Another Couple of Postcards

My first postcard today is from Finland. It was sent by a fellow Postcrosser. The front of the card shows Moomin characters. The Moomins are the central characters in a series of books and a comic strip by Finnish writer Tove Jansson. Most interesting about this card is the stamp used. In Finland one can order stamps from the post office using your own digital pictures. And, this is just what the sender of the card has done. She calls it a special stamp and I guess to her it is really that. The stamp shows a picture of the senders son when just a few months old. The stamp is also special in that only 48 were produced and I am lucky enough to have received one of them. So in that sense , I guess one can call it somewhat of a rare stamp.

The other card for today is one received from Taiwan, Republic of China. It was sent by another Postcrosser, Katy. The card shows an evening scene from Jiufen. Jiufen is a mountain town in the Rueifang Township of Taipei County, near Keelung, Taiwan. Katy used 2 different stamps . The stamp on the right was issued in 2001 and is 1 of a set of 4 , showing flowers. It reads from Republic of China. The 2nd stamp , on the left was issued in 2007 and is 1 of a set of 4 again featuring flowers. This stamp has just Taiwan on it . This is my first stamp from Taiwan , with just Taiwan showing , without Republic of China. I have been hoping to receive such a stamp for sometime now, and have finally succeeded.

Be sure to tune in again tomorrow for more wonderful postcards from around the world.

Just A Couple of Postcards

Today I just want to show a couple of postcards that arrived yesterday. The first card is from Sri Lanka. It was sent by Aravinda Jayasundara of Maspotha. As the postcard says, Sri lanka , a Land Like No Other, is an island nation in South Asia, located 31 kilometres off the southern coast of India. It is home to around twenty million people and is often referred to as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. Aravinda used 2 each of 2 different stamps. The 2 large vertical stamps are from 2008 and mark 60 years of Peace through dignified Freedom from the British after peaceful negotiations in 1948. The other 2 square stamps are from 2007 and commemorate Muthiah Muralidaran , the highest wicket taker in test cricket.

The vertical postcard shown is from Taiwan, Republic of China. It was sent by Sarah, who goes by the handle of So Crazy Sarah.

My last card today is from The People's Republic of China. It was sent by Zhou Fan. It is a prestamped postcard to which Zhou Fan added two extra , nice stamps showing birds.

As always, have fun with your postcards, covers and stamps.

Montserrat , New Country #179

It's been a while since my last blog entry. I have been a little busy with a couple of personal things, plus Easter and the fact that there wasn't any mail delivery on Friday or Monday. Just one card to show you today. It is from Montserrat, W.I. and is new country #179 of my collection. The card was sent by Ester of The Montserrat Tourist Board. It shows hikers hiking through Montserrat's Rainforest. Thank you Ester. The stamp on the card is the $2.25 value of a set of 16 definitives issued in 2007 featuring flowers. The flower on this stamp is the Hibiscus. The card was posted from Brades on Feb. 29, 2008, another Leap year card.
Montserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Montserrat was given its name by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the New World in 1493, after its namesake, the Mountain of Montserrat, in Catalonia, Spain.
Montserrat's capital city of Plymouth was destroyed and two-thirds of the island's population was forced to flee abroad by an eruption of the previously dormant Soufriere Hills volcano that began on July 18, 1995. Brades, from which this postcard was mailed, is now the de facto capital of Montserrat, with Plymouth abandoned since 1997 due to the eruption of the volcano.

More tomorrow, so be sure to tune in.

