Castries is the capital city of Saint Lucia, which is an island that is located in the eastern Caribbean Sea.  It is one of the Windward Islands and part of the Lesser Antilles.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/  Castries has a landlocked deepwater harbor and is used primarily as a shipping port.http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/98802/Castries The city is on the northwest side of the island near its coast.http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&q=castries+st+lucia&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Castries,+St+Lucia&gl=us&ei=pbhiTYXSE8y2tgeIwpHWCw&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CCgQ8gEwAA  

The area exports sugarcane, rum, molasses, cacao, coconuts, copra, limes, lime juice, essential oils, and a variety of fruits and vegetables.http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/98802/Castries#  St. Lucia has become a tourist attraction.  It has a number of water activities such as snorkeling and scuba diving, as well as hiking and bird watching.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/     

The island was first inhabited by Arawak Indians starting from about 200 A.D.  By 800 A.D., the native Caribs were the foremost people on the island.  Although Europeans were in the area from the early 1500s, no European settlements were established until the 1550s.  Buccaneer Francois le Clarc, who was also known as Jambe de Bois (Wooden Leg) or Peg-Leg le Clarc, set up this first settlement.  From here, he hunted Spanish galleons.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/lchis01.htm   

Other countries started settlements and forts on the island.  The Dutch arrived in 1600 and established Vieux Fort.  In 1605, English colonists were stranded on the island after a storm.  Another group came in 1639.  Neither English group had success in settling the area.  The French started several successful colonies by 1780.  However, the French and the British fought over the island for many years.  St. Lucia was ruled under the British crown until 1979, when it became independent.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/lchis01.htm 

Castries' latitude is 14 degrees 02' north by 60 degrees 58' west.http://www.mapsofworld.com/lat_long/saint-lucia-lat-long.html  Castries is 40 miles south of Fort-de-France.  It had a population of 10,634 in 2001.http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/98802/Castries#   The entire island of St. Lucia is 27 miles long and 14 miles wide.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/index.html  This is a total area of 616 square kilometers.  The island is divided into eleven quarters, one of which is Castries.http://www.newsofap.com/art-259-st-lucia-country.html   

Castries sits near the coast.  The sea is to its left and two coastal peaks on the island surround it.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/index.html  

• Botanical Station at George V Park - This station has historic buildings, featuring homes, a powder magazine and the Castries Market.http://www.slunatrust.org/userpages//ArchitecturalHeritageofSaintLucia.pdf  
• Vigie beach - This beach is within walking distance to Castries.  It is one of the islands less-secluded beaches.http://stlucia-guide.info/attractions/beaches/vigie.beach/ 
• La Toc Battery - This gun emplacement complex overlooks Port Castries.  It has views of the inner harbour, the mouth of the harbor and a view of Martinique.http://saint-lucia.strabon-caraibes.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1&Itemid=20 
• Morne Fortune, also called the Hill of Good Luck - The area was a key battleground during the colonial skirmishes of St. Lucia.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/lcpnts01.htm#castries 
  

• Anse-le-Ray & Canaries - Visitors can see small fishing villages and fishermen using dug-out canoes.http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/lcpnts01.htm#castries   

• Sir W. Arthur Lewis - Won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1979.http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1979/lewis-autobio.html
• Derek Walcott - Won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1992.http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1992/walcott-bio.html