By Ravena Gildharie 
There will be no Bartica Regatta, no Rupununi Rodeo, no hat shows and most likely no crowded seawalls, parks or beaches this year as Guyanese observe Easter 2020 in ‘lockdown’ amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. Confined to their homes, there will be little to no kite flying particularly in the city and its environs. Despite this, Guyanese across the country are determined to keep the observances special though with a difference.

For Candace Fields, an East Bank Demerara mother of four, and teacher of the Covent Garden Secondary School, this is a time of family bonding with her kids, as they spend their Easter watching family movies and playing family games such as scrabble and monopoly. Instead of the kite-flying tradition with families and friends at Carifesta Avenue, the family for the first time in years would remain indoors this weekend with the 10-year-old twin boys given a chance to further their skills in the kitchen while following online recipes. The boys have taken a liking to experimenting with the preparation of different dishes, but they still miss the kite-flying sensation.

When asked if there will be any kites at all this Easter, Fields responded: “well only to fly from their own verandah and that would have to be the bird kites if we even bother….as we’d have to look at safety too because there are tons of electrical wire around this place.”
Similarly over in Kitty, there would be no kites this year for 11-year-old Samara and three-year-old Zendaya. To ensure some fun and adventure at home this Easter though, their mom, Suzanne McRae, is busy thinking up innovative ways to mark the observance with fun and adventure.

“We usually fly kites the few days leading up to Easter, but we are not doing it this year. They understand…instead of pasting kites, they are pasting face masks,” Mc Rae related. This weekend the girls and their mom will be engaged in an Easter hunt around their home.

While there is not much demand for kites around Georgetown this year, the expert kite-makers like Trevor Osborne is still dedicated to the task, but instead of lining the pavement with his beautifully-crafted creations in a wide assortment of sizes, colours and design, he has stocks available from home.

“I don’t want to break the law or encourage people to break the law or to put myself or others at danger, so I am not going out to the spot where I normally go each year with the kites….I have my house stock up here with the kites and people who want can call to get their kites or make orders,” Osborne related to this publication from his Kitty home. Popularly known as ‘the kite man,’ Osborne said he would usually make about 600 to 700 kites each Easter since a lot of companies, groups and individuals around Georgetown would place orders for kites as part of charitable distribution drives. This year, he has only produced about 380 kites.

Easter in the country 
In the countryside, where there are residences with wide backyards and open spaces, kids are still enjoying some amount of kite flying from the confines of their home. However, according to Guyanese like Sharon Isurdeen of the Essequibo Coast, there remains a longing for the usual Easter mingling with families and friends.

“We normally will picnic at the ballfields – fly kites, play games with villagers etc…(Now) it’s like we are not even feeling the holiday vibes. We are so scared to even talk to our neighbours,” Isurdeen stated. This year, the Isurdeens will remain indoors cooking some fried rice and bar-b-que chicken.

One of the most popular Easter spots for Essequibians is the Zorg beach, where hundreds of residents from as far as the Pomeroon River would usually converge to “catch-up” with friends and relatives especially those whom they haven’t seen in a long time.
Across in the county of Berbice, the Number 63 Beach is the place for community bonding at Easter time and usually attracts hundreds of locals and visitors including residents of Georgetown who look forward to the occasion. Marizo Bissessar, a father of three, usually looks forward to the beach hang with his family, but this year they would be at home in Skeldon spending quiet and quality time together.

For other Berbice-born citizens like Kevin Budhan, who currently lives and works in Georgetown, Easter is a time to return home for family and adventures of life in the country.

“Most Easters we would head back to Berbice and spend it on our land. We have a big land so we would fly kites and BBQ with friends and families…I’ve had my best years there. There is rice land, cane land. The Canje Creek at the back of our lands, so there was always something outdoors to do,” stated Budhan as he reminisced of Easter gone by. Instead of the large gathering at Vryheid Village in Berbice with his parents, siblings, nieces and nephews, Kevin would spend this Easter in the City at home with a grill and few relatives.

 Economic losses at Easter 
In the meantime, Barticians are missing the annual Bartica Regatta for the first time in 6o years. A calendar event and a usual boost for Guyana’s tourism each year, the absence of the regatta is likely to cause economic loses, but according to Secretary of the Bartica Regatta Committee Lydia Moonsammy there is a lot of understanding.

“In light of the current health pandemic, Barticans understand that our health is primary. Together we will get through this,” she related. This weekend Moonsammy will spend Easter with family tuned into the Catholic Church’s online mass.
Similarly, the absence of the Rupununi Rodeo this Easter is having an impact on livelihoods.

According to Rupununi Rodeo Committee Member Michelle Joseph, “the entire commercial zone is locked down except for a few essential stores. Hotels and Restaurants are definitely hit the most.” The rodeo is another calendar event that is attended by thousands annually including scores of Brazilians who cross the border to join in the fun. This time around, the border is closed and Rupununi residents remain at home.

“I don’t think there are any plans to get out of the house given the circumstances. We will more than likely have a quiet Easter. Rodeo was the one thing we look forward to followed up with trips to the falls. I think it would just be about keeping the cross buns tradition going,” Joseph said. A mother of two, Joseph indicated that her two sons usually enjoy the time out at the park so being restricted to kite flying in the yard is not making them too happy.

In the South Rupununi, where the Aishalton and Sand Creek Easter Rodeos have been gaining popularity in recent years, the mood is damp especially since there is no Church service, a feature which everyone looks forward this time.

“As Christians, we observe holy week, fly kites for Easter Sunday and Monday. Later year Aishalton had a mini-rodeo. It’s sad this cannot happen this year… Everyone is now on their farms. Families are going fishing today and tomorrow,” according to Immaculata Casimero of Aishalton.