–after spending Christmas here, traipsing around the hinterland

A FRENCH family of 20 who spent the Christmas holidays here exploring our rich and diverse natural resources, has left with sweet memories of a country they’ve always heard about but never saw until now.
The group, which comprised 14 adults and six children, two of them teens, arrived on Christmas Day and left on Wednesday.
The relatives of Amazon Caribbean Guyana Limited’s Managing-Director, Mr Christophe Sureau, their decision to come for a 10-day visit was at the instigation of his parents, Martin and Michelle Sureau.
Sureau says that the visit was long in the making, and although his company has been marketing Guyana’s products in France for over 30 years now, the majority of his family have never had the opportunity of coming and experiencing Guyana for themselves.
“Most of us, we didn’t have the experience and the chance to visit Guyana,” he said. “What I found out in all my trips coming to Guyana, going to [the] North-West, Berbice and Georgetown is that Guyana is known mainly from the coast; not enough inside the country,” Sureau told media operatives at a press briefing hosted by the Ministry of Business and the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) on Tuesday at the Grand Coastal Inn.

NATURE AT ITS BEST
As such, the family’s excursion was centred on experiencing the exotic nature and wildlife of Guyana, which, according to Sureau, is in the seldom-explored interior savannahs and highland regions.

According to Director-General of the Ministry of Tourism, Mr Donald Sinclair, when Minister of Business Mr Dominic Gaskin learnt that a family of 20 was coming to Guyana, he wanted to ensure that their time was well spent.
So, with the help of Iwokrama’s Tourism Manager, Mr Michael Patterson, various destinations were put together to ensure that the group had a safe and well-arranged tour of Guyana.
The group’s itinerary entailed visiting the Lake Mainstay Resort; the Iwokrama Eco Lodge, the Iwokrama Canopy Walkway and the Atta Rainforest Lodge; the Surama Eco Lodge; the Kaieteur Falls; and Turtle Mountain, which took them to such places as the North-West District and the Barima, Essequibo and Pomeroon Rivers.
Patterson, who also served as the family’s key logistics planner, said that the level of service the group had received was an important subject matter during the preparation stage.
“It’s a very big family,” he explained. “We also realised that there were a lot of children involved, and things like safety and coordination and standards were some of our concerns that we really wanted to ensure happened from the beginning right to the end.”

WELL RECEIVED
And, based on the feedback so far, it would appear that these concerns were well addressed, as according to Christophe Sureau, his family was well received wherever they went.
One of the highlights of the trip, he said, was the sighting of a jaguar on the way to the Atta Rainforest Lodge, located some 500 metres from the Iwokrama Canopy Walkway.
Noting that the family was able to steal a few quick photos of the animal, camouflaged though it was by the nearby bushes, before it quietly slipped away, Sureau said:
“That jaguar was really one of the best moments, of course, but all around, our trip was wonderful; it was really good.
“Iwokrama is known for its wildlife, while Surama is known for the people living there; their natives.
“This village is so quiet; so peaceful, more Guyanese need to know about this place.”
The group also saw a Caiman near Iwokrama, Cock-of-the-Rock and monkeys.
One of the downsides, however, was hearing from the residents of Surama about the problems they have with communication and transportation in the area.
“There is a lack of communication and transportation for Guyanese, and also tourists, to reach those places which are far,” Sureau said.
“You can go by plane, but it is very expensive. You can go by bus, but the road is not so good, especially right now as it’s the rainy season.”
Despite these factors, Sureau wants Guyanese to know that they have a very beautiful country, and that they should try to get to know it and not just confine themselves to the coastland.
Before leaving, the Sureaux were given little tokens to remind them of their trip to Guyana.