3112, 3275 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) / THAILAND - A Thai spot in Gustavia

3275

Posted on 16.07.2017, 30.11.2019
Located right in the heart of Gustavia, the main town and capital of the island of Saint Barthélemy, the restaurant Black Ginger serves authentic Thai cuisine, concocted by a trio of Thai chef. Its unique interior courtyard opens on the starry sky, matched only by its contemporary design combining a palette of red and black colors, max domes spreading a soft light,and minimalist furniture, including Charles Eames chairs.

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The walls are decorated with photographic portraits by Serge Anton, French-Belgian photographer and designer. His collaboration with prestigious magazines around the world, as well as its exhibitions and books, and not least his accomplishments of permanent photographic installations for various restaurants and hotels, earned him international recognition. The portraits from the postcards were realised in Thailand in 2014.

3182 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Colombier Beach

Located in the northwestern part of the island, Colombier Beach is a secluded beach - an entire bay area only accessible by boat or foot. It is a lovely white sand beach lined with vegetation, and the only building which can be seen from there is the home of billionaire David Rockefeller, origin of the development of a high-end tourism in Saint-Bartholomew. L'Anse de Colombier is now part of the natural marine reserve of Saint Barthemlemy.

3151 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Islets at sunset

Around the Saint Barthélemy island are several small satellite islets, generally rocky, uninhabited. Some of them are part of a marine nature reserve that covers 1.200 ha, and is divided into 5 zones all around the island to form a network of protected areas, established with the objective of conserving coral reefs, sea grass beds and marine life.

3140 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - St Barths Bucket Regatta

3140 The yacht Parsifal III during St Barths Bucket Regatta 

Gustavia, the main town and capital of the island of Saint Barthélemy, is known as a haven for yachting, with many events being held there each year. One of the most important is St Barths Bucket Regatta, which is taking place every year over three days, usually in the month of March. It is open to cruising yachts whose length is 30.5m (100ft) or greater. The first regatta in St Barths itself was held in 1995 with four yachts; ten years later, 26 boats competed in the race, and in 2017 no less then 38.

1994, 1995 FRANCE (Saint Martin) - Pinel Island

1995 Pinel Island (1)

Posted on 28.10.2015, 21.08.2017
Pinel Island is located near the northeastern coast of Saint Martin, in Orient Bay, and, although it is subject to Atlantic Ocean waves on its Eastern side, the Western side is unusually protected where it faces the shallow bay. It is often called Saint Martin's best kept secret and has always been popular with locals. There are beautiful sandy beaches on the island and it is also worth to take some hiking shoes and hike to the two deserted beaches on the opposite side. The main beach is not clothes optional.

1995 Pinel Island (2)

1995-1

1995-2

The island is also considered one of the best snorkeling locations in Saint Martin and a paradise for kayakers and Standup Paddle board lovers. The entire area is part of the Marine Reserve. There are three restaurants on the island, the Le Karabuni, specialised in lobster, the Yellow Beach restaurant, who have a BBQ, and Up on the Key.

1935-1939, 2670, 3115 SAINT MARTIN - The map of the island and the flags of Saint Martin (France) and of Sint Maartin (Netherlands)

1935 The map of Saint Martin Island (1)

Posted on 04.10.2015, 30.07.2016, 29.07.2017
Located in the northeast Caribbean, between Anguilla and Saint Barthélemy, Saint Martin is the smallest inhabited sea island divided between two nations, respectively between France (60%) and the Kingdom of the Netherlands (40%). The southern Dutch part comprises Sint Maarten and is one of four constituent countries that form the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the northern French part comprises the Collectivité de Saint-Martin and is an overseas collectivity of France.

1936 The map of Saint Martin Island (2)

The main cities are Philipsburg (Dutch side) and Marigot (French side). The Dutch side is more heavily populated, and the largest settlement on the entire island is Lower Prince's Quarter. The highest hilltop is the Pic Paradis (424m) in the center of a hill chain on the French side, but both sides are hilly with large mountain peaks. This forms a valley where many houses are located. There are no rivers on the island, but many dry guts. It has a tropical monsoon climate with a dry season from January to April and a rainy season from August to December.

