The Last One For November

Well it's just about over , November I mean. This update is number eight for the month, so all in all , a pretty good month here on the blog. Here's a few postcards to end of the month . First up is a map of the Minsk underground. The 37.27 kilometre metro , which opened in 1984, consists of 2 lines. There have been two incidents involving the Minsk metro. On May 30th, 1999 , 53 people were killed in a human crush. A severe thunderstorm caused way too many people at a concert to seek shelter in the underground. A sad ending to the concert, indeed. The other incident happened on April 11th, 2011 when 2 lone wolf terrorists set of a bomb at the main station killing 15 people. Both of the terrorists were apprehended and subsequently executed in March of 2012.

A PostCrosser living in the western Belarus city of Grodno sent this card along. She used a 2014 stamp celebrating Belarus's UNESCO Membership.

Today's second card arrived from New York but it highlights Oceanside, California. Oceanside is a coastal city of just over 167,000 located on the California South Coast. It is just south of Marine Corp Base Camp Pendleton. The card is a nice picture of the Oceanside Pier, a wooden pier measuring 596 metres. The first Oceanside pier was built in 1888. At least 4 have been destroyed by heavy storms. The current pier was built in 1987 at a cost of $5 Million.

Diane from Sag Harbor, N.Y. sent this card. She used a 2013 Christmas Floral Wreath Forever stamp. We've all seen it many times in the past, so I'll skip showing it this time.

One more thing with reference to Oceanside. There's another Oceanside out there. The area of Vancouver Island that I live in is called Oceanside. It's the eastern side of the island and is comprised of Parksville, Qualicum Beach, Nanoose Bay, Coombs and French Creek. So take that Oceanside , California. You're not alone. Sadly, we don't have a nice pier like they do , though.

Now it's time for another aviation related card. A good blog should have at least one in every update. Here we have a card from the Czech Republic showing Jan Kaspar and his Blieriot XI.  Kaspar ( 1883-1927 ) was a Czech aviator who made his first successful flight  on 16 April 1910. It covered a distance of two kilometres. His most famous flight took place on 13 May 1911. He flew from Pardubice to Velka Chuchle, a distance of 121 km and the flight lasted 92 minutes.

Andra used a 2011 Z rate Definitve stamp featuring Architecture.

 Posted in Ostrava, the 3rd largest city in the Czech Republic.


A card from Adelaide, South Australia is next. Yolanda's card gives a view of the city along with Adelaide Oval. Adelaide has a population of 1.3 million and was listed in the Top 10 of the World's Most Liveable Cities in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015. The Oval is home to cricket and Australian Rules Football. It also has hosted rugby, soccer and many great music concerts. Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie, KISS, Madonna and Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson , Elton John, Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters have all performed there, among others.

Yolanda used a current 2015 stamp featuring a Custom Made Road Bike. It is 1 of 5 in a all Bikes set.

We've made it . The last card for today is next and it comes from Malaysia. It's a view of Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Tower with it's lights ablaze at night.

 

Jean Pierre used 3 fine stamps on his card. The stamp , top left, is 1 of 7 in an agriculture set. The other two were issued last year in a set of 10 showing Museums.

Thanks to all the card senders. Can't do it without you all or at least guys like you.

Three Card Post

Here we go with another post, a three card posting for today. Cards are from France, Germany and The Netherlands. First up is a card from Nantes, a city on the Loire River in the Upper Brittany region of Western France. The city was named " the most liveable city in Europe " in 2004. It is often called the Venice of the West, owning to its position on the river delta of the Loire, the Erdre and the Sevre.

Dominique used a recent 2015 stamp celebrating the Belgian Government in Exile 1914 - 1918. There were 2 stamps in the set and also a souvenir sheet was issued .

Card 2 shows an old photo from 1863. It is a picture of Alexander Munro and his wife. Munro was a British sculptor. What's most interesting about the photo is the photographer - Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , perhaps better known by his pen name of Lewis Carroll. He was an English writer, mathematician, Anglican Deacon and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. One more interesting thing about Dodgson - he wrote and received as many as 98,721 letters according to a special letter register which he devised.

This card is from Annette, a German PostCrosser. She used a flower definitive along with a 2014 Stamp Day commemorative celebrating the Lindau Messenger, a transport service operating between Lindau and Milan.

