Moored in the Suriname River

Once again, we're up a muddy, brown river hanging on a mooring, watching the tide do its thing with great enthusiasm as we tackle our chore list. Each river seems to have its own unique feel. Though the river here is narrower than our anchorage on the Maroni, it seems calmer and a bit less turbulent even at the height of the flood tide. The breeze is certainly better here. It's cooler… no Edith Cavell wreck to block the wind. The wind gen and solar panels are always churning out power. We've had no need to start the engine since we arrived.

Not far from us on shore is a busy water taxi stand. From dawn till dusk, folks are ferried up and down the river regularly to little AmerIndian villages along the riverside. They look similar to the dugout canoes called pirogues in French Guiana. The prows are different. I asked if they were called pirogues here as well, and they're not. “So what then?”, I queried. “They call them boats”, was the response. I found out later that the AmerIndians call them corials or korjaal.

It's not nearly as busy here as St. Laurent though and the mornings are typically calm and quiet. Sometimes on the weekends, there are fancier, two-decker corials that bring tourists up the river for a tour.

The boats typically stop at the little Domburg dock for a quick look-around and snack at the Javanese warungs (food stalls) in the little square next to the marina restaurant. Quiet during the week, the place is jumping with tourists and local families on the weekends.

We usually head into the little marina restaurant, the River Breeze, twice a day. In the morning, it's a quick check on the Internet for e-mails and posting the blog. In the early evenings, after the workday is finished, we return for showers, more Internet, a shared djogo of cold Parbo beer and a get-together with other cruisers. Currently, there are Canadians, Brazilians, Argentinians, Austrians, Italians and Germans here plus an American family from Seattle that just arrived from Brazil this morning.

In the early mornings, it's been very foggy … the pea soup variety. We can sometimes hear the leonine roars of the howler monkeys in the jungle in competition with dogs barking on shore. Kiskadees still provide the key melody to morning bird song. Tiny welcome swallows flit around and frequently land on our solar panels or lifelines. At night, when the birds sleep, we hear the flutter and whoosh of bat's wings. A bat flew in through the forward hatch the other night, giving us an adrenaline rush. We could feel him and hear him more than actually see him. He was like a wraith as he whizzed back and forth and finally, thank goodness, found his way out through the aft hatch. We thought this was very unusual, but talking with other yachties, it happens quite frequently here.

Thanks to the bats, there are amazingly few bugs or mosquitoes around. We see butterflies and bees during the day that check out the boat before continuing on their way up the river, but that's about it. The only nuisance is the disturbingly loud drone of jet-skis that come out in swarms on the weekends, churning up the river water as they race around the moored boats.

Logs and debris float by regularly with the turn of the tide. We're told that folks clearing land up river, dump all the tree trunks and cleared shrubs into the river, so they don't have to cart it away. One sailboat anchored near us was unable to raise his anchor when it came time to move. Closer inspection indicated about 50 meters of anchor chain wrapped around a huge, water-sodden log. It took the crew the better part of two days to unravel the mess and break free.

We watched a good-sized powerboat sink near shore over several days with apparently no intervention by locals or the owner. We noted that his stern seemed to be particularly low in the water one evening … perhaps his stern line was too tight? The next morning only his bow remained above water. We reported it at the marina, but after two days, still no action was taken. Some fellows took a look at it, but we think they're perplexed as to what to do. They have limited funds and limited equipment with which to work.

We're trying to finish up chores in order to get on with our passage through the Guianas and then on to Trinidad for a haul-out. David sands or varnishes whenever possible. It's so dewy in the mornings, it's hard to get an early start and it appears the rainy season has begun. After a couple of days of dry weather when we first arrived, we now have showers and heavy downpours nearly every afternoon making varnishing a challenge. It might have to wait. There's plenty more to do, however. He's replaced the cockpit GPS with a spare. The whisker pole track and a new solenoid switch for the stove are still on the “to-do” list. And, of course, there's more to see in Suriname before we depart. Never enough time!

Today's Dutch word – ankerplaats - anchorage

Cathedrals, Mosques and Temples in Paramaribo

The mix of nationalities, ethnicities and cultures in Suriname lends itself to a religious diversity that is profound. “There is no predominant religion in the country. Christianity, both in the form of Roman Catholicism and variations of Protestantism, is dominant among Creoles and Maroons. Most of the Hindustani are Hindu, but some practice Islam or Christianity instead. The Javanese mostly practice either Islam or Christianity. With 20% of the population, Suriname has the largest Muslim community by percentage in the New World [the Americas].”

In most every what-to-do-in-Paramaribo article and brochure we read, the Synagogue situated next to the Mosque, demonstrating Suriname's religious tolerance, was a must-see and it was pretty impressive.

