| Growler
on Guyana |
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Guyana
is one of the few countries in the world which, like New Zealand, has
a visible, unspoilt, natural beauty.
It
has a national football team and it's also one of the nations that
make up the West Indies Cricket team.
Rawle
Austin presents...
Once
upon a time in Guyana
Click
here to see my Brand New photos of the Beauty of Guyana!
Click
here to see Growler's Classic Photos of Guyana!
It
is home to the world's second largest waterfall, Kaiteur falls,
based in Kaiteur National Park.
Rich
in oil, diamonds, gold and overflowing with other natural resources,
this is the country of my parent’s birth.
Guyana is roughly the same size as the UK, it's the only English
speaking country in South America and is economically part of the
Caribbean. Click
here to learn about CARICOM.
Currently
having a total population of about 700,000 people, less than the
entire city of London, UK. |
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Click
here to check out Guyana (Country Guides) (Bradt Travel Guide) by Kirk
Smock
Let
me introduce you to a country that you won't forget!
The
country that is now Guyana was once part of a larger area on the northern
coast of South America.
This
whole was called Guiana and was populated by many tribes of Amerindians,
the main three being the Caribs, the Arawaks and the Warraus.
Descendants
of these tribes still live in the interior (the amazon rainforests in
the heart of the country) to this day.
Click
here to check out The Making of Guyana: From A Wilderness To A Nation
by Frank Senauth
Discovered
by the Spanish in the 14th century, the indigenous Amerindians told
of the legends of El Dorado and the Cities of Gold located in the
interior.
Word
got out and the English courtier and explorer, Sir Walter Raleigh,
came to the country.
His
quest was to discover El Dorado in order to gain favour with Queen
Elizabeth I.
This
was in 1595 and he failed to find the legend.
Click
here to check out Journey to Guyana by Margaret Bacon
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Returning
home empty handed he wrote a book about his accounts in ‘The Discovery
of the large and beautiful Empire of Guiana’ to convince people
of his plans.
This
book was published throughout Europe and served to draw attention to Guiana
in France and Holland in particular.
Britain,
France and Holland were strong trading and maritime (naval) nations and
were soon doing business in Guiana.
Governed
first by the Dutch, fought over by the French and British it was
subsequently divided into three separate countries.
British Guiana (formed in 1814), Dutch Guiana (to become Suriname)
and French Guiana.
The
capital of the then British Guiana, Georgetown was named after King
George IV of England.
Thousands
of West African slaves had been brought over to work on the sugar
plantations from around 1657 by the Dutch.
Click
here to check out Guyana (South America Today) by Bob Temple
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The
slave trade was finally abolished throughout the then British Empire in
1807. Slavery itself was outlawed in 1837.
Indentured
workers were brought over from The then British India in 1838, South China
and Portugal to work on the land for a minimum wage.
As
a British colony with laws and regulations set many miles overseas which
favoured the ruling classes, the people longed for self-rule with full
independence as the main goal.
Click
here to check out The 2009 Import and Export Market for Manufactured Goods
in Guyana by Icon Group International
The
two main players in this were Forbes Burnham and Dr Cheddi Jagan
in the early 1950’s.
The
Guyanese people gained their independence in May 1966 when British
Guiana formally became Guyana (an Amerindian word meaning 'land
of many waters') and adopted the Golden Arrowhead as its flag.
Bordered
by Venezuela to the left, Brazil at its base and Suriname to its
right, Guyana’s motto is ‘One people, one nation, one
destiny’.
It
is part of the West Indies in the Caribbean and maintains strong
links with its fellow South American nations.
The
bulk of the population consists of people of mainly African and
Indian descent in roughly equal proportions followed by Amerindian,
Chinese, European and mixed race.
Click
here to check out the Macmillan Guyana Junior Atlas
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Each
culture is respected and all embrace Guyana's Amerindian heritage.
The
national dishes of Guyana reflect this diverse mix of peoples with Amerindian
pepperpot, African cook-up rice, Indian roti and curry and Chinese chow
mein (chao mian) among others.
Guyana
is divided into three main counties, Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice.
These are in turn made up of 10 regions.
It
was given the name ‘land of many waters’ because of
the large amount of rivers running throughout the country.
The
capital Georgetown is the economic and political heart of the country.