The last card for this time is another addition to my always growing Airline / Aircraft Postcard Collection. This time it's a KLM Boeing 747, just a beautiful aircraft. This 747 is just over 23 years old, having its first flight on September 16, 1992.  Today, November 26th,  PH-BFO operated into or out of Hong Kong, Amsterdam and Seoul. There are a number of beautiful photos of this aircraft on the Planespotters.net website. There's also a great take-off video of it on You Tube.

Ingrid , who lives in Zwoll used a new 2015 International Rate definitive.

Sorry, but this stamp doesn't scan too well. The light grey colour makes it a little difficult t see.

So another update is in the history books , so to speak. Thanks for cards  going out to Annette, Dominique and Ingrid. I'm on a bit of a roll this month, should get in at least 1 , maybe 2 more updates, before December.  Take care. Enjoy your cards and stamps or whatever else makes you happy.  

Card # 4000 Has Arrived

Well, it's here. Card number 4000 of my collection has arrived and it's from Germany. But just to keep the suspense going a little longer , I have 2 other cards to show before # 4000 is revealed. All 3 cards today arrived from Germany. Amazingly, all 3 were written out on the 14th of November.
First is this card showing Naumburg Cathedral. Naumburg is called the cathedral city on the Saale and is nearly 1000 years old. The cathedral itself dates back to the 13th century.

 

Peter. a Postcrosser from Camburg, a small town of around 3000 , just 13 km southwest of Naumburg used the often seen Ludwigslust Palace stamp. It's been featured here many times, so I think no need to do it again.

My second card arrived from Siegen, a city of just over 100,00 people located in the southern part of North Rhine-Westphalia. Siegen has a  number , 3 in fact , of life size bronze cow sculptures , as seen on this card. What you don't see on the card though, is the herdsman and his dog, also cast in bronze. They are located just behind the cows.

Irmgard used a number of definitives on her card along with a really nice commemorative from this year. It celebrates 150 Years of Maritime Search and Rescue Service.

O K now we can have the drum roll. Here is the 4000th card in my collection. It arrived from the city of Mainz, Germany. Mainz is the capital of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It was founded in 13 or 12 BC.  The city is famous as the home of the invention of the movable-type printing press. The first books using movable type were manufactured in Mainz by Johannes Gutenberg in the early 1450s. Gutenberg was born here and died here. Sadly , I don't see any Gutenberg Bible or any book  for that matter on the face of the postcard. The lady is using a phone though, another quite important invention.

Neli, another PostCrosser in Germany , who is originally from Bulgaria, used a 2015 stamp featuring the Baltic Sea Bodden Landscape.

Well there it is , the end of another update and the arrival of card 4000. Thanks today going out to Peter, Irmgard and Neli. Thank for dropping by and we'll be back here again real soon. See you all then.

Cards Number 3995, 3996 and 3997

Hello once again. If you dropped by expecting to read about card # 4000, you're just a tad early. I , too,  thought it might be here by this update, but it was not to be. Maybe next time. So let's move on to cards that I do have , not something that I don't. Cards 3995 and 96 are both from Thailand and card 3997 is from Australia.
Let's have a look at this first card. It's an old time picture of the General Post Office in Bangkok. It dates from the 1880s  I do believe. It was torn down in the 1980s to make way for an ugly concrete bridge. Such is progress I guess. This is a nice card though, I have a small collection of cards showing post offices and this one now adds to it.

Jobbo used a fine selection of post office related stamps on this card. In fact all 3 of the stamps  used show the old General Post Office as shown on the postcard. On the left is a stamp , issued in 2014, to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of The Postal School, in addition it shows the old General Post Office in the upper right of the stamp.  The middle stamp is 1 of 2 issued in 1983 showing the old General Post Office as it looked in 1883. The stamp on the right is 1 of 5 issued for THAIPEX 89. All 5 of them showed a postbox and a Post Office. The one on my stamp again shows the old General Post Office.

This next card is again mail related. It shows mail being offloaded from a boat. Thailand's network of canals and rivers made boats an obvious means of transporting mail.

This is another card from Jobbo, so my collection of  Thailand stamps continues to grow. On the left is a commemorative celebrating the 72nd Anniversary of Kasersart University. It was issued this year. The smaller stamp on the right is a definitive  from 2012 showing Panyi Island.

