Goalie Art, Folies Bergere , AOM DC-10 and St Michaels Church

BLOG # 1518

Today`s a good day to blog. The weather sucks. Yesterday the temperature was 20 and the three previous days 18, 15, and 13. With not a bit of snow anywhere in sight. Yesterday it was shorts and sandals weather, today not. Today it`s winter all over again. The temperature is -2 and snowing , we expect 10 -15 cm of snow. So no shorts today.  Now it`s on to postcards. 

I have 4 cards for today. They arrived from Czech Rep, Germany and 2 from France.  Czech Rep is up first. 

I really like this card. Maybe  it`s because I live in Canada and like hockey. It is our national pastime after all. The art on this card is great. It`s from the TakeTakeTake Publishing House in Prague, run by Nikola Klimova and Jindrich Janicek. One is a graphic designer and the other an illustrator. So it`s a fair guess the card was designed by them and the artwork is by them. The subject of the card is Corey Crawford, a Canadian goaltender who played his entire career of ten years with the Chicago Black Hawkes. He played in 488 games  and won 260 of them, 26 of which were shutouts. 

Rob, who I`ve just recently starting swapping with sent this card along. In addition to the stamps used, I am also showing art work on the reverse of the card. It is by Rob himself. It`s pretty good too. It`s a drawing of former Calgary Flames ( he just got traded ) goaltender David Rittich stopping a puck shot by Jason Spezza of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Big Save Dave as he was know was a favourite of mine on the Flames. And now for the stamps. The top three are sports related and the smaller one is a definitive. The top left stamd was issued in 2015 for the IIHF Championship. The middle stamp, from 1998, was issued for the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympic Games. The top right stamp is a personalized  stamp issued  in 2014 showing Karel Kozeluh, a Czech Rep tennis player, footballer and hockey player. The Orange Tip Butterfly definitive is from 2021. 

My second card is an advertisement for the Folies Bergere, a cabaret music hall in Paris. It opened on 2 May 1869. The card advertises a show by Helene Martini, a Polish born French striptease artist. She had a number of nicknames including `The Countess ` and the  `Empress of the Night `.

At some point she ended up owning the Folies Bergere and only sold it in 2011. She died in 2017. 

Lots of famous performers entertained at the Folies Bergere including Josephine Baker, Maurice Chevalier, Ella Fitzgerald, Edith Piaf and Ginger Rogers. 

A Postcrosser named Dominique sent this card along. It`s not the Dominique that contributes most often to this blog, but another. This Dominique used a 2021 stamp commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Charlie Chaplin`s Movie `The Kid `.

Card # 3 - A lovely AOM DC-10 aircraft. AOM French Airlines was the second largest airline in France from 1990 until 2001. AOM was the result of a merger of Air Outre Mer and Air Minerve. Then on 25 March 2001 AOM French Airlines merged with Air Lib.

 The DC-10 on the card was registered as F-GNEM and first flew with Air Afrique, then Thai Airways, and Cubana. Its first service with AOM French Airlines was in 1992. From  2001 to 2004  it flew for Air Lib . Then it was stored and finally scrapped in 2008. 

Jean Pierre used a recent Marianne definitive and a 2020 stamp commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the French Tennis Association.

The last card for this time is from Germany and it was sent by a 10 year old Postcrosser named Alexander. His card shows St Michaels Church in Oberjosbach, which is part of Niedernhausen. 

 

Alexander used a Flower definitive along with a stamp from 2019, showing an Emoji. 

And so it goes. another update complete. Thanks for reading . For these cards I send thanks out to Rob, Dominique, Jean Pierre and Alexander. 

Final words for today :

Wear a mask, wash your hands, keep your distance and get a vaccine when you can. 

 

Just For You Jobbo

 BLOG # 1517

Hey . Well today`s blog is a short one, just a single card. As the title above indicates , this one is for Jobbo as I`ve been told he likes just a single card blog. So here it is, but don`t get too use to it Jobbo. It won`t happen too often. Today`s card is from Singapore and it`s a look at the Singapore downtown central business district skyline. On the left you can see Marina Bay Sands and Skypark. On the right is the Singapore Flyer. 

Jobbo used a number of stamps, all from 2020. The top stamp and the bottom stamp are 2 of 5 in a set of Singapore Mascots. The middle stamp, 1 of 4 in a minisheet , is from a set called We Care. 

Well there it is. Thanks Jobbo for this card. 

Covid is still among us so....... Wash your hands, wear a mask, keep you distance and get a vaccine if you can. 

Monaco Grand Prix, Aeropostale, a Pin-up and ``I Miss You ``

BLOG # 1516

Hello once again .  It's postcard time , so let's get right to it. 

My cards today are from Monaco, Canada, Czech Rep and France. Monaco you're up first. 