1937 The map of Saint Martin Island (3)

Ancient relics date the island's first settlers, probably Ciboney Indians (a subgroup of Arawaks), back to 3,500 years ago. Their lives were turned upside-down with the descent of the Carib Indians, a warrior nation which killed the Arawak men and enslaved the women. In 1493 Christopher Columbus glimpsed the island and named it Isla de San Martín after Saint Martin of Tours because it was November 11, St. Martin Day, but Spain made the settlement of the island a low priority.

2670 The map of Saint Martin Island (4)

Instead, the French and Dutch coveted the island. While the French wanted to colonize the islands between Trinidad and Bermuda, the Dutch found San Martín a convenient halfway point between their colonies in New Amsterdam (present day New York) and Brazil. The Dutch, French and British founded settlements on the island. In 1633 Spanish forces captured Saint Martin from the Dutch, but in 1648 they deserted the island. Preferring to avoid an war, the French and Dutch signed in the same year the Treaty of Concordia, which divided the island in two, as it is now.

3115 The map of Saint Martin Island (5)

With the cultivation of cotton, tobacco, and sugar, mass numbers of slaves were imported to work on the plantations, until the slave population became larger than that of the land owners. After abolition of slavery in the first half of the 19th century, plantation culture declined and the island's economy suffered. In 1939, Saint Martin received a major boost when it was declared a duty-free port. The Dutch began focusing on tourism in the 1950s. The French needed another twenty years to start developing their tourism industry.

1938 Saint Martin - The border monument which celebrates
the peaceful coexistence of the French and Dutch on St. Martin (1)

Currently, tourism provides the backbone of the economy for both sides of the island. St. Martin's Dutch side is known for its festive nightlife, beaches, jewellery, drinks made with native rum-based guavaberry liquors, and casinos. The island's French side is known for its nude beaches, clothes, shopping (including outdoor markets), and French and Indian Caribbean cuisine. Because the island is located along the intertropical convergence zone, it is occasionally threatened by tropical storm activity in the late summer and early fall.

1938 Saint Martin - The border monument which celebrates
the peaceful coexistence of the French and Dutch on St. Martin (2)

The culture of Saint Martin is a blend of its African, French, British, and Dutch heritage. Although each side's culture is influenced by their respective administering countries, they share enough similar heritage and traditions that it can be difficult to tell where Saint-Martin ends and Sint Maarten begins. Nowadays, the number of Creoles has been surpassed by the number of immigrants, and the island's population is truly a melting pot of people from 70 or more different countries.

2780, 2784, 2798 FRANCE (Saint Martin) - Caribbean cuisine

2780 Accras de morue (cod fritters)

Posted on 27.09.2016, 30.09.2016, 04.10.2016
Caribbean cuisine is the simple result, without artifice, of an osmosis of all the peoples who made a stopover in this region, a fusion of African, Amerindian, European, East Indian, Arab and Chinese cuisine, which reflects the way of being and living of a people, but also its history. Accras de morue (cod fritters), also known as marinade of the West Indies, a denomination little used now to avoid confusion with the marinade of French cuisine, are of African origin. In the Ewe language, the word means vegetable fritters. In the form of small donuts, they are usually served as a mise en bouche, as appetizer, or as entrée

2784 Chaudeau

The chaudeau is a kind of eggnog in the Caribbean style, and is a specialty of Guadeloupe. It consist in a mixture of egg, milk, vanilla, lime, nutmeg... It is served at weddings, communions and baptisms. It comes with a cake: sweetbread or Mont Blanc. Traditionally, by belief (some think that it is a sign of misfires), must not, for instance, have other preparations on fire. The woman who prepares it, had not be prepared should not be during menstruation. It is served warm or even hot.

2798 Blanc-manger coco

Blanc-manger coco (literally "white dish”) is one of the lightest, creamiest and most delicious dessert that you will encounter in French Caribbean countries. The main ingredients are regular (dairy) milk as well as coconut milk, sweetened a bit, combined together with gelatine and then refrigerated to obtain a jelly-like cake or elegant individual verrines. No baking required. A light and fresh dessert for the hot summer days.

