–rate Guyanese hospitality as superb
FROM St Vincent and the Grenadines, “The Land of The Blessed”, they came to Guyana, “The Land of Many Waters”, 85 pretty ladies consisting of teachers and fourth form students of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Girls School (GHS). Their presence here is primarily to explore the industries and other places of interest of their sister Caribbean state.
In some Caribbean states and other parts of the world, girls’ or boys’ schools are used mainly as correctional or detention facilities; but the same cannot be said for the one in Kingstown, the capital of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. In fact, the school is the envy of many on the island, including other academic institutions; and that envy is generated and fuelled by the excellent track record of the GHS.
The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Girls School is the only one of its kind on the island. It offers core academic subjects. The team touring Guyana is part of the Geography and Natural Science Department of the school.
Speaking a few days ago with the Guyana Chronicle at the Arrow Point Nature Resort on the Kamuni Creek, Shereline Roberts, head of the Geography and Natural Sciences Department of the all-girls school said that despite the institution being a place only to accommodate female students, it is not a place that accepts just about any little girl.
She explained that the school takes in only the first 120 top scorers at the Secondary Entrance Examination, commonly known as ‘Common Entrance’ around the Caribbean Region. The faculty head added that there are instances when parents may choose to send their child/children to other schools for various reasons.
The faith-based schools are, in most cases, the next best option for some parents. Ms. Roberts explained that some persons believe that those schools are more equipped to instill values into the young people on the islands, and have a better grip on them in terms of discipline.
But despite the presence of other schools in the country, the GHS happens to be the one that attracts a lot of press, negative or positive. The teacher explained that because of the requirements to get into the school, it is respected as one of the best on the island. As such, the GHS is considered the Queen’s College of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
For the foregoing reasons, much, and in some cases too much, is expected from each and every single girl who sets foot into the GHS by the public, and rightly so.
But at the end of the day, while the young ladies who enroll into the school may be high-flyers at examinations, they remain part of the human species and, as such, mistakes are going to be made. The eyes of the islands, Roberts said, are always on the school and this force the school to perform even better and courageously at any competitive challenge. Society has been having its impact on the girls, and the school has had to stand strong each time.
The school is controlled by the Education Ministry of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and it does not decide to jump on planes and travel willy nilly. The teacher explained that countries, sites and other important aspects that come up during studies in the classrooms have a lot to do with where the students travel.
As such, Roberts explained, their visit to Guyana is in keeping with the students’ curriculum and the Caribbean Secondary Examination Council (CSEC) requirements.
In the area of the sciences, Guyana and some aspects of what this country produces, and the operation of several of its industries, did come up during sessions in the classrooms back home. Therefore, in an effort to have the first hand experience of what they have been reading, and in some cases visualizing, the visit to Guyana was decided upon.
Last year the school visited Jamaica, “the land of the ackee”. Other places of interest visited by the school over the years are: Cuba, Venezuela and Dominica. For the first time, the entire batch will be visiting the only Dutch-speaking Caricom member state, Suriname.
With excitement in the air equally among the students and teachers over the Suriname visit, they mentioned that it is not usual for citizens of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to visit that Dutch-speaking country. This, they said, is largely because of the distance between the two countries.

Adventure
On Thursday, March 15, the young ladies, accompanied by their teachers, travelled to the Arrow Point Nature Resort, which nestles in the Amerindian Reservation of Santa Mission in Region Three, along the Kamuni Pokereo (Ca-mu-nee…. Po-ke-re-o) Creeks. The ladies’ trip to Arrow Point was also part of their travel itinerary.
It all began at 06:00hrs when the 85 were greeted by their local liaison, Gerianna Austin of Evergreen Adventures, who ensured that everyone was set and ready for an adventurous day. She was later joined by her counterparts from the Roraima Arrow Point Resort, who acted as tour guides under the direction of Michael Patterson.
At 07:05hrs, the team boarded the buses, and under police escort, headed for the Roraima Marina on the East Bank of Demerara. The students cooperated with Gerianna every step of the way.
Gerianna was clearly comfortable working with the girls. Standing and listening to her, being able to remember almost each of the girls’ names, and even those of the teachers, told the story that Gerianna was having fun, and we do expect to see some tears trickle down her cheeks when the students leave for their native land.
However, despite the journey to the marina being a bit slow because of rude drivers failing to heed the sound of the sirens, the team nevertheless reached their East Bank destination safely. The team then boarded four boats, but could not set sail until everyone had secured life jackets for themselves.
The journey saw them making their way across the salty Demerara River within minutes, and the students were soon travelling on what the tourists called Coca Cola water along the Kamuni/Pokerero creeks in Region Three.
Moving along the creeks, the ladies were told why the water had its particular colour. Some were even afraid to touch the water, which quickly changed, as they later even played in it for hours while at Arrow Point.
The journey through the creek was very calm. The creeks are bordered by vegetation towering several metres high in most cases.
The first stop before arriving at Arrow Point was at the Amerindian village of Santa Mission. There the children were able to tour the village and see the way of life of a group of Guyana’s indigenous peoples. But, it was not exactly what they were looking forward to. The girls were of the view that they would be encountering Amerindians wearing traditional clothing made of straw.
After spending about one hour touring the village and shopping Amerindian craft and handy works, the team again boarded their respective water ferries and continued the journey to Arrow Point.
It was while at the Arrow Point Nature Resort that the group blended nature and academics. There, the children, along with some of the teachers and tour guides, went on several adventurous trips. They were exposed to hiking along the semi mountainous backlands of the Arrow Point Nature Resort, as well as taking part in several other activities, including river and beach sports.
Students got the scare of their lives when Tour Supervisor Michael Patterson told them that they would be hunting for their lunch. That statement was greeted by several light jokes and comments, with some of the students opting to become vegetarians… at least for that day.

