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Guyana is an amazing combination of the Caribbean and South America. A former British colony, it has the distinction of being the only country on the continent of South America with English as its official language. This explains why today it is culturally aligned with the British West Indies but almost isolated from its Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese-speaking neighbors. Guyana's population can trace its roots back to Africa, India, Portugal and China.

The country also boasts the largest community of the region's first settlers, the Amerindians. There are currently more than 120 Amerindian communities living mostly in remote areas of Guyana. The name Guyana is Amerindian for "land of many waters," which pays homage to the country's many waterways.

Guyana has its share of tropical assets: pristine rain forests, towering waterfalls and clean rivers. However, you often have to travel very far and be prepared to give up a few creature comforts to enjoy these attractions. In the height of the dry season (August-October), it's hot and muggy, although this is relieved by frequent coastal breezes.

Many of the roads in Guyana need repairs, and the country's picturesque capital, Georgetown, has a relatively high crime rate. But for those who love nature and don't mind roughing it, Guyana offers some rare attractions and adventures you often only experience through TV documentaries.

The country's tourism industry is still relatively young. Unlike its Caribbean neighbors, it is not geared up to deal with large numbers of tourists on a regular basis.

Some interesting holiday resorts have sprung up in the hinterlands. These offer a variety of relaxing ecotourism and adventure activities along with fairly high-standard accommodations and facilities that can easily compete with those on offer in other countries. These holidays will cost you, but are worth the trip.

Journeying up its rivers or into its jungles, you'll encounter traditional Amerindian villages and a variety of wildlife. You'll see dozens of waterfalls: Flying over the dramatic Kaieteur Falls in the heart of the rain forest is truly memorable. And when you arrive at the falls, you won't see billboards, food stands or tourists—just sky, water and rain forest.

English is the national language of education, commerce and government; however, you will hear most people conversing in creolese, also referred to as Guyanese or patois. This is an English-based Creole with influences from Amerindian, African, Dutch and Indian languages. It has no official status but is often regarded as the first language.

Hindu, Urdu and Arabic are used by Hindus and Muslims as part of religious ceremonies, and the nine Amerindian communities speak several dialects including Arawak, Macushi, Patamona and Warao.

Portuguese is also spoken near the Brazilian border, but do not visit Guyana in order to practice your Spanish, Portuguese or Dutch.

Geography

Perched on the northeast coast of South America, Guyana is roughly the size of the U.K. It has a relatively varied terrain and climate for such a small country. It ranges from tropical rain forest in the north to dry, barren land in the southwest. The forests extend into an interior highland region with its highest elevation (9,094 ft/2,819 m) at the top of Mount Roraima. Despite its location on the Atlantic Ocean, Guyana has very few beaches. The country is bordered by Venezuela to the west, Brazil to the south and Suriname to the east, with its shores in the north lapped by the Atlantic Ocean.

Dense rain forest covers much of the interior, although there are extensive grasslands in the southwest. Most of its population lives on a narrow strip of agriculturally rich coastal plain, where its capital, Georgetown, is located. Three main rivers traverse the country: the Demerara, Berbice and Essequibo. The Essequibo is massive and home to more than 350 islands—one of which is said to be as big as Barbados.

Guyana's economy has relied mainly on the sugar, rice, fishing, bauxite, mining and logging industries, although attempts are being made to develop tourism on a larger scale.

History

The Carib people migrated to Guyana from the Caribbean long before Dutch explorers arrived in the 1600s. The Dutch enslaved much of the local population and imported West Africans for additional forced labor.

Sir Walter Raleigh and his writings about the legend of El Dorado, a city of gold hidden somewhere in South America drummed up interest in the region, and eventually Holland was forced to cede Guyana to the British in 1815. Two decades later, the British abolished slavery.

However, the colonists still needed cheap labor for the rice and sugar plantations, so they brought in indentured workers mainly from India, China and Portugal. As a consequence, Guyana has one of the largest Indian populations outside the subcontinent, and Indians now make up the largest ethnic group in the nation.

In 1831, three years before the end of slavery, the three colonial settlements of Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice merged to become British Guiana. British Guiana eventually gained independence from Britain in May 1966 and changed its name to Guyana. In 1970, it became the Co-operative Republic of Guyana with an elected president. However, for most of the 1970s and 1980s, Guyana was a socialist nation that got progressively poorer. Many of the country's educated citizens left to take jobs in North America.

Guyana's potential for economic development has been hampered by two century-old border disputes with its neighbors—Venezuela and Suriname. Venezuela is claiming two-thirds of the country (the area west of the Essequibo River), and Suriname is disputing ownership of territory and maritime interests in the east. Both areas are rich in gold, diamonds, bauxite, other minerals, timber and possibly oil.

Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, a British-educated lawyer, became British Guiana's first prime minister in 1964. He led the country to independence in 1966 and then in 1980, as head of the People's National Congress (PNC), assumed the title of president—a position he held until his death at age 62 in 1985. He was succeeded by Hugh Desmond Hoyte.

