Three Cards, Three Planes, Two Airlines

I guess you can tell by the title of this post that it's aviation related. Yesterday I received 3 cards in the mail and all 3 were aircraft cards. So let's take-off with this Virgin Blue card from Australia. The airline was launched in 2000 and has grown to operate over 2,100 flights a week to 24 cities throughout Australia. It introduced the world's first government  endorsed carbon-offset program. Now called Virgin Australian Airlines, it is the country's second largest airline. The aircraft shown is VH-VGA , a Boeing 737-400. This aircraft has had a varied history since it first flew on Oct 29, 1996. It has been operated by a number of airlines including China Airlines, Virgin Express and Brussels Airlines and even stored in Brussels in March of 2012. The aircraft is now operated by charter airline Enter Air in Warsaw, Poland.
I guess airplanes do get around, - in more ways than one, it seems.

 

Bruce , who was visiting Down Under, used a 2104 International Post rate stamp. It shows Alpine National Park . The 646,000 hectare national park is located in the Central Highlands and Alpine region of Victoria.

Now today's second card is of a much smaller aircraft flying through clouds. On first look, it looks like the wings are on upside down, but I guess the engineers knew what they were doing.

A PostCrosser  from Moscow, Anna , sent this card along. She used 2 quite large stamps showing Military Equipment. They are 2 of the 2014 set of 4 World War II Artillery set.

Not it's  time for the last card for today. We started with a card from Australia , sent by Bruce, and  that's how we'll end today. Another Airplane card from Australia, again sent by Bruce. This time the airline is Jetstar Airways  and the aircraft is an Airbus A320. Jetstar Airways is an Australian low-cost airline headquartered in Melbourne. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas. Jetstar was formed in 2003 and flies A320, A330, Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Bombardier Q300 aircraft.  The aircraft on this card VH-JQG is 11.4 years old , having flown it's first flight on April 21, 2004. 

Bruce used a 2015 Queen Elizabeth International Post rate stamp. It is 1 of 2 in the set celebrating The Queen's 89th birthday. 

So there you have it, another update in September. I'm doing really well with updates this month. Not sure why but can only hope it continues. Thanks to Bruce and Anna for today's cards. 

A Few More September Cards

How is everyone today ?  Hope your weekend was a good one, with lots of time for cards and stamps. I have a few cards here ready to go, so let's have at it.
First is a card from Germany. It shows us Oberammergau, is a municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria, Germany. The town is famous for its production of a Passion Play, its woodcarvers, and the NATO School. The Oberammergau Passion Play is a passion play performed since 1634 as a tradition by the inhabitants of the village .

Meelis used a number of stamps on this one. On the far right is a stamp from 2014 showing the Lindau Messenger. The other show the Brandenburg Gate and the Post Tower in Bonn. You might have to tip your head a little to the right to have a look at them .

Card #2 for today shows an Earl Moran pin-up from around 1950. Earl Moran  ( 1893-1984 ) was a 20th century pin-up and glamour artist. In 1940 Life magazine ran a feature entitled "Speaking of Pictures "which mostly featured Moran's work and made him a national celebrity. Moran painted such stars as Betty Grable   and Norma Jean Dougherty. In fact one of Moran's Marilyn pastels became his most valuable, selling for $83,650, almost doubling the previous record for one of his works.

Vanessa, a Postcrosser from Munich, used a 2015 stamp highlighting Ludwigslust Castle. I wrote about this stamp back on August 25th, so I'll leave it at that.

Fireworks during the Chinese New Year is the subject of this next card from Hong Kong. I'm sure that would be an impressive show.

This is another fine card from Jobbo, and it arrived with great stamps as usual. On the left is a 2013 stamp from a set of 6 featuring Historic Buildings Restoration. The middle stamp is one of six in a 2015 Sports set. This one features Cycling. Lastly the stamp on the right is 1 of 6 in a 2014 set of Hong Kong Museum Collection Paintings. This one is entitled "Memories of Home " from 1971 by WU Guanzhong. The 6 stamps make a very nice set and one I would love to add to my collection.

