Families across the country are in preparation mode for the highly anticipated Phagwah/ Holi 2018 festivities. While the occasion is marked by many traditions, this celebration also includes the preparation, and consumption, of traditional foods including; sweet rice, pera, polourie and much more. There are many well established eateries in Guyana which make these delectable goodies for sale and they are quite popular around this time. This would be ideal if you are on the go. However, there are many traditionalists, like myself, who count the days leading up to this cherished holiday anticipating the great food to come and wishing that I could grow a second stomach for that day.
As far back as I can remember, Phagwah has been an exciting occasion to cook up some best-loved family recipes, to connect with friends and family and revel in the colourful traditions associated with occasion. A typical Guyanese family would celebrate all the local traditions and holidays, and Phagwah was no exception and while my family were primarily Christian, the traditions of this holiday were embraced nonetheless.
My earliest memories of Phagwah involved seeing my grandmother in the kitchen very early in the morning, mixing and chopping and measuring the ingredients for all the goodies to come later that day. 
She would rise before anyone else and I would be quick on her heels, as the grating of the coconut would be my alarm clock. For me, this sound held the promise of sweet Gujiyas to come. Of course I did not know the names of these delicacies then, the only thing that resonated with me were the smells and the mouth-watering flavours.
Preparation of the sweet treats could last for hours! At times I could tell that my grandmother grew weary, but she kept baking and frying well past lunch time, never disappointing the eager mouths waiting. Another fond memory was helping her to roll the pera into their delicious mounds (most ended up in my mouth). It was also customary to make sweet rice at this time and the smells of the boiling sweetened rice, garnished with nuts, sultanas, and cardamom would waft through the house making everyone feel happy. 
While I enjoyed being Grandmother’s helper, the other children would be busy smearing colours on each other’s faces. When the preparation was over, I would watch as she lovingly placed small parcels of the treats in special packages to give to the neighbours.
Those days have long past, but the tradition of preparing the family’s sweet treats continues. These days, my mother in law has taken up where my grandmother left off. It has now become a tradition to travel to her home, in Soesdyke, the night before to assist in the preparation process. The smells emanating from her kitchen still bring back fond childhood memories of the cornucopia of flavours during Phagwah time. Most of the day is still taken up in the kitchen but I still enjoy the process and the opportunity it provides to carry on the Phagwah traditions. (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)
