Card # 3000

Well, it finally arrived a few days ago. Card # 3000. I never thought when I started all this postcard stuff, that I would ever have received 3000 cards in the mail. The card is from Germany, and shows a fountain park area in Mannheim. The card comes from Sybille, a Postcrosser who likes to visit and relax in this area.

I hate to say it but card 3000 arrived without a real stamp on it. It has some sort of computer printed postage that appears to have been printed on a printer and then taped on the card. Not really what I would have hoped for on such a card . But I can't control what is used on incoming cards. I just do my best to always put nice postage on my outgoing cards.

 

There it is, it took just over 7 years, 2638 days to be exact, to get to this point.  

Thanks going out to Sybille for her card. 

That's this update in a nutshell, a short one , but a milestone card for sure. 

Take care. 

 

Modes of Transport

Hello again. My theme for today's update is different Modes of transport. I have cards with cars, a ship, a train, an airplane, electric trolley bus and a helicopter. I know there are many other types but I don't have the postcards.

Let's start with this somewhat run down excuse for a car, not to be confused with the nice modern card next to it. I really don't know what make , model or year this car is but it if goes when required, then all is good. I think, though , we can all agree that it is well Used.

 

Jolanda from Dordrecht in western Netherlands sent this card along.  She used 2 stamps of the same design from a 2010 set of 3 Business Stamps.

Next up is a ship . It is the M.S. Cinderella of the Viking Line. It sails between Stockholm and Helsinki, at least when the postcard was printed. The ship carries 2500 passengers, 480 autos and has 2810 passenger berths.

Sirpa used the 2006 Finland flag stamp.











The next mode of transport is a train. This card shows a diesel-electric locomotive of the Hungarian State Railways operating between Kisterenye and Kal-Kapolna in 2007.

This card is the result of a private swap with Aimo from Budapest, who used a fine bunch of stamps. The lower left stamp is from 2003 and highlights Motor Police. The Butterfly stamp was issued in 2011 and is 1 of 4 in the set. The Chair stamps are definitives and were issued in 2000 and 2001. The large stamp on the right was issued in 2012 to celebrate Stamp day. It is 1 of 3 in the set.

 
My next treat is a wonderful card from Bruce in South Africa. It is an Air Rhodesia Boeing 720. Air Rhodesia was the national airline of Rhodesia. It was founded September 1, 1967 and operated Vickers Viscount and Boeing 720 aircraft. Following the renaming of the country , it became known as Air Zimbabwe Rhodesia in 1979 and finally Air Rhodesia in 1980.

  Bruce put a 1978 Rhodesia stamp on this one. It is from a set of 6 issued for the 75th anniversary of powered flight. The stamp shows a Air Rhodesia Boeing 720 just like the card. Actually it was the last stamp issued by Rhodesia before the country name was changed to Zimbabwe. And, for you purists out there, no this card did  not arrive via the mail stream, it arrived in a cover envelope. It is a great card though, with a great story and a great stamp. A wonderful addition to my Airline/Aviation collection.

A trolleybus/electric bus is featured on this next card. It comes from Arnhem, a city in the eastern part of the Netherlands.  The trolleybus is only operated in one city in the Netherlands and you guessed it, Arnhem.

 

Leni used a 2011 stamp commemorating the Environment. It is 1 of 2 in the set. 

Here is one more mode of transport-- a helicopter. It's the Mi-26T. The Mi-26 was a Soviet/Russian heavy transport helicopter - the largest and most powerful helicopter ever to have gone into production. The card is from Anna in Belarus and the Mi-26was operated by the Belarusian Air Force.

 

Anna used 1 of 3 stamps in a 2013 Textile issue. 

 

My first card today was a car and my last card is another car. Again I don't know the make, model or year, but it looks like it could be from the 1950s. 

 

This card is from the Netherlands and the stamp used is the same Environment stamp as was on the trolleybus card earlier.  

That's my update on the various kinds of transport. Thanks yo Jolanda, Sirpa, Aimo, Anna, Leni, and Bruce. 

I think my next update will be people themed. Be sure and Tune in.

Some late breaking news. A single postcard arrived in my mailbox today. But........ it is card # 3000. I'll have all the details next time.

Planes, Ruins, a Fort, a Temple, Caracas and Sao Jorge

Wow, that title above covers a lot of stuff. It's a good day to do an update. It's raining, pouring actually. It's been pouring now for two full days. It should start to clear away tomorrow. So today is a good postcard day.

Let's start with this Airbus A321 of  Tap Air Portugal preparing to take off at Lisbon airport. Behind it, you can see the nose and tail of a Tap Airbus 330. Rui , who works at Lisbon Airport, sent this great card along. Another installment of my Airlines/Aircraft on Postcards collection.