Hopefully this next card won't make you too hungry. Yes, it's waffles from France, Lille to be exact. I understand there is a very old and famous waffle house in Lille. I believe they make a very special waffle with vanilla cream, so good in fact that the Meert House is the official suppler of waffles to the King of Belgium. . Who would have thought ?

Dominique used a 2004 stamp from a set of 10 Regions issue.

Now , here's a card showing a historical drawing of the Greater Poland Uprising of 1918-1919. It shows one of the most famous streets in Poznan. The uprising was a military insurrection of Poles against Germany.

Oliwia used the same 2 stamps that I showed and wrote about last time, back on Saturday , Sept 19th.  So I see no need to show them again.

Last card for today is from Down Under, and it's loaded with a bunch of tips for a great holiday in Australia.

 Marilyn used a 2013 Royal Christening stamp, with HRH Prince George of Cambridge. It's from a set of 2 , one for local and one for international.

That's it for this time. Thanks go to Meelis, Vanessa, Jobbo, Dominique, Oliwia and Marilyn for their great cards. I appreciate them all. Take care. Comments anyone ?

Number Six For September

I'm back, it's raining, so a good time for some postcards. First up is a card from Poland. Postmarked in Stupsk, the card shows The Meeting Place in Wroctaw or more correctly Plaza del Mercado Peatonal. The plaza is a medieval market square in the city and is one of the largest markets in Europe.

A Postcrosser named Jola recently visited Wroctaw and sent this card . She used 2 stamps from a few years ago. On the right is a stamp showing All Saints Collegiate Church. It is 1 of 5 in a Buildings set issued in 2005. The stamp on the right is a definitive from 1996, showing some guy hiding behind a sheet of paper. Reminds me a little of the Unknown Comic.

The guy on this next card is an Allosaurus. The Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period. The name "Allosaurus" means "different lizard".  

This is another card from Johan. Be sure to check out his fine postcard blog  here . Johan used 2 very recent Dinosaur stamps . A set of 10 Dinosaur stamps was issued on Sept 5th and Johan was able to secure a special Dinosaur shaped First Day of Issue cancel. Two lesser known dinosaurs are shown on these stamps, on the left is a Kentrosaurus and on the right is an  Ankylosaurus. 

It must be the year for Dinosaur stamps, as Canada also  issued a set of 5 back in April . Paleofilatelists have had a real field day this year as dinosaur stamps have been discovered in Solomon Islands, Central African Republic, Maldives, Sierra Leone, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Togo, Mozambique, Guinea, Niger, Nevis, Guinea Bissau and Marshall Islands. I never realized it was such a hot topic. 


Next is a card from a place I'm sure my grandkids would love to visit and stay and stay and stay. Legoland Billund Resort in Denmark. Legoland Billund, the original Legoland park, opened on June 7, 1968 in Billund, Denmark. The park is located next to the original Lego factory and Denmark's second busiest airport Billund Airport.Built in 1968, it's a real paradise for children and I guess parents too, with 55 rides and attractions. New this year and arriving from a galaxy far , far away is the world's largest model made from Lego bricks. It's Luke Skywalker's Lego X - wing starfighter made from more than 5 million Lego bricks. It is 3 m tall , has a wingspan of 13 m and weighs more than 20 tonnes. Unbelievable. I can only imagine the fun Zack, Xander, Will, Evan and Ryann would have here. 

   

David, who is currently in South America, obviously had time to visit Denmark just the week before. He , too, has a great blog of his postcards and travels  here . David used Lego stamps on his card, I mean what else would one use  ?  On Jan 2nd of this year, Denmark issued 2 Lego stamps, 1 valued at 10 Krone and 1 at 14.5 Krone. They launched the European Postal Service's 2015 Europa theme of national "Old Toys ". When it comes to toys, Lego is certainly at or near the top. 

I think I'll call it a day here , I have a couple more cards ready , but I'm trying to watch the Blue Jays and Red Socks game and it's just getting too intense to be doing both. Thanks for the cards today go out to David, Johan and Jola. I'll most likely try and get back here tomorrow , so be sure to come back. Take care. 