The Jewish community in Paramaribo is quite small (~2,700) and reputed to be the oldest continuing Jewish community in the Americas. The wooden Neve Shalom Synagogue dates from 1835, replacing a previous one built in 1719. The original Jewish settlers here were descendants of Jews fleeing persecution during the Spanish Inquisition in Europe. We did not visit, but we learned that one of the unique features of this particular Synagogue is its floor of sand, a reminder of the 40 years in the desert after the Jews' exodus from Egypt.

Next door and purportedly sharing a parking lot, stands the grand Ahmadiyya Anjumar Insha'at Islam Mosque. The mosque, reportedly the largest in the Caribbean, took 20 years to build as the use of machinery was not allowed and everything had to be constructed by hand.

The yellow and grey painted St. Peter and Paul Cathedral is touted as not only the biggest wooden structure on the South American continent, but in the entire Western Hemisphere. Building started in 1883, but the towers were not finished until 1901.

The Cathedral was open for viewing and we popped inside for a visit. The interior was unbelievably impressive with elaborately crafted, unpainted cedar wood in a Surinamese design. The columns, pillars and even the Stations of the Cross were carved. Notably, there is no stained glass in the windows. The building was condemned in 1989. Grants provided by the Vatican and the EU and fund-raising efforts led to restoration of the termite-ridden, deteriorated building between 2007-2010. We noted scaffolding still in place indicating the work in progress. One other piece of trivia … the original organ remains in place, however most of its pipes have been stolen.

Though irrelevant to religious activity, just beside the Cathedral in front of the Suriname Bank, there was a protest and large display against the use of quicksilver (mercury) in the gold mining industry because of its devastating effects on the environment.

The Centrumkerk is distinctively octagonal and dates from the early 19th century. It has been a church, a center for the aging, a state church, one of the Parliament buildings at Independence in 1975 and is now listed as a World Heritage building.

We spotted ornate Hindu temples throughout the city and along the roadside on the way from Domburg to Paramaribo. Small, personal, family temples were visible from the road.

Though we're not religious people (except for the Neptune tribute thing maybe), we appreciate the differences in people's beliefs and their methods of worship. Suriname's people seem to have a unique understanding of religious tolerance and freedom, a commendable trait that could be learned and practiced by many. Just sayin'...

Today's Dutch word – kerk - church

Statuary and Street Art in Paramaribo

As usual, one of the best parts of exploring a new city is wandering, sometimes aimlessly, to see what we can see. There is no dearth of statuary in Paramaribo. There seem to be monuments and statues at each little square spread throughout the town, however many times the plaques are missing or weathered beyond legibility. We enjoyed the walk and did our best to identify what we could.

This bronze statue of three girls was in a tiny square on our walk into town each day. It had no plaque or description, but I learned later that it was a “gratitude gift” from the Netherlands to thank the Surinamese for their help during WWII.

We had to walk out of our way to find this aluminum sculpture representing the first two Indian indentured laborers who immigrated to Suriname and arrived aboard the Lalla Rookh in June 1873. Located in a beautifully kept little park, this statue is dedicated to the 34,000+ Hindustanis who made the voyage between 1873 and 1916 and the heritage and culture they built over the years for their Surinamese descendants.

Mahatma Gandhi, a little, unassuming fellow, stands tall and proud near the Central Market area.

I ♥ SU – Found this not far from Fort Zeelandia. No info was provided, but the artwork says it all.

The plaque was missing, but info on the Internet indicates that this sculpture situated in the middle of a non-functioning fountain was to commemorate Surinamese independence in 1975. Note the carillon in the background.

This obelisk, its top atilt, sits in a dominant location on the foreshore, but I could find no information about it, its significance or its creator.

My favorite statue was Kwakoe breaking away from his chains and symbolizing the end of slavery in Suriname in 1863. He was located in a small, very busy square not far from our hotel. Unfortunately, someone walked off with the sculpted bronze broken chains that once dangled from his wrist manacles. One reference to this statue indicates it is called Keti Kati (Chains are cut).

Queen Wilhelmina, Queen of the Netherlands 1898-1923, stands regally outside the walls of Fort Zeelandia overlooking the Suriname River.

A tribute to Johannes Helstone, Surinamese-born pianist and composer was quite impressive, but sadly defaced.

We ignored most of the politicians' statues, except for the rotund figure of Johan Pengel, Minister-President from 1963-1969, standing portly in Independence Square. How can you neglect a bronze belly like that?

There was not as much street art as I would have imagined. Perhaps, we looked in the wrong places. We liked what we saw though.

Today's Dutch word – standbeeld – statue

Tomorrow … we're checking out Parbo's many houses of worship … mosques, temples, synagogues, cathedrals. Dress appropriately and put on your walking shoes.