Saint Lucia

Castries is the capital and largest city of Saint Lucia, a country in the Caribbean. The quarter with the same name had a population of 70,000 on 22 May 2013 and stretches over an area of 30.5 square miles (79 km2). Castries is in a flood gut and is built on reclaimed land. It houses the seat of government and the head offices of many of foreign and local businesses. The city's design is in a grid pattern similar to a metropolitan city like New York but on a much smaller scale. Its sheltered harbour receives cargo vessels, ferry boats, and cruise ships. It houses duty-free shopping facilities such as Point Seraphine and La Place Carinage. Many restaurants offer menus from local to Chinese. Supermarkets and other shopping facilities provide goods. The city is well served by a bus system and taxi service. St Lucia's main post office is in Castries. Because most parts of the country do not use standard street addresses, mail is largely sent to P.O. boxes. Any mail sent without a town name ends up in the Castries post office. Castries is the birthplace of Arthur Lewis, winner of the 1979 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics.