Guyana: South America's Only English-Speaking Country and Its Stunning Interior
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Guyana is the only English-speaking country in South America — a consequence of British colonisation that gave it cultural ties to the Caribbean even as its geography connects it to the South American continent. The country sits on the north coast of South America, bordered by Venezuela, Brazil, and Suriname, and contains vast interior rainforest that remains largely roadless and extraordinarily biodiverse. Over 80 percent of the country is covered by rainforest.
Kaieteur Falls, in the Pakaraima Mountains of central Guyana, is one of the world's most powerful waterfalls — roughly five times the height of Niagara Falls, with a volume that makes it among the most impressive single-drop falls on earth. It is accessible only by small aircraft or a multi-day trek. The falls exist in a national park that sees perhaps ten thousand visitors per year, compared to the millions who visit Niagara. The solitude makes the experience of standing at the edge — looking out over untouched jungle stretching to the horizon — one of the most extraordinary things a person can do on this continent.
Guyanese culture reflects the country's history of indentured labour: after emancipation, the British brought workers from India, China, and Portugal to work sugar plantations. Today Guyana has one of the most ethnically diverse populations in the Americas — Indo-Guyanese, Afro-Guyanese, Indigenous Amerindian, Chinese, and mixed communities. The national dish, pepperpot — a slow-cooked meat stew with cassareep sauce — is Amerindian in origin. The national culture is everyone's.
