Our favourite experiences in northwest Trinidad

1. The Queen’s Park Savannah

The pride of Port of Spain, a huge open park with the city on one side and the hills on the other. Best known for its role as Carnival’s big stage, the Savannah, like a family back yard, has room for everything, all year round. Running, football, cricket, kite flying, picnicking; if you’ve got something to do and need some space, the Savannah’s got plenty.

Occupying about 260 acres, the Savannah was created over 180 years ago, making it the oldest recreation ground in the West Indies. It was originally part of the Paradise Estate owned by the Peschier family. In 1817, then governor Sir Ralph Woodford bought it and turned it into a city park. A portion of land in the centre remains a burial ground for members of the Peschier family.

On the western edge lies a row of buildings nicknamed the Magnificent Seven, a line of grand century-old colonial houses: Queen’s Royal College, Hayes Court, Mille Fleurs, Roomor, the Roman Catholic Archbishop’s House, Whitehall and Stollmeyer’s Castle. These buildings range in style from German Renaissance (Queen’s Royal College) to eccentric French baroque (Roomor) and turreted Scottish baronial (Stollmeyer’s Castle). If you’re into cricket, look just further north and up a small hill to see batsman Brian Lara’s house.
 

2. Emperor Valley Zoo & Botanical Gardens

On the northern edge of the Savannah are the Botanical Gardens and the Emperor Valley Zoo (under renovation). The Zoo opened in 1952; at the time it consisted of 2.5 hectares of land, 10 cages, 127 animals, one gatehouse and a kiosk. Today, it is home to hundreds of animals; there’s an outdoor café, and paths for animal viewing. This is probably the most extensive collection of local and foreign animals in the Caribbean.

The Botanical Gardens are a favourite among locals for post-zoo picnics. They spread back from the Queen’s Park Savannah toward the President’s House. Governor Ralph Woodford and botanist David Lockhart, who is buried on a small cemetery in the Gardens, established them in 1820. They are home to one of the oldest collections of exotic plants and trees in the western hemisphere.

The Gardens are especially popular on weekends and public holidays when school groups, families, couples and strollers come out to enjoy their ambience and charm. The Gardens are open daily from 6am to 6pm. Admission is free.

3. St. James by night

On the western flank of Port of Spain, the Western Main Road runs through the centre of St. James. Here, it’s always hectic. By day, it’s full of traffic, trade and limers. In the night it’s also full of traffic, trade and limers. No fancy clubs or cafés here, but pared-down bars we call rumshops. Most of the socialising takes place on the sidewalk. Great street food. If there’s a festival on (Carnival, Divali, Hosay, a spontaneous celebration of any kind), St James is a must.

If you’re not up for the crowd, go earlier in the day and drive up to Fort George for a gorgeous view of Port of Spain to the south-east, with the Caroni Swamp and the Gulf of Paria in the distance. On clear days you can see the San Fernando Hill. To the west, you can just glimpse the mountains of Venezuela. Built in 1804, Fort George is a popular family spot on weekends. Original cannon and cannonballs and part of the dungeon are some of the highlights. The site is open from 10am to 6pm. Admission is free.

4. Museums & galleries

The National Museum has seen better days, but it has seen much worse as well. In recent years there’s been a renewed commitment to showing both new collections and retrospectives, most of which are actually displayed in the annex. The main building is full of dim nooks with period installations, mineral and marine displays, and ethnic artefacts. A collection of the works of 19th century artist Jean Michel Cazabon occupies the only temperature-regulated room, but the main hall, a lofty, breezy space, shows most of the country’s major artists.

The National Museum has small branch museums. One is Fort San Andres, on South Quay, next to City Gate downtown. It is open from Tuesday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. The other is the Museum of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, in the Old Police Headquarters on St. Vincent Street, Port of Spain. It is open on Tuesday and Saturday, from 10am to 3pm. Admission is free, and guided tours of both branch museums are available. For more information, call 623-5941 or email museum@tstt.net.tt.

The WITCO Sports Foundation Gallery is located in the Rodney Wilkes Room of the National Museum. It highlights the main achievements of Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympic medallists, world record holders and world title holders. It also features the winners of West Indian Tobacco Company’s prestigious annual Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Awards, and an interactive, computerised display on the 152 sporting icons inducted into the Foundation’s Sports Hall of Fame since its inception in 1964.

