Another Kick At the Postcard Can

Her we go again. A few more postcards to have a look at , and the best thing is , they all arrive with stamps.  Today's card are a bit of a strange lot to say the least.
Let's start with a card from West Chester, Pennsylvania , U.S.A. It's Longwood Gardens, over 1,077 acres of gardens, woodlands and meadows, located in Kennett Square. With over 11,000 different types of plants and trees, it is one of the premier botanical gardens in the U.S.

This is another card from Mike and Ashley. In addition to their great postcards , they are really helping me with collecting current U.S. stamps, like the 3 on this card. These are all new to my collection. So let's have a look at them.
First up is the Janis Joplin First Class rate Forever stamp. It was issued in August of 2014. It's from the Music Icons series, along with such greats as Ray Charles, Johnny Cash , Jimi Hendrix and others. Joplin was an icon of the 1960s whose bluesy voice propelled her to the top of rock stardom. I can hear her now belting out "Me & Bobby McGee ".  Then we have the Jimi Hendrix First Class rate Forever stamp, issued in March of 2014. Hendrix is considered one of the most important rock guitarists of the 20th century. His sound was a combination of rock, jazz, soul and the blues. I remember well his renditions of "Purple Haze" and  "Hey Joe ". And, just below the Joplin stamp is one of four in a Coastal Birds set issued just last month. This one shows the King Eider. The others in the set are a Red Knot, the Spoonbill and a Frigatebird. These are set as Postcard Rate nondenominated  stamps and will always be valid for that rate. I guess though  the Postcard rate only applies in the U.S.A. itself , otherwise I wouldn't have received Janis and Jimi.    

Next is a little pin-up for all you pin-up people out there. Honestly it's a case like this . Back when Playboy Magazine was popular, men often said , "I only read Playboy for the articles ". Well I think I can safely say with cards like this one , "I'm only showing the card for the stamps " But I do agree with her shirt, she 's certainly Unique. The card arrived from a Postcrosser in the Netherlands.

Lorje used 4 different stamps but I'm only going to showcase the larger two on the right. The other 2 are definitives from 2006 and 2003. On the far right is a 2002 stamp issued for Floriade, the international exhibition and garden festival. Held every 10 years, the next one will be in 2022 in Almere, the newest city in the Netherlands. The stamp with the rabbit or hare is just that. I couldn't find any info at all on it. That's the way it goes sometimes.

France, Strasbourg in fact is where my next card originated. It shows the Palace of Europe, the seat of the Council of Europe, since 1977. The Palace of Europe square in shape, 106 metres on each side, with a height of 38 metres (nine stories). Its total working area is 64,000 square metres. It has 17 meeting rooms and a thousand offices for staff of the Council of Europe secretariat. The exterior of the building is red, silver, and brown. 

Johan used 1 of 2 stamps issued in 2014 highlighting the European Council, along with a number of definitives . It's also nice to see that they were cancelled at the Council itself.

Now here's a card from 2009 celebrating the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.
The festival is a celebration of the March 27, 1912 gift of Japanese cherry trees from Tokyo . There are literally many thousands of these trees there now.

Adam used an interesting selection of stamps on this card. The vertical stamp on the left is from 1960 . It commemorates 100 years of a U.S. Japan treaty. Next, the long pink and blue on top is actually 2 stamps from 2012. They commemorate the Centennial of the Cherry Blossoms in Washington. Lastly are 2 U.S. Airmail stamps, not something one sees much anymore. The one on the left was issued in 1948 and the other dates from the 1970s.

Camels in India. I can't say this is something I think about when India pops into my head. Elephants yes, camels not so much. But apparently it's a fairly common sight. I've never been there, so what do I know ?
  Indian Camels are about 6 feet long and weigh around 700 kg. It is 7 feet high from its hump. It's  tail is 50 cm long. It is characterized by long curved neck, large mouth and high hump. They are usually brown or black in colour. They have thin, long and powerful legs. They have large eyes with long eyelashes and bushy eyebrows.but small ears. Indian camels have broad, flat and leathery pads with two toes on each foot with leathery patches on their knees. 

Adrian used 3 copies of a 2008 definitive stamp featuring Indira Gandhi.

