Despite its name, Port of Spain is far from the European country. Situated at the center of Trinidad’s cultural life, Port of Spain laps up the shores of the Gulf of Paria. The Northern Range fences in the city, allowing for a mountain meets sea picture. The mountains and sea are not the only ones mingling in Port of Spain. Modern meets up with 19th century buildings throughout town. The capital and business hub of Trinidad may be heading fast toward the future, but the city can’t deny how much it owes to natural positioning, not in Spain.
For an all around picture of life in Port of Spain, travelers can head to the Museum of Port of Spain. The museum displays the city’s colonial and recent past, featuring a permanent exhibition on the La Borde family. The La Borde family was the first Trinidadians to circumnavigate the globe in small yacht.
Port of Spain holds a number of notable squares. Woodford Square lays out in its 19th century origins. The square carries a history for being the site of political meetings, religious crusades and cultural events. Independence Square is also of notice in Port of Spain. The city’s main boulevard runs right through, Brian Lara Promenade. Chess boards and other forms of entertainment line the promenade running down Independence Square.
The air fills with the sounds of big steel drums. It is hard to pass by Queen’s Park Savannah while in Port of Spain without wondering what the racquet might be. The expansive park holds a number of big steel bands, banging their drums daily. Right in the heart of the city, the touch of greenery even carries out one of Port of Spain’s major events, Panorama, the grand steel drum tournament.
In and around Port of Spain, a number of bird sanctuaries and viewings present another type of song. At the Asa Wright Nature Center, visitors can get up, close and personal with hummingbirds, honeycreepers and banana quits. The Asa Wright Nature Center has become the most popular bird watching retreat in the area. Rivaling the center, Caroni Swamp and Bird Sanctuary remains the island’s best-known attraction. Visitors can see the nesting site of the national bird, the scarlet ibis.
Visitors looking for a bit more modern while in Port of Spain will find Frederick Street crawling with shopping opportunities. The city’s main shopping strip positions next to the old, right near Port of Spain’s cloth district. More modernity and signs of the future for Port of Spain continue at the International Waterfront. Holding a 22 storey Hyatt, waterfront park, theater space and ample opportunities to shop, the area has become one of the city’s latest attractions.
For the ultimate view of Port of Spain, Fort George supplies. Constructed by the British in 1804 after snatching Trinidad from Spain, Fort George holds inspiring views of the entire west coast of Trinidad. Seated at 335 meters above Port of Spain, Fort George tellingly seems to know all that goes on below the city.
Mosques touch toes with churches as lush green hills meet the shore. Birds chirp as steel drums drown out their song. Port of Spain is the stationary contradiction in modern and old, natural and city.
