Story and photos by Jannelle Williams
“In all of East Canje, from Sheet Anchor to New Forest, Goed Bananen Land is the best village to live in.” This is the sentiment of the village’s oldest resident, 94-year-old Harold Bissoo. Goed Bananen is Dutch for ‘good bananas’. Nestled between the villages of Adelphi and Betsy Ground, the tiny village was established on land that was originally a Dutch cemetery. With some 63 houses on the eastern section (the actually cemetery) called Sadom (‘Sad’) and 92 houses on the western half known as Goed Bananen, the village has a population of just over 300 residents.
When Sunday Stabroek visited the area, Bissoo was tending to chores in his yard, but took the time to sit and chat. He described the village as “alright and very nice; people not worrisome. We never get quarrel with anyone.” Bissoo recalled that when he was a child, the village was sparsely populated. “They didn’t have plenty people living here… but over time, people start working