Wanderings in Antigua, continued

13 March, 2019 continued...

After teatime at Vivero y Café de la Escalonia, I just... kept... walking... Found some areas of Antigua I hadn't explored yet.

This is the remains of the Iglesia de San José El Viejo (Church of Saint Joseph the Elder).
Originally built as a shrine to house the image of Saint Joseph, this church stood completed for just 11 years before the 1773 earthquake. The gate was closed, so I'm not sure whether it is open to the public.

Detail of the wall.

Walking along the street. This was apparently once a really nice area, as seen by the designs on the now broken sidewalk.

I don't know what this large ruined building was, as it's privately owned, but I later stayed in a building next door to it. Sadly, the inside has some graffiti and trash even though it has a gate.

The decorative iron grills on the courtyard windows are intact and absolutely stunning.

They were pretty high up, so I couldn't see this view, I had to hold my camera overhead to get this shot.

Here is the front view of the Capilla De Adoración Perpetua (Chapel of Perpetual Adoration), which is the on the right. At left can be seen part of the Church of San Francisco. There were signs posted forbidding photography within the gate, but there was a lovely small rose garden. The chapel was also small, more like a wine cellar than a church, with low arched ceilings. I went inside and prayed for a while, it was so peaceful. It was probably originally part of the old monastery that spanned the entire two block area.

Walking around the outer wall of the Santuario San Francisco el Grande and surrounding monastery.

A better view of the church. You can see that the right side collapsed in one of the several earthquakes it has survived, as it was built in the 16th century.

Behind is the entrance to the museum and monastery ruins, which unfortunately had already closed for the day.

The afternoon was clear enough for a view of the majestic Volcán de Agua.

Nuns walking out the side gate of the church property.

I followed them out to the street, this is a view of the nearby ruins of the Convent of Santa Clara (and a very modern, chrome-plated bus).

Here is the front side of the convent ruins.

This is a small park called Tanque La Unión, across from the convent ruins. This historic gathering place was used by people to wash their clothes during colonial times. There is a covered archway with sinks for laundry, opening onto a fountain pool. As you can see, the sinks are now dry and students like to hang out there in the shade.

Looking out from behind the sinks to the fountain.

At the other end of the park is another church (they are everywhere in Antigua), the Iglesia San Pedro Apóstol (Church of Saint Peter the Apostle). Brother Pedro, as they call him here, emigrated from Spain to minister to the poor in Antigua, Guatemala and founded the first hospital, which is the smaller building/wing seen at a right angle to the church.

The Iglesia San Pedro Apóstol with Volcán de Agua in the background.

Unknown building a bit further down the street, but I thought the architecture was beautiful.

An example of woven fabric Guatemala style, their use of color and design is fabulous.