Interesting And Fun Facts About St. Lucia

• St. Lucia is situated in the Caribbean Sea, as part of the Lesser Antilles, 
  with its total area covering 616sq km.


• The closest islands neighbouring St Lucia are St Vincent to the south, and 
  Martinique, to the north.


• The year-round temperature in St Lucia remains in the average range of about 
  27ºC (80ºF). 


• Castries, the capital city of St Lucia, is actually located in a flood gut 
  region. Interestingly, Castries has been built on a reclaimed land mass.


• St. Lucia, divided into 11 quarters, is estimated to have a population of 
  almost 170,000.


• The East Caribbean dollar (EC$) is the national currency of St. Lucia.


• The recorded literacy rate of St Lucia shows about 67 percent of the 
  population to be literate.


• The average life expectancy of the people of St. Lucia is around 72 
  years.


• Jacquot, or the St. Lucia Parrot, is a bird native only to these islands. It 
  is the national bird of St. Lucia, and its scientific name is Amazona 
  Versicolor.


• St. Lucia was known as the Island of the Iguanas by the Amerindian Arawak 
  and Carib people who are known to have been among the earliest settlers 
  here.


• At 950 m (3,117ft), Mount Gimie is the highest point on this island nation 
  of St. Lucia.


• Both France and England continuously struggled to establish sole control 
  over St Lucia throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries. In the bargain, this 
  island nation changed hands nearly 14 times.


• Around the year 1600, the Dutch were the first to built Vieux Fort (or the 
  old fort).


• In 1746, the town of Soufriere was built, under French administration.


• In 1814, St Lucia was surrendered to the United Kingdom, and came under 
  British rule.


• On 1st March, 1967, the island nation of St Lucia became self-governing in 
  internal affairs.


• "The Land, The People, The Light" was coined as the national motto of St. 
  Lucia when it obtained total independence from England on 22nd February, 
  1979.


• “Sons and Daughters of Saint Lucia” is the national anthem of St Lucia. 
  Penned by Charles Jesse, it has been set to music by Leton Felix Thomas.


• St Lucia continues to be a current member of the Commonwealth of 
  Nations.


• The Honourable Stephenson King, born in Castries, is the current Prime 
  Minister of Saint Lucia.


• Sir Arthur Lewis, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences in 
  1979, was born in St Lucia in 1915.


• Derek Walcott, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1992, was 
  born in Castries in 1930.


• The Pitons - Gros Piton and Petit Piton - are twin volcanic peaks that rise 
  from the sea. These marvelous volcanic monuments have contributed in a big way 
  to making St Lucia very famous.


• In 2004, the Pitons Management Area containing much of a collapsed 
  stratovolcano known as the Soufriere Volcanic Centre, became a World Heritage 
  Site.


• Sadly, hurricane Lenny left a lot of damage in its wake when it hit St Lucia 
  in November 1999. The loss was estimated at around seventeen thousand East 
  Caribbean dollars.


• The rules for driving in St Lucia officially state that roads should be 
  approached from the left hand side. 


• The Voice, The Star, The St Lucia Mirror, The Crusader and One Caribbean are 
  some of the main newspapers of St Lucia.

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