Arima

Arima is a borough, centrally located between Port of Spain and most destinations further East along the East West corridor in Trinidad. Its official title is the Royal Chartered Borough of Arima. As such, it can easily be reached from any major hub via maxi taxis, public buses or regular taxis. There are public buses connecting Arima to and from Blanchisseuse, Brasso Seco, Carapo, La Horquetta, Malabar, Morne La Croix, Mundo Nuevo, Port of Spain and other places although the buses for the less travelled routes are infrequent. The schedule on the Trinidad & Tobago public transit website is also unreliable. If you are staying somewhere in Arima, it is likely that you will need to take additional transportation after getting to the main part of Arima.

### Get In

**From Piarco (Airport)**
The airport is not really near Port of Spain, if you look carefully on the map you will see this (even though the airport code is POS for Port of Spain). If you can walk around with your luggage-this is the less expensive option: take a taxi from the airport to the main road, then a maxi taxi along the main road to Arima (~$4 TTD) - be sure to confirm the price with them.

**From Port of Spain**
The public buses (4 TT$ on the Limited stop; $2.50 on the All stop) are fairly reliable . Regular maxis (7 TT$) leave from the maxi taxi section of City Gate (next to the bus terminus) for Arima taking roughly 40-45 minutes. Taxis (7 TT$) leave from the corner of Henry St and South Quay and are ideally the fastest option, but may be stuck in traffic during the peak hours for they take the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway unlike the maxis that take the Priority Bus route.

### Do

**Carnival** Carnival also takes place in Arima for Carnival Monday and Tuesday and the Sunday before for the kids. Carnival Monday is usually the bigger celebration of the two days in Arima. Festivities begin early in the morning with J'Ouvert, after which there is a break during the day until party-goers return during the evening for massive celebrations in the streets of Arima. Although Carnival is a relatively safe event in Arima, there have been a few incidents where fights took place. However due to the large presence of the police and army, fights are quelled very quickly.
For the launch of Arima Carnival, there is usually a special event with performances by soca artists. This event is not well-publicised however so it is usually patronised by a small crowd.

**Sport** Cycling has been a major sporting event in Arima for many years. The Easter Grand Prix draws cycling enthusiasts from within the region. Following this is the highly anticipated "West Indies vs. the World" event where the West Indies cycling team competes against cyclists from other nations at the Arima Velodrome.

**Mannette Ranch** Looking for a nearby river for bathing? Try visiting Mannette Ranch, located about one and a half miles up Blanchisseuse Road. Call 667-6586 for bookings. Cost: ~$60 per person to use this private facility.

### Eat

Like most places in Trinidad, the majority of food outlets are fast food chains, Chinese restaurants and roti shops, in addition to Trinidad's famous street food, doubles, although there has also been a recent proliferation of burger stands. This is not usually appealing to the health conscious traveller though, and finding a complete, balanced/nutritious meal may be difficult if you are not planning to spend time in the home of someone who is as conscientious about health as you are or if you do not have the opportunity to cook food yourself. There are not a great many healthy options available in the frozen food sections of the grocery either. However it is not completely difficult if you have access to a stove, to whip up some steamed vegetables or if you don't to create a healthy salad with items from the grocery store.

**Beneficial Eatery** is located on Hollis Avenue, opposite the Arima Velodrome, next to the Arima Diagnostic Clinic is one of the few healthier options. If you are dining in, you may be served on dinnerware instead of disposable styrofoam containers. Accepts cash, and debit/credit cards.

**Doubles**

 Although there are a handful of vendors across the central part of the borough with varying schedules, the one at a few steps north of the Arima Dial (usually right next to a coconut vendor) seems to be the most regular. The best recommended Doubles are sold by Rufina's - this stand has a sign and the servers usually wear a t-shirt imprinted with the name. Rufina's sells only Doubles while other vendors may also sell pies which are made very differently but may have the same type of filling. Do not ask for slight pepper from any Doubles vendor unless you are prepared with water to wash it away as this generally will be quite spicy hot. Most vendors generally come out at evening, however there are a few that also sell in the early morning period for the breakfast crowd. Cost: $4 TTD. Cash transactions only.

**Gyros Express** is located one block south of the Arima Dial, on the left. Very ordinary, but offers a possible tasty escape from the greasy fast food some Trinis are in love with. They do not serve whole grain wraps however. Cost: $25-40 TTD depending on the meat combination. Cash transactions only.

