A Cross-section of Port-of-Spain



 

View of Port-of-Spain from West to East



 

When the architecture of Port-of-Spain is analysed from a West to East perspective starting from One Woodbrook Place through the CBD to the Beetham Gardens (urban slum) as this blog does, a general trend is observed in the architecture and design. One Woodbrook place represents the Global North's perception of 21st century, sustainable architecture. The historical urban neighbourhood of Woodbrook transitions to traditional architecture by the abundance of colonial houses and businesses seen. Port-of-Spain's CBD has a combination of traditional, modern and vernacular architecture since this area reflects the vibrancy and rich culture of the city, where a bit of everything is found. The east and eastern boundary of the CBD houses mainly lower class housing schemes and oppressed areas so vernacular architecture is dominant in those areas.

One common feature throughout this cross-section is that all of the aforementioned spaces contain green or recreational areas. This shows that the aesthetics and ambiance of Port-of-Spain is important and tremendous effort is being made to foster social integration in this way. Port-of-Spain's architecture is certainly a must see for tourists interested in structural design and it certainly reflects the politics, economy and culture of Trinidad.