Trinidad and Tobago is a dual-island Caribbean nation near Venezuela, with distinctive Creole traditions and cuisines. Trinidad’s capital, Port of Spain, hosts a boisterous carnival featuring calypso and soca music. Numerous bird species inhabit sanctuaries such as the Asa Wright Nature Centre. The smaller island of Tobago is known for its beaches and the Tobago Main Ridge Forest Reserve, which shelters hummingbirds.
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital city of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a municipal population of 37,074 (2011 census),a metropolitan population of 128,026 (1990 unofficial estimate) and a transient daily population of 250,000. It is located on the Gulf of Paria, on the northwest coast of the island of Trinidad and is part of a larger conurbation stretching from Chaguaramas in the west to Arima in the east with an estimated population of 600,000.
The flag of Trinidad and Tobago was adopted upon independence from the United Kingdom on 31 August 1962. Designed by Carlisle Chang, the flag was chosen by the independence committee of 1962. Red, black and white symbolize fire, earth and water.