Yellowknife (July 21/03) - Guyana never ceased to offer surprises. One of these was in the country's diverse landscape.

Noah Nashaooraitook tests the strength of the footbridge suspended high above the rainforest floor. - photo courtesy of Murray Angus

This was evident on the students' second trip into the interior, to the community of Lethem in the southwestern corner of the country, near the Brazilian border. Lethem was the administrative centre for the Rupununi region, where about 90 per cent of the people are Amerindian.

In terms of climate and landscape, the area was more like the Australian outback than the Amazon jungle the group had become accustomed to.

The students, all members of the Ottawa-based Nunavut Sivuniksavut (NS) program, felt surprisingly at home in the region. This was partly because the communities were small and also because it was possible to see vast distances again, just like in Nunavut.

The students were invited to the region by Shirley Melville, the local Guyanese member of Parliament.

A vibrant and energetic woman, Melville organized events and meetings, and accompanied the students to nearby communities where they visited schools and development projects. They also paid courtesy visits to the local Touchous (elected chiefs).

"Shirley's great," says Lynn Tologanak of Cambridge Bay.

"She was just the perfect leader -- one who is able to understand the people and better represent them."

One stop was a cashew plantation run by a women's co-operative, supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). The women handled every single nut individually -- an awesome amount of work.

"I gained a lot of respect for these women who supported their families, one cashew at a time," said Miali Elise Coley of Iqaluit.

Another stop was to a water reservoir on the top of a mountain that provided the valley with its hydro-electric power. Getting to the top, however, involved climbing up 951 stairs in the mid-day heat.

"I thought I would never make it to the top!" said Karen Panigoniak of Arviat.

The students spent two evenings in Lethem sharing their culture, including songs, drumming, throat singing and demonstrations of Inuit games and clothing.

Hundreds of people from the surrounding area attended. Local people put on performances of their traditional songs and dances in return.

"Performing in Lethem two nights in a row was a great experience," said Elizabeth Avingaq of Igloolik. "The people who came to watch were very interested in what we did and had to say."

When they left Lethem, the students travelled for an entire day on a peanut truck across the savannah and back into the rainforest. It was an unforgettable trip, with beautiful scenery and lots of dust.

Their first stop in the jungle was a canopy walkway - - a series of footbridges strung between the treetops 100 feet above the forest floor.

Their next stop was Iwokrama, a large area of rainforest that has been set aside to do research on how a tropical forest can be developed in sustainable ways. It, too, has been financially supported by the Canadian government.

The two days at Iwokrama included boat trips up the river, a hike up Turtle Mountain to view the rainforest from above, and sightings of caimans (crocodiles) and many exotic birds.

"This was a very special experience for me because of the monkeys we saw. All the pretty butterflies gave our time a fairy-like feel," said Miali-Elise Coley of Iqaluit.

The students' third and final trip outside of the capital, Georgetown, was to see one of the world's great natural wonders: Kaieteur Falls.

They flew in two small planes and got to view the spectacular 825 ft. falls from the air as well as from the ground. The falls are the world's tallest, five times higher than Niagara Falls in Ontario. It was an unforgettable sight.

"The falls were absolutely beautiful and breathtaking," said David Joanasie of Cape Dorset. "There were no words to describe the view."

The students' two-week trip ended in Georgetown, with a gala performance at the Umana Yana centre, the national Amerindian cultural centre.

In addition to the students' performance, there were dances and songs performed by a variety of groups representing the diverse cultures of Guyana: Amerindian, Caribbean, and East Indian.

For the students, it was an unforgettable experience. Nunavut Sivuniksavut is an eight-month college program based in Ottawa.

It provides Inuit youth from Nunavut with a transition-year experience between high school and further post-secondary education and/or the workforce. Over the years, Sivuniksavut students have raised funds to meet indigenous peoples in various countries, including Australia, Sweden, Japan, Costa Rica and New Zealand.

Murray Angus is a freelance writer and an instructor in the Nunavut Sivuniksavut program.