Tourism counts in small economies

International tourism receipts (in millions) as a share of GDP in 1999 in selected small nations, from a new Worldwatch Institute study ($5; 888-544-2303):

Maldives ($325) 88 percent

St. Lucia ($311) 48 percent

Antigua and Barbuda ($291) 45 percent

Macao ($2,466) 40 percent

Barbados ($677) 27 percent

Vanuatu ($56) 23 percent

Seychelles ($112) 21 percent

Jamaica ($1,279) 19 percent

Belize ($112) 15 percent

Costa Rica ($1,002) 7 percent

St. Thomas Carnival to be the largest ever

Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands (ap) The St. Thomas Carnival, celebrating its 50th anniversary in April, is to be the largest ever in the U.S. Virgin Islands, with concerts, boat races, calypso contests, parades and street parties scheduled throughout the month.

The main parades are April 26 and 27.

For decades, the St. Thomas Carnival has been the centerpiece of cultural life in the Virgin Islands, a U.S. territory of 110,000 people. It draws thousands of islanders to events from rowdy all-night street parties to children’s pageants and dances for senior citizens.

Dinosaur exhibit draws large crowds in Taiwan

Taipei, Taiwan (ap) Large crowds of people are flocking to a Taiwan exhibit of dinosaur fossils from China, home to many of the world’s oldest and largest specimens.

The exhibit of 23 dinosaur fossils from the collections of three Chinese fossil museums is the largest of its kind in Asia, says Li Kui, curator of the Museum of Chengdu University of Technology.

The three-month exhibit opened Jan. 26.