Aside from street vendors hawking handmade jewelry and simple trinkets, there's not much of a shopping scene in Livingston. One major exception, however, is the Q'eqchi' women's craft cooperative , run by Ak' Tenamit (www.aktenamit.org), a community development project that does major educational, health, and social work with the Q'eqchi' Maya of the area. Offerings include woven baskets, various textile projects, and artisanal papers made from banana and corn byproducts. They are located about a 15-minute boat ride upriver from Livingston. You can hire a boat at the docks to take you there for around Q75 ($10/£5.25) round-trip; otherwise, most of the Río Dulce tours stop there.
The local music is percussion-based with roots in West Africa. In some cases, modern electric instruments are added, and a rock or reggae influence can be heard. CDs are available in gift shops around town, and from street vendors, but be sure to take a listen first to make sure it's of reasonable quality.
