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Senior Multimedia Reporter
Most visitors know Tabaquite for two landmarks.
There is the historic Knollys Tunnel, the longest abandoned railway tunnel in Trinidad, and the scenic Navet Dam, whose waters wind through the hills of the Central Range.
But beyond these attractions lies another side of Tabaquite—a rural community where agriculture remains a way of life, parang traditions continue across generations, and residents say neighbourly bonds remain strong despite modern challenges.
Nestled within the Couva-Tabaquite-Talparo region, Tabaquite was once a key railway hub after the Trinidad Government Railway was extended into the area in 1898, linking Central Trinidad with St Joseph, the island’s first capital under Spanish rule.
The railway helped transform the district into an important agricultural centre, serving cocoa estates established by Venezuelan immigrants known as Cocoa Panyols, who settled in the area during the 19th century.
Today, while the trains no longer run, farming continues to define much of life in the district, which has about 3,000 residents.
Across the hills overlooking the Central Range, hundreds of acres of vegetables are cultivated by farmers whose families have worked the land for generations.
Farmer Kelly Badal describes Tabaquite as one of the country’s most self-sufficient communities.
“Tabaquite is one of the gems of Trinidad because of the fact that we independent and we self-sufficient,” Badal said.
“In Tabaquite proper, Tabaquite could maintain itself with food. We have enough vegetables, livestock and everything,” he added.
Apart from the fields, there are pig farms, chicken farms, hardwares and agro shops.
According to Badal, more than 200 permanent farmers cultivate approximately 350 acres of land and produce an estimated 20 million pounds of food annually.
The area is known for tomatoes, sweet peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, melongene, bodi, pumpkin and other vegetables that supply markets throughout Trinidad. It is from here that the popular Macoya market gets most of its produce.
Badal said one of the district’s strengths is the relationship among farmers.
“When it rains for me, it rains for all the farmers. When it’s dry for me, it’s dry for everybody,” he said.
“If it pours and damages me, I lose hundreds of thousands and a fellow farmer loses too. We all feel each other’s pain.”
That camaraderie, he said, extends beyond farming.
Farmers regularly exchange information about crops, techniques and new technologies. They also work with students from The University of the West Indies and the Eastern Caribbean Institute of Agriculture.
“Every year we have students come to the farm. We share our knowledge with them and they share their knowledge with us,” Badal said.
“They have the theory and we have the practical.”
Agriculture is also reflected in some of Tabaquite’s most enduring traditions.
Every January 6, residents gather at the Tabaquite Roman Catholic Church for Lewa celebrations, which commemorate the visit of the Three Wise Men to the baby Jesus.
Parang musician Elton Santana, leader of Los Reyes Parang Band, said the celebration has become one of the village’s major annual events.
“Lewa celebrates the visit of the three kings,” Santana explained.
“It is a very big event in Tabaquite.”
The celebration also marks the beginning of a new crop season for many farmers.
Badal said farmers traditionally gather to finish what remains of the Christmas season while discussing plans for the months ahead.
“We’re planning for the crop ahead. All the farmers will meet and talk about what crop we’re going to plant and what we’re looking forward to for the new year,” he said.
The spirit of sharing associated with Lewa remains central to the event.
Santana said parishioners from churches throughout the area bring food and drinks to share with visitors.
“When you come there as a visitor, you’re not coming to buy anything,” he said.
“People bring pelau, corn soup, paime and all different things. They come and share.”
The agricultural calendar concludes with another major community event known as Crop Over, held on the last Saturday of July.
Farmers gather with relatives, friends and visitors to celebrate the completion of the dry season crop.
Curried duck, roti and other local dishes are prepared and shared among those attending.According to Badal, the event is held regardless of whether the season was successful.
“Sometimes we make nothing, but we’re still alive to make our next crop, so we celebrate that,” he said.
Parang remains another defining feature of village life.
Santana said house-to-house parang was once a major tradition throughout Tabaquite.
Bands would travel through communities on foot, performing for residents throughout the Christmas season.
His group, originally known as Los Muchachos del Agua before becoming Los Reyes, won national parang competitions and helped establish Tabaquite’s reputation within the genre.
“Parang and Tabaquite go hand in hand,” Santana said.
Today, several groups continue performing, including younger musicians who are helping preserve the tradition.
Away from the farms and parang bands, traces of the district’s history can still be found in private homes.
Eighty-three-year-old pensioner Kennell Rampersad keeps what he believes is one of the area’s oldest surviving artefacts—an anvil estimated to be more than 200 years old.
The heavy iron tool was used by blacksmiths to make horseshoes and cart rims during an era when horse-drawn transport was common.
“My father got that as a gift,” Rampersad said while displaying the relic.
The anvil remains one of several reminders of a different period in Tabaquite’s history.
Rampersad recalls growing up in a house without electricity and in a community where neighbours routinely looked after one another.
“My parents had 12 children, and the front door had no lock,” he said.
“Everybody looked out for everybody.”
Councillor and vice-chairman of the Couva-Tabaquite-Talparo Regional Corporation, Henry Awong, believes that sense of community remains one of Tabaquite’s hidden treasures.
“That kind of love and togetherness in Tabaquite is something that still remains,” Awong said.
He noted that residents of different ethnic and religious backgrounds continue to interact closely through sports, farming, religious observances and community activities.
While acknowledging challenges such as unemployment and the migration of younger residents seeking work elsewhere, Awong believes opportunities exist in eco-tourism, agriculture and agro-processing.
The district’s natural attractions, agricultural estates and cultural traditions could support future community-based tourism initiatives, he said.
For now, however, resident Natalie Manna says the true attraction of Tabaquite cannot be found on a tourism brochure.
She says it remains in the vegetable fields stretching across the hillsides, the sound of parang music during the Christmas season, the communal meals shared during Lewa and Crop Over celebrations, and the generations of families who continue to call the district home.
“Here we have good people. Business may be slow since after Covid, but our traditions have remained the same, although things are hard,” she said.
She noted that people have survived by maintaining a sideline income and by helping each other along the way.
More than a century after the railway helped place Tabaquite on Trinidad’s map, she says Tabaquite’s greatest treasures remain its people and the traditions they continue to preserve.
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