More For September

Hello again , today is Thursday and my last update was back on Friday the 11th. Almost a week , so it's certainly time for something new. Since last Friday, I've received a nice selection of cards in the mail, enough for 2 updates for sure. So let's get on to one. Card # 1 today is one from My Lovely Teena. About 2 weeks ago we drove as far north on Vancouver Island as we could , ending up in Port Hardy. The town is located on the north-east coast of Vancouver Island. At last census, Port Hardy had a population of 4,008. The community's access to wilderness adventures , such as kayaking, caving, surfing and fishing invites visitors to "Live the Adventure ". One can certainly see that Port Hardy's economy greatly depends on tourism as well as logging. .

My Lovely Teena used a rather recent Franklin Expedition stamp. Canada issued 2 stamps on August 6th commemorating the Franklin Expedition. The stamp on my card shows the HMS Erebus. The 2 stamps not only commemorate Sir John Franklin's journey and the tragic loss of his life and his crew, but also celebrate the discovery of the Erebus.

The stamp is a little hard to see due to its light colouring.


Today's second card arrived from Japan. It shows a painting called "Moon "by Japanese painter Ogura Yuki. ( 1895- 2000 ) , who was known for her bijinga. Bijin-ga is a generic term for pictures of women in Japanese art.

Natascha used a number of smaller stamps on this cards , including a squirrel , a monkey and a bird, along with a Pinocchio stamp.

Next is a card from Thailand showing Wat Saket, and The Golden Mount. It's a Buddhist Temple in Bangkok. The temple , popularly known as the Golden Mount, dates back to the  Ayutthaya era ( 1350-1767 ) .

We have another fine selection of stamps here on Jobbo's card. On the left is a 1984 stamp issued to celebrate United Nations Day 1984. In the middle is aa stamp issued in 2011 celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the birth of Mom Rajawongse Kukrit Pramoj, the 13th Prime Minister of Thailand. The last stamp is a 2015 issue for ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.The stamp shows the ten flags of the ASEAN countries.

Here's a card for any of you train collectors out there. It's the California Western's Skunk Train  . Originally built in 1885 as a logging railroad, it now offers daily excursions from Fort Bragg to Willits. Today this scenic , historic passenger railway is located in Mendocino County's Redwood region of Northern California. It's forty miles of railroad over 30 trestles and through 2 tunnels. There's even a section of 8.5 miles , that actually covers less than one mile in a straight line.

Sandra posted this card in Point Arena, California - a small city of 449 people according to the 2013 census. The Point Arena Lighthouse is the closet location on the U.S. mainland to Honolulu, Hawaii, just 3,787 km away. The card arrived with the 2014 Global Sea Surface Temperatures Forever rate stamp. 

Now it's time for the last card for today. Since it shows a Koala, it must be from Australia. Koala is an Aboriginal name, meaning " no drink ".  The new born Koala is less than 25mm long and remains in its mother's pouch for six months.

This card is from Kim, who moved from Canada to Australia this summer. She is actually from my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador, so that's good. A Newfie in an Australian hat. Sounds good.

Kim used a new 2015 stamp showing Queen Elizabeth. It is 1 of 2 in a set celebrating the 89th birthday of Elizabeth Alexandra Mary. The photo was taken at Windsor Castle in April 2014 when Her Majesty met Irish President Michael D. Higgins.

So there it is, one more update for September. Thanks to My Lovely Teena, Natascha, Jobbo, Sandra and Kim. Good cards all around. I'll be back again the weekend as I have the cards already. Take care.

Ah Yes, One More Post

Hello, here we go again. Another rather short update I think, but that really depends on how long winded I am. Anyway, let's see how it goes. I have three cards today and they are from France, El Salvador and Russia. Let's start with the card from Nantes, France. Nantes is a city on the Loire River in the Upper Brittany region of western France. It is the sixth largest city in France with around 600,00 people. In 2004, Nantes was named as " the most liveable city in Europe " by Time magazine. Nantes is the home of the restored 15th century Chateau des Ducs de Bretagne which you can see on this first card . The castle is today the Nantes History Museum, but was the residence of the Dukes of Brittany between the 13th and 16th centuries.

