Facts by island

1)  First stop :  
BARBADOS

Population:  278, 000 (World Bank 2011)

Language:  primarily English (Bajan Slang)

Independence:  1966

East- West-  24 kms

North- South- 34 kms

Perimeter- 97 km

Urban population:  44%

Capital:  Bridgetown

Population of capital:  122,000

Life Expectancy: 74 (Canada= 81)
Currency:  Bajan Dollar

Religion: 63% Protestant, 4.2% Roman Catholic, 

Median age of population:  37
Water:  can drink tapwater
plugs:  Same voltage and plug as Canada

The flower from this "Caesalpinia pulcherrima' is said to be "The Pride of Barbados" - ranging from red to yellow in color, it blooms year round and has a number of medicinal uses.

2nd Stop:

ST. LUCIA

Population (2011 est.): 162,178 

 life expectancy: 77.04; 

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Governor-General: Dame Pearlette Louisy (1997)

Prime Minister: Kenny Anthony (2011)

Land area: 236 sq mi (611 sq km); 

Capital and largest city (2010 est.): Castries, 60,263

Monetary unit: East Caribbean dollar (EC)

Languages: English (official), French patois

Ethnicity/race: black 82.5%, mixed 11%, East Indian 2.4%

Religions: Roman Catholic 68%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 6%

Literacy rate: 90.1% (2001 est.)

Plugs:  Adapter and converter necessary if traveling with Canadian electronics

Water:  Cannot drink tapwater

8 facts about St. Lucia

http://www.express.co.uk/fun/top10facts/364319/Top-10-facts-about-Saint-Lucia

1.  St Lucy was a Christian martyr in Sicily who died around AD310

2.  According to legend, she converted to Christianity after an angel appeared to her, dedicated her virginity to God and was denounced to the Romans by the man she was engaged to.

3.  The island of Saint Lucia was given its name by French colonizers in the 17th century.

4.  Saint Lucia changed hands between the French and the British 14 times in the 17th and 18th centuries

5.Saint Lucians have won two Nobel Prizes:  Arthur Lewis (economics) and Derek Walcott (literature).  Only the Faroe islands (one among 49,000 people) has a higher rate of Nobel Prizes.

6.  St. Lucia has won no Olympic medals .

7 .  The National bird is the St. Lucian Parrot or Jacquot, native to Saint Lucia.

8.  St. Lucy is patron saint of the blind, martyrs, epidemics, salesmen, throat infections and writers.

3rd Stop:
Martinique

Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation.

Population: 436, 454

Life expectancy: 78 years

Capital:  Fort-de-France

Languages:  French, English

Legal:  French legal system

Government:  France (no PM)

Currency:  Euro

Constitution: September 28th 1958 (French Consitution)

Economy:  Sugarcane, bananas, tourism and light industry

Water:  Safe to Drink tap-water

Plugs:  Eurpoean- adapter and converter necessary for Canadians




Crime Rates Article:
Martinique, the lowest in Caribbean- Jamacia the highest:

http://www.examiner.com/article/caribbean-crime-rates-martinique-lowest-jamaica-highest









4th Stop:
Dominica

                               Population: 73,000

                          Capital: Roseau; 27,000

        Area: 751 square kilometers (290 square miles)

                   Language: English, French patois

               Religion:  Roman Catholic, Protestant

                 Currency:  East Caribbean dollar

                          Life Expectancy:  76

                   GDP per Capita:  U.S. $5,400

                           Literacy Percent:  94

ECONOMY

Industry: Soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra

Agriculture: Bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops

Exports: Bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit

Mountainous, densely forested, with waterfalls and exotic birds, much of Dominica is protected as national wilderness. Volcanic activity provides boiling pools, geysers, and black-sand beaches. Most Dominicans are descendants of African slaves brought in by colonial planters. Independent from Britain since 1978, Dominica remains poor and dependent on banana exports. Governments, including that of Mary Eugenia Charles, the first female prime minister in the West Indies, have sought to broaden the economic base with tourism and light industry. Home to 3,000 Carib Indians, Dominica is the last bastion of this once populous Caribbean tribe.

All from National Geographic -Dominica facts

A New President Is Chosen Despite Boycott

In September 2012, Parliament chose Eliud Williams, a former government administrator, to replace Nicholas Liverpool as president. Liverpool resigned due to health reasons. The United Workers Party, the main opposition party, boycotted the election. The party planned to take the issue to court, claiming that the election process was unconstitutional. Despite the boycott, Williams was expected to remain in office until October 2013, the date of the next general election.

Read more: Dominica: Maps, History, Geography, Government, Culture, Facts, Guide & Travel/Holidays/Cities | Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/country/dominica.html?pageno=2#ixzz2cwvOh7Xq