Category: Features

The Kolkata Memorial inaugurated January this year recalls and salutes the hundreds of thousands of Indian workers who, from 1838 to 1920, travelled to the West Indies and Guyana in search of a better life – although for many, it began a far cry from what they expected. Arriving as indentured labourers, life became one of slave-like existence with little hope of improvement, brought, as they were, to toil daily in the sugar cane fields of some Caribbean islands and Guyana as replacements for African slave labour after the abolition…

Read More

The Qaseeda, or ‘hymn of praise’, has always been part of the Islamic tradition in Guyana, bringing together both old and young to offer praise to the Holy Prophet Muhammad. The first historical record of Qaseedas was made over 1400 years ago, when the Holy Prophet Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina. When the Prophet arrived in Medina, the people came out in their numbers and greeted him with a song, which is the first recorded Qaseeda known. The song, “tal’a al Badru Alayna”, is still very popular in all…

Read More

Read More

In the dark, dense, deep, and watery jungles of Guyana, many adventures await — both breathtaking and dangerous — and what the adventure group ‘Bushmasters’ lives for. The team consists of staff from the UK and guides from Amerindian communities in the Guyanese jungle. Director of the group, Ian Craddock, was a British Army officer who served in the Infantry and Special Forces for 10 years. He first moved to Guyana in 2002 organising jungle expeditions for a British conservation charity. Ian has completed a variety of specialist courses, from…

Read More

Upon realising that there was a discord in the way students were learning about science and their natural world, schoolteacher Fitz Ogle set about exposing Guyanese students to their natural environment through field trips rather than text books. On September 8, 1997, Ogle and his class walked into the natural forests of Guyana to begin the Evergreen Nature Study Club, a club that has quickly grown into national and international recognition. “It is a fact that natural science taught in tropical schools suffers through having been evolved from that of…

Read More

By Petamber Persaud (We will return to the regular feature, ‘A Chronology of Guyanese Writers’, after this article)   One day soon, Georgetown could be designated ‘World Book Capital City’. Yes, this is a dream, a tangible vision. Our most recent claim for such an honour was Guyana’s just-concluded First Street Book Fair held Friday February 18, 2011, on Main Street avenue, opposite the Ministry of Culture, Youth & Sport. The theme for that event was ‘A Reconnection to Books’. The organisers (Mashramani Secretariat, Ministry of Culture, Youth & Sport…

Read More

With increasing concern about global food shortages, over the years the Saint Stanislaus College Farm Complex (SSCF) has been humbly proving its ability to be a major player in ensuring Guyana’s food security. The SSCF is the only agriculture school farm in the country and is a premiere training institution for agriculture students, technicians and farmers in Guyana. It is located at 69 North Sophia and also houses the St. Stanislaus Training Centre (SSTC), the Dairy Products Unit (DPU) and the Greenhouse Vegetable Production Unit. The 13 acre complex is…

Read More

   

Read More

Gold, as a precious metal, has been valued and held in high esteem since ancient times, and remains one of the most highly prized metals that have, throughout the ages, been used to symbolize wealth and power, and keep commerce going. Guyana Times Sunday Magazine interviewed Guyana Geology and Mines Commission’s Manager of Special Projects Sydney Edwards, who spoke about how the precious and valuable metal is mined. “Guyana is located in a Precambrian Shield, and an area in that shield will have gold. The Precambrian Shield is an extensive…

Read More