With a population of around 2000 people of different racial backgrounds, the community of Blankenburg is found on the West Coast of Demerara some 12 km west of the capital city.
It is home to two newly established housing schemes: Brandenburg Executive Housing Scheme and the Hibiscus Housing Scheme, which according to residents are two of the best schemes along the coast. The tightly knit community is flanked by Den Amstel to the east and La Jalousie to the west.
Catering for the villagers’ needs are a supermarket, taxi services, a newly built gas station, a restaurant, an internet café and many small family shops scattered throughout the community.
On entering the area the Anglican church, said to be one of the oldest buildings there, comes into view. Stabroek News was told it is over 100 years old. There is also a Hindu temple and a Pentecostal church. Where education is concerned, Blankenburg has a primary school, and this newspaper was told that beyond that level many of the students attended the Leonora and Stewartville schools, while others went to Vreed-en-Hoop.
SN was greeted with a warm welcome from Pastor Chico Damon and his wife Mabin Damon who were happy to relay that they had been living there for several decades. Mabin, who migrated from another village after she tied the knot with her husband (he has been living in Blankenburg for over 70 years) said that one of the things that made the community stand out from the others on the coast was “the people” and “the peace of the area.”
According to her, the village is like a “neutral zone” since the residents are from various ethnic backgrounds and different walks of life, and enjoy life there “one day at a time.”
Reflecting on earlier days, she said that Blankenburg had been transformed from a purely rice planting area to one where development had taken place. Before, she explained, there were not many houses, and that the new housing development had aided in the enhancement of the community.
Her husband also praised the quietness of the village, adding that the Atlantic sea breeze is one of the main attractions. He also mentioned that people from various parts came there to visit the Bay View hangout spot which is one of the most popular recreation hideouts found around there.
The Pastor related that he is known to many in the village because his father had a bakery outlet located where his residence now stands. “People used to come and hang out at the shop… my dad used to make a good salara.” He noted that after a hard day toiling at work, one can return home to enjoy the comfort that Blankenburg has to offer. He said the peace of the village is only interrupted by the sound of vehicles traversing the roadway and the noise from the lumberyard opposite his home.
He recalled that in 1964, the community had direct experience of the disturbances of the era, and that many homes had been destroyed. Sitting on his veranda he said that there had been nights one would have wished one was not living in Blankenburg but he was happy that those days were gone. “Sometimes you lie in the dark of the night, then all of a sudden you see a house on fire… those days were very terrible.”
Today, residents are described as being welcoming and very hospitable and this newspaper had direct experience of this.
The main economic activity in the village is rice-farming, although some persons are involved in cattle rearing and poultry rearing, while a few others find employment at the Uitvlugt estate. Quite a few of the houses had kitchen gardens, while women mostly augmented the family income by selling at roadside stalls.
But the Blankenburg villagers are not just beautiful in terms of their warmth and their ways, but also in terms of their faces. Miss Guyana World 2001, Olive Gopaul has been living in the Blankenburg area for some time now, SN was told. Villagers described her as a role model for the other young girls of the area. Some of the older folks also said that they are hoping that the regional authorities would open a place where Gopaul would be able to mentor the youths in the society, especially the females who aspire to develop their “God given gifts and talents.” Efforts to contact Gopaul proved unsuccessful.
Abiola Doobay, a youth of Blankenburg seemed surprised when SN visited her residence. Even though she was attending to her younger cousin, she still welcomed this newspaper into her home. Doobay related that most of her days are spent at work but at weekends she takes advantage of a “few things” that the area has to offer. She said that most of the young people visited the nearby “black water canal” to cool down after the heat of the day. “Me and my friends visit the trench almost every weekend,” she said, adding that there are not many other activities for them to indulge in. “We does jump into the people dem boats and sail away; after we finish we tie it back easily and go back home,” she confessed.
She too gave praise to the Bay View Club which according to her is congested on Saturday nights with young people, and even sometimes older folks who go there to “shake” and “move” to the rhythm of the music.
On the downside, however, residents said that although crime in the area is low, incidents still happened. “De place full up ah lil boys who playing big before dem time… if you see them taking a puff and some ah dem don’t care if a big person passing by.” Villagers stressed too, that there is no playground for the youngsters, hence most of them spent their leisure time watching television or “getting into mischief.” “De lil ones dem does climb me mango tree and… thief de mangoes… just because they ain’t get nothing to tek up dem time,” one man told SN.
Alligators invading the land also seemed to be a complaint among those who live next to the rice fields. One resident who does cattle farming said that he suffered the loss of a cow on one occasion after it was attacked by an alligator. “De alligators does come out from behind the rice field to hunt for de animals… Sometimes people does be so afraid to send them children in de dam to play and you know how lil boys are – boys must be boys.”
Pamela (only name given) who has been living in Blankenburg for the past 10 years, told this newspaper that she is a teacher at the Stewartville Nursery School, another village on the West Coast. She described the village as a very peaceful place where one can relax and enjoy nature.
According to her, anyone travelling to her home village would enjoy “a home away from home,” and that neighbours lived in togetherness and unity as they worked to make Blankenburg a better place.
