Famagusta, Tulips and Bikes, Break on a Beam, Ireland and Ostrava

It's new update time. I have 5 cards for this time. Today's cards come from Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Netherlands, Germany, Ireland and Czech Republic. Let's have a look at the Northern Cyprus card first. It shows some of the Salamis Ruins in Famagusta, a city on the east coast of Cyprus, east of Nicosia. The ruins we see today at Salamis are from the Roman period. The site was first excavated in 1882 and include: the Gymnasium, the Roman baths, the Amphitheatre, the Basilicas and the Forum. This card is from Leslie and she has a wonderful postcard blog called "the postcard blog ! "and you can find it here . The stamp is 1 of 4 issued in 2011 , all showing local politicians.

My next card comes from Almere, a city of about 191,000 people , near Amsterdam. It is a planned city, the youngest city in the Netherlands, the first house was finished in 1976. The postcard is one of the Images of Holland series, a number of which I have shown other times. On this one we are shown a couple of old bikes and a couple of dozen tulips, perhaps been delivered, who knows. The Postcrosser who sent this card lives in Almere but the card is cancelled in Amsterdam. The stamps are from 2010 and are 2 of 3 in a set entitled Business Stamps.

Now , a card posted from Germany. Matthias who lives in Lubbecke sent this non German card along. It is a scene from a famous picture taken in New York City. It's the 11 steelworkers sitting out on the bean having a smoke, and lunch. Not too shabby, are they ? Charles C. Ebbets took the picture and it dates from 1932. Matthias used a 2008 stamp , honouring Stefan Andres.
Now before I go on with another postcard , some thoughts and questions. This card of New York , but from Germany , raises some issues for postcard collectors. I really don't have a problem with it , but maybe others do. What do you think ? Is it okay to send a card if that is a card of another place ? Does the recipient of a card have a right to expect a received card to be from or about the place it was sent from ? I usually try and send a card along the lines of the collecting interests of the person I am sending to. I just recently sent a card showing elephants to a collector in Australia . Now we all know elephants aren't native to Alberta or Canada and my card showed African elephants in the wild. So what do you think ? Right or wrong ? I recently bought over 10,000 postcards covering every province of Canada, every state of the U.S and many, many different countries all over the world. I really think I'll be able to send cards along people's collecting interests but maybe not from my area. What do you think ? I really want to use these cards, there are lots of great cards there. Let me know your thoughts on this as I know you all have an opinion.

Ireland is next. It's just a landscape , side of a hill type view of Ireland. This card is covered with 6 stamps. Five are flower stamps from 2004 and the one on the far right is a hermit crab stamp from 2011.

Today's final card comes from Ostrava. Ostrava is the 3rd largest city in the Czech Republic. It is located near the Polish border at the confluence of 4 rivers, the Ostravice, Oder, Lucina and Opava. Ostrava has a history as an industrial city , but sadly is one of the most polluted in the EU. We see on the card some of the iron and steel works in the city. Simona used a 2010 art srtamp featuring the work of Alfons Mucha.

That about does it for me for this time. Thanks to all who sent cards. Appreciate it . If you have any thought or views on my rant above , let me know. Fill my comments box. Take care.

Three Dale Cards, A Beautiful Plane Card, Olive Grove on Lesbos and My First Postcrossing Stamp

Hello again postcard people. Collectors and collector want to be's. I'm back with another bunch of cards. From reading this update's title , it's another mixed bag. let's get to it.

I want to start with another 3 cards from my brother Dale , all sent from Australia or New Zealand. He's still Down Under. Actually as I write this, I believe he's on a 10 day walkabout in the Outback.
Let's start with this card showing a number of Outback Aussie expressions. My 2 favorites on this card are "Bog in and have some tucker and It's gone walkabout ". "It's ridgie didge " isn't bad, either. Dale posted this card in Adelaide, capital of South Australia and used 1 of 2 stamps in a set commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Australian Korea Diplomatic Relations. The stamps were issued on the 28th of October and are a Joint Issue with Korea. They are a beautiful set of stamps and the Korea set are just as beautiful.

Dale's second card was posted in Hobart, the capital of Tasmania. This card is elf explanatory , it's the Tasmanian devil, himself. This guy's large head and neck allow it to generate the strongest bite per unit body mass of any living mammal. Let's just say, you don't want his jaw chomping down on any part of you . The 3 stamps are from a set of 5 issued late September commemorating the hosting of the Presidents Cup at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in November.