Monaco - 17 April 1932 . What is this date ?  The 1932 Monaco Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at the Circuit de Monaco on 17 April 1932. Tazio Nuvolari , driving for the Alfa Romeo team, won the race by just 2.8 seconds over Rudolf Caracciola, also driving an Alfa Romeo. Third place went to Luigi Fagioli driving a Maserati. The fastest lap of the race was the 19th lap by Achille Varzi driving a Bugatti. His lap time was 2.02 minutes. Compare that time with the fastest lap in 2019. It was 1.14 minutes on lap 72 by Pierre Gasly in a Red Bull Honda. 

 

Jean Pierre used 2 stamps on his card and they received a great, clear, circular cancel. Something we all hope for our cards. The left stamp was issued in 2017 and is 1 of 2 showing Legendary Race Cars. The right stamp, is the 2015 Christmas stamp.

Card 2 is another of the free postpaid cards sent out by Canada Post to all Canadians to send to anyone in Canada. This one is from my sister Nina in St. John's , Newfoundland. It is the I Miss You theme card. 

They all had the same postage paid Canadian Flag stamp.

My next card , from the Czech Rep, is a bit of a pin-up card by,  who many say is the best Czech comic illustrator , Kaja Saudek. The picture is from 1966. 

Rob used a nice assortment of stamps on this card. this is a first swap with Rob, hopefully there will be others.  The large stamp on the left  is 1 of 2 issued in 2017 showing Paintings as Works of Art on Stamps. The large stamp on the right is from 2019 and features a sculptor by Ladislav Saloun called " Touch of Fate II " . The A rate Flowers in Wine stamp was issued in 2014. Those are labels on both sides of this last stamp.

The last card for today is from France and a Aircraft themed stamp, so that's a good way to end. It shows a small plane flying over a part of a map showing a route from France to South America via Dakar, in Africa. Aeropostale was a pioneering aviation company which operated from 1918 to 1933. It was founded in Toulouse, France. Its first route was between Toulouse and Barcelona. Later service was extended to Casablanca, Rio and Natal, Paraguay, Santiago and Tierra del Fuego. 

This is a postage prepaid card from La Poste and the postage shown is an exact picture of the card . Very nice  !

  

Now the end has come and I have to send thanks out to Jean Pierre, my sister Nina, Rob and Dominique. Wonderful cards for sure. 

We are well into the 3rd wave of covid here in Alberta and in Canada so ......

Wear a mask, wash your hands and keep your distance. I have my first vaccine but of course I still have to do and take these precautions. 

Dassault Mercure, a Digital Stamp and Minerve

 BLOG # 1515  -- In The Time Of Covid

Hey folks, today I have three cards to show. Two from France and one from Germany.

 I'll start with a card from France. It's an Airlines / Aircraft card so that's a great way to start. Here we have an Air Inter Dassault Mercure 100, registered as F-BTTJ.  Air Inter was a French domestic airline. It was founded in Nov 1954 and merged with Air France in Apr 1997. Air Inter was the launch customer for the Dassault Mercure. The aircraft entered airline service with Air Inter on June 4, 1974. The Mercure was a twin engined narrow body jet airliner. It had its first flight on 28 May 1971 and its last on 29 April 1995. Only 12 of these aircraft were built. 

F-BTTJ was preserved at the Musee Delta in Athis-Mons, near Paris-Orly Airport. It was cut up during 2018, the forward fuselage is now at Piet Smedts in Baarlo, the Netherlands, while a major portion of the  upper fuselage is in use as a tunnel at a paintball center near Uden, the Netherlands. 

Here she is in her heyday.

 Now here she is as is today.

and here as a tunnel

Such a sad ending to a once glorious machine !

Jean Pierre used a Marianne definitive along with a stamp from last year. It is 1 of 12 in a booklet labelled My Spectacular Stamps.

Next up is the German card. A lovely stamp themed card. It's like a veritable stamp collection on one card. I see stamps from the Netherlands, Indonesia, Egypt, Russia, Canada, U.S.A. ,Germany, Poland, Great Britain, Australia , Hong Kong and Uruguay. Who needs a big heavy album.

Isa used two stamps on her card. On the left an often seen Flower definitive. The other stamp, on the right , is an interesting stamp. It was issued in Feb to showcase a Digital change in German stamps. It has a QR style tracking code which will allow the sender to track the card or letter as it travels to its destination. Not sure if it will work internationally, probably not.  These codes will be featured on all German stamps in 2022. 

Time now for the final card for this time. It's a look at Minerve, a commune in southern France. As of Jan 2018 , its population was 112. The history of the village goes back a long way. In 1210 it was the site of a ten week siege by Simon de Montfort during the Cathar Crusades. The surrender after led to 180 Cathars getting burned at the stake. 

The village is now the capital of the Minervois wine region and has been known as one of the Most Beautiful Villages in France. 

  

Dominique used a semi-postal stamp from 1972. It was 1 of 2 issued to support the Red Cross. 

With that, I'm done for today. Thanks for today's card go to Jean Pierre , Isa and Dominique.  

Take care all and stay safe.

Wash your hands, wear a mask and keep your distance. 

Ghana and Air Inter

 BLOG # 1514

Well it's April, it's Easter Sunday , so Happy Easter to all that celebrate and if you don't, have a great day anyway. Who would have thought last Easter  that this Easter we'd still be in the midst of the pandemic ? Not me, I kind of thought we'd be free and clear by now. A lot of life is passing us by it seems. 

