6 things you didn't know about Port of Spain & Trinidad and Tobago

[Music] so you want to visit africa asia and the middle east but are short on time well hang tight we'll show you a caribbean island where you can get a taste of all these cultures plus a pretty good party to boot the islands of trinidad and tobago are probably the most diverse and unique islands in all of the caribbean it's like visiting several countries all rolled up into one touristy but not really was first doing research on trinidad there's really not a lot of information out there because it's really not considered a very touristy destination at least outside of carnevale and that's really the main reason i wanted to come here i wanted to come here and get a sense of the culture there's just so many influences here i mean sometimes i feel like i'm in great britain sometimes i feel like i'm in india sometimes in jamaica or asia and being from new york i really like that with a total population of 1.3 million trinidad and tobago or tnt is a melting pot of traditions and cultures the capital city port of spain and trinidad reflects that diversity from its many churches mosque and temples to independence square where you can see a palette of colors and ethnicities if you decide to hit up the sister island of tobago then you can just jump on the ferry for a quick and scenic boat ride [Music] port of spain also has some good spots for day trips maracas bay is a nearby and popular hangout for trinis looking to escape the city for a day families head to the beach to swim or play soccer and of course cricket artisans sell their wares and it's a good place to just chill and enjoy the hot island sun [Music] maracas bay is also a good spot to try the famous bacon shark shark cooked in deep fried batter and served in a bun that trinis call bake a food that really typifies trinidad and tobago is the bacon shark and i'm here at richard's bacon shark which is world famous but what makes this place special is it has a lot of condiments so you can really customize your sandwich [Music] man that bacon shark was good but uh man i don't know what kind of condiment i put on there but it was spicy it was really really hot my mouth was on fire but it was good on the way back from the beach you can stop at lookout point to catch the beautiful view and sample some candies and suites native to the islands now i was wondering why trinidad's capital is called port of spain when everyone here speaks english so i visited the spanish influence lopino village just outside of port of spain to find out more okay so arthur trinidad has so many different influences but the capital is called port of spain why is that well spanish discovered trinidad for six columbus in 1498. okay right so the spanish came here they met the amerindians right right right and then they established their their capital in a place called joseph okay which is away from the coast right right and then eventually when trade began to build up yeah they decided to leave the capital on the sea line okay the port of spain [Music] the island's hispanic influence is most apparent around christmas when groups of people go house to house singing christmas carols called parangs which is derived from the spanish word [Music] parranda and people speak spanish still in the village not as much as when the original settlers came like my grandparents my mother and father they spoke spanish but then okay they always spoke spanish to not let us know what they were speaking about oh yeah they did it for a purpose that's right that makes sense sort of why people speak spanish around me i think sometimes many spanish-speaking trinities have roots from venezuela where their forefathers came over in search of a better life they came here originally to plant cocoa and coffee okay so they came across venezuela at its closest point to trinidad just seven miles away oh wow so they'll just jump on the pirag and they come over okay in fact if you go down to ikaka which is in the south of trinidad right you'll still see spanish people come in venezuelans coming on their boats and going back they still go back and forth drinking carib and everything so it's safe to say that among all the other influences in trinidad the spanish influence is still pretty strong here still pretty strong and then around here visitors can come get a taste of spanish culture that's right and you actually have a guest house a bed and breakfast that's right and mariposa we try to preserve the culture and the cuisine and everything so they get a taste of the food that we serve yeah and then the singing and everything and you sing for them like you're saying for me that's what we do oh that's cool man [Applause] with so many different ethnic groups influencing the islands perhaps the most widespread is the african influence like most west indian islands trinidad has a tragic history of slavery in the heart of port of spain you'll find the colorful store african trophies which is helping to preserve and restore trinidad's african roots fitzgerald can you tell me a little bit about the history of africans how they came to trinidad the slaves that came to the west indies and and south america were largely from west africa and then after slavery they turned to indentured servitude here which is how a lot of east indians came that's right they began importing indians as indented laborers right so would it be safe to say that the majority of trinities here that live here now are descendants of either slaves or indentured servants if you say that the majority are from from both groups that's right yes that's right okay african trophies has a rare collection of drums from ghana and other african nations this one is a ceremonial drum from the ashanti ethnic group and cost twenty five thousand dollars [Music] but don't worry the store is full of one-of-a-kind less expensive things like gamba hats and beautiful african art as well with every item you can learn more about africa's rich history and influence on the islands today uh dude trinis do they keep in touch with their african roots in your opinion certainly not no you are taught history but history of africa is not taught in the primary schools secondary school as well and i understand there's even a law in the books to this day that prohibits african drumming after 10 pm at this gem of a store you can find beaded tables thread art musical instruments a unique selection of books textiles ceramics and they even have exclusive ivory pieces used solely for display and educational purposes african trophies feels more like a well-curated museum than a store this is called a unity carving okay it's carved from one piece of wood oh oh wow every one of these heads here is completely free of the other oh wow yeah they are not joined in any way incredible if one breaks yeah the thing falls apart oh it does so it's a demonstration of unity is strength right if there is one thing that personifies trinidad and tobago's good time culture it's carnival the celebration is legendary and attracts revelers from all over the world before my travels to trinidad and tobago i'd heard about the diversity of its people perhaps the best way to experience the melting pot of cultures on the island is during the annual carnival celebration since the 1800s once a year the biggest attractions and events happened all across the two islands [Music] hundreds of thousands of people gathered to celebrate carnival the most colorful expression of tnt culture [Music] with such elaborate costumes and such a grand production the organizers have their hands full we are the national carnival bands association of trinidad and tobago the ncba okay we are also the body that has been recognized by the government to really make charge of all carnival events and run the carnival in a smooth way okay and the development of our carnival it involves the entire nation at some point and it's almost a year-round preparation not quite but almost right well it has evolved into that preparation for carnival goes on all year its participants or moss players go all out to show off their costumes and dance skills and if you're from out of town no worries you're welcome to join the party we welcome all foreigners because it's a sort of competition right to see how many foreigners you could have in our band is always something that you feel good about when you have foreigners coming to participate in your festival wow you know it's something that you really feel good wow does it get bigger and bigger every year well we have as much as one band having six thousand people in it wow one band right and we have about four or five bands that will have that kind of capacity they also have junior bands from the local schools as well as an academy of artists it seems like the entire country participates in carnival [Music] hey what's up guys this is rob from raw travel i hope you enjoyed the video if you did or even if you didn't please hit subscribe because we're adding new content all the time and maybe you have some ideas about some destinations you'd like to see or some travel tips of your own if so just hit me up in the comments section [Music]

Channel: Raw Travel Plus

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Keywords: Travel, travel vlog, tourism, raw travel, street food, wanderlust, around the world, coronavirus, covid 19, top 10, Robert Rose, how to travel, top 10 travel, budget travel, hiking, travel journal, travel bubble, life hacks, amazing facts, travel video, weekly vlog, port of spain, trinidad and tobago, tobago, trinidad, trinidad and tobago carnival, travel guide, maracas bay, travel channel, trinidad vlog, trinidad beaches, travel vlogger, trinidad carnival

Id: Ux8YGr76kUQ

Length: 9min 53sec (593 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 10 2021