Dale's last card for this time was posted in Wellington, New Zealand. On it we can see some of the architecture ( both old and new ) of Wellington. Top left is the Wellington City Corporation. Top right is Landcorp House. Bottom left is the Bank of New Zealand . Bottom right is the Dominion Farmers Institute. Now the stamp and I have a lot to say about this one. It is a Ross Dependency stamp, 1 of 5 is a Race to the Pole m/s, issued this year. Ross Dependency stamps have been issued by New Zealand postal authorities for use on mail from Scott Base, Antarctica since 1957. The post office at Scott base was closed in 1987 and mail from the base was handled in Christchurch and as a result, the issuing of Ross Dependency stamps ceased. New Zealand Post resumed the issue of stamps inscribed Ross Dependency in 1994 due to local and international demand. Mail from Ross Dependency is now processed by Ross Dependency Agency located at a post office in Christchurch. Members of the public (mostly philatelists) are able to post items bearing Ross Dependency stamps at this office. Mail is cancelled with the inscription "Ross Dependency Agency, Christchurch ." Sadly my stamp doesn't have this inscription for 2 reasons. Firstly, it was posted in Wellington, not Christchurch and secondly, it escaped the post office cancellation completely.

That was a bit of a spiel now wasn't it ?

Here's a card from Russia that will go in my Aircraft on Postcards collection. It's a neat little propeller job equipped with skis for use in winter. Julia, who lives in Rubcovsk, Altaskiy Kray, Russia writes that the city in in the southern region of Siberia , near the Kazakhstan border. Julia used a couple of small definitives from 2008 along with a wonderful aviation stamp. It is 1 of a set of 4 featuring Fighter Planes. A great set, a set I would love to have complete.

My next card comes from Germany, compliments of another Postcrosser. The card doesn't show anything German, but an olive grove on Lesbos, a Greek Island in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It is one of the sunniest islands in the Aegean sea. The stamp is one of those atm type stamps , not my favorite stamp.
Today's final card comes from the Netherlands. I sent Jo a couple of cards of the type that she collected and this one arrived as a thank you. I'm not really sure what the picture on the front is all about. It looks like some sort of pagan ritual been enacted somewhere. Anyway, the stamp is more interesting than the card this time around. It is my first Postcrossing.com stamp. It was issued on October 14 of this year . It is 1 of a set of 6 ( 3 different for Europe mail and 3 different for international mail ) . The stamp features all kinds of traditional postcards strewn about, as is scattered on your doorstep.

As I mentioned it's my first Postcrossing stamp , I hope to receive the others, at least the other 2 international ones , in the weeks to come. I receive quite a few cards from the Netherlands , so I'm hoping.

So ends another report. Thanks to all for their cards. I''ll be back soon, I got the cards, just have to find the time, more Christmas shopping !

Take care. Comments ?

Cards From Perth, Texas, Finland, Portugal, Amsterdam, Pennsylvania, and New York City

Howdy Folks, it's been a while. Almost a week. How come ? Your guess is as good as mind. Maybe I can chalk it up to say, Christmas shopping. Anyway, moving right along, I may not have been active here, but that didn't stop the cards from arriving. I have at least 21 to chose from over the next few days. I have in front of me 7 cards for today, I'm not sure I'll get that many in but it's a nice thought. So on with the cards.

First up is a card from Perth, in Western Australia. Yes, it's another one from Dale. The card gives you a good view of the Perth city skyline from a distance. Dale used a beautiful 2011 4 value m/s
from Australian Antarctic Territory featuring AAT Landscapes ( Icebergs).

Today's second card was posted in Dallas, Texas, USA. On it we can see a Texas Longhorn sitting in a bed of Bluebonnets, the state flower of Texas. KC used the 2009 Grand Teton National Park stamp, which I have showed many times.

Now for a card from Finland. On this one we can see a Steam Engine Museum. The Postcrosser who sent this card used a 2010 stamp featuring the Torronsuo National Park.

Portugal is next with a card from Porto, a northern city and second largest city in Portugal. My lovely Teena and I visited Portugal many moons ago, way back in Feb of 1975. So long ago, that we flew in a Boeing 707. How many of my readers can say they flew on a B 707 ? This card shows what looks to be the train station in Porto but I may be wrong on that and someone will probably correct me. Maybe a city commuter train . The stamp is from a set of 4 issued this year for Universities.
Sriwarni's card from Amsterdam is the next card for today. A little similar to the last card in that it shows a city commuter tram . The stamp is from a 2011 set of 2 issued for the Environment.

A card from Middleburg, Pennsylvania, USA is next. It's a homemade or at least home decorated card done around the stamps theme. The front is a reproduction of a group of worldwide stamps. Even though you can not see all of the back, it is decorated with a number of pre used stamps from the USA. The 3 stamps Julie used for postage on this card include the 2003 American Clock stamp and 2 large Forever stamps from a 2011 m/s of 12 showcasing Industrial Design.
Today's final card is from San Antonio, Texas but it showcases the Rochester, New York skyline on the Genesee River. LilibethJean who hails from New York City used a 2008 Tiffany Lamp stamp and a 2009 Zion National Park stamp to send this card up north to Alberta.
So there another update in the books. Thanks to everyone who sent these cards, because you know, I can't do this without other people's help. Take care.
Comment anyone ?

