Thousands take to No. 63 Beach
– An Easter Monday tradition in Guyana
DPI, Guyana, Tuesday, April 23, 2019
The clear skies and scorching tropical sun were no match for the thousands of residents and visitors that poured onto No. 63 Beach to participate in this year’s Easter Monday celebrations. Vehicles lined the entire length of the beach, and the blue sky above was filled with countless kites.
Easter Monday is a significant day for many families in Guyana and it is greatly received as one that involves kites, food, and fun. On this note, the Department of Public Information (DPI) went to the heart of No. 63 Beach to speak to the people who were there to share in this grand celebration.
Guyanese travelled great distances to partake in No. 63 Beach Easter activities. Deodo Toolsie from No. 57 Village was there with his family to have fun and to enjoy the food and drinks available.
With her sons, Seeta Persaud from Brighton Village stood at the water’s edge. “We are having a lot of fun flying kites. It is wonderful”.
Meanwhile, Barram Nandlall from No. 69 Village travelled to the beach via boat with his fellow seamen and ten family members. Nandlall shared that “on an Easter Monday, I am normally on the beach having fun, bringing out the kids and playing”.
Two visitors, volunteers from the Peace Corps were there and spoke highly of the event. Clair Sullivan exuberantly said, “I love it. It is my first time here and it is so cool to see all of the kites in the air and to everyone out here enjoying the Easter weekend”, while Morgan Little added, “I am enjoying seeing all the people, the kites… people walking around [and] the music. It has been a lot of fun so far.”
Nevertheless, it is no secret that business for vendors does exceedingly well during the holidays in Guyana, particularly family-oriented holidays. Lenisa Abrams had overseen a food stand on the upper portion of the beach. Cook-up, barbecue chicken, and fish and chips, were some of the items on Abram’s menu for the day. “So far, it’s coming along good,” she noted when prompted on the pace of business at the beach. Another vendor, Oceana Clarke, was overjoyed by the response of persons to her food-business, stating “it has been so great, so wonderful… I expect that we would sell out everything that is there because the beach is packed with a lot of people, and the money is coming in.”
As much as kites were in the skies, No. 63 Beach was also not short of any athletic games. A tense volleyball competition saw the athletes eager to share their thoughts on the game. One of those athletes, Vinaj Brijlall said the recipe for a good game was in place since the weather and the fans were cooperative. Brijjlall noted, “the player has a little more of a challenge to play the game” due to the high winds on the beach, but added, “there is a lot of practice every year; someday they will be perfect”.
No. 63 Beach is just one of the major hotspots Guyanese visit on Easter Monday. The National Park, Bartica, Lethem and all of the community grounds throughout the country were packed with persons taking part in the annual celebration.
Shaquille Bourne.
Images: Jules Gibson.