Postcards and Stamps

First today, I want to show a card from Norway. I haven't received very many cards from Norway, maybe just 2 or 3. This card , I received through Postcrossing. It was sent from Stavanger by La and Joey. They used a wonderful set of 4 Norway stamps , that were issued in 2007 and feature marine life in that area. A wonderful set of stamps. Thanks guys.
Even though this blog is about postcards, I do sometimes receive a cover or two. Such is the case today. I received a cover from China (Peoples Republic). It was sent by Igor Adolph , who just happens to be in Ningbo, China , at the present time. Igor's blog is at http://webmastermarkt.blogspot.com . Give him a look. He was in Hong Kong last week and sent me a postcard from there also. Thanks Igor. Back to the cover. I am just showing the stamps on the cover at this time. It is a pre-stamped cover to which Igor added two extra stamps. The pre-stamped value is just 5 fen , while the added stamps are 120 fen each. The top stamp was issued 19June 2007 and is 1 of a set of 3 showing Wudalianchi Lake. The Bottom stamp , issued 20May 2007 , honors Tongji University.
Finally, I want to close with a couple of funny cards , at least to some and certainly me. The card with the woolen socks is from Finland, sent by Henna , another Postcrosser. The last card with the ladies underwear was sent by Marsaine of Germany.
Have fun with your postcards, stamps and covers.

A FDC Card and A UNESCO Card

I have a couple of cards to mention today. One arrived yesterday from Caen France, sent by Stephane Cotard and two others arrived today, from Germany and Finland. I will show the French and German cards only. The card from France has 2 stamps issued 01March2008 and is therefore a FDC.The card has 2 special FDC postmarks showing the character Droopy.
The front of the postcard shows two pictures of Pegasus Bridge , one from 1944 and the other from 1993. Pegasus Bridge is located over the Caen Canal near Ouistreham, France. The bridge, also known as Benouville Bridge, after the neighbouring village, was a major objective of Operation Tonga. On the night of 5/6 June 1944, a force of 181 men landed in gliders to capture Pegasus Bridge. The object of this action was to prevent German armour from crossing the bridge and attacking the eastern flank of the landings at Sword Beach. After landing at 16 minutes past midnight, the attackers poured out of their gliders , completely surprising the German defenders , taking the bridge in 10 minutes. The events around Pegasus Bridge are depicted in the movie The Longest Day. The name Pegasus is derived from the shoulder emblem worn by the attacking British, which is the flying horse Pegasus. The bridge pictured was in use until 1993 when a replacement bridge was constructed. The original bridge has been preserved on the grounds of a museum located in the town of Ranville.

The other card shown pictures Regensburg, Germany. Regensburg , a city in Eastern Bavaria, has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 13July2006. The card shows St. Peter's Cathedral and also the Stone Bridge , over the Danube. This card was sent by Ingrid, a fellow Postcrosser. She used a very nice stamp honoring Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002). The stamp is part of a joint issue with Sweden. Lindgren was a Swedish children's book author and is today remembered for writing the Pippi Longstocking stories.

That's all for this time.

Trinidad & Tobago Postcard

Today, Monday, I received 2 postcards in the mail. One was from Finland, sent by Postcrosser Lilian. The other was from Trinidad and Tobago and was a result of my participation in The Postcard Exchange . My highlighted card today is the Trinidad & Tobago card, sent by Salisha. It shows Angel Reef, just off Speyside on the island of Tobago. According to Salisha, Speyside is one of the most popular beaches in Tobago. It is also where the Brain Coral is among the largest in the world. Trinidad and Tobago is located in the southern Caribbean lying Northeast of Venezuela and South of Grenada. It's capital is Port of Spain. The country covers an area of 5128 square kilometers. Unlike most of the Caribbean, the country is a primarily industrialised country whose economy is based on petroleum and petrochemicals.

The stamp that Salisha used is one of a set of 9 definitives , showing historical buildings . It was issued 14 Dec 2007. As a stamp collector, I must note that unfortunately it has some damage on the upper right corner. As a postcard collector, I realize that it completed its job , as the postcard has arrived. This particular stamp shows Hayes Court, the Anglican Bishop's Residence. It was completed in 1910 and named after the saintly and gifted Bishop Thomas Hayes, who was the second Bishop of The Anglican Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago. Architecturally , Hayes Court reflects a combination of the quiet graciousness of the French and English country house design, with its high ceilings, mahogany staircase, wrought-iron work and wood panelling.

