Shopping fatigued and famished of shoppers. Exiting ‘The Falls’, the Western Main Road takes you through the quaint and busy St. James shopping district, north of which is Long Circular Mall, one of Trinidad’s first malls and a landmark shopping centre with three levels of brand name merchandise and retailers, plus food court, gym and supermarket. For tropical open air exercise, try the plazas or ‘strip malls’ along the beaten track. Starlite Shopping Plaza in Diego Martin and Highland Plaza in Glencoe, or Shoppes of Maraval and the elegant Ellerslie Plaza are open for some sophisticated outdoor shopping in signature boutiques. Set in a beautiful outdoor Mediterranean-themed shopping sanctuary, MovieTowne entertainment & shopping complex at Invaders Bay delivers a complete shopping experience with its ten-screen multiplex cinema, over forty premier shops and several popular restaurants. The ever-expanding Trincity Mall, one of the largest shopping centres in the English-speaking Caribbean, has over 5 million shoppers annually and is home to a mix of fashion retail, entertainment, two food courts and several top class restaurants, which offer everything from Italian food to Asian cuisine to sushi. This mall is also home to Caribbean Cinemas 8, an eight-screen Cineplex, a large supermarket, and three major banks either inside or adjacent. Also conveniently located between Port of Spain and Piarco Airport, Valpark Shopping Plaza has 115 shops. The City of Grand Bazaar is at the corner of Trinidad’s two major highways and offers
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The Ins & Outs of Trinidad and Tobago
a sprawling shopping, dining and entertaining experience while retaining the ambience of the outdoors. On a smaller scale, Centre Pointe Mall and Centre City Mall service the customers of Chaguanas. Gulf City Mall, further South in La Romain, has its own range of distinctive boutiques and a designated section for children’s shopping with a convenient play area. Port of Spain, our country’s capital, has luxury items from all over the globe, including Irish linens, English china, Scandinavian crystal, French perfumes, Swiss watches, and Japanese cameras. At shops that specialise in locallymade products, you can choose from handmade soaps and lotions or high-end products like exquisite jewellery. Prices may be higher, but expect both quality and variety. Cheaper imported items from Venezuela, China, India, Brazil and the United States contend with locally assembled commodities to satisfy the desires of every customer. In ‘downtown’ Port of Spain, shoppers have the opportunity to amble along some ;of Trinidad’s oldest urban roads. Witness the beauty of 100-year-old architecture in the columns and balustrades on Frederick Street. Peruse the arcade malls from Frederick Street to Henry and Charlotte Streets for access to bookstores, jewellry outlets, clothing and shoe shops teeming with the latest fashions. Bargain your way through the sidewalk vendors who jostle on the periphery of these shops selling an assortment of merchandise. Perhaps consider heading to the Brian Lara Promenade to