Riu used quite a large stamp, at least long vertically. It is from a set of 6 stamps issued in 2012 showing palaces.

Card 2 shows the World Heritage Site at Tarragona, Spain. Located in the north east of the country, it has a population of around 135,000. The area dates from the 5th century BC and was inscribed on the UNESCO list in 2000.

  David used 2 nice stamps from 2013. They are from a souvenir sheet of 4 showing Famous Autos. The 2 show here are the Citroen 2 CV and the Seat 1500.

My next card is a nice view of Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park on the island of St. Kitts. It is a well preserved example of 17th and 18th century military architecture. The site was inscribed on as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.

 

Jean Pierre used a 2012 Diamond Jubilee stamp 

and a 2001 Belted Kingfisher stamp from a set of 6 Birds.

.

Up next is another card for my Airlines/Aircraft collection. It shows a bunch of Eva Air B747s in front of an Evergreen hangar. Jenny from Taipei, Taiwan sent this one along.

   

Jenny's stamp is from a 2012 set of 4 Honoring the Family.

A Postcrosser from India named Stuti sent  this next card. It is of the Temple at Chidambaram. This Hindu temple was built mostly in the 12th and 13th centuries.









The 2 stamps on the right are both from 2012. The top one highlights AWACS airplanes , the lower stamp showcases the Indo Tibetan Border Police Force.

 

I have been collecting postcards  for over 7 years now  , 2633 days in fact , and this next card is just my second card from Venezuela. The first one was from Maracaibo, sent by my good friend Rafael. This second card comes  from Caracas and is from David.. It shows one of the cars of the Caracas Aerial Tramway, now called the Warairarepano Cable Car System. The system was inaugurated in 1952 and remained open until the late 1970s. It was reopened again in 2000 after major repairs

.    
David used 3 stamps from 2011. They are part of a set of 10 in a m/sheet which form the stained glass design in the windows of the Palace of justice.

Just one more card to go for today. It comes from the Azores, Portugal. It shows part of the coastline of Sao Jorge Island.

Jean Pierre used 3 stamps on this card. The stamp on the left is from a 2007 transport set of 5. The middle stamp is 1 of 2 in a 2009 Joint Issue with Iran featuring Sea Eagles. The stamp on the right, issued in 2012 for the Azores is from a set of 4 featuring Sea Coasts.

That's it for postcards today. Thanks to Jean Pierre, David, Stuti, Jenny and Rui for the cards.  I hope you have enjoyed this update. If you have leave a comment to that effect, and if you haven't , leave a comment to that effect , too.

Just a final note. Next week, maybe Monday or Tuesday, I should reach a major milestone with regard to postcards. As of today I have received 2996 postcards in the mail, just 4 short of 3000, which I'm pretty sure I will reach early next  week .  As I mentioned earlier I have been collecting for 2633 days now and with 2966 cards received , that's just a little over 1 card every day for 7 years. Not too shabby, if I do say so.   
Who knows, maybe my 3000th card will be from you.

Take care

  

St. Maarten, Andaman Islands, Salzburg and Polonnaruwa

Here we go again. Today's update features cards from four of my postcard friends and regular contributors to this blog. I have never met either of them but we have corresponded often, through email and postcards.Maybe some day we'll run into each other in an airport - who knows.

My first card today comes from St. Maarten, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. I overlooked the importance of this in my collection until today. I knew I had a card from Philipsburg, St. Maarten somewhere in my collection. You can find it in my blog entry for Aug 1, 2011. It was country #249 for me. So what makes today's card so important ? The previous one did not have a stamp , just a postage meter stamp. Today's card arrived with 2 St. Maarten stamps, my first stamps from this place. Jean Pierre's card shows a KLM B747 on short final over Maho Beach.

 Here's the 2 stamps that jean Pierre used. The one on the left is 1 of  2 definitives in a 2011 set. The other stamp, also from 2011 is 1 of 3 in a Map set.

Card 2 for today  comes from Port Blair, Havelock Island, India. Havelock Island is the largest of the islands which comprise a chain of islands to the east of great Andaman in the Andaman Islands. It is 57 km north east of the capital of Port Blair. David's card is of Radha Nagar Havelock No. 7 . Beach No 7, better known as Radha Nagar was named by Time magazine as the best beach in Asia in 2004 . 

 

David used a bunch of wonderful stamps on this card. Let's look at the top, left stamp first. It was issued this year, 2013 and celebrates 100 Years of the Indian Science Congress. The other 4 are from a 2010 set of 6  Post Offices. A very nice set of stamps.

 

A view of Salzburg , from Kapuzinerberg Mountain is offered up on this card from Ana.  Ana's comment on her card was "beautiful Salzburg ". I imagine that says it all. Maybe someday I'll get over that way.