Cheddi Jagan, an American-educated dentist of East Indian heritage and head of the People's Progressive Party (PPC), was elected president after winning elections in 1992. When he died in 1997, his wife, Janet, a U.S. citizen of Jewish heritage, became his successor in the next election. In August 1999, she resigned the presidency, citing health reasons and named Bharrat Jagdeo as her successor. Jagdeo was succeeded in 2011 by Donald Ramotar, and in 2015 David Granger was elected president.

Burnham and Jagan are widely regarded as the founding fathers of Guyana's political freedom from colonialism and capitalism. They started out as personal friends but ended up staunch political rivals. The volatile division resonates today, as the PNC and PPP are separated not only politically, but along racial lines as well.

Guyana's future leadership must decide how to balance the need for revenue—which could come from contracts with foreign logging and mining companies—with the desire to protect its pristine natural environment and Amerindian communities (which might attract ecotourists).

The footprints of the colonizing powers are still apparent today in Guyanese architecture, street names, towns, landmarks and, most importantly, in the mixture of its people. A relatively young nation, Guyana boasts a multicultural society diverse in history, race, culture and religion, but is the most sparsely populated country in the region. The population is made up of six races: Indo-Guyanese, Afro-Guyanese, Amerindians, Europeans, Chinese and mixed-race people. However, it is estimated that more than 500,000 Guyanese live abroad, mostly in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and the Caribbean.

Snapshot

Some of Guyana's main attractions are friendly people, pristine rain forests, an incredible diversity of birds, flora and fauna, majestic mountain ranges, Kaieteur Falls, the Rupununi Savanna and Georgetown's architecture.

Georgetown, the country's tiny capital and commercial center, offers accommodations, facilities and tourism activities of varying standards. Things get a bit more rustic as you start to head out of town.

Guyana will appeal to travelers who are willing to trade comfort and convenience for unspoiled nature and a chance to escape the developed world. Do not expect good beaches, luxurious accommodations or firm schedules. And, because of its location and terrain, don't expect to find the same sort of white sandy beaches and clear water as in the Caribbean, although there are a few well worth visiting, if only to see the resident flora and fauna.

Potpourri

The name Guyana comes from an Amerindian word that translates to "land of many waters."

Guyana is often referred to as "The Land of Six Peoples," in reference to its multiethnic population. Its motto is "One People, One Nation, One Destiny." However, it is one of the few nations whose population is on the decline—the emigration rate is very high (many Guyanese move to the U.S.). Conversely, Guyana is also one of the few countries in the world to experience an increase in its indigenous population.

You can sometimes catch The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger watching a West Indies match at the Bourda Cricket Ground in Georgetown.

Guyana celebrates a number of Christian, Hindu and Muslim holidays, as well as Amerindian Heritage Month in September. On Easter Monday, Guyanese traditionally fly kites of all shapes, sizes, colors and abilities. Beware of the Caddy Old Punch, a kite designed by its owners to set other kites adrift in the air by cutting their strings.

The South American mythical city of gold, El Dorado, is said to be found in the country's highlands. Legend has it that the rich king El Dorado, or "gilded man," would cover himself in gold dust and leave his riches by bathing in a lake. The country's most popular rum is named after him.

Guyana is home to the giant river otter, the fearsome black caiman, the hoatzin (stink bird), which has claws on its wings, and the arapaima (the world's largest freshwater fish).

All that remains at Jonestown, the site of one of the world's largest mass suicides, are a few rusting tractors overgrown by jungle. There, in November 1978, the charismatic U.S. leader Jim Jones and more than 900 of his People's Temple cult followers died after drinking poisoned Kool-Aid. Today, Jonestown is part of a huge timber tract controlled by two Asian timber companies.

Eddy Grant, singer of the 1980 hit "Electric Avenue," is originally from Guyana.

The rarest stamp in the world—the 1856 one-cent Black on Magenta of British Guiana—was once regarded as the most expensive. It ranges in value from US$7,500 to US$60,000. The stamp is rectangular in shape, with black ink printed on magenta paper. The corners are snipped off, which means the stamp actually has an octagonal shape.

Traditional Guyanese folklore include a multitude of stories peppered with the activities of jumbies (ghosts), ole higues (blood-sucking old women) bacoos (small imps that promise riches if you feed them sweet figs and milk) and the infamous massacouraman (a powerful spirit of rivers). Even more exciting is to witness someone catching or dancing cumfa, a dance of West African origin, characterized by the possession of spirits, who are summoned by loud and intense drumming.

Obeah is a folk religion of African origin that involves calling up the spirits of the dead. Slaves brought it to the Caribbean and South America but Obeah practitioners can be both Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese. Consulting the local or recommended Obeah man or woman can be pretty expensive. They will then cast spells to resolve problems concerning health, work, domestic life and romance.