The Central Bank Money Museum tells the story of money from a local and global perspective, and highlights the role of the Bank. It is located on the ground floor of the Eric Williams Financial Complex, Independence Square, Port of Spain, and is open from Tuesday to Friday. Guided tours take place twice a day, at 9.30am and 2 m. Special tours can be arranged. Admission and tours are free. For more information, call 625-2601 ext. 2400 or 2120, or visit www.centralbank.org.tt.

The Chaguaramas Military and Aviation Museum is located out of town, in Chaguaramas, on the Western Main Road next to the coastguard training ground and the heliport. It chronicles the military history of the country from 1498 to the present. It is open daily from 9am to 5pm. Admission fee; guided tours are available upon request. For more information, call 634-4391.

The Angostura Rum and Bitters Museum is located at the House of Angostura in Laventille, east of Port of Spain on the Eastern Main Road. The House of Angostura was established in 1824 and received a Royal Warrant for its product, Angostura bitters. Few people in the world know the secret formula. On a comfortable tram tour through the factory, you will learn about not only the making of bitters, but also the production of rum. The tour includes a 15-minute historic video, a visit to the Angostura Butterfly Collection, and product tasting at the Angostura Bar. Call Angostura at 623-1841 for information.

Art exhibitions are held all year round; as many as ten new shows might open in a month during the hectic art season, which usually kicks into high gear after August. In addition to current exhibitions, each gallery usually has work on consignment from artists.

5. Woodford Square

The square is bordered by the Anglican cathedral, the Red House where parliament sits, the Hall of Justice, the National Library and Frederick Street, where all the shopping happens. It’s been used as a rallying point for trade unions, political parties and protesters of all kinds. The ocean-themed fountain may have been more relevant when it lived in Marine Square (now the Brian Lara Promenade) closer to the water, but though its functionality varies its beauty remains.

6. Churches

Long before the architecture of Port of Spain picked up varied metropolitan trends and the demand for space crushed shops and offices together, places of worship would have dominated the skyline.

The Holy Rosary Church, towards the eastern end of Park Street, is so hemmed in that your best view of it is reflected in the bright glass panes of the bank across the street. Dating back to 1866, this Catholic church is built in the Gothic revival style and currently undergoing major restoration work.

The Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception started off as a wooden building until work on the present structure began in 1816. It seems to arrest the spread of commercial Port of Spain, standing at the eastern end of the Brian Lara Promenade, and jutting into the street on either side.

The Anglican Trinity Cathedral is further uptown on Woodford Square, and suffers less from surrounding chaos. Completed in 1818 in the Gothic revival style, it predated its Catholic sister by more than a decade.

7. Chaguaramas trails

Chaguaramas has two sides: the clubs are along the coastline and the forest lies inland. The Edith Falls trail is a low-effort walk that ends with a small waterfall. You access it through the golf course. The Bamboo Cathedral (endlessly painted by the aforementioned Cazabon) is a lush, serene and easy walk unless you plan to trek uphill to the top of Morne Catherine with its abandoned World War II tracking station. If you’re doing either of these, you’ll be using the Maqueripe Road, named for the beach at which it ends.

8. Offshore

“Down the islands” (DDI) is not a navigational course but a destination. Those without weekend houses ferry over to the islands off Chaguaramas for swimming and picnicking. But the islands have much more to offer than the average beach day. There are three sets of islands off the northwest coast: the Five Islands (of which there are actually six); the Diego Islands; and then, snaking their way through open sea towards Venezuela, Gaspar Grande, Monos, Huevos, and Chacachacare.

Nelson Island, one of the Five, was used to quarantine indentured immigrants. Gaspar Grande has caves. Chacachacare has a salt pond, a lighthouse and, most famously, a leprosarium, now defunct. The remains of the chapel and dwellings of the ministering nuns are still there. Carrera, one of the Diego pair, is a prison island. Tours covering limited stretches of these islands are available. For visitors more interested in history or a longer sail, the Chaguaramas Development Authority should be able to help (Airway Road, Chaguaramas; tel. 634-4227/4312, www.chagev.com