  Ana used a 2012 stamp, 1 of 3 in a Modern Architecture set. It shows the Mak Center at the Schindler House in Los Angeles.

  Here's today's last card. It comes from "A Land Like No Other". I love that motto of Sri Lanka. Ravindra sent this card of 12th century Polonnaruwa. The city is the 2nd oldest of Sri Lanka's kingdoms

and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982.

Ravindra used 2 great stamps , as he always does.  The stamp on the left was issued in 2011 . It is 1 of a set of 10 celebrating World Tourism day. The other stamp is from 2012 and is 1 of 4 in a set commemorating 100 Years of Aviation in Sri Lanka.

Now with this latest card  from Ravindra I have the complete set of 4 Aviation stamps.  

Now , that's another update in the books. Thanks to Jean Pierre, David, Ana and Ravindra for their fine cards. I really appreciate your  cards . Take care , enjoy your cards.

Just A Couple of Cards

Welcome back, I hope you enjoyed my last update. I have just a couple of cards for this time. They come from Russia, New York City and Ukraine
Let's start with the card from Russia. It's from Sofia in Moscow. Her card is a picture of a page or the cover of an

old book used to teach children the fine art of reading.

Sofia used 2 lovely , large stamps on her card. The one on the left was issued in 2004, 1 of 4 in a set featuring Silver Art. What I like about this stamp , and I guess the other 3 in the set is it is what I call embossed. The image and outline of the goblet or vase is raised, you can feel the shape if you run your finger over it. The other stamp is 1 of 4 in a 2012 set commemorating the upcoming 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi.

My second card comes from The United Nations in New York City. It showcases a number of sights around the city. It is compliments of a Postcrosser, Stanislav from the Czech Republic who was vacationing in the big city.

Stanislav used 2 UN stamps. The large one on the right was issued in 2012, 1 of 2 in a set marking World Heritage in Africa.

Today's last card is from Ukraine. It is a postbox, another addition to my postbox postcard collection.

Tena used a nice selection of stamps on this card. In addition to the small flower stamps , we see 2 large stamps showing different types of railway cars. They were issued this current year , March 27th, in a set of 4 , a nice set actually.

Thanks for these cards go out to Tena, Stanislav and Sofia.
That's it for this time, another short update, maybe that's the way to go. It seems to work for many other bloggers.As always, comments welcome. 

In Days of Old

No new mail today, it's Victoria Day here in Canada, a National Holiday. What is Victoria Day, you may ask?Victoria Day is a Canadian public holiday celebrated on the last Monday before May 25, in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday. The date is also, simultaneously, that on which the current reigning Canadian sovereign's official birthday is recognized. It is sometimes informally considered as marking the beginning of the summer season in Canada. In this regard Victoria Day is the last day of the May Long Weekend, often called the 24th of May, even though it most often doesn't fall on the 24th. The beginning of summer , tell that to the folks in Gander, Newfoundland- they received 69 cm snow yesterday. If you want to check out the real true meaning of Victoria day, go back in my blog to May 23, 2011. There is a little video there that's worth looking at again. Enjoy.
Now back to today and postcards.

My first postcard is from Riga, Latvia. It was the basis for the title of this post. "In Days of Old " It was the first thing that came to my mind when I found this postcard in the mailbox. "In Days of Old, when Knights were Bold ................... There is more and many versions to the verse , poem , limerick or whatever you might call it. This is a family type blog, so if you want you can find the other parts online. Some are quite interesting. The bottom of the card says, Vidzeme, Nice Place. Vidzeme is a historical and cultural region of Latvia .Located in the north central part of the country, it literally means "the Middle Land ".  You can find many monuments, medieval castles and ancient settlements in the area.

Postcrosser Maija used a nice train and railway bridge  stamp from 2012. It was 1 of 3 issued in a souvenir sheet.

My next card is Airline related. It shows a reproduction of an airline poster for Air Orient. The poster dates from 1932. Air Orient was an airline based in France. Created in 1929, the short lived airline was merged with Air France on October 7, 1933.

  Paolo who hails from Piacenza, a nice and old city in Northern Italy, sent this card. Piacenza really is old, it was founded in 218 BC .Paolo used 3 lovely large stamps . On the left , from 2012 is a stamp commemorating 50 years of the Carbinieri, the national military police of Italy. The other 2 stamps were issued this year, but I have no info on them.


My final card for this time comes from Kostroma, Russia. The card shows a number of Soviet stamps from 1958.

Yulia used a number of the animal stamps from the 2008 definitives. Of more interest is the larger stamp issued in 2003. It was issued to highlight climate change.