Dominique's card arrived with a very important stamp.It celebrates 100 years of the Croix de Guerre. It was established April 2, 1915. It is awarded to military personnel only and quite often to members of allied countries. The award goes to individuals who distinguish themselves by acts of heroism involving combat with enemy forces.

 

An aside to Dominique - You're right , I didn't receive the card from Austria that you sent in July. Sadly, that happens sometimes. I always wonder just where those cards end up.

El Salvador - what can I say, one doesn't get too many cards from this country, this is only my second one in over 3,900 received. El Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America.
It's known for its beautiful Pacific beaches and mountainous landscape. William's card shows the Gulf of Fonseca. This wonderful tourist area is shared by El Salvador with Honduras and Nicaragua.

William used 2 large stamps , one from 2006 and one from 2009. On the left is 1 of 2 stamps  issued to highlight UPAEP , the Postal Union of the Americas , Spain and Portugal. On the right is a Coat of Arms stamp from a set of 16.

Now for the last card today. Not a lot I can tell you about this one. It arrived  , as Max wrote , from the far east of Russia. I think though, that covers a lot of ground. Wish I could narrow it down a little . I also know nothing about the church shown on the card, not even where it is . Perhaps one of you readers might recognize it .

Max used a 2015 stamp showing the Quercus robur, which is commonly known as the English oak or the French oak. In addition , he used a 2009 stamp celebrating Yuri Gagarin, Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. Gagarin was the first human to journey into outer space. He completed one orbit of the Earth on 12 April 1961, aboard his Vostok spacecraft. His earth shattering flight lasted 108 minutes. Gagarin died on March 27, 1968 when his Mig-15 fighter jet crashed during a routine training flight near Moscow. That much is known about his death but the cause or why is clouded in theories and rumors.

There you have it, another blog update in the books. Thanks for cards go out to Max, William and Domiinique. Do drop by again soon. Hope you enjoyed the show.  Take care

A Small After Labour Day Update

I have just a couple of cards for today. I guess not much mail really moved over the long holiday weekend. But I was lucky enough to find three cards in the mailbox this morning. First up is a card from Sayward , B.C. - Canada. On this card we see a couple of Orcas or killer whales in Kelsey Bay, located just a half  km from Sayward. The village of Sayward with about 350 people is located in the Sayward Valley on the northeast coast of Vancouver Island. The area is abundant in salmon and one might just see orcas in the area. Orca whales are found in all oceans from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Worldwide population estimates point to at least 50,000 orcas. Local estimates have about 8,500 in the tropical Pacific, with 2,250-2,700 in the cooler Northeast  Pacific and 25,000 in the Antarctic. Smaller groups are located off  Norway and Japan.

My Lovely Teena dropped this card in the mail while on our recent trip to the northern tip of Vancouver Island. There wasn't a big choice of stamps in the small Sayward post office , so Teena had to settle for one of the Baby Wildlife definitives from March 2014.

Today's second card is from St. Pierre & Miquelon. The islands are a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France, situated in the northwestern Atlantic ocean just 25 km off Newfoundland, Canada. St Pierre and Miquelon , 3,819 km from France are the only remnant of the former colonial empire of New France that remains under French control. The back of the card says it pictures L'lle aux Marins, a small island located off  the coast of the main islands of St Pierre and Miquelon. The smaller island was settled in 1604 and once had a population of close to 700. It has been uninhabited since 1965, when everyone moved to St Pierre island. I guess the card shows what it looked like in its heyday  

My nephew David and his wife Carrie recently travelled to St. Pierre and sent this card back . They used a couple of Marianne definitives along with a 2014 Blowing Soap Bubbles stamp . It's another example of the long running heart-stopping photography series. This one is a black and white photo of a young pig-tailed girl blowing bubbles  by Sylvia de Lizarraga.

My last card is from Great Britain. The lady who sent it wrote that it's a view of Britain. I guess it's supposed to be a farming scene. I see farms , dragonflies, horses, flowers, trees , a couple of barns and even some wind farm windmills up on the horizon. When I see wind farms I always think about what Prince Charles called them -  "a horrendous blot on the landscape ".  I guess that's one way to think of them.