That brings us to today's final card. A Maximum Card from Australia. Now, I'm not a collector of maximum cards but I have received a few over the years, and mostly from Australia. Many people collect them though, so I guess they do have their place. This one celebrates the long reign of Queen Elizabeth II. On September 9th of this year she reached her milestone of 63 years 216 days, making her the longest reigning British monarch. . The stamp , which is exactly like the postcard, is from a set of 5 .

This card is from Maria , a  PostCrosser from down under.  So thanks to Maria and to Jobbo for today's cards. So still looking for # 4000, maybe Monday or Tuesday of next week. Cheers.

Three Postcards From Three Collectors

Well hello again. It's good that you dropped by . Enjoy today's update. I  have 3 cards for this time. Each is from a great sender of cards , but just as importantly each is from a great collector as well. Two of the three have fine postcard blogs, similar to this one, but that's not to say this one is fine.  Today's cards arrived  from Sri Lanka, Serbia and France.

Let's start with Sri Lanka. This is a great train card and I know there are a few train card collectors out there. To top it off, it's loaded with train stamps, how good is that ? The card shows the Viceroy Special going through the tea plantations near Colombo. The steam locomotive in question is called "the Sir Thomas Maitland " and is 75 years old and the only steam locomotive still in operation in Sri Lanka. The Viceroy operates with 2 observation cars and a restaurant car.

 

Ravindra used 4 beautiful train stamps. They are the complete set of 4 issued in 2011, celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Viceroy. Two of the stamps even show the Viceroy Special. Sri Lanka Post also issued a wonderful souvenir sheet of 1 showing  the train, but it's a fairly high priced stamp. The other stamp , there on the right, celebrates 100 years of Carey College, a private Baptist school.

Ravindra collects Lighthouse postcards , Train postcards and Lighthouse stamps. You can see his lighthouse blog  here .


My second card for today is from Belgrade, Serbia. It's from a Postcrossing meet-up that was held in Belgrade on Oct 31st.  It was the 4th  meet-up in Belgrade. The card is from Ana, but was also signed by 6 other Postcrossers.

Ana used a stamp depicting Old Toys. It's 1 of 2 in the Europa issue for 2015. What's surprising about the toys on this stamp, is that I can remember both my sons playing with toys exactly like these , and now they're both in their thirties.

Ana's postcard blog is called "My World of Postcards " and it's located right  here .  Ana hasn't been active on her blog for a number of months but it still has lots of great cards and stamps that are worth a look.


Now for the last card of today. It's from Paris and gives us a look at the Luxembourg Palace. Constructed between 1615 and 1645  it has served as a former royal residence, but is now the meeting place for the French senate.

This is another card from Jean Pierre, one of many he has sent over the years. Looks like he picked this one up at the 69th Autumn Philatelic Exhibition , held in Paris from Nov 5th to 8th. Jean Pierre's card has a special Nov 5th cancellation from the exhibition  so I guess this is a First Day of Issue of sorts.

There you have it, a short but sweet update. Thanks to Ravindra, Ana and Jean Pierre. Great cards all around. Thanks for reading, be back again in a couple of days. Cheers.
There were cards numbers 3992, 3993 and 3994 that I have received todate. Perhaps in my next update I might be able to report on number 4000, who sent it, where it arrived from , etc. A milestone card for sure.

Gem's World Postcards --- Eight Years Old Today

Well, how's it going , it's Friday the 13th , hope everyone gets thru the day unscathed ? I really think it's just another day on the calendar , so I just go about my regular routine. I haven't seen any black cats today, haven't walked under any ladders , so all is well.
Today is Nov 13th and that is significant to this blog. It was exactly 8 years ago today that Gem's World Postcards went live with a post showing a card of the Okavango River in Botswana. Today's blog entry is #671. In those 8 years since Nov 13, 2007  I have received a total of 3991 postcards and a vast majority of them you can find here on the blog. I never imagined back in Nov of 2007 that I would still be here in 2015 , but I enjoy doing this, I am amazed at all I have learned from the postcards , and now look forward to doing it with no end in sight. Now, it's on to postcards. I only have 2 for this time, as the cards have slowed to a bit of a trickle. That has happened a few times in the past , but I'm sure things will pick up again and the mailbox will look stuffed every now and then.

