 Mayas in the Marketplace: tourism, globalization, and cultural identity. Austin: University of

Texas Press.

Vidgen, Lucas.

2007 3rd Edition. Lonely Planet Guide to Guatemala.

Watanabe, John M.

1994 Maya and Anthropologists in the Highlands of Guatemala since the 1960’s. (No other source

information).