MASH DAY, Thursday, February 23, 2012, was a huge success; and Guyanese who were fortunate to participate in the action in whatever capacity will long remember the costume bands and Float Parade held in the capital city of Georgetown. After another year of hard work and merited gains, Guyanese figuratively downed tools and, in their thousands, took to the streets in joyous abandon, “Mashing with pride, keeping our tradition alive”.
The Costume Band and Float Parade turned out to be one of the nation’s biggest family fun affairs in years, bringing out families in their numbers in true picnic style. For whatever it was worth, it was a virtual ‘unwinding’ and ‘stress relief affair’, not merely an occasion to promote ‘wining’, as pedalled by the few disgruntled skeptics who still view the occasion suspiciously.
Events turned out to be a spectacular kaleidoscope of colours, a virtual melting pot mixing Guyanese of all ethnicities, hues and colours with their brethren of all social strata into one cohesive body jubilating at another Republic Anniversary of their beloved Guyana.

A Guyanese thing
A measure of glitz and glitter was involved “in da mix”. On show were some of the creative and intricately designed costumes showcasing Guyanese ingenuity, and these were energetically displayed with splendour and nationalistic fervour by hundreds of revellers gyrating behind the bands in true Caribbean fashion.
The message was crystal clear: This was not an ethnic thing, but a Guyanese thing; and once the bands got going, folks literally vacated their inhibitions and did “their thing” Guyanese style. Tourists couldn’t help joining in the fun.
As usual, the parade route was transformed into a veritable fashion bonanza, as Guyanese young and old, bedecked and well prepared for the occasion, sported the best of fashions, from clothing to hairstyles. Some were sober looking, while others exhibited a new range of hot, multi-coloured wigs.
Mashramani 2012 brought out the best in Guyanese at the Mash City –heartwarming goodwill and camaraderie among folks mashing and picnicking in the streets. The festivity was without incident, folks looked out for each other; and even as throngs inched past each other to get to where they were going, everyone remained tolerant, pleasant and engaged in polite chatter. For them, the success of the festivity was paramount.
Once the costume band and float parade gets going, ‘the old order of things’ ceases to exist. Motor cars and traffic lights cease to serve their purpose on streets along the Mash route.  And once you get caught up in the crowd, the next best thing to do would be to turn off the ignition, park your vehicle at the nearest convenient spot, and proceed on foot. You can retrieve your vehicle at the end of the day.
On Thursday, Guyanese from all walks of life left their homes very early in the morning, and thronged the streets in the usual mad rush to secure reasonable vantage points from which to view the bands and their concomitant revellers. Some pitched tents by the roadside, others mounted the tops of vehicles, or viewed the floats from verandahs; or in whatever way, devised creative means to glimpse the breathtaking and colourful images as they wended their way to pulsating rhythms along the parade route.

Unwinding
For the crowds lining both sides of the route — Church Street into Irving Street, into Vlissengen Road then Thomas Road, en route to the National Park — even if they could not view the floats from where they were, just being out there was a virtual ‘unwinding’, and not an occasion to ‘promote wining’. It was a proud moment, coming less than three months after general and regional elections, as Guyanese put aside differences and broke down barriers to mingle together and had a really good time.
It was fun in the sun, and food and drinks were in galore. Name it and it was available, once you had the money to pay for it. Besides the baskets of delicious home-cooked foods brought out by picnicking families, the two main food marts located along the mall between North Road and Church Street boasted the best in cuisine and beverages of choice.
There were toy booths, games, face painting, photo-shops, snack shops and an ice cream van catering to the needs of the kids; but, all in all, there was never a dull moment as Guyanese ‘Mashed with pride to keep their tradition alive.’