However, that turned out to be a big fat joke, much to the relief of some of the ladies. Instead, they were feted a healthy lunch, along with a few snacks. The menu included curry, roti, pumpkin, dhal, vegetables, fish, among other things. Cherry drink was also served. When the guests saw the cherry, they were convinced that cherry drink must be the national drink of Guyana. They came to that conclusion after they realized that from the time of arrival in Guyana a few days ago, to the day of the Arrow Point visit, cherry drink had been a fixture.

The young ladies doubtless had a blast at Arrow Point, and the fun there came to a close at about 04:00hrs when the whistle sounded for the attention of everyone. It was time to depart for the city.
But who travels to someone else’s land and brings no gift? Certainly the Vincentians cannot be, and are not guilty of this oversight.
Before departing Arrow Point Nature Resort, the entire staff received a token. The ladies each received a small side purse with the GHS logo. The men were presented with key rings also bearing the school’s logo. The author of this article also received a token.
At the time of this publication, the students would have been able to see the three main rivers of Guyana — the Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice rivers. The St. Vincent and the Grenadines nationals will today be travelling to Suriname, as was mentioned earlier. The trip to Moleson Creek will see the tourists being given yet another tour, this time of the Ancient County, Berbice. Among the sites they are expected to see either on their way to Suriname or upon their return are the Canje Bridge, the National Psychiatric Hospital and, of course since they will be driving to that Dutch-speaking country, crossing the second floating bridge of Guyana will be a must.
They were heard commenting endlessly about the wide rivers, which for them are considered oceans.
Among the places of interest the students and teachers visited while in Guyana are the Guyana National Museum, Guyana Zoological Park, University of Guyana, and the CARICOM Secretariat.

They were also able to visit places such as the Parliament Buildings, Banks DIH Ltd, Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) Demerara Harbour Bridge, and several housing schemes along the coast.
The students’ only disappointment was not being able to visit either the canefield or the factory for a first had experience of the process of making sugar. The teacher explained that one of the main reasons for visiting the sugar industry was to demonstrate to the girls the method being employed by the sugar industries, as against those during the days of slavery.
The visitors were informed that it would not be convenient for them to visit an estate, because of the rains experienced prior to their arrival to these shores.
Despite the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Girls High School being a government school, the financing for their trips to various countries, including Guyana, is done by their parents and by sponsorship. In that regard, special mention was made of the Head and Deputy Heads of the school. Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves was also thanked for his role in the welfare of the school.
The school has a student population of just about 700, and will be celebrating 101 years of existence. And for being around so long, the school, as is expected, molds the lives of several influential women of that country. To begin with, the school has never had a male headteacher. Women in politics and every other sector in St. Vincent and the Grenadines attended the school.
The biggest challenge for the school is the social and cultural differences, and the community pressure.
Who travels to another man’s country and speaks ill of his own country to the press or to a citizen of that state?
The hospitality of the Guyanese people was rated as superb, and Guyana should say special thanks to Michael Patterson of Arrow Point and his team, as well as Gerianna Austin of Evergreen Adventures.
The tourists expressed amazement at the amount of infrastructure in this country, including the switch from old wooden structures to the massive concrete structures that can be seen right along the coast. However, there was the fear among the group that Guyana may eventually eliminate all the colonial buildings which in themselves add to the wonderful scenery of the country. Guyana was also described as truly a place where money can be made, and a place where opportunities can be realized.
The market that never sleeps (Bourda market) did not escape the group’s attention, as one of the visiting teachers even made a few purchases there one night. (They called it the night market). The jaw-dropping experience for the group occurred when they were told of the looks of the city and some other areas of the country on Christmas Eve night. They had difficulty believing that most businesses operate right through to daybreak on Christmas Morning.
Travelling to Guyana and then to Suriname is no doubt an ease on the pockets of the students. While at Arrow Point, some students were heard planning how they were going to begin boasting of their Guyana trip when they return home.
Except for two of the persons within the group of eighty, none had previously travelled to Guyana, and the two were identified as teachers. But one teacher said it right: “I heard so many things about Guyana it’s not funny, but coming here and seeing and experiencing it for myself is truly refreshing.”
The President of Guyana, His Excellency Donald Ramotar, was up to the time of this publication unable to meet with the group because of his busy schedule. However, that did not prevent him from sending best wishes for a wonderful time in Guyana. Those words were delivered by his Head of Protocol, Mr. Vic Persaud of the Office of the President.