Suriname

My Suriname travel summary:

Visited: October 2015

Duration of visit: 7 days

Capital city: Paramaribo

Population: 560,000 (2015)

Suriname travel blog reading time: 6 minutes

• Capital city Paramaribo, with unique colonial Dutch-impacted wooden architecture protected by UNESCO.
• Navigating Suriname River, relaxing in a riverside lodge, swimming in wonderful river.
• Dentists encounter to pull out my tooth in Paramaribo.

The Republic of Suriname is the smallest sovereign state in South America, dominated by descendants from African slaves and Dutch Empire. A tropical country, covered in rainforests, dependent on its abundant natural resources, where 30% of the total land area is protected by law as reserves. Many remote areas are accessible only by small aircrafts or several days boat trips upstream rivers in deep jungle.

Suriname and both Guyanas are usually low on the list of popular places to visit in South America. Actually, many people don’t really know where exactly Suriname is.

What could be the main reasons to visit this exotic country, even if it has few well-known places to visit and things to do?

I combined my Surinam travel adventure with both Guyanas in 2015, when I already had years of exploring, travelling and living on the American continent.  I had no expectations before the visit. In the end, I fell in love with the nature and the interesting history of the region.

Paramaribo (also called Para) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River. Nearly half of the country’s population, of around 241,000 people, live in the capital. Historic Paramaribo, with its colonial Dutch buildings and merchants’ houses built after the 1821 and 1832 fires, is unique in Latin America.

The unique architecture of Paramaribo reflects European classicism from the 18^th and 19^th centuries. It is blended with African and later Asian craftsmanship, which added tropical touches.

Additional elements from Creole culture, reflect the multi-cultural society of Suriname. The Historic Inner City of Paramaribo was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2002.

The most interesting landmarks are Mosque Keizerstraat and Neveh Shalom Synagogue, located in harmony side by side. They show the kind of balance in which the country lives, unifying different cultures and languages.

Suriname still shows strong Dutch influence. It is the only place outside Europe where most people speak Dutch.

I stayed in a basic guesthouse on the top floor of a classic colonial-house style. It was very simple and not particularly well refurbished. My room was extremely hot during the day and even at night it didn’t refresh.

I had a very unusual experience in Paramaribo, since my tooth started to hurt in the middle of the night. I knew that this particular tooth didn’t have a chance to be fixed any more. The only option was to pull it out. After a quick breakfast in the morning, I asked the owner of the improvised restaurant, Anish, if he knew any good dentists in Para.

He made a few calls and offered to take me to one of the dentists in his car, since it was too far to walk there. A middle-aged dentist of Dutch origin attended me immediately in her clean, organized, but basic clinic and offered me straightforward service to calm down my toothache by pulling out the problematic tooth. I was not mentally ready to go through this, since it was going to be my first real tooth to be missing in my mouth.

I requested Anish to take me to another dentist to get a second opinion. He was extremely helpful and we visited another four dentists in the morning, until it was almost lunch time and he had to go back to work.

I ended up at the first clinic, where I was attended immediately and after a few minutes of painless procedure my tooth was out. 30 minutes later my pain was gone. I was still in shock, back in the downtown, but ready to navigate the Suriname River.

I traveled by bus from Paramaribo to Pokigron. From there, I began navigating the Suriname River at the edge of the Brokopondo Reservoir, where the paved road ends. I didn’t have anything prearranged. The small informal pier grew busier every minute until someone finally invited me to join a group going upriver to my destination.

We were travelling upstream for about three hours. Some parts of the river were too shallow for the long canoe to pass. All passengers had to walk over the rocky beach while the skipper and his assistant guided the narrow boat through the low-water rapids.

Skippers on the Suriname River have impressive piloting skills with their outboards. Even when the river is wide, there are many spots with dangerous sunken rocks. The skippers adjust the outboard motor by hand and steer the boat forward without any trouble.

They skillfully navigate the river, avoiding the rocks using the knowledge they have built from years of experience on the water.

As we passed village after village along the river, I saw people fishing and preparing food. Women were doing laundry, kids were swimming, and playing in the water. The dark brown and warm river is part of each family home patio.

Only recently, eco-tourism package tours have become more popular. More tourists now travel deeper into the jungle to experience life by the river.

I decided to stay in a remote lodge with basic infrastructure. It also gave me the chance to walk to nearby villages. Many lodges are owned and/or run by Dutch people, who are either retired in their homeland, look for different lifestyle close to the nature or foresee new business opportunity in this environment.

It was the same with my lodge. Peter took over management a year ago, when the lodge was in poor condition. It was no longer receiving guests at that time. With his ingenuity and knowledge of electrical engineering, he managed to refurbish 5 huts, the main house with kitchen and dining room.

He explained it to me while we sat drinking on the porch, enjoying a beautiful view of the Suriname River.

”It isn’t easy to bring all goods on a boat from Pokigron and make everything working properly in the jungle. You need to have patience and creativity to make things work.”

He is a retired engineer with plenty of practical knowledge, which he applied to this jungle project.

I visited a small museum near my lodge, where the lifestyle of local tribes was explained. Some basic tools used for agriculture were also on display. I visited a local carpenter who carved beautiful wooden pieces like chairs, tables, and souvenirs.

People in the village are members of the Saramaka tribe. They live in traditional villages of 100 to 200 people, always near a river for easy access to water, transport, and fishing.

During the next three days, I enjoyed the river by swimming, relaxing, bird-watching, and fishing. It’s hard to describe the serenity of the place and the deep connection the residents have with nature.

Without internet connection or any particular things to do or places to visit, I fully disconnected from my usual rhythm. I enjoyed simple things, one by one.

Suriname is one of the most unknown and undervalued destinations in Latin America. Because of its historical ties to the Netherlands, it offers a unique mix of cultures, architecture, and food. These elements are not found in other parts of Latin America.

I didn’t find any major landmarks or traditional attractions. River navigation, swimming, and fishing in the remote jungle were rough, but they were the highlight of my trip in Suriname.