O.K. here's another pin-up , this time from Germany. Again, only showing it for the stamps .

Michaela used a small selection of stamps here, including 2 Flower definitives. The larger stamp on the right is a 2015 stamp highlighting the Lindau Lighthouse. It's the southernmost light in Germany , located on Lake Constance. Opened in 1853 , the light is 33 metres tall. Finally we see a 2012 3 Cent Numeral Stamp. 

Next and last is a card from China. Not much to say about this card as I really don't know what it's about, or what's written on it. Here it is. 

  

Nika used a  recent Heart shape stamp along with a 2015 Year of the Sheep stamp and a 2000 Butterfly stamp.

  

There you have it. Thanks for cards go out to Mike & Ashley, Lorje, Johan, Adam, Adrian , Michaela and Nika. 

Thanks for dropping by , see you next time. Take care.

Cards From Here, There and Everywhere

Hello again postcard people. It's been just over a week , so it's definitely time for a new update.  I have cards from all around for today. They have arrived from Macedonia, Alberta and British Columbia in Canada, Croatia, Oregon in the U.S., Taiwan, Kazakhstan, and Finland.  That's quite an assortment. Now, let's get to it. Macedonia is first up. Ana's card is from Veles, a city of just over 43,000 in the center of the Republic of Macedonia, located on the Vardar river. The area has a long checkered history, having been inhabited for over a millennium. The city was once a Bulgarian city, then a part of the Serbian Empire, and later a part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia before its present status as part of the Republic of Macedonia. Veles is a city of poetry, culture and history as well as a place with precious heritage and centuries old churches. On Ana's card , you can see a number of different views of the city.

Ana used 2 stamps, the one on the left is from a set of 2 called Handicrafts issued in 2014 and the other stamp is 1 of 4 in a 2001 Costumes set.

Be sure to check out Ana's postcard blog, which you can find right  here .


The Trans Canada Highway is next. The longest highway system in the world, even more than the Trans Siberian or Highway 1 in Australia. It is 7,821 km from east to west, or St. John's, Newfoundland to Victoria, British Columbia, taking in all 10 provinces. It opened in July 1962 but was not completed until 1971. The card I have shows the T.C.H ,as we Canadians call it, going through the prairies where it is a wide open driving experience. It's not all wide open prairie of course - driving across Canada you'll see rivers, lakes, mountains, valleys , waterfalls and even go through tunnels and some places you'll even have to take a ferry or two. But be assured, you'll see and enjoy lots of fantastic scenery along with many , many attractions that you won't see anywhere else.

 

A Postcrosser from Alberta called Snowyalberta sent this card along. The stamp is one that was issued April 13th of this year. It is 1 of 5 in a set called Dinos of Canada.

A card from Zagreb, Croatia is next. Now  I wrote some about Zagreb back on July 4th so I won't go there again. However this time I'll tell you about a music festival held there. It's the INmusic Festival, Croatia's biggest international open air festival. Held annually since 2008, it takes place on Youth Island in the middle of Lake Jarun. Now I looked up this year's list of music acts and I can safely say I only heard of one - Of Monsters and Men. Guess I'm not tuned in as much to today's music any more. Anyway, here's Ana's

card from red-roofed Zagreb.

Ana used a new 2015 stamp . It is from a set of 4 entitled Undersea World. I scanned it as a horizontal stamp, but I now believe it should be vertical, so you might have to tip your head a little.

A little bit of "Olde England ". Victoria's distinctive tour buses await the visitor outside the Empress Hotel, in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Victoria is the capital of B.C. , and located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. The Empress Hotel opened in Victoria in 1908. It has 477 rooms , with most overlooking the city's Inner Harbour. It was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1981. For many years the hotel did not have a sign above the front entrance. As workers raised a sign, one gentleman was overheard saying "Anyone who doesn't know this is The Empress, shouldn't be staying there " .  
The hotel is famously known for its Classic Victorian afternoon tea service. The hotel serves tea, with sandwiches, scones, preserves and cream in its Tea Room to more than 800 guess and tourists daily. Afternoon Tea is priced at $60.00 per person and reservations are often required on or two weeks in advance. On a personal note , My Lovely Teena and I have enjoyed a stay at The Empress , but we passed on the Afternoon Tea .

