Making Caddy Old Punch Kites for Easter Monday in Guyana
Few things herald the Easter Season in Guyana quite like kites… or so I’ve heard from my Guyanese friends over the years.
On more than a few occasions they’ve told me of the grand spectacle that is the throngs of kite-flying enthusiasts lining the waterfront in Georgetown, their fleet of aerial artforms adding a kaleidoscope of bright colors to the sky. A Carnival-like atmosphere envelopes the entire scene, they say, making this one of the Caribbean’s more uniquely uncommon cultural events.
The joy of Easter Season kite flying in Guyana isn’t solely reserved for the crowds with their fancy kites, though. Even the humblest of local youths get in on the action with their own homemade high-fliers, like the one pictured above.
Known as a Caddy Old Punch or Caddy-Ole-Punch, these simple kites are made from readily available materials – paper, string, palm fronds some old cloth. They’re not as easy to produce as their simple list of materials might suggest, however.
Myself and two friends from Guyana stumbled through the process of crafting the Caddy Old Punch pictured above. Quickly realizing I was mostly in the way, I left the experts to the task.
In the end, our Caddy did not zig, much less soar above the clouds. Judging by the performance of the kite produced in this how-to instructional video, though, maybe we got it right after all…
Either way, it was still fun to bring a little flavor of the authentic Guyanese Easter experience to my backyard.
Easter Season kite flying and homemade kites aren’t unique to Guyana, of course. At least not in the Caribbean. If you have some tips and traditions to share let us know below or drop us a line here.
Happy Easter!
Related Posts
Rupununi Rodeo – Saddle Up for Guyana’s Wildest Easter Celebration
Easter Kite Flying Fun in Grenada
