The Travelling Nutmeg: Trini 2 de bone? III

My memories of Trinidad are poised with stops through Port of Spain so of course I was excited to visit some old haunts. Of course we had to power up and I did so with a Popeye's sandwich. I'm not sure why Trinidad needs to have every international franchise of fried chicken but I'm not complaining.

By the time we got to Port of Spain, things were in full swing. Stalls of all sizes, sluggish traffic and actually,  respectful vendors. Getting around was actually way more challenging than I expected. I weaved through and asked directions as much as possible but I'll be the first to admit that it was quite overwhelming.

I spent most of that time hunting through cloth stores for potential work fabric, hoping to even cop an African print or two. It was quite interesting that the pricing was very comparable to Grenada. Therefore the main advantage was variety. There was an abundance of Syrians and Indians in business. And of course it's always a pleasure to peruse the Chinese stores. Definitely got some much needed electronic pieces for next nothing.

Once I finished up with St. James, I fueled up on some local, local food. I definitely played myself into thinking that all Trinidad had to offer was Indian food. Seeing a big box of mac n cheese pie with some stew meat was the surprise of my life. But my belly was satisfied.

It so happened that today was World Steel Pan Day, so being in the land of Steelpan dictated that the evening be dedicated to that. Woodford Square was suggested by a friend, so I circled back ready for the evening to begin. Turns out people here are on-time time but they like long-drawn out speeches. So I used that time to explore the neighbouring buildings. Turns out the square is a whole heritage site and home to several historical buildings, including the Red House.

I didn't dare enter. The presence of law enforcement officers was enough, but I marvelled at the stature and foreboding existence. The setting of the sun didn't help at all.

Back at Independence Square, I watched the doubles men going at it. I never knew Trinidadians liked their doubles open. I figured that would be a challenge for another day. Kudos to the Rasta man on the other end taking one for the ital team.

I tried to quench my thirst by gravitating towards one of the many snow-cone men and women around me. But one look at the prep made me long for home. I am truly spoilt and I don't care. I want large cups and thick syrup.

Instead I returned to the square to take in the bands that were chosen to play that night. Trinis are known to love a fete so I was not surprised to see moko jumbies shaking their tailfeathers or free red scarfs being giving out to wave (I love a good souvenir).

Skiffle set us up with covers of many popular modern tunes that I allowed my musical ear to pull out. But it was the "forever young" players of ...... mixing the Mission Impossible theme into their performance that warmed my soul. 

All in all, it was a great day. I ended the night with Haagen Dags in hand staring out at Queen's Savannah with one of life's most existential questions. Why did the Moko-Jumbie cross the road? If you figure it out, please let me know and put me out of my misery.