This week, the Pepperpot Magazine took a boat across the mighty Essequibo River to bring you stories from Bartica. Stories and photos by Vishani Ragobeer and Telesha Ramnarine.

BARTICA could easily be one of the best places in Guyana to visit. The town, dubbed “The gateway to the interior” of Guyana, offers a space that combines Guyana’s natural beauty with an authentic feel of country’s cultural plurality.

To get to the town located in the Cuyuni-Mazaruni Region, a boat ride on the Essequibo River is necessary. It is much quicker to take a speedboat, but the option to take the larger (and much slower) ferry boat exists.
Some persons would take the ferry because it allows you to transport your vehicle with you. If you intend on travelling extensively around Bartica, this might seem like a good idea, but fair warning- five hours (beginning before the crack of dawn) on that boat is not conducive for comfortable sleeping.
Whichever mode of transportation you choose, the Bartica experience begins as soon as you step off the stelling. You’re greeted immediately by the ‘Welcome to Bartica’ sign suspended above and the monument that was erected a few years ago when Bartica became a town. These are found on what’s called ‘First Avenue’.

Getting around Bartica is easy because the town is divided into numbered avenues and streets (like First Avenue and Second Street). The long Potaro Road is an exception to this, but even that doesn’t take too much to remember.

Now while you’re in Bartica, you cannot escape the sweet cuisine they have. The menu is something like dhal and rice, with ochro and fried butterfish. A fresh pine juice is a perfect beverage to accompany the tantalising meal.

If that’s not what you’re looking for, there’s an abundance of cook-up rice- whether with black eye, split peas or channa- waiting at almost any food shop along the avenues for you to devour.
Naturally, the cool Essequibo River breeze and the ‘loud’ cook-up or dhal and rice call for a ‘knockout’ sleep. But if you’re able to defy the laws of good food and sleep, you might as well head over to the boardwalk.

The boardwalk is a cozy stretch of land that overlooks the Essequibo River. It is the perfect place to sit and align your chakras while enjoying the chilly river breeze or, stare at the undisturbed night sky while letting your body digest Bartica’s finest. It would be wise to walk with a jacket or anything to cover up with unless of course, the chilly temperature is your thing.

Fun fact: During the Easter weekend, that boardwalk is transformed into vibes central as the Regatta consumes Bartica. In fact, the boardwalk overlooks the area on the river where the Regatta takes place each year.
By the time you’ve visited the boardwalk, more than likely, you’ll want to head to bed right after. But it is Bartica, and for a quiet and calming town, it can also be bustling with nighttime activities- like the Junior Soca and Calypso Mashramani finals held there last weekend.

It wasn’t strange that the entire community packed the Community Centre Ground for this event. As the calypso and soca performances took to the stage, you would believe that the polite ‘Barticians’ were replaced with a rowdy and indefatigable bunch. And even at 02:00hrs, when the finals were over and the winners had the opportunity to delight the crowd again, it seemed as though not a single ‘Bartician’ intended on going home until dayclean.

First Avenue definitely came alive from 02:00hrs. If it wasn’t for the absence of daylight, it would be hard to doubt that the scene wasn’t an average afternoon lime. It was a cacophony of soca, dancehall and loud voices that had no intention of sleeping soon as various parties began.

Added to that, the avenue was filled with the smell of plantain and eggs being fried. At this point, the ‘Nurse to Burst’ special (plantain, sausages, eggs and cheese) seemed to be the fuel that kept the hype train running.

For the non-Barticians that visited the town for the Mashramani competitions, unfortunately the rapidly approaching sunrise meant that it was time to head back to Georgetown. That left just enough time to grab a second helping of the plantain special (which continued once the parties were still going) and get ready to leave.

That was perhaps the most daunting part of the trip-that it had to come to an end. And considering the long boat ride on the ferry starting from about 06:00hrs, the idea to stay did sound very appealing.

Even though there are the glamorous places across Guyana like the Kaieteur Falls, Lethem or good ole Georgetown, visiting Bartica is a must.