Author: Mark Yokoyama

Michael J. Mark

IMG_1088R

Picture of abandoned ship in Simpson Bay with Island Saba in the background.

Everything is returned to the earth and this ship will be returned to the sea.

Symbolizes the pure nature of SXM. You can never take that away.

I love this place.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Luna Valenti

FullSizeRender-4

Tout comme ce panneau indiquant des dizaines de villes internationales, Saint-Martin est un mélange de couleurs, de nations, et de religions.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Unsung Stories of Caribbean Naturalists Come Alive at Book Fair Presentation

Making-Natural-History

Discover the fascinating, largely unknown stories of the incredible women and men who helped to build the scientific heritage of the Caribbean at a special multimedia presentation at the 2016 St. Martin Book Fair. Women, People of Color, and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean, is free and open to the public and will take place from 11am to 12:30pm on Saturday, June 4th at the University of St. Martin.

The presentation was created as part of an ongoing research, writing and outreach project to shine a light on the lost or unsung work of the women and people of color in the study of Caribbean natural history, from the late 1400s to the early 1900s.

“Their historical contributions to science were often hidden, suppressed, or simply not as well publicized as those of their white male contemporaries,” explains presenter Jenn Yerkes, President of Les Fruits de Mer and co-curator of Amuseum Naturalis. “Many of these trailblazers had to fight slavery, racism, and sexism, and risk perilous journeys, pirates, disease, and dangerous wildernesses to do what they loved; their real lives were more epic, adventurous, heartbreaking, and inspiring than any Hollywood movie.”

Anyone are unable to attend the Book Fair presentation can learn more about some of these amazing individuals in the special exhibit currently on display at Amuseum Naturalis in Grand Case. The museum is open to the public from 4-8pm each Thursday and Sunday throughout the month of June.

Club Gaïac: Munich Edition

Frequent Club Gaïac contributor John Speetjens was kind enough to send some images of the Gaïac tree in the botanical garden in Munich. This is the third European specimen he’s spotted in his “heritage uprooted” series. The others were seen in gardens in Amsterdam and Berlin.

Luna Valenti

FullSizeRender-2

Grâce à cette photo on peut remarquer que l’esprit du marché de Saint-Martin n’a pas changé malgré les années qui sont passées.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Claire L’Hostis

IMG_1099

L’héritage de Saint-Martin, c’est aussi sa dernière plage déserte côté français et les fabuleux points de vue quand on se promène sur les sentiers de randonnée qui parcourent l’île

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Corine Pineau

DSC_9272

J’ai pris cette photo lors de la manifestation « ARROW ROOT JOLLIFICATION » à Colombier

Pour moi elle représente bien l’esprit de Saint-Martin car l’esprit c’est ce qui fonde un pays, son histoire, son patrimoine matériel et immatériel. Au premier plan des pierres sèches, marqueurs historiques. Un champ de dictame ou arrow root où des hommes dans leurs diversités, comme autrefois replantent à la main les jeunes pousses témoin de la solidarité saint-martinoise. Les voitures en arrière plan soulignent la modernité pour mieux révéler la tradition.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Hilbert Haar

Je taime

I drove past this spot atop the hill going into Marigot many times and I saw the frame for this picture immediately. Still, it took me weeks before I finally stopped one morning to take the shot. I like the combination of the graffiti and the flamboyant tree; together these elements make a perfect love declaration for the island.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Guy Corbou

IMG_0024

Après une heure de marche sur le chemin rocailleux au milieu des plantes endémiques, arrivée à Petites Cayes, nous sommes seuls tels des Robinsons et là un trésor: les caniques ouvrent leurs gousses et laissent paraître leurs graines semblables à des perles… réserve naturelle oblige: notre moisson sera de photos et d’un sentiment de paix au milieu de cette nature préservée, rythmée par le bruit de l’océan qui vient s’échouer contre le récif corallien…

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Francisco López

under the airplane

Under the plane.-

For me this picture is St Martin. People of different races, of different ages, enjoying together in the water under the iconic presence of an airplane.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Beverly Mae Nisbeth

National bird the Brown Pelican nesting grounds_Fort Amsterdam

For me the spirit of St. Martin are her coastlines, hilltops, lagoons, flora and fauna, and food: from the characteristic coastlines and azure lagoons to virgin hilltops and everything else in between.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Amuseum Naturalis Reopens in Grand Case

DSC_0035

Get ready, nature lovers: Amuseum Naturalis, a free pop-up natural history museum in Grand Case is reopening. The museum will open May 28th and 29th during the Fête de la Mer and throughout the month of June on Sunday and Thursday evenings from 4-8pm. School classes and youth groups can also contact Les Fruits de Mer to arrange daytime visits by appointment.

“The big crowds visiting the museum during Mardis de Grand Case were fantastic,” commented Les Fruits de Mer President Jenn Yerkes, “We’re also excited to have the museum open during a quieter period to share it with local residents, especially kids.”

The museum currently features ten exhibits on a variety of natural history subjects, from freshwater ecosystems to invasive species. A special exhibit, Women, People of Color and the Making of Natural History in the Caribbean will be on display through June. A variety of short, locally-produced nature documentaries will be shown in the museum theater.

Visitors are encouraged to make their own contributions during their visit to the museum. Whenever the museum is open, visitors can stop by to tell a story about their experience of St. Martin—history, traditional life, recollections about wildlife or any topic—which will be recorded as part of a project to document life on St. Martin.

The public is invited to visit Amuseum Naturalis and explore the exhibits Sunday and Thursday evenings from 4-8pm throughout the month of June. Amuseum Naturalis is located at 96 Boulevard de Grand Case, and was created by the non-profit association Les Fruits de Mer and sponsored by Delta Petroleum. For the latest information about exhibits and special events, visit http://amuseumnaturalis.com.

Jay Haviser

SB bridge Jan 17 008

Archaeology at the Old Simpson Bay bridge, emerging from beneath the surface of the earth, our heritage reveals the lives of those before us.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.

Francisco López

serenity

Serenity.-

I can see the spirit of St. Martin from the blue sky, the green of the sea and a young man walking towards the future with high and serene look.

This is an entry in the 2016 Heritage Photo Contest. View all the entries in the online gallery, learn more and find out how to enter here.