A Mismash of Cards

It's certainly time for a new update and I've got the cards to prove it. Today's cards come from Serbia, Australia, USA, Canada and Belarus. It will be a mismash of cards with no general theme or train of thought. Here they are.

First up is a somewhat large card showing the Museum of Military Aviation in Belgrade, Serbia. The museum was established in 1957 with the current facility opening in 1989. The museum ranks among ten leading museums of its type in the world. It has over 200 aircraft , rockets, and other aviation related equipment in its collection along with over 20,000 books and 200,000 photographs. The building is quite impressive, a geodesic glass structure. Many aircraft are on display on the grounds of the museum as shown on the card. The card is from Ana who was attending the first PostCrossing meeting held in Belgrade. Ana had the card signed by 6 other Postcrossers who attended. These Postcrossing meetings have been held for a couple of years now and take place periodically just about anywhere. Thanks Ana for this card. The stamp is a 2009 definitive , 1 of 2 in a set.

Card # 2 is from Melbourne, Australia. It's another from the ongoing saga of my brother Dale and his Down Under trip. It's a panoramic view of Melbourne, a former capital of Australia. Dale used a 2011 International rate Christmas stamp on his card.

My next card is another addition to my aircraft on postcards collection. It is a B-2A Stealth Bomber , quite the impressive aircraft and card. This comes from a private swap with Kate who operates a wonderful postcard bog called : deltiolog - a journal of collected postcards and you can see it here . I hope I can swap with Kate again as she has a number of great postcards available. Kate used the 2011 Voyageurs national Park stamp , which I showed on this blog back on Tuesday, Nov 1 2011. Thanks Kate.

Now for a card I mailed to myself. It is an old card showing a very dark and sinister post office. I have started collecting postcards showing post offices so this is a new addition to that collection. However, here is why I posted it to myself. I wanted a postcard with the 11-11-11 postmark date. It's the last time that date combination will be around for quite some time. Luckily it came out pretty clear, with the date reading 2011 - 11 - 11 . Did any of you readers remember to get one of these for yourselves ? Oh yes, the stamp. A 2011 Ginette Reno stamp from the set of 4 Canadian Recording Artists issued back on June 30th. A Permanent rate stamp.


Now we have a postcard picturing a section of the Trans Alaska Pipeline. Built between 1974 and 1977 the 800 mile pipeline carries oil from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska to Valdez, Alaska. The first barrel of oil flowed through the pipeline in 1977 and as of 2010 almost 16 billion barrels of oil have flowed through the line. A rather timely card if I do say so, considering the protests and negotiations , currently underway for the Keystone XL pipeline project to move oil from Alberta to Texas. As I write this the US has just delayed a final decision till sometime late 2013 , well after the next presidential election. Caitlin used 3 stamps, 2 of which are Forever stamps. The American Clock stamp was issued in 2003 while the other 2 are from 2011.

Now, here is today's final card and it comes from Belarus. It shows a page of the Belarusian manuscrift Tetracevangelion from the second half of the 16th century. Natalie used a beautiful Railway Train stamp from 2010 , 1 of 2 in a set along with a flower definitive from 2008. Thank you Natalie.

Thus ends another update. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. See you again soon.
Take care.

Remembrance Day 2011

Today , November 11th is Remembrance Day in Canada . It is a national holiday, so no mail service means no postcards today. Today is a day to commemorate the sacrifices of members of Canada's Armed Forces in times of war. It is observed on November 11 to recall the end of World War I on this date in 1918. Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.

Lest We Forget.

Every year on this date we share a moment of silence to honour the memory of the men and women of Canada's Armed Forces who have given the ultimate sacrifice for our country.In Canada the spirit of remembrance is captured on a commemorative stamp issued in 2009. The stamp features a close-up photograph of Canada's National War Memorial in Ottawa. Red poppies are given prominence on the stamp. Here is the stamp issued by Canada Post , to honour the courage of our soldiers and to remember all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.


Thanks to Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae and his well-known poem, '' In Flanders Fields" the poppy and Remembrance Day are deeply linked in the minds of Canadians.


I also have 2 cards to show that have some meaning today. The first is Canada's National War Memorial , located in the country's capital , Ottawa . It consists of twenty-three bronze figures on a granite pedestal and arch representing all who have served.
The second card gives us a look at The Canadian Memorial in Vimy , France. The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during The Battle of Vimy Ridge. It also serves as the Place of Commemoration for First World War Canadian soldiers killed or presumed dead in France who have no known grave. During The Battle of Vimy Ridge , the Canadian Corps suffered 10,602 casualties : 3598 killed and 7,004 wounded.