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| Photo was taken at the Brian Lara Promenade showing night clubs and persons " liming" |
At this point you may be wondering what is cultural aura. Well, this can be explained as the most popular aspect of a city with respect to its culture, or perhaps the most dominant practices of the people that live within the city or come into contact with the city on a regular basis. In other words it is the 'aura', the most popular aspect of a city, what first comes to mind when you think of that city, the highlight of the city (Hall and Barrett 2012). The photo above captures, what is to me, the cultural aura of Port-of-Spain (POS). On a typical Friday evening or any evening for that matter, Trinidadians can be seen in clusters throughout POS "liming" or hanging out on the Brian Lara Promenade. The photo also shows the presence a night club and casino (Club Princess and Deuces Night Club & Bar) within which people can go to "lime" and have a good time. Cutting to the chase, the liveliness of the city stems from the love that Trinidadians have for liming which has led to the construction of various liming spots or night clubs, bars, casinos etc that contribute significantly to city's urban landscape.
With respect to how the city functions, this aspect of Trinidadian culture allows for the formation of businesses in the form of popular liming spots. This encourages persons who seek such entertainment to come to POS frequently, thus generating funds for business owners and by extension contributes to the country's GDP. It also ensures a constant influx of people to the city who will not only spend money on clubbing and partying but also on the other services that the city has to offer such as the transportation system.
I think the promenade is the optimum cultural symbol of Port of Spain. So much is offered on the promenade, and around it!
ReplyDeleteYes it definitely is...I'm glad we share the same point of view :)
ReplyDeleteIs KFC Independence Sq. an example of cultural aura?
ReplyDeleteActually it probably can be looked at as an example of cultural aura due to the fact that KFC independence square is so popular and the spaces around it are used for liming. However, KFC itself is an international franchise and therefore should not (in my point of view)be used as an example of the "cultural aura" in POS because it did not originate in POS. The Brian Lara Promenade on the other hand is an aspect of the urban landscape that is culturally 'ours' because it has its origins from a famous Trinidadian cricketer(Brian Lara). Hope I cleared that up for you :)
ReplyDeleteCAN you define again cultural aura and contrast it with cultural other?
ReplyDelete