This is another card that My Lovely Teena wrote and sent to me, as she always does when ever we travel somewhere. We recently went down to Victoria for the day. Teena used 5 of the Beneficial Insects definitives and 1 of the set of 5 Photography self adhesive stamps from 2010.

Nice to see that Canada Post in Victoria used a special  cancel showing Fisgard Lighthouse. It was built in 1860 and was the first lighthouse on the west coast of Canada.

This next card is for all you sailors out there. It's two fine sailing ships, the Altair and the Thendara. The Altair was built in 1931 and is 40.78 m in length. The Thendara is a little smaller at 36.5 m and was built in 1936. Both fine racing schooners are for sale at 6 million Euros and 4.7 million  Euros respectively. Go for it.

Jenny from Oregon sent this card and used just a multitude of stamps on it. Some are definitives, some are Forever stamps and one is a commemorative. From left to right we have : the 2007 Silver Coffeepot, the 2004 Chippendale Chair, the 2003 American Clock, 1 of 2 in the Project Mercury issue of 2011 - featuring Alan Shepard- First American In Space, then it's 1 of 7 from the 2014 set of 7 Flag & Fireworks issue, a $1.00 Patriotic Waves stamp from 2015, another American Clock and finally the 2007 American Toleware stamp.

This next card may have arrived from Taiwan but the picture is all American. It's a Time Life picture from 1950 by Alfred Eisenstaedt called Pied Piper of Ann Arbor. On it we see a uniformed drum major for the University of Michigan marching band practicing his high-kicking prance as he leads a line of seven admiring children who all are trying to imitate his flamboyant technique while marching across the campus lawn.

Gina , who got this card from a Life Magazine exhibition in Taipei, used 2 Berries and Flowers stamps. The stamp on the left is from a set of 4 Berries definitives and the right stamp is from a set of 4 Flowers definitives issued in 2009.

I haven't received many cards from Kazakhstan so when one arrives I have to show it. This is just my 3rd  card from that country in over 9 years of collecting. Nadin's card shows the Radisson Hotel and some other skyline along the Ishim River in Astan, the capital of the country.

Nadin used 3 copies of a Famous Person stamp from the 2014 set of 3. This stamp celebrates poet Ilyas Zhansugurov. He was the first president of the Writers' Union of Kazakhstan. He was seen as a threat to Russia and as fuel for Kazakh Nationalism and was shot on February 26, 1938.

 

Here's a Finland card . I'm really just showing this one so I can show the really nice stamp that arrived on it. Here's the card.

Now the stamp . Eija used a 2015 Golden Swan stamp.

Just a beautiful stamp, no ?

Last card for this time. It's Mill Creek Bridge , a 1907 covered bridge over Wabash Mill Creek southwest of Tangier, Indiana, U.S.A.  The bridge is also known as Tow Path Bridge or Earl Ray Bridge.

Faith used a 2015 Forever stamp on her card. It is from the set of 2 Civil War - Battle of Five Forks issue.

Now I'm not one to talk as many of you know, and no offense to Faith who sent the Mill Creek card , but I'm partial to the Hartland Covered Bridge, in Hartland , New Brunswick, Canada. It is the world's longest covered bridge , at 1,282 feet long. It opened on July 4, 1901 and crosses the Saint John River from Hartland to Somerville, New Brunswick. The bridge was declared a National Historic Site in 1980. A Canadian stamp was issued in 1995 honouring the Hartland Bridge.

Here's the bridge and the stamp.

 

So there you go. A rather long update, so long in fact , I started it yesterday. But it has ended well. Hope I didn't lose anyone because it was so long. Thanks for cards go out to Snowyalberta, Ana times 2, My Lovely Teena, Jenny, Gina, Nadin, Eija and Faith.  Thanks for reading, don't be shy - leave a comment and tell me what you think about this blog or anything else on your mind.
Take care, drop back again soon.

Good Cards from Good Places with Good Stamps

It's a good day for an update ,that's  more good, see title above. It's raining, first rain we've seen since I don't know when. I don't think though that it will be enough to really quell any of the approximately 180 or so forest fires in the province. But we hope.

