– A way of life in La Harmonie village

A short boat ride required to venture into the village of La Harmonie may feel like entering an entirely new world.

A visit to the village of La Harmonie would take one on an interesting journey as it offers a unique flare of exoticism and natural diversity.
The village’s native people are an ethnic mix. The fascinating fact about this, however is that they all share a genuine relationship and a similar way of life. “All of us born and grew up here, in this area,” says Roy Narine.

Roy was an estate farmer and then a farmer and has always been in tune with nature. He stated that, “I used to work at the estate. I used a cut cane and did a little bit of farming.” How the little-known village of La Harmonie came to be is a story that most of the villagers seem to know.

“This tree section was cocoa and tangerine mixed up in there,” says Roy. This was, of course, a very long time ago. But Roy remembers how the little village has far less people than its estimated 200 people today.

He stated that there were fields of cocoa trees. Roy pointed out an area near his home where he says cocoa pods were once harvested and placed to dry.

La Harmonie’s proximity to some of Guyana’s most untapped wildlife has crafted villagers who live in one with their surroundings. The community has one main road and crossing that singular road would place someone in fields of thick trees and surrounded by some interesting animals. In the village of La Harmonie people have more birds and pets than they do dogs or cats. The area is rich in wildlife and biodiversity.

“We have monkeys and so on further in the bush. All kinds of wildlife are around. We have anteaters around and macaws,” explained Roy.

On the way to the village, a number of monkeys, toucans, opossums, labbas, armadillos and even an anteater were spotted among the trees.

La Harmonie was established as and will probably remain as a farming community in some aspects. There, however, does seem to be a shift in the number of people in the village. But the people who still work in the village have simple jobs. As Roy stated, “Some of them are working as contractors and there are some people who are planting coconuts. ”

However, there seems to be a shift in the way of life and the number of people residing in the community. Roy emphasised that many people have Left the village of La Harmonie to make elsewhere their home. George Sarjo is another man living in the village and he has been so since birth. George is 82 years old and in his eight decades, he says he has seen very little change in the village.

George is one of the villagers who went beyond the bounds of the village seeking work. As he shared, “Mostly we used to do farming and I did some contracting in Region 3 until I called it off.” On the matter of the past, George says that the village was not just a cocoa plantation but it was home to some of the village’s first people.

It is safe to assume that the village and its plantation were once home to a set of indentured immigrants. “Just where you walked was logies long ago,” George said. “That was nearly 60 or 70years ago. Since then we have lived here.” And they state that they will remain. The people of La Harmonie have adapted to living in the village over the years. Although there is what is considered a main stelling at the la Harmonie primary school, the village is lined with numerous smaller places for mooring boats.

“Everybody has to have a boat,” George said. “Right now, there are probably three or four boats at the landing.” La Harmonie village is a quaint little village that is a world apart from the bustling life in the capital city. La Harmonie village is one of the few places that you can get to in just a few hours from Georgetown. But it will offer an unforgettable experience. With the trees, the animals and beautiful people of the village.