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Trinidad and Tobago was "discovered" in 1498, when the Spanish explorer, Christopher Columbus, landed on the islands shores. In reality, the islands were already "found" and occupied by the indigenous Amerindian tribes of the Arawaks and Caribs.
Trinidad remained in the hands of the Spanish from the 15th Century until the British captured it in 1797 it then became a British colony in 1802.
Tobago, by contrast, was ruled at one time or other by a myriad of European powers, including the Spanish, Dutch, French and British. Tobago, too, was decreed a British colony in 1814, and the Crown enjoined us administratively in 1889. Trinidad and Tobago achieved independence from England in 1962 to become the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Trinidad and Tobago are the most southerly isles of the Caribbean archipelago. Trinidad, still possesses vast tracts of rich rain forests, with our highest peak El Cerro del Aripo, located in our Northern Range, ascending to a height of 940 metres above sea level. In contrast, you will find flat lands, mostly agricultural, in the Central Plains, while Southern Trinidad is full of gently undulating hillsides. Tobago's Eastern Interior rises steeply into tall peaks with lower lying lands that include a protected reserve area. Tobago's topography consists mainly of volcanic rock, which is in stark contrast to its Caribbean blue waters. Together, our twin islands measure 2000 square miles.
The islands have two main seasons the Dry Season, from January to May and the Wet or Rainy Season, from June to December.
In the Rainy Season, mornings are usually sunny, followed by rainy afternoons and fair nights. During this time, our general rainfall pattern is interrupted by days of brilliant sunshine; a climatic phenomenon we fondly call Petit Carême. Petit Carême is similar to what temperate climes know as Indian Summer and offers a warm, invigorating change from dull weather. This mini-break normally happens between mid September to mid October.
The Dry Season is mostly sunny, with occasional light showers. This is the weather that makes Trinidad and Tobago the perfect vacation spot.
The islands share an average daytime temperature of 28 degrees Celsius that is warm but not unpleasantly humid and nights that are pleasantly cool.
Steel drum music was created when the bamboo percussion instruments traditionally used to back up calypso were replaced by hammered steel pans cut from oil drums. Whereas there is no dispute that the steel pan was developed in Trinidad, the indigenous development of the steel band in Antigua and Barbuda was an outgrowth of the iron bands which were prominent at Christmas time. Steel drum music has been an important part of Carnival since that time, and Antigua is home to many of the Caribbean's finest steel bands. Soca is a musical form that grafts the slower beat of American soul music to the upbeat tempos of calypso. Soca began in the 1970s, and by the middle of the 1980s it had become an integral feature of Carnival. Another musical form popular on Antigua is reggae. Although it originated in Jamaica, reggae has been incorporated into the Antiguan music scene for years.
Getting married on holiday is becoming much more popular and as most hotels in Antigua and Barbuda offer wedding and honeymoon packages a lot of time and inconvenience can be avoided. Check with your travel agent or the Antigua and Barbuda Department of Tourism for more information.
The Ministry of Legal Affairs is open Monday to Thursday, 8:30am to 4:30pm and on Fridays from 8:00am to 3:00pm. Flights which arrive into Antigua after 3:00pm will not permit couples to get to the Ministry of Justice in time to apply for the Special Marriage License. In such cases, the couple can arrange for the marriage to take place either the next day after completing the application process, or, on any available day thereafter.