Let's start today off with a 3-D. It's just my third one. I know the 3-D image doesn't really show here but one has to a vivid imagination sometimes. The card arrived from Haguenau, France. Prior to 2004 the Thurot area of Haguenau was comprised of military barracks. Now the 12 hectares area is to be transformed into an eco friendly area of parklands, new housing, public spaces, shops and offices. Dominique's card shows what the area looked like and when tipped , the 3-D image shows some of what it will look like.

Dominique used a couple of stamps getting this card to me. On the left is a stamp from a set of 10 issued in 2004. They celebrated the different regions of France. On the right is a 2015 stamp that was issued to highlight the Founding of Haguenau 900 years ago in 1115. Note the special cancel on this stamp.

Next is a card from Mauritus, an island in the Indian Ocean and I'm sure a fantastic place for a vacation. It's also widely known as the only home of the now extinct dodo bird.

Jean Pierre also used a couple of stamps on his card. On the left is a 2013 stamp from a set of 4 highlighting Sites and Monuments. The second stamp is from 2009 and is 1 of 4 showing Turtles.

A card with a picture that is very similar to the stamps and to the postmark, is next.  The card is from Belgium and shows an old way of catching shrimp.I think it goes back about 100 years, and is just a tourist thing today. . Looks interesting though.

Johan used a stamp that was issued June 27th , just s few weeks ago. About the only difference in the card and the stamp design is that the guy on the stamp is wearing a Cape Ann Sou'Western hat.

Here's another of Jobbo's cards from Thailand. This is Wat Phumin, buuilt in 1596 in Nan, Thailand. Nan is located in the north, some 668 km from Bangkok. Wat Phumin is the only temple built as if it were on the back of two immense snakes. The Wat's  interior is quite impressive with many exceptional murals.

I love it when a card arrives with lots of stamps and this one certainly did. Let's look at the two stamps on the left first. Here we have a 2005 stamp commemorating the 50th Anniversary of birthday of H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri  Sirindhorn. The it's a 2003 stamp commemorating the Centenary of the Inspector General Department.   On the top right is a 1992 stamp showing a Wooden Cart. Finally It's a 1990 stamp from a set of 6 highlighting Palaces

The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, and The Big Sheep. Who else could it be, if not Humphrey Bogart himself. This card from France is all Bogart. Born Dec 25, 1899, died Jan 14, 1957 - he passed too soon. Can't you just hear him saying "  Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine. "

Nina, a Postcrosser from Menton, a small city on the French Riviera nicknamed "The Pearl of France "sent this card. She is studying cinema so I guess that's why I received this Bogart card. The left stamp is from a self adhesive booklet of 12 and features a painting by Paul Gauguin. The right stamp is a 2014 stamp from a foil booklet of 12 featuring Astrology Symbols.

As always Bogie has the last word "Here's looking at you, kid . "


The European Parliament Building in Strasbourg , France is the subject of this next card, sent by Johan . It's the Louise Weiss Building. Weiss was a French author, journalist, feminist and European politican.

Johan used a stamp with a date on it of 2014. I checked all my sources but could find nothing on this stamp. The card is postmarked at The European parliament , Strasbourg so that is a first for my collection.

Last card for today gives us a number of nice scenes from Hatta, United Arab Emirates. Hatta u is an inland enclave of the emirate of Dubai, located high in the Hajer Mountains, about 114 km east of Dubai City.

 Jean Pierre used a 2015 stamp commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the 1st Crude Oil Shipment from the area. And we all know where that has taken us.

O.K folks , that's it for this time. Thanks to regular contributors, Dominique, Jean Pierre, Johan, Jobbo, and also to Nina. Great cards and stamp all around. Take care and comment if you want .

The Second July Update

Well, I'm back relatively soon after the last time. Things must be looking up. I have a few cards again for this time. They come from Denmark, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Lithuania, and 2 from Russia. Let's get right to it.

Denmark is first. The card shows some scenes of Horsens , a city of just over 55,000 located in the east Jutland area of Denmark. Horsens lies at the end of Horsens Fjord and is approximately 200 km from Copenhagen. Hans Jorgen's card shows the Marina, the Abbey Church, and a few other structures around the city.