All things aside, Trinidad and Tobago would be a great place to be now for a week or so. It would take the edge of Winter just fine. Oh well, it doesn't hurt to dream.

More tomorrow, hopefully.

Postcard From Hong Kong

Postcards have been a little scarce this past week. I received one card on Thursday and one card on Friday. I am highlighting the card I got on Thursday. It is a card from Hong Kong, China, however it was sent by Igor Adolph of Germany. The card shows a very large JAL aircraft flying over Kowloon City on its way to the old Kai Tak Airport. From the picture, I can imagine the dishes shaking in the cupboards. Kai Tak operated for 73 years from 1925-1998. The photo on the card was taken by Edmond Chan.
Igor used a nice bird stamp , issued in 2006, one of a set of 16 bird definitives. One other note about this card. It is a leap year card, as it is postdated 29-2-2008.
Thats all for this week, more next week.
Thanks for reading.

Postcard # 500

Well, the mail is in for today. One card and one card only arrived. And if you read my last post, you know that todays card is the 500th card I have received since I started collecting postcards , back on March 08th, 2006, almost 2 years ago. Number 500 is from Tampa , Florida, U.S.A. It was sent by Charles Jensen and I thank him for it. The postcard shows the SS American Victory, a working Maritime museum located on the waterfront at the Florida Aquarium in Tampa. The ship is approximately 63 years old , having launched June 20, 1945. It was a merchant ship which served during World War 2, the Korean, and Vietnam wars as a military cargo carrier. The ship is now crewed by volunteers , of which Mr Jensen is one.
Charles used 3 stamps on the card., 2 of which are from the Star Wars issue of 2007. The vertical stamp shows Queen Padme Amidala and the horizontal stamp shows Emperor Palpatine. The other stamp is the 10 cent American Clock definitive of 2006.

Note- I don't know any connection to Charles Jensen , but I certainly thank him for his postcard. Charles , if you read this let me know if we have any connection. Is this a Postcrossing card, if so , you have forgotten the postcard ID ? And as it is #500 I will be sending off a card in return to Charles.
Happy reading!

Last cards of February

Even though today is March 2nd, I want to show the last cards received in February. First is a card sent from Saint Petersburg, Russia by Alexander Karmanovsky . His card shows The Hermitage from The Palace Bridge. The Hermitage is one of the largest museums in the world, with 3 million works of art. And, works of art they are, including pieces by Michelangelo, da Vinci, Rubens, Rembrandt, Rodin, Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Picasso and Matisse. The who's who of art. Alexander mailed this card from a post office located in The Hermitage itself. The cards bears a special cancellation to this effect.

The other card is from Namibia, my second from this country. It shows the inside pool at The GocheGanas, a nature reserve and wellness village located 29 km from Windhoek, Namibia. The card was sent by Albie Oelofse, who commented that it had been quite a while since going into a post office and described it as quite an experience, actually buying a postcard and mailing it. Thanks Albie and I hope you enjoyed this recent experience of yours.
The stamp used on this card is in my opinion a very beautiful stamp. It is one of a set of 18 issued in 1997, featuring the flora and fauna of Namibia. The one on my card shows a Leopard and sports a wonderful SON (socked on the nose ) cancel.

Just a note with regard to Albie's experience. Even though most of us think it's not a big deal , buying a postcard and then going to mail it off somewhere, for some people , apparently it is a big and strange deal. I have come across similar comments from people I have had contact with in Angola, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, and most recently Haiti. They describe either finding a postcard to buy, or finding a post office open with stamps as the difficult part. Like I said, this seems quite easy to most of us, but it is a difficult thing to do in some places.

One more note- I started collecting postcards on March 08, 2006 , just about 2 years ago. The next card I receive will be # 500. I wonder where it will be from. I'll let you know.
Cheers.