I only have two cards for this time. The last mail here in Canada was back on Thursday and the next mail won't be until Tuesday. So two cards it is. They arrived from France and Ghana. I'll do the France card first. It is the latest addition to my Airlines / Aircraft postcard collection. Jean Pierre's card shows an Air Inter Airbus A321. A321s first flew in Feb of 1993 and entered service with Lufthansa in Jan of 1994. The one on the card, F-GMZA is 26.8 years old. It  flew with Air Inter from Jun 1994 until Sep 1997. It then saw service with Air France from Sep 1997 until Oct 2020. It has been stored since then. 

Jean Pierre used two stamps on his card. On the left, from 2020, a stamp issued to highlight Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue, a commune in Manche department. On the right, a Marianne definitive from 2018.

 Now for the card from Ghana.  Josep & Assumpta from Catalonia in Spain  arranged this through Prince and Princess Academy in Ghana.  Damba Festival is celebrated by the tribal groups of Muslim origin in Northern Ghana. It's celebrated by the chiefs and people of Dagbon, Gonjas, Mamprusi, Nanumbas and the Walas. It is a festival to remember the birthday of the Holy Prophet Mohammed. There is a lot of singing, dancing, drumming and merry making on the day. 

The Academy staff used 2 different stamps on this card. The left stamp was issued in 2010. It's part of a set of 4 issued for the National U-20 Football Team - the Black Satellites. The smaller stamps are part of a set of 10 issued in 2012 showing Fruits and Vegetables. 

That's all she wrote for today. Thank you to Jean Pierre and Josep & Assumpta for their cards. 

It'll be a couple of days before I'm back here again as these were the last two cards on my desk. I'll see you again in a couple of days.  

Be sure and take part in my postcard challenge. Read about it in my Blog # 1509 back on March 23rd. I took part, Sara and Gerda are taking part and My Lovely Teena took part. You can too, it only takes a postcard and a stamp. It you take part, leave a comment and let me know. 

You know what's next --- wear a mask, wash you hands and keep your distance.  

 

A Wooden Postcard, Lake Minnewanka and a I Miss You Card

 BLOG # 1513

Yes it's me, getting one last update in before March fades away. I have three cards to start, all sent to me by My Lovely Teena. The first one is one of those wooden cards and it's made responsibly with sustainable birch. It's a look at Chateau Lake Louise as seen from out on Lake Louise. I haven't yet canoed Lake Louise but I have skated on it in winter. 

Teena used 1 of 12 stamps issued Jan 15 of this year for the Lunar New Year Cycle. 

The second card is a look at Lake Minnewanka , in the Rockies , dated around the late 1880s. Lake Minnewanka is a glacial lake located about 5 km northeast of Banff. The lake is the largest body of water in Banff National Park. It is 21 km long and 142m deep. Minnewanka means " Water of the Spirits " in the Nakoda language of the First Nations. Boat tours of the lake are available and I had that pleasure a number of years ago. 

Teena used a beautiful stamp from the recent Snow Mammals set. It shows a Peary Caribou. 

Teena's third card is one of those free cards I mentioned in Blog # 1511. Every postal address in Canada received at least one free postpaid postcard to keep in contact with someone during this pandemic. Teena decided to send hers to me. 

Here's the prepaid postage.

That's all for today and for March. Thank you Teena for all 3 cards. 

Take care all and wash your hands, wear a mask and keep your distance.

Card # 6000

 BLOG # 1512

Hello again. I have just one card for this time. And, as you can see by the above title , it's a special one. It is card # 6000 of my collection. 6000 cards - I would never have believed that , back in 2006 when I first started this gig. 6000 cards in 15 years, that works out to 400 cards per year. Unbelievable. 2966 cards are from participation in Postcrossing and 3044 from other sources - many of them from you readers. 

Now if you find that unbelievable , you're going to find the sender of this card unbelievable too. It is from My Lovely Teena. It really is true. I know, I know what you're thinking , but all I can say is think again. Teena mailed this card to me on March 19th and it arrived today, March 30th. 

This is a beautiful 3D card of a majestic bison in the snow in the Canadian Rockies. Bison have recently been reintroduced in Banff Park after an absence of over a century. Best of all, they seem to be thriving. 

  As I mentioned Teena posted this card on the 19th of this month at the East Airdrie RPO. It received a great postmark / cancellation. She used the Arctic Fox stamp from the new Snow Mammals set of 5 issued on February 16th of this year. 

  Wow, that was fast, one card and I'm done. 

Thank you Teena for this card, I'm sure you didn't know when you sent it , that it was going to be # 6000 .

Take care everyone, before I go though, just wanted to remind my readers of the Postcard Challenge that I issued in my blog on March 23rd. I just wonder how many decided to take part. I know I have and I know Sara has, she left a comment for me. Go back and check it out , it's for a good cause. You'll be helping out a bunch of 6th grade students learn about the world. 

Don't forget now - wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance.  W will get over this - when is the only question.