As always cards sent by Hans Jorgan's arrive with a nice selection of stamps , perfectly placed and with a great socked on the nose postmark. The way all cards should arrive, but sadly they don't. On the left is a stamp showing a Longjohn, a carrier cycle invented in 1929,  where the load is very low, located midway between the front wheel and the driver. The stamp is 1 of 4 in a Danish Inventions set issued in 2014. The other stamps are from the long running Wavy Lines definitives that started in 1905. There have been changes over the years but basically they are the same set and going strong for well over 100 years.

On this next card we see a tram operating on Johnston Street , Wan Chai, Hong Kong. The two decked trams in Hong Kong are among the oldest two deckers in the world.

Sandy used a couple of the 2006 Bird definitives. The Kingfisher is one of 16 in the set. The larger stamp on the right is the more interesting one to me. It was issued this year  and is 1 of 6 in the Astronomical Phenomena set, a really nice set of stamps .  Also as part of this issue are 2 souvenir sheets of 1 stamp each. One is a regular stamp with a value of  $10 HK Dollars and the other is a Hologram stamp with a value of $20 HK Dollars. I'd love to have this Hologram stamp in my collection. I have a fairly good Hologram collection, starting with the world's first hologram stamp , issued by Austria in 1988. Just last month I was lucky enough to be given a copy of the latest so called bible on hologram stamps, Holography and Philately by Hans I. Bjelkhagen. It's a great source for Hologram Stamps.

The world's largest flower. That's the subject of my next card , from Indonesia. The flower is called Rafflesia Arnoldii and it is noted for producing the largest individual flower on Earth. It has a very strong and horrible odor of decaying flesh, earning it the nickname  "corpse flower ". It grows to a diameter of around one meter and weighs up to 11 kilograms. If you are lucky enough to see one of these, you will be in either Borneo or Sumatra.

Anggi used a 2013 stamp from a set of 6 in a Postal Services set.

A seascape is next, the Baltic Sea. Ramume describes it as cold, dark and very secret. Sounds a little ominous to me. The Baltic Sea is a brackish inland sea, the largest body of brackish water in the world. It's deepest part is at 459 metres , with the average being 50 metres.

 Ramume used a new stamp issued on March 11, 2015. It marked the 25th Anniversary of Lithuanian Independence.

This first card from Russia is just a little beach scene. A young lady out for a day of sun and sea. But, it's a great way to introduce you all to the 2015 Canadian Open Sand Sculpting Competition to be held right here in Parksville July 10 - August 16. The Community Park on Parksville Beach is the place to be during this time.  Sand sculpting in Parksville dates back to 1982. In just the last 15 years over 1,000,000 visitors have attended the competition here. Competitors this year are from all over Canada, the U.S , the Netherlands and Italy. Parksville's competition is the only Canadian competition to qualify for the World Championship of Sand Sculpting. Remember - It's the most fun you can have with sand in your pants.

Now back to Maria's card.

Maria used a nice selection of stamps on this one. Top left stamp is from 2006. It is 1 of 3 in a souvenir sheet showcasing Tzarskoe Selo Palace. The large stamp, top right is from 2013 and shows a Locomotive. The bottom row of stamps - 1 of 15 in an Animal set of definitives. Then a stamp from 2006 showing Basilius Cathedral. Then it's a Beetle stamp from a set of 5 issued in 2003.

 

The last card for today arrived from Novosibirsk, the capital of Siberia. It's a kind of special card , one in a limited set commemorating the 200 Years of Diplomatic Relations between Russia and Switzerland. On the card we see Domenico Trezzini, a Swiss architect who gained much fame in Russia, putting the tower on Peter and Paul Cathedral, his most celebrated work. The cathedral was built between 1712 and 1733 and houses the remains of Peter the Great, Nicholas II , and Catherine the Great among many others.

 

A wonderful stamp on this one. A great topical stamp. It's from a 2014 set of 3 Wild Cats.

That's it folks. All for today. Thanks to everyone for the cards.  Thanks for reading and do drop by again.