Visits from the United States

To Guyana, a land with a little more

Than 750-thousand Guyanese

Were exhilarating

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Traveling on Caribbean

Airline from New York

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

I would touch down at Cheddi Jagan 

International Airport at Timehri

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It was often around midnight

With crickets chirping

And I would get a ride

From a family member

Along a winding road

With hairpin curves

That led to Georgetown

Its capital

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As our car sped

Along this tortuous route

It would encounter

Other vehicles 

Jockeying for position

Along this busy

And narrow roadway

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I would pass fields 

Of sugarcane, local businesses

And farms

But I could not resist 

The fresh air

And the sweet smell 

From a local brewery

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Our home in which I stayed

Was one of many

That sat on stilts

On a dusty road

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When it rained cats and dogs

We were often dripping wet

As we trudged through dirt

From the street, yard

And ditches that were flooded

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Regular electricity

And city water 

Were problems

And I had to plan 

On how I was going

To handle these nuisances

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It helped me prepare

Because the local authorities

Announced

In the Daily Chronicle

And on radio

When these utilities

Would be off

In Campbleville

Where I would stay

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During my visits

I’d go downtown 

To shop at my favorite 

Stores, go site seeing

Admire churches

Temples and synagogues

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The tall old Anglican church

St. George’s Cathedral

With its tall wooden spires

Come to mind

As a fascinating architectural

Display downtown

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Visits to the National Museum

Botanical Gardens

And local libraries

Were educational

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I never got to see

The world famous 

Kaieteur Falls

The most powerful

In the world

With an extraordinary

Drop into the Potaro River

In the central part 

Of the country

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As the temperature

dropped from around 90 degrees

Fahrenheit in the afternoon

When there was a cool

Wind rushing in

From the Atlantic Ocean

I often would

Stroll along the seawall

A concrete barrier

That protects parts

Of the East Coast

From being flooded

And relax

While people-watching 

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I’ve seen Guyana changed

Since its independence

On May 26th, 1966

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The nation has become

Polarized along racial lines

With East Indians and blacks

At each other throats

There’s escalating political violence

And drug related crimes

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Over the years

It has become inadvisable

To venture out alone at night

For fear of being assaulted

Shot, robbed or killed

A number of innocent Guyanese

Have lost their lives

Since independence

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