Red House - Trinidad and Tobago

Double Exposures and a less eventful day in our history

This is the Red House, rebuilt in 1907 after a fire destroyed it 1903. Red House is the centre of Trinidad and Tobago's Parliament and it is a building which has been neglected for sometime.

A few years ago, thebookmann and Adele had the opportunity to tour the chamber. We walked the path of the Leader and Opposition. We saw the ornate wooden chair that sits the Speaker of the House, a gift from Indian in celebration of our independence in 1962, and the physical evidence that has marred our history since our independence.

Not all feels well in the chamber, as if a blessing in needed to cleanse the uneasiness or the superstition ills that seem present. The people who sit, debate and abide by our Constitution are constantly reminded that things could suddenly change in a split second, and were there was calm, there could be chaos. Through the elaborate gesso work that decorates the ceiling and there is an ominous scar that is visible to the eye. There are Bullet holes logged in parts of the ceiling. This was the attempt in 1990, to overthrow the government and where the then Prime Minster was injured and seven people were killed in the attacks. Trinidad and Tobago still suffers from that day, and its aftermath. -thebookmann