Upcoming cultural highlights in Trinidad & Tobago

Visitors to Trinidad and Tobago in the coming months will experience a dynamic range of rich cultural experiences, from the African influenced Tobago Heritage Festival and Emancipation, to Divali, the Hindu festival of lights.

The annual Tobago Heritage Festival, from July 13 to August 1, 2007, will celebrate Tobago’s rich heritage with cultural song, dance, drama, music and oral traditions. Moving from village to village, many of the festival’s events are held at night under the stars. Later, on August 1, all of Trinidad and Tobago will celebrate Emancipation Day. Commemorating the 1834 emancipation of enslaved Africans in the British Empire, the celebrations begin in the morning with a colourful procession through the streets of the capital city, Port of Spain, featuring African drums, steelpan, performers on stilts and dance groups. A similar procession is held at night with participants holding lit flambeaus. In October, the Muslim celebration of Eid ul Fitr and Divali, the Hindu festival of lights, are observed by the national community with traditional Indian delicacies and exhibitions of Indian dance and music.

Published on July 1, 2007
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