Stabroek
market is a lively area full of life famed for it's hundred year
old clock tower.
The
Botanical Gardens is another site that has to be seen.
The
majority of the population live around the coastal areas with the
interior still relatively undeveloped.
Recently
gaining it’s first stock market this will be a future emerging
market to watch and invest in.
One
of Guyana's most famous exports is the Demerara Sugar brand.
Guyana
is actively seeking foreign investment and skills from many countries
to help build itself up and improve the lot of it's people.
Running
water and plumbing systems are still not widely available in the
country, blackouts (power cuts) are frequent.
Click
here to check out Into Wild Guyana (Jeff Corwin Experience) by Jeff
Corwin
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What
I love about Guyana, in particular East Coast Demerara, is simply the
walks along the roadsides taking in the totally different sights, sounds
and smells compared to London.
Just
to walk about in Nabaclis village were my parents grew up in, went to
school and lived life is a fantastic feeling.
The
close knit communities are very warm and hearing the family stories of
the ‘old days’ is quite emotional.
It’s
not uncommon to see cows and even donkeys strolling along in the
hot sunshine.
The
local wildlife is very exotic and hawks and snakes are regularly
seen.
The
relatively small population means that most people’s living
areas are very spread out.
The
temperatures are always in the low to mid 30’s (centigrade)
so very hot most of the year round.
This
heat is countered by the cooling sea breeze, which is most welcome.
Mosquitoes
are very common and can give quite a bite. Guyana has two main seasons,
the dry and the rainy season.
Click
here to check out The Rupununi Savannas of Guyana: A Visual Journey
by Lal Balkaran
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It
has its fair share of rainfall during the latter and flooding is fairly
frequent in some areas.
Along
the coastal areas a ‘Sea wall’ was erected to prevent constant
flooding and this stretches for miles with some parts of it available
to walk along which provides some stunning views.
Public
transport consists of private minibuses or taxis.
Many
of the roads have trenches to either side of them some of which
can be 6ft wide and 6ft deep.
In the rainy season these can fill up so driving is best done slowly.
One
of my greatest memories is being driven from the airport to our
house at night.
Waking
up in the morning to see the width of the side road to the house
was the just larger than the width of the car and the trenches full
to the top was quite a shock! |
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Click
here to check out Vincent Roth, a Life in Guyana: Young Man's Journey,
1889-1923 v. 1 by Vincent Roth
Palm
trees bearing coconuts thrive throughout the country and even the plants
and flowers have a look that is very different to the local plant life
that you see in London.
The
local fruits (I love ginnips in particular, which are a version of lychees
with a smooth green skin) taste mouth wateringly delicious.
I’m
a great fan of natural landscapes and the Guyanese people are very lucky
to have these in abundance, some are seen on the drive from the main airport
at Timerhi.
Click
here to check out A History of Theatre in Guyana 1800-2000 by Frank
Thomasson
Guyana
- as part of the West Indies cricket team - plays host to visiting
cricket teams from around the world including England, Australia
and India.
The
country will be hosting some of the games in the 2007 Cricket World
Cup held in the West Indies.
The
vibrant colours that surround you just blow the senses and the greens
of the open spaces contrasted with the deep blue skies provide a
magnificent backdrop.
It
is also one of the world's newest emerging markets with plenty of
investment opportunities.
Guyana's
traditional export products of sugar, bauxite (used to make aluminium),
gold and timber continue to see growth while non-traditional exports
like wood and agricultural products, seafood and light manufacturing
are also seeing growth.
If
Hollywood or even Bollywood is reading this, Guyana is home to some
breathtaking cinematographic scenery and these would be ideal locations
for films.
Click
here to check out The 2009 Guyana Economic and Product Market Databook
by Icon Group International
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There
are no direct flights to Guyana from the U.K and I hope this will be put
into place soon. Currently, you have to stop in transit in various locations
in the Caribbean like Barbados or Trinidad or via the USA.
I
would also love to see a "Welcome to Nabaclis" or "You
are now entering Nabaclis" sign put up as you enter and leave the
boundaries of the village as I think it would just be cool.
Well,
that's about it for a very condensed, personal view of Guyana.
Many
thanks to my cousins Ayanna and Julie for the local info.
Explore
Guyana through these external links!
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