Guyana

Georgetown, Guyana's capital is pricey and can be dangerous. The population is 51% East Indian, 43% Afro Guyanese, 2% Chinese and European, and 4% AmerIndian. There is little to see in Georgetown and lodging is expensive. You can see the whole town in a day.

Roughly the size of the UK, Guyana has few beaches. The most prominent geological feature is the Guiana Shield an extensive crystalline upland. Note: There are two rainy seasons -- May to mid-August -- mid-November to mid-January.

Guyana is not a go-it-alone country and requires thorough preparation in advance for any trips into the tropical rainforest such as bird watching excursions, or river rafting. Cholorquine-resistant malaria is endemic: dengue fever is also prevalent. Get all required shots including typhoid, yellow fever and hepatitus.

Visitors to this rarely traveled country, with high prices will have much to see outside the capital. The single most unforgettable attraction is Kaieteur Falls a vastly more impressive waterfall than the less spectacular, but higher, Angel Falls in Venezuela. And that's just for starters! There are wildlife safaris to Karanambu in the Rupununi Savanna. For the more hearty adventurers there is the awesome overland trek to Lethem from Georgetown during the dry season -- a journey to be remembered.

For the classic account of travel in Guyana it's worth the effort to track down Charles Waterton's 1825 Wanderings in South America. It's out of print but available. Also, Gerald Durrell's Three Tickets to Adventure is a book worth reading.

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