Guatemala Description

Currency: Quetzal (Q or GTQ), equal to 100 centavos

Language: Spanish

Guatemala– one of the most colorful countries in Central America. One of the centers of the powerful civilization of the Maya Indians (II – IX centuries AD) and the birthplace of even more ancient peoples of pre-Columbian America, Guatemala is famous for its abundance of historical and cultural monuments. Three historical monuments of Guatemala, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, seem to reflect the stages of the country’s history – the Ruins of Quirigua Archaeological Park and Tikal National Park were created on the site of one of the main centers of the Mayan civilization, and the city of Antigua Guatemala presents many examples of Spanish colonial architecture. The once lush rainforests of the country have remained intact only in the northeast, but on the steep mountain slopes, but the country’s natural flora and fauna bears many features of relic tropical rainforests.culture of local peoples.

Capital: Guatemala City.

Geography: The Republic of Guatemala lies in the northern part of Central America, stretching across the mainland from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea. It borders Mexico in the north and northwest, Honduras and El Salvador in the south and southeast, and Belize in the northeast. In the west it is washed by the waters of the Pacific Ocean, in the east – by the Gulf of Honduras of the Caribbean Sea.
The total area of ​​the country is about 108.9 thousand square meters. km.
Almost the entire territory of Guatemala lies in the zone of medium-high and high mountain ranges of the Cordillera system (more than half of the country’s territory is occupied by mountains). The highest point in the country is Tahumulco volcano (4211 m).

Climate:
Subequatorial trade wind monsoon, humid in the lowlands and cool in the highlands. The relief of the country has a strong influence on climatic conditions – the mountainous regions are always cooler than the lowlands, and the meridional direction of the ridges leads to the formation of numerous areas with a local microclimate in the interior regions. The eastern regions of the country, adjacent to the Caribbean Sea, are always hotter and rainier than the western ones.
In the mountains and on the plateau, the average temperature ranges from +6 C in winter to +20 C in summer, on the coast the temperature is around +27 C all year round. Two seasons are quite clearly distinguished – a relatively cool and rainy winter (from May to October) and a hot, dry summer (November to April). At the same time, even neighboring areas of the same area can differ markedly in air temperature and precipitation from each other. Precipitation ranges from 500 mm on the western slopes of the mountains to 2500 mm on the eastern slopes of El Peten and the Caribbean coast. The most favorable time to visit the country is a relatively dry season from November to May.

Language:
The official language of the country is Spanish. Most of the locals are bilingual, except for Spanish, they retain their own languages ​​​​(of which there are more than 23) and dialects (almost 100), belonging to the Maya-Kiche language group.

Population: In terms of population (about 14.6 million people), Guatemala ranks first among the states of Central America. It is also the only country in the region with a predominantly Indian population. Most of the population is mestizo (56%), and a very small proportion of Europeans and their descendants (less than 5%), which is unusual for Central American countries.
Up to 44% of local residents consider themselves to be Indian peoples of the Maya group. In the east of the country, in the area of ​​​​the city of Livingston, a small number of the Negro population lives, who have retained their rites and customs.

State system:
Democratic Republic. The head of state and government is the president (elected by universal secret ballot for a four-year term).

Religion:
Most believers are Catholics. There are also a large number of Protestants and adherents of other world confessions in the country (the Constitution officially guarantees complete freedom of religion).

Money:
Quetzal (Q or GTQ) equal to 100 centavos. In circulation are banknotes in denominations of 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 quetzal, as well as coins of 1 quetzal, 50, 25, 10 and 5 centavos.
Along with the national currency, the US dollar has free circulation.

Currency exchange:
Currency can be exchanged everywhere – in banks, exchange offices (“casas de cambio”), shops, markets, hotels (the exchange rate here is not the best) and airports, with preference given to US dollars and euros.

Estimated exchange rate of
Guatemalan Quetzal (GTQ) / United States Dollar (USD)
1 USD = 8.09 GTQ
10 GTQ = 1.24 USD
Guatemalan Quetzal (GTQ) / Euro (EUR)
1 EUR = 11.30 GTQ
100 GTQ = 8.85 EUR

Time:
9 hours behind Moscow in winter and 10 in summer.