Caribbean Beat — March/April 2020 (#162)

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City life
Guyana’s wild interior is what draws many visitors: the promise of adventure
and the intoxicating idea of experiencing beautiful, remote landscapes.
But give Georgetown its due: the capital city, perched at the mouth of the
Demerara River, has fascinated visitors for generations, with its broad
avenues, canals and kokers (or sluice-gates, part of the Dutch drainage
system), and historic buildings, many of them elegant structures of wood.
Central Georgetown is compact enough to explore in a day — but it’s worth
taking extra time to get to know this Caribbean city on the South American
mainland, now in a period of rapid change as the discovery of offshore oilfields
gives a huge boost to the Guyanese economy.
Where to start? Here are ten Georgetown landmarks to put in
your itinerary:
City Hall
The turrets and spires of this Victorian Gothic
Revival gem suggest a fairytale castle, but since
1889 it’s played a more practical role as headquarters
for Georgetown’s municipal administration.
St George’s Cathedral
The city’s Anglican cathedral is sometimes said to
be the largest wood building in the world, its spire
soaring to 143 feet. The pristine white-painted
exterior gives way to the natural finish of the
interior, livened by Victorian stained glass and a magnificent
vaulted ceiling.
Stabroek Market
Opened in 1881, this historic riverside market with its distinctive
clocktower — Georgetown’s skyline icon — is in many
ways the heart of the city, a hub of traditional commerce and
transport.
Walter Roth Museum
Named for a pioneering ethnographer, this national museum
of anthropology is home to an extraordinary collection of artefacts
documenting Guyana’s indigenous peoples — from centuries-old
potsherds to magnificent Wai-Wai feather crowns.
80 WWW.CARIBBEAN-BEAT.COM