Guy's Gone Wild

Once a year Guyana hosts GuyExpo, a huge exposition showcasing pretty much everything the country has to offer. Booths clustered under tents feature hand crafted products, eco-tourism education, furniture, electronics, and more. It’s a huge fair complete with booty-shaking concerts, exhilarating rides, fried foods, and booths giving away samples.

The exposition lasted 4 days and it was all anyone could talk about. I attended on Sunday with some volunteers, along with what seemed to be the rest of the country.

We walked around familiarizing ourselves with the grounds and snacking on free food along the way. At one crafter’s stand, we were looking at earrings made of out coconut shells and wood from the local trees. One of the volunteers had just purchased a pair and was showing me the intricate detailing, but couldn’t recall the name of the tree it originated from.

Volunteer: What tree is this?
Crafter: Dat’s five.
Volunteer: No, what tree did you say this is this from? Tree?
Crafter: Not tree hundred, dat’s five hundred.
Volunteer: Yes I know, I paid for it already. But what tree is made from?
Crafter: No, you pay five, not tree.

The back and forth continued a few more times before a Guyanese person said the word “tree” and the crafter understood our English.

The evening was spent eating delicious Guyanese food and drinks and enjoying the concert. By the time the exposition was over, there was a sea of empty beer bottles littered all over the grounds and obstructing the walkways. The remains of what looked like a landfill seemed more like artwork and evidence of a fabulously good time.