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Published: November 12th 2006
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Guyana
Arrived off the plane to be greeted by Tors (which did give a certain amount of amusement value as the faces of the awaiting taxi drivers fell as we were efficiently whisked off to the awaiting wheels ) and headed off to her house in Duncan Street, Georgetown. Lovely place with big open plan downstairs with kitchen/dinner and then two/three bedrooms upstairs with a balcony, with all mod cons including A/C and running water! It’s only major downside is it’s proximity to the Christian Mission which is directly opposite, and practices extremely loud praising and worshipping four days a week, with a minister with a loud-haler and full karaoke facilities. Sunday morning lie ins are not an option.
Around Georgetown
First impressions - Guyana was a lot more developed than either of us had expected. And feels surprisingly like being in Africa (at least Georgetown does).
We spent a couple of days familiarising ourselves with Georgetown while we tried to sort out where we were going to go in Guyana. Georgetown has a bit of a reputation for violence and muggings etc, but so far we have seen none of this. To my mind, there are just places
Local watching the tourists go by
His body language pretty much gives him away I think... you would not want to be after dark, just like any other capital city in the world. The streets are mostly tar sealed, and apart from a lot of rubbish on the pavement they are not too bad. Most people get around in mini-bus taxis quite like the matatu’s of Central Africa, however they are not overcrowded and you invariably get a seat to yourself. The downside of them is the full volume reggae / R&B blasting out. Georgetown is bloody noisy! Driving is typically crazy - use of the horn seems to be mandatory every 30-40 meters, with little regard for road rules. Best example being one of the mini-bus drivers being chastised by one of his colleagues as he tried to drive the wrong way down a one way central reservation in rush hour traffic. The offended driver complained not about his manoeuvring, but about the fact that he had not turned on his hazard lights to perform it…
Getting out of Georgetown - to Bartica and Beyond
Guyana has a huge number of things that sound un-miss able for tourists, however I think most tourists will continue to miss them as accessing them and travelling around
The Hospital Ward - I Mean Dormitory
After some top level touristing Jane takes a hard earned rest. seems to be really hard work. Unless you want a top flight resort for serious money, there is very little way of getting to know about the little places as they are mostly not advertised on the internet or in the local publications. Lonely planet doesn’t have anything for Guyana at all, and other guidebooks are next to useless. After a week of planning and searching we have finally managed to find a few people who seem to know what’s going on and how to get there, and are planning forays into the interior next week. As early preparation we took a three day trip to Bartica, which is a trading town at the point where two of the major rivers from the interior join into the Esquibo. Getting there involved an hour long mini-bus ride, followed by a speedboat ride down the river for another hour and a half. The speedboat was great - they go pretty fast, although it is a bit freaky going so quickly in a wooden boat with a huge outboard stuck on the back. We travelled in the “Angel in the Outfield” - named presumably after that crappy movie (which I think starred Danny
The Rules Are The Rules Madam
OK - I've seen some funny signs in my time, but this one outside the Hospital in Bartica takes the No-1 Prize! Glover?). The trip came complete with lifejackets, which was kind of reassuring as the Esquibo is huge - easily the biggest river I’ve ever seen.
Bartica was not too exciting - fairly much one main street with a bunch of suburb style bit. We stayed in the “New Modern” hotel, which we all knew was going to be a bad idea when we saw that it was on top of a nightclub, and that there was a sign on the nightclub door asking patrons to obey the dress code and “please leave those weapons at home”. We didn’t get a lot of sleep, owing mostly to the booming bass coming up through the floor and continuing without stopping straight through my skull it seemed. The new modern was also directly opposite the local football pitch (see pictures), which is apparently where Chelsea next intends to host it’s home games against Barcelona. As well we got to watch the even more lost looking tourists wander around town. Have decided to start a photo collection of scary looking tourists (beyond those pics including us).
On the Banks of the River
The next night we stayed in the Shanklin’s resorts dormitory.
Friendly Frog
Just what it says on the tin This is a resort on the east bank of the river, kind of in the middle of the rainforest. Not what I was expecting - very quiet, with not a foreign tourist in sight (only four other people stayed on a Saturday night). We had the entire dormitory to ourselves (3 people in a 20 bed dorm - looked a bit like I remember the Kenyan hospital wards to be, except a lot less crowded, and we got mozzie nets). We got a rainforest tour included in the price - the local Amerindian guide was really genuine, and all the staff working there were likewise. Great food, very peaceful and quiet, and truly beautiful surroundings. Swimming in the river was an option but I didn’t stay in long, as the water was so muddy you couldn’t see more than a couple of inches deep, and my croc phobia stopped me really enjoying it.
Then a bruising (for my backside at least) speedboat ride back up the river and we were back in Georgetown. Next big adventure is probably when we take the bus down into interior tomorrow. Tune in next time we find an internet café for the next
The Esquibo River
Huge. Wet. Muddy. Can't say fairer than that. exciting instalment.
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ANNE
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Sunshine..
I awoke this morning dreaming of all of you in sunny climes...only to discover my flatmate had worked out how to switch on the central heating! Its suddenly decided to be winter here, despite my famous self-heating I actually wore a coat yesterday...think of me at the Scottish Executive this pm, singing for my supper (and oh, what a voice trrraaaaa laaaa tralllalalaaaa)