Independence Square, Port of Spain (must see)

At the time of the first European contact, the Awawakan-speaking indigenous people had set up the fishing village Cumucurapo, which means 'the place of Silk Cotton Trees'; on the western shore of Trinidad, then called "Kairi" (Land of the Hummingbirds). The Spanish established Puerto de Espana (Port of Spain) in 1560. The boat landing place of the old village became Plaza del Marina (Marine Square).

In 1797 the British arrived, led by General Sir Ralph Abercromby. They landed immediately west of Port of Spain at a place still known as "Invaders Bay." The British went about changing place names, and Plaza del Marina became simply "Marine Square." The Square was officially renamed "Independence Square" in 1962.

The Square today is an east-to-west elongated rectangle. Partially constructed on reclaimed land, it is bound to the east by the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. The western end is the Brian Lara Waterfront Promenade. The north side street is North Independence Square. The southern border road is, naturally, South Independence Square.

Skyscrapers like the Nicholas Tower and Eric Williams Plaza, named after Eric Williams, the first Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tabaco, are at the western end. Along its length, it is a tree-lined parkway. Fast food places like KFC abound. There is speedy traffic on both sides of the Square. In the middle of the Square is a fountain and a statue of Captain Arthur Andrew Cipriani, politician and sportsman of Trinidad.