**Oysters**
On the south side of the street, at the junction of Hollis Ave and Woodford St, there is an oyster vendor who sells mostly at evenings/nights. There is no place to sit or lime, but the oysters deserve a try. Cash transactions only.

**Pizza**
Pizza Boys at the corner of Green Street and Pro Queen Street. Free wifi available courtesy of the cable company Flow. The free wifi signal is strongest upstairs where there is no seating although there is a big seating area downstairs.
Located in the former home of Windsor cinema on Hollis Avenue, is Pizza Hut. Free wifi is also available here courtesy the bzone. Accepts cash, and debit/credit cards.

### Drink

There are several clubs in the Arima area.

* **Joseph's** For those who like to shoot pool and have a few drinks.
* There is a business that has changed names several times at the corner of Queen and Sorzano St but has never varied from being a liming spot. They hosts artistes occasionally.
* **The Paddock** for those who like to sip drinks in a smoke free environment

**Coffee** Rituals Coffee is located in the same space as Pizza Boys just south of the Dial along ProQueen Street. Average price for a cup: $22 TT. Free wifi (Flow) works best upstairs although there is a big seating area downstairs.

**Coconut Water** Fresh coconut water (in the pod) is available near the junction of Woodford St. and Hollis Ave. Look for a pickup truck with coconuts on it. Cost: $7 (2014). The coconut water price seems to be increasing every year, sadly. About a few metres north of the Dial on Pro Queen Street, there is another coconut vendor however this one usually is sold out before afternoon. The vendors are usually able to provide you with straws and fill a bottle for you if you wish, at a cost.

**Smoothies** Locally these are known as punch, but consist of some form of blended ingredients, fruit and milk being the main base. One such vendor is Zera's Punch Cart and is usually located opposite Pizza Boys on Pro Queen St. This cart on wheels comes out at night time. Within close proximity of this one there was another such vendor, Jelani's (Original) Punch King which is quite popular. Jelani's will be moving to #3 Farfan Street.

### See

During the Christmas season, there are numerous venues that host Parang concerts. Recently, a new form of Parang has emerged, dubbed as "Soca Parang". This new sub-genre combines instrumentation from traditional parang with soca and is sang in Trinidadian English, usually centred on the festivities of Christmas as opposed to the birth of Jesus.

**The Arima Dial** on Pro Queen street is an unassuming but important landmark of which Arimanians are very proud. Many people use The Dial (location shown here on this map) as a reference point in Arima downtown when directions are given. The original Dial was donated by the then-mayor Francis Wallen (1898-99) in 1898 and was purchased from France. It was replaced in September 1985 with a Dial compatible with modern technology. However, it stopped functioning and had to be replaced in August 2011. Despite this, the time shown on the four different faces of the dial often does not match.

**Asa Wright** Located in Arima Valley, this is one of Trinidad's major tourist attractions. The best way to get there is via hired taxis or private vehicles - arrange a return trip. Activities: bird watching, nature walk, swimming in the small pond. Contact information is available on the official website for Asa Wright Nature Centre.

**Cleaver Woods Recreational Park** A very small museum of Amerindian relics is located at Cleaver Woods. There is also the possibility of a nature walk. The opening hours of the museum are not fixed.

**First Peoples** Arima has a special place dedicated to the descendants of the First Peoples aka Amerindian descendants, formerly known as the Carib community of Arima. This place is located off DeGannes Street Arima and there are sometimes cultural events hosted there.

**Steelbands** Several steelbands have their homebase in Arima and therefore would be open to visitors during practice sessions before Carnival weekend. Practice safety when attending any nighttime events and ensure you have a reliable means of transport to return to the place where you are staying.

### Trivia

The official name for Arima is the Royal Chartered Borough of Arima, so named because it was declared a Royal Borough established by Royal Charter to commemorate the golden jubilee of the reign of Queen Victoria.

The population of Arima is close to 40, 000.

The boundaries of Arima cover approximately four square miles of area.

### Get Out

There are taxis leaving Arima heading further East to Sangre Grande, from the Dial on Broadway. Maxi taxis to Sangre Grande can be hired on the corner of Broadway and Raglan St (Near Massy Supermarket, formerly known as HiLo). To get to Port of Spain there are taxis on the corner of Broadway and Woodford Street or maxi taxis on the corners of Broadway and King Street (Main Rd on the South West side, Bus route on the North West Side)