Georgetown, Guyana

Guyana was very different to anything we've seen in the region so far. It's in the far north of the South American continent and, technically, doesn't have a Caribbean coast. However, the Guyanese nevertheless consider themselves to be a part of the West Indies and, in fact, the Caribbean Community Secretariat is based in Georgetown. It's like an outpost of the West Indies in South America. Culturally and historically, Guyana is much more like the Caribbean islands than its Latin American neighbours. It was "settled" by the Dutch, captured by the French, restored to the Dutch and then taken over by the British. The colonial powers brought slaves from Africa to work the cane fields and then, after emancipation, the British brought indentured labours from India. In that context, it's a lot like Trinidad; however, there is one major difference - Guyana has a very prominent indigenous population made up of nine different tribes. So, no matter how much reggae or calypso they play, how much rum they produce (some of the best, I must say) or how many players they contribute to the West Indies cricket team (currently at least five, including Chanderpaul, Sarwan and Deonarine), there is still a distinct South American feel to the place.

We spent three days in Georgetown and managed to see quite a bit of the city. Next time (if there is one), I'd love to travel deeper into the country. Guyana has some of South America's biggest rivers (the Essequibo and the Demerara), waterfalls (Kaieteur Falls) and rainforests.

City Hall, Georgetown.

The Prime Minister's residence.

St George's Cathederal - touted to be the world's tallest wooden building.

Samuel doing his part to maintain Guyana's world-record claim.

Light traffic in downtown Georgetown.

One of the many canals built by the Dutch. The Dutch (ever afraid of the sea) built a seawall to protect their settlement from the Atlantic Ocean and this series of canals so that they could control the flooding. Even though they're not quite the same as those in Amsterdam or Venice, the canals give the city a certain charm. The canal in the image above is, of course, lined with palm trees and some are filled with beautiful water-lillies. Unfortunately, however, many are filled with rubbish.

The Victoria Law Courts

The Court of Appeal (yes, I'm a law nerd)

A meeting place built by the Wai-Wai Amerindians using traditional thatching techniques in the 1970s. Apparently it was built with using any nails or similar joining / fastening tools. It is used annually during the Amerindian festival.

Hustling, bustling Starbroek market. Starbroek was the Dutch name for Georgetown back in the day.

Starbroek market.

Jesse making friends with vendors at Starbroek market. These ladies told me that Jesse was the first white baby they've ever seen.

This arch is the same as the pattern on the Guyanese flag. It represents stuff, I was told what, but now I've forgotten.

The statue in the background is of Coffy, the leader of a failed slave rebellion in the late 18th Century. Samuel's in the foreground singing "Isn't she lovely" to our amused friends.

We went to Guyana Zoo where the main attraction was, well, to be honest, Jesse. There was a large number of school children in the Zoo that day and they would ignore the exotic caged animals for a chance to stare at him. As we walked into one exhibit, a school teacher stopped her class and declared "Everyone look at the white baby!". One girl, probably about five, then quite properly asked "How do dey make'm dat colour?"

Samuel wasn't as keen on shaking this Black Spider Monkey's hand as our guide Colin was.

Although we're only just entering the wet-season proper, it bucketed down 5 times a day in Guyana. Here we are sheltering from the rain at the zoo.

Samuel quite enjoyed the zoo. It was simple, small and quite intimate. Perfect for a three year old.

The boys clowning around at our hotel in Georgetown.

This is like looking into the future. The fact that Jesse's lunch was the same colour as his hair allows you to imagine what he'd look like with a goatee beard.

The Demerara River flows by Georgetown and into the Atlantic. It really makes a mockery of the "mighty" in "Mighty Murray River". It's huge!

Some seriously huge sugar can growing along the Demerara River. This field belongs to the distiller that makes Guyana's famous El Dorado rum.

Rain shower number 5 for the day sweeping down the Demerara River.

We were in Guyana just a couple of days after they celebrated Independence Day. Handpainted signs like this were at the airport and in downtown Georgetown.