Today's first card is from Belgium and shows sights in Marche-en-Famenne, including the sculpture called "Meeting Place ". Also shown are symbols of 4 old trades - tanners, brewers, lace and chimney sweeps.

 

Meelis used 2 copies of this years Belgian Christmas stamps on this card .

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This next card is a cool card. Aviation related, mail related and with a matching stamp. What more can one ask for ? The card from Thailand shows mail being loaded onto a Breguet 14. Thai airmail service was tested in 1920 and launched in 1922. The service was seen only  as a temporary measure that would eventually be replaced by rail . Little did they know. It's kind of nice to think that some of that mail being loaded on that plane, maybe still exists in someone's collection somewhere.

Jobbo used 2 stamps. On the left is a stamp matching the picture on the card. The stamp was issued in 2009 for National Communications Day. On the right is a 2015 ASEAN stamp.

There you have it , I'm 8 years in. . Thanks to Meelis and Jobbo for their cards. Thanks for reading  and anyone out there who has been reading from the beginning, Thank You. Take care and drop by again soon.

Three More November Cards

Hello again, yes I'm back with a couple of cards. Two days in a row. Things are looking up . Today's offerings are from Malaysia, Russia and Belgium.

First up is Malaysia. This card shows us the Prime Minister's Office Complex in Putrajaya. This city of around 70,000 is a new , planned city located 24 km south of Kuala Lumpur, serving as the federal capital. The seat of government was shifted here in 1999. The city started around 1995 and is still under construction. The building on the card, known as The Perdana Putra, was completed in 1999.

Jean Pierre used 2 recent issues of 2015. Both were issued in conjunction with the Community ASEAN.

Next is a card from Russia. There is nothing on the front or back of the card to show what the card is about. It's just a few people crossing train tracks with a bright light, possibly the train approaching, in the distance.

Postcrosser Vladimir used a stamp issued in April of this year. It celebrates the 70th Anniversary of Victory in World War II. It is 1 of 4 in the set showing Armored Trains from 1945. Makes a nice set.

Here's a card now for all you Royal watchers out there. This one shows the Royal Family of Belgium -  King, Queen and the four kids.

And a card of Royalty wouldn't be complete without a stamp of Royalty. This one is of  King Philippe I , 7th King of the Belgians.

There it is , another update complete. Thanks for cards today go out to Jean Pierre, Vladimir and Claire .Thanks again for dropping by. See you all back here soon. 

Cheers.

November's First Cards

Hello again and welcome back. Here's a few cards to start off the month. The first is from Thailand. The card celebrates the 60th Anniversary of His Majesty's Siam Accession to the Throne, in 1946. The 60th anniversary or Diamond Jubilee were a series of events marking Bhumibo's reign. Events included a royal barge procession, fireworks, art exhibitions and the pardoning of over 25,000 prisoners.

This postcard is one of 500 issued, so somewhat rare I guess. Jobbo used 2 nice stamps, on the left is 1 from a set of 6 issued in 1988 celebrating King Bhumibol's long reign at the time - 42 years.  On the right is a stamp showcasing Paintings of the Great Artists. It was issued in a set of 4 in 2003. This painting is called "Lotus Flowers " by Thawee Nandakwang.

Today's second card arrived from France . It shows a fine winery  in Burgundy in the east-central part of the country. This area is known for its wines - Pinot Noirs, Chablis and Beaujolais.

Dominique used a 2014 stamp featuring Charles Peguy, noted French poet, essayist and author. He died in 1914, in battle , near Villeroy, Seine-et-Marne, one day before the beginning of the Battle of the Marne.

Here's a card from another of those so called rare countries, postcard wise. Laos. One doesn't get many cards from there - this is only my 3rd . This one I owe to Daniel of the blog Wax on Daniel-san--Postcards. Check it out right  here .
Daniel's card shows Morning Alms in Luang Prabang, the capital of a province in northern Laos. It is known for its many Buddhist temples. Morning Alms Giving is one of the most sacred Lao traditions. Most common alms consist of rice, fresh fruit and sweet snacks.

Daniel used an earlier issued stamp from a set of 5. It was overprinted for use again on March 13 , 2015 , this time with a new valuation.

 

I think I'll  call it a day for this time. Three cards is good. Thanks today go out to Jobbo, Dominique and Daniel. Appreciate the cards guys. Take care and drop back again soon.