2687, 2722, 2789 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Gustavia

2687  Saint Barthélemy - Gustavia (1)

Posted on 16.08.2016, 30.08.2016, 01.10.2016
Shaped like a horseshoe around a small, sheltered harbor, and named after King Gustav III of Sweden, Gustavia is the main town and capital of the island of Saint Barthélemy. The eventual site of Gustavia was first called Le Carénage after the shelter it provided to damaged ships. According to the archives the name Gustavia appeared between December 28, 1786 and February 9, 1787. Gustavia remains as a reflection of the Swedish period (1784-1878).

2722  Saint Barthélemy - Gustavia (2)

Three forts built in the mid- to late 17th century protected the harbour: Oscar (formerly Gustav Adolf), Karl and Gustav. The sites of Fort Karl, overlooking Shell Beach south of town, and Fort Gustav (built in 1787), at the base of the lighthouse to the north, are popular with hikers. Fort Oscar, at the tip of Gustavia Peninsula, houses the Gendarmerie. There is a museum at the end of Victor Schoelcher Road on the peninsula.

2789  Saint Barthélemy - View of Gustavia, and Gustavia lighthouse

Gustavia has many high-end boutiques that are an essential source of revenue for the island, and one of the most high class luxury hotels on the island. Built in 1961, atop a hill at the site of historic Fort Gustave overlooking Gustavia harbor, Gustavia lighthouse is a 9m round conical tower painted white with a single red band at the top. The lantern has been removed and is on display at the Musée Municipal de St.-Barthélemy in Gustavia.

2774 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - The flamboyant tree

Flamboyant tree or Royal poinciana (Delonix regia) is a species of flowering plant in the bean family Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae, noted for its fern-like leaves and flamboyant display of flowers. It is endemic to the Madagascar's dry deciduous forests but has been introduced into tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. In the wild it is endangered, but it is widely cultivated elsewhere. In many tropical parts of the world it is grown as an ornamental tree.

2767 FRANCE (Saint Martin) - A coconut tree

The coconut tree (Cocos nucifera) is a member of the family Arecaceae (palm family) and the only species of the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit. The term is derived from the 16th-century Portuguese and Spanish word coco meaning "head" or "skull", from the three indentations on the coconut shell that resemble facial features. It is a large palm, growing up to 30m tall, with pinnate leaves 4-6m long, and pinnae 60-90cm long. On fertile soil, it can yield up to 75 fruits per year, but more often yields less than 30.

2763 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Saint-Jean

Saint-Jean is a quartier located in the northern part of the island. It contains one of the best known beaches on the island and is the centre of water sport activity. This popular neighbourhood also comprises the second largest shopping area on the island. Some of the islands most magnificent villas, hotels, and restaurants can also be found in this city. In the hills, luxury hotels and pretty villas are hidden in the tropical vegetation and a profusion of colourful flowers.

2757 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Lesser Antillean Iguana

The Lesser Antillean iguana (Iguana delicatissima) is a large arboreal lizard endemic to the Lesser Antilles. It is one of two species of lizard of the genus Iguana and is in severe decline due to habitat destruction, feral predators, hunting, and hybridization with its sister species the Green Iguana. Another common name for it is the West Indian iguana, though this is more commonly used for species of the genus Cyclura. The species was first officially described by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in 1768.

2753 FRANCE (Saint Barthélemy) - Gustaf III Airport

Gustaf III Airport, also known as St. Jean Airport, because is located in the village of St. Jean, was named for King Gustav III of Sweden, under whom Sweden obtained the island from France in 1784 (it was sold back to France in 1878). In 1984, Swedish Minister of Communications, Hans Gustafsson, inaugurated the terminal building. Most visiting aircraft carry fewer than twenty passengers, such as the Twin Otter, a common sight throughout the northern West Indies and as a curiosum, the Canadian-built de Havilland Dash 7 is the largest aircraft ever allowed to operate this airport.