This card arrived with a very recent stamp . The Bilberry Bumblebee stamp was issued on Aug 18th . It is 1 of 6 in the set. The bilberry bee, while concentrated in northeastern England, can also be found in Wales and southwestern England.

That's it for this time. Thanks for cards go to My Lovely Teena , David and Carrie and also to the Postcrosser  from England. Sorry I don't know the name. Be sure to drop by again , leave a comment even.
Take care.

Ordino, Laulasmaa, Harrisburg and Amish Country, along with a little Elvis

Here I am again , back with a few cards to have a look at. Let's start with Ordino. A town of just over 3,300 people, Ordino is the main town of the most northerly parish in the Principality of Andorra. The town is ideally located in the footslopes of Casamanya ( 2740 m ) . The mountain offers spectacular panorama views from its summit, as it is located almost exactly in the centre of Andorra.

I received this card through a private swap with Robert. He used a 2015 souvenir sheet showing Traditional Dance in Ordino. A very nice souvenir sheet.

This next card arrived from Rakvere, in northern Estonia, 20 km south of the Gulf of Finland. On the card though, we see the beach at Laulasmaa, a village of just over 300 , in northwestern Estonia, about 29 km west of the capital Tallinn. Sitting on the sandy beach of Lahepere Bay, Laulasmaa has been a well known holiday place since the 1930s.

Meelis used a stamp from November 2014 showing the work of Herbert Lukk. It is a 1918 painting called "The Yard ". Lukk fell at the age of 27 in the second year of the Estonian War of Liberation.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Harrisburg is the capital city of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and has a population of around 50,000. It lies on the east bank of the Susquehanna River 169 km from Philadelphia and 328 km from Pittsburgh. Mike and Ashley's card shows the State Capital Complex.

Here's more current U.S. stamps compliments of Mike and Ashley. On the left is the June 2015 Emperor Penguins stamp. The center stamp is one of the Martin Ramiirez 49 cent Forever stamps  from March of this year.There are five in the set. The stamp on the right celebrates the United States Coast Guard. It was issued in April of this year.

Amish kids playing ball is the focus of this last card. The Amish are a group of traditionalist Christian church fellowships, closely related to but distinct from Mennonites. Interestingly , once an Amish child has received eight years of education, he or she is deemed to be educated.

This is another card from Mike and Ashley with more recent U.S. stamps. On the left is another of the Coastal Birds 35 cent Poststcard Rate. Shown on this one is the Spoonbill. In the center is 1 of 8 Batman stamps issued in October 2014. On the right is The King of Rock and Roll himself., Elvis Aaron Presley.  Another stamp from the Music Icons set , this one issued  August 12, 2015 at Memphis.

I did mention that this was the last card for today, but it's not the end of this update. I thought with the Elvis stamp , I would elaborate a little about Elvis stamps. Many obscure countries and postal agencies have issued Elvis stamp over the years. Most you never see on mail, as they were issued only to sell to collectors. I have received one though , from Guyana on a card shown on this blog back on April 7, 2015.
This Elvis stamp on Mike and Ashley's card is not the first U.S. Elvis stamp. It is fact the third one. Back in 1992 , the U.S. Postal Service decided to issue an Elvis stamp. They had 2 designs in mind and asked the public which they most liked. They sent out postcards with both designs on it and asked to public to vote for the one they liked, A or B. Here is a front and rear view of that postcard.

We now know that the public liked the " A''  stamp and the U.S.P.S. issued it in 1993. Here it is on the left along with another Elvis stamp issued a little later. It is basically the same stamp but the second one was issued with Elvis's full name, as if there was anyone out there who didn't know who Elvis was.

Well, that's all the fun for today. Thanks go out today to Robert, Meelis and Mike & Ashley. Do drop by again, however , this is the long Labour Day weekend here in Canada. Our next mail won't be delivered until Tuesday. I probably won't be back here till at least Wednesday, unless I can find a really nice card or two lying around. I always have a bunch on hand for these types of emergencies , so to speak. Maybe , maybe not - we'll see. Take care.