Visiting National Palace of Culture – My thoughts about visiting the palace

Taking the tour.

Initially I was not planning to get inside of a place, but the view through the gate was so stunning, so I decided to go on the tour. 40-minutes tour was very informative. We learned a lot about the building’s architecture and Guatemalan history.

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Interesting facts about National Palace.

Western courtyard.

The tour started from the first western courtyard first floor. We stopped by the two hands monument that symbolize the end of 36 years civil war. Western Courtyard’s second floor was closed for visitors due to some government briefing.

Reception Hall.

We headed by the traffic light and took the elevator to the second floor. On the second floor the guide took us to the main Reception Hall, the most beautiful room in the palace where majority of government acts take place.

Another beautiful hall on the second floor has very unique ceiling.

Majority of palace minor reconstruction and repainting done by specialists and take tremendous amount of time. The reconstruction was in progress during our visit.

Final thoughts.

While the building itself it very beautiful, I have a very mixed feelings after visiting the palace. Every detail starting from traffic light to the red floor color that symbolize blood of Mayan people represents some kind of violence during long and very controversial history of the country.

Apart from bloody history, the building itself is beautiful and totally worth visiting.