The way of life, traditions, and practices that have been preserved in Ithaca

THE quiet streets and peaceful homes, young men playing basketball, the welcoming neighbourhood women thrilled to talk about their community, the subtle sounds of grazing cows, and the sights of people cooking and talking by firesides. The village of Ithaca with roots running deep into the past has retained its unique authentic and idyllic way of life.

Community values are stronger in very few places than they are in the village of Ithaca. The community embodies the ‘everybody knows everybody’ sentiment. Located at the far end of the West Coast of the Berbice River behind neighbouring Blairmont, Ithaca marks the furthest end of the West Bank of the Berbice River. Bought, built and developed by a group of ex-slaves, farming has been the biggest economic contributor for a majority of its citizens. The village has seen its fair share of issues, tragedies and adversities. But like their ancestors, the people of Ithaca refuse to give up their way of life that has brought them this far.

The Pepperpot Magazine found Dianne Saul weeding and cleaning around her Ithaca home with a cutlass. This, she said, was how the people in the countryside lived. Dianne was not born in Ithaca but has called the village her home since she was six. Today, at the age of fifty-eight, Dianne has welcomed and adapted to the way of living in Ithaca. “I have lived in Ithaca for about fifty-two years. My family came here because of my father. He worked at GUYWA and was the superintendent and he was transferred back to Ithaca, so my family left Northwest and came here,” Dianne shared.

Although one of the country’s oldest communities, Ithaca’s development was gradual and its population has seen a spike in recent years. Dianne remembers what the village looked like more than five decades ago. The village was not yet populated, and Dianne’s family’s home was among the first in the area. Located near the canal, Dianne reminisced about what the community was like with fewer people, and far fewer issues. “We were the first house for this area at the back here. There were not so many buildings. All we had was a little wooden house,” she stated.

Ithaca was once so sparcely populated, in fact, that the community was home to just two cars. At the time, Ithaca also did not have electricity, and in a community with few people, there was very little light at night. She further added, “The streets were dark at night. You could not even see your hands,” she said. Despite the issues encountered, however, the Saul family remained in the village of Ithaca. The family’s biggest motivator for staying and still their biggest reason for loving the community of Ithaca is its people.

“This village shows you a lot of love,” Dianne told the Pepperpot Magazine. The entire community, people from the length and breadth of the village, would come out in aid or support from the ring of a bell. Ithaca is one of the few places in Guyana that has kept the tradition of bell ringing alive and very well. Ithaca is home to two bells, both of which are rang at different times of convey a variety of different messages to Ithaca’s people. “If anything happens in Ithaca, they ring the bell. It has different rings for thieves, someone’s death, someone coming for a meeting or someone coming for war.” Dianne shared.

Although Dianne and her family are not experts on Ithaca’s history, they are still very much involved in the cultural practices of the village. Ithaca is home to a cultural group Dianne says, “We have a cultural group that does the Queh-Queh. On the night before the wedding, we have a celebration, we have songs we sing and dances.” The cultural group that is led by the elders of the village teach the songs and dances as authentically as possible. They try to keep in touch with their roots by keeping and passing down the traditional practices the way it was as taught to them.

Ithaca was built on agriculture. The village was originally a plantation; most of its first people planted and the majority still farm today. In recent times, however, the village has seen a shift in the economic practices of its residents, with more people turning to work outside of the village. “In Ithaca we plant and we go out and do shopping too. But most people still have kitchen gardens. The way of life in Ithaca is nice.” Dianne stated. The village is not without challenges. Being prone to flooding, roads in need of development and the current water situation just a few of the issues the residents say they would like to see mitigated. Despite these less than perfect conditions, Dianne says that, “We have our problems in Ithaca but we are not giving up.”