Transition-Suriname to Guyana

April 3, 2013

We left the neatness of Suriname and the peace and tranquility for the crowded roads of Berbice.

In Suriname people want plain dirt around their homes.  We saw
many people out sweeping in the morning.  They don't want even
a blade of grass.

There are many Chinese stores, litter free.

We saw vegetables, rice, and bananas growing.

  We are now in Berbice.  Good-bye to the peace and tranquility.
 In Guyana you share the road, and it's pretty much every man
 for himself.

When we arrived in Berbice, the rice growers were drying the

rice out in the road. In some places the rice was on both sides of the road, and you had to drive down the middle.

These big slow trucks carry the rice.

The farmers started to gather, sweep, and bag the rice.

There are people on bicycles all along the way.

There are tractors, big trucks and other farm equipment parked along the road.  Much of the farming takes place in Berbice.

The animals think they own the road.  They are not intimidated.

This fellow has his store on his bike.

Bags of rice along the road.

These fellows are herding their cows on their bikes.

The goats and cows love to clean up the rice.

The bags of rice and the goats.

More bags of rice.

The people think they own the road as well.  They are not too
worried about getting in your way.

Now they are "uplifting" the bags of rice.

Good bye to the relaxing driving.  We took the ferry back across

the river to Guyana.  We had to be there by 10:00.  We waited to show our passports and our round-trip tickets.  Then we waited to go to customs to get the car paperwork completed.  On the other side we have to go through immigration where they stamp your passport for another three months.  Then we went through customs, declaring what ever we are taking back.  We had tool boxes and t-shirts for the wheel chair project the end of April, but the officer just waved us through.  The ferry left Suriname at 12:00.  The ferry ride took about 45 minutes.  Then 20 minutes or so getting through the lines.  Then we were on our way through Berbice, on our way to Georgetown.  We enjoyed our short break and are grateful for a little R & R.