This week the Pepperpot Magazine visited the countryside village of Balchyock, Blairmont, West Bank Berbice to highlight the way of life of the locals and the village.

This small village was developed for housing eight years ago and people who were squatting in Blairmont District was allocated land for occupancy.

Balchyock Village is a Dutch plantation and was once dense forest before the government developed the land for housing in which less than 100 residents live.

There are 91 house lots in Balchyock Village and only 50 lots were allocated the remaining 41 plots are yet to be allocated and are overgrown by thick bushes that need to be cut down since it is infested with snakes.

This village has four streets with crush and run roads, potable water supply, electricity, no landline service, a few residents have private internet service, and others have cell phone service.

The locals, like most people living on that corridor, depend heavily on the Blairmont Sugar Estate for their livelihood and most people have jobs there while others are self-employed and there are mostly farmers and other self-sufficient individuals.

Balchyock is a farming community and almost every household has a kitchen garden and they rear livestock, catch fish in the backdam and do their bulk shopping at Rosignol which is a short distance away.

The village has a ball field, schools on the main access road both nursery and primary and the nearest secondary school is at Rosignol.

Balchyock is bordered by Ithaca, which is the last village, and Shieldstown.

Blairmont has four settlements from one to four, two housing schemes: Zorg-en-Hoop and Balchyock and the Neighbourhood Democratic Council covers three villages: Ithaca, Shieldstown and Blairmont.

Balchyock Village is occupied by people of East Indian descent and get along well with locals from the surrounding villages.

They are hardworking farmers and sugar workers who waste no time and have utilised every yard space to plant and grow food.

The people of this village are very curious but welcoming and super friendly and it is a place where people lean on their neighbours for support and they live like a big family, a close-knit community, where one can still ask their neighbour for a cup of sugar and leave their doors unlocked.

The residents have made their homes very comfortable, and they have wooden benches under shady trees for the afternoon meet up and chat, hammocks under their houses, wooden benches and tables to sit and take rest, and they have well-kept, clean homes and surroundings.

Most of the people there have utilised sections of land, owned by the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GUYSUCO) to cultivate crops.

The locals do not buy fish, greens, fruits and most meats since they grow their own food and rear livestock, making them self-sufficient.

It is an up and coming small village where the people crave development and other services but they use the services in nearby villages such as the Ithaca Health Centre, the banks, the markets and other facilities.

Most of the women in this community are stay-at-home moms and a handful have jobs outside the village within both the private and public sectors.

They have a nurse in the community who is attached to the Rosignol Health Centre.

A Community Development Council (CDC) was established last year and its members are villagers, who were elected to manage the affairs of the village.

Balchyock has street lights and it is adequately lit at nights and the people said they are comfortable but need landline phones, better roads, clearing of unoccupied lands, and internet service for an enhanced life.

Men and young men work at the nearby Blairmont Sugar Estate and have do their jobs on a shift system.

When they are not working, they enjoy catching fish in the back dam, playing cricket and farming.

The locals would go to Rosignol, the central hub for all businesses and some would go to the city or New Amsterdam for other business transactions.

Balchyock Village is a unique place to enjoy a quiet, countryside life with the family, who prefer that setting of being away from the hassles of everyday life and the big city.