Trinidad : The Shops

Best Bar In Town

Best Pizza Place

2nd Best Chinese Restaurant

Best Bar in Town

Best Chinese Restaurant

A Nice Place to Go

A Nice Cell Phone Place

Trinidad: Port of Spain

My last day in Trinidad and Tobago, the official name of the country, was delightful.  I hired a taxi to take me to the area known as the Savannah.  It is a beautiful green space.  On the edge of the Savannah, there are wonderful old buildings that capture the old and the new of Port of Spain, Trnidad's capital.

Trinidad was a Spanish colony from 1498 to 1802 when it was ceded to the British.  It became independent in 1962 and a republic in 1976.  Trinidad is member of the British Commonwealth. It's official language is Englsih.  Unlike other Carribean countries, it main industry is industrial , with petroleum its main product.  BP has a large presence here.

The name Trinidad and Tobago reflects the two islands that make up this country.  Trinidad has 96% of the 1.1 million population.



Now a school anyone can attend. Queen's College, established 1903, was once only for the elite. Students graduated from here and then went to London to study law, medicine, religion or politics.

In the hopes they could come back to :



White Hall  - The Prime Minister's Office

T

  The Archbishop's Residence

The RoyalMuseum

Not part of old Trinidad , but of the new, is the  National Carnival Commission that oversees the number one tourist event : CARNIVAL. The most number of tourists to come to Trinidad do so in March.  Hotels rooms are booked a year in advance and local families substantially increase their income by renting out a room for the festival at prices from $250 and up.  Did this nation perfect Carnival and make it the best in the world as they say ?  I will  listen but not join the debate.    

And finally let me share some of the sayings that made the walk here a little nicer, a little more meaningful.

Trinidad: The Savannah

The Savannah is a special place in Trinidad.  It is a park, a soccer ground, a green space.It is right in the center of the city and to go around it , you need to drive its circular shape.  My guide said it was the largest traffic circle in the world.

The land was originally owned by a French family, the Peshiers, who gave it to the city in the late 1800's.  Former French land with a very British name. Trinidad was a Spanish colony from the time Christopher Colombus landed in 1498 until 1802 when it was ceded to the British. Somewhere along the line, French immigrants arrived and today they form the second largest group of ex-pats after the British. 

The Savannah attracts joggers, strollers and coconut drinkers who can select from many different vendors along the "traffic circle".



Montevideo, Uruguay

This is the ( peace)  flag of Uruguay.  It is similar to the flag of Argentina.  Both have a sun in the middle with radiants (if that is the right word) jutting out around  the sun.  However, when at war, both countries have the tradition of flying a "war flag".  This flag is the same in every way except the radiants are removed and the center has only the image of the sun. 

Uruguay is officially named the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. "Oriens" is Latin for east and the country is located east of the Uruguay River. Does that make them Orientals?  No, this is not a corny joke. I read somewhere they were once called Orientals. But what if that writer was making a corny joke?

The center of Uruguay is Montevideo where 1.5 million of its 3.5 million citizens live.  The center of Montevideo is Independence Plaza which divides the modern city center from the the old city.  In the center of the Plaza is a statue of  Jose Artegas who led their wars of Independence against Spain and won final victory in 1828.






Sharing the Plaza is this elegant old style building . Completed in 1928, it has graced the area ever since.

  The entrance to the old city (Ciudad Vieja) contains a small part of the walled city that stood on this site from 1724 to 1833.

The old city is famous for its weekend shopping stalls both at the start of the city , where this picture was taken,  and in a park near its famous cathedral .

The Iglesia Martiz was started in 1790 and consecrated in 1804 . It  stands off a beautiful plaza next to a park but the challenge to take this picture was to avoid the McDonald's flags everywhere and its own outdoor cafe right off the park.

Like Independence Plaza , the old city has a statue to a famous hero.   

Don Bruno Mauricio de Zabata is the founder of  Modevideo.  Zabata was a Spanish army officer who contructed a fortress on the River Pate in 1726 to guard against attacks from pirates and the rival Portuguese  This fortress and surrounding settlement evolved into Montevideo.

Montevideo: Mate Madness

This vendor is drinking mate, the drink of the Uruguayans.  It is a drink made from the yerba mate plant and is said to be a "wild, bitter green beverage "with a caffeine level between coffee and tea.

The mate flask has a double glass construction to keep the liquid hot for hours.  The straw or the "bombilla" is open at one end and at the other , the one submerged , it has a sieve with tiny holes where the mate gourd is placed.