That's my update for this time, a little shorter than my normal 6 cards., but that's how it goes some times. Enjoy your cards and leave a comment if you found anything to your liking. Don't forget to check out the video I mentioned earlier. Thanks to Yulia, Paolo and Maija for the cards used today.

Return From .................

I'm finally here, live or maybe alive would be better. It's been quite a while, my last update was April 7th . Wow, more than a month ago.  Some of you know that I was away and that takes care of 25 days. I returned home on May 5th . The rest of the time I have been sick, ill,  not well , or all of the above. I have been to the doctor 3 times , been on 4 medications , yesterday was my best day since returning home. Today is another good day. Looking forward to tomorrow and every day after. I haven't seen my kids or my grand kids since I returned , so am definitely looking forward to that. Must have picked up some form of cruise ship bug. That's enough about me. You didn't come here to read about me, it's postcards you were looking for.

When I returned I found 54 postcards in the mailbox, there wasn't room for too many more.  And, of course I posted a few cards while away. 83 cards in fact  . I managed to find postcards, stamps and post offices or a postbox  in each port we stopped. A total of 13 places to post from. All I can say is , look in your mail box., you never know.

So let's get to today's goodies. First up is a card from Bhutan, "Land of  Happiness ". It shows a Drukair Royal  Bhutan Airlines Airbus A319 on the runway , possibly at Paro Airport. David sent this card from Thimphu back in February .














The extra specialness of the card is the postage that David used. The actual stamp contains  a CD-Rom . It is a video promoting the country. It was issued in 2008 as the world's first CD-Rom stamp. All stamp collectors know that there are some strange items out there listed as stamps, 3D stamps, hologram stamps , stamps made of wood or metal, stamps that give off a smell, stamps with bits of rock, wood or crystal embedded . These are all good and collectible to who ever takes a liking to them. Myself, I have a fine collection of the Holograms stamps. The thing is , we rarely , if ever,  see these types of stamps used or fulfilling this role of carrying the mail. I'm happy to report that this Bhutan CD-Rom stamp did its postal duty. The postmark or cancellation is quite visible in the lower left corner, datestamped  25. 02. 13 . A fine and rare addition to my collection. Thanks David. Check out David's great postcard blog called Postcards A World Travelogue .




My second card for today is from Singapore. The Singapore Philatelic Museum in fact. Every year the museum has a children's exhibition of postcards based on the current Chinese New Year. Since this year is the Year of the Snake, the exhibition is entitled Snakes and Ladders. Every year through Postcrossing the museum asks members to send a postcard theme related. If you include your name and address, you get a card back from the museum. Hence my card.

 

The card arrived with a nice, clear cancellation of The Singapore Philatelic Museum on a stamp from 2009. It is 1 of 7 stamps in a Sculptures set.

 
 
Here's a card of a 1958 photo of a Sabena Douglas DC7. I wonder why this lady is out strolling around the airfield by herself. Don't think you can do that today.

 

Johan of Belgium sent this one along. He used a Belgian Chocolate stamp from a set of 5 in a m/sheet. I couldn't really smell the chocolate , guess I don't have quite enough imagination. Be sure to give Johan's postcard blog a look , it's called Johan Postcards . 
Here's the chocolate stamp, can you smell it ?

This next card is a photo of a painting by Macadonian artist Tomo Vladimirski ( 1904-1971). A very nice painting, but I really don't know if it actually has a name.

Ana used 3 large stamps on this card, 1 of them, the one on the far right represents another of Tomo Vladimirski's works. The stamp on the left is from 2006, 1 of 4 in a Famous Persons set. The middle and right stamps were both issued in 2004 , 2 of them in a Paintings set. Don't forget Ana's blog, My World of Postcards


Two more to go.  Saba is up next. Saba is a Caribbean island and the smallest special municipality of the Netherlands. Mount Scenery ( 870 m ) is located on Saba, and is the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Saba is one of the BES islands along with Bonaire and Sint Eustatius. The three now form  the Caribbean Netherlands.

Jean Pierre used a 2012 Caribbean Netherlands stamp.

Now here's the last card for this time. It comes from Bruce from South Africa.. It's of a very flashy painted South African Airways B747. It was commissioned to commemorate the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The SAA Boeing 747 bears the colours of the SA Flag along with the hopes and dreams of The Rainbow Nation. It was used to transport South Africa's athletes to the '96 Summer games in Atlanta. It's another great addition to my Airlines/Aircraft on Postcards Collection.    



Bruce used a 2010 definitive from the Handicrafts set of 27.

  

So ends another update. It's good to get this one up and running after such a long time away. Thanks to Bruce, Jean Pierre, Ana, Johan, David and The Singapore Philatelic Museum for these cards.  

Please come back again soon, I promise my next update won't take near so long. 

Take care.