The mate cup can be shared or drunk individually.  In this photo, the woman has the mate cup while her husband carries a thermos to refill the cup as needed. I saw many , many Uruguyans drinking their mate and holding a thin thermos in the crook of their arm.  Some power drinkers have a larger thermos they can sling on their shoulders.

I was really surprised to see so many people in a shopping mall drinking their mate in, of course, a special mate cup with a thin thermos nestled in their arm. I have seen businessmen going into meetings at a hotel casually drinking mate.  I have watched people stroll the seafront drinking their mate and chatting with friends.It must taste delicious and be most relaxing.  I can't imagine being encumbered with a cup and thermos while shopping or strolling.

.

Montevideo : I Love This City



Of all the cities I have visited on this trip,  Montevideo impressed me the most and made me wish I could have stayed longer.  I loved everything about it :  its gentle charm,  its 12 miles of seaside, its European flavor to its Spanish culture.  The people are kind, warm, and sophisticated.  Montevideo is as much a feeling as a place.

The seafront attracts people morning, noon and night to jog,  to walk or bike ride. It brings people together as a community.  People wave, kiss ( the embrace), stop and talk .

But the seafront also invites invidual effort .







It does so with a quiet grace.  It lacks the glitz and glamour of a Rio or even a South Beach.  Understated elegance is its beauty.



. 
The sea defines Montevideo.  From the airport to the city center , you travel along the seafront for 12 miles.  When you get to the city, you reach the port and the historic old city, the Ciudad Vieja.










Montevideo is defined by its people.  The people  are so gentle, polite and classy.  Their Spanish , like their neighbor's in Argentina , is Italian accented,  a result of heavy immigration over the centuries from Italy.  The English is usually fluent but when it is not the accent is Italian !  The kids wanted me to take "just one picture"  and when I did,  they went on their way - off to their hang-out
on the beach, right in front of the city center

Tourists explores the ancient stones.

Tourist discovers he is not as young as he used to be,

Santiago : The Historic Part

The Cathedral

The City Hall

As I wrote in my last blog, I was fascinnated by the modern buildings of Santiago,.  Yet, I am fascinated by  the historic parts of a city and love the architecture and the culture it exudes.  Here in the old city of Santiago, the main cathedral looms large over the huge Plaza it shares with other historic buildings. . The Plaza also contains the classic main post ofice, a museum and the old city hall.

While on the Plaza, I saw two groups trying to save people from becoming lost.

This first group,  sponsored by the city, had three mobile information stands that went up and down the Plaza to give directions and answer questions.

The second group,  not sponsored by the city, also focused on helping people find their way and avoid becoming lost.

Yes, it was easy to find your way on the Plaza

Some Other Photos

Old City Entrance 

Fountain in Old City

Old City Gardens

Santiago, Chile

I
 loved Santiago from the minute I got out of the airport  to the moment I returned for my next flight.  I saw something here that had been in short supply in the first six countries : bright sun and beautiful
blue sky.  It was a wonderful replacement for the rainy, cold weather that had followed us from country to country.

I was intrigued by modern Santiago, its skyscrapers and their  bold unique architecture. Unlike the other countries, I was captivated by the new parts of the city rather than the historic part.  When I looked out my hotel window, I could see broad streets, unique designs and greenery everywhere.

The buildings in the financial area of Santiago, called “Sanhatten”, are breathtaking. In some ways, the financial district could symbolize Chile whose prosperity and stability makes it one of the leading South American nations.  The buildings are built to show  beauty and creativity and they are built to exacting standards.  When an 8.8 earthquake struck Chile in February of this year, buildings were damaged, to be sure,  but the massive destruction and loss of life that accompanies earthquakes of such magnitude (think Haiti)  did not take place.

The prosperity of this country of 15 million continues to draw immigrants to Chile now, even as it did in the last century.  Since 1992, its foreign born population has increased 75%,  mostly from Argentina, Peru and Bolivia.

I was amazed though to learn of German migration here  that goes  back as far as the 16^th century and  with a major

 wave of immigration in 1848 to the southern parts of Chile.   In some parts of the the south today,   German is spoken as

a first language and it vies  with English as the most popular second language in that region.

 From watching one too many World War ll movies, I thought most German immigration to South America took place at the end of the war.  Now,  knowing over the centuries there were waves of European immigration (italian, Greek,, German, English  etc) , not only to Chile,  but to Argentina and Uruguay as well, I will give myself a cultural “duh” and vow to learn much more about our neighboring continent. 

Today a vendor  asked me what part of America I was from.  I said Washington.  He said he was from the best part  of America : South America.

Some Other Photos