My cards today are all cards of Salt Spring Island, B.C. My Lovely Teena and I recently spent a few days on Vancouver Island to celebrate our anniversary . We spent time in Parksville, Nanaimo and took a ferry over to Salt Spring Island.
So My first card today is from Nanaimo, a city and ferry port on the east coast of Vancouver Island. It is also known as ' The Harbour City ' . Nanaimo is the home of The Bastion, a wooden tower dating from 1853. You can see it on the postcard, upper left.
The city is also known for the Nanaimo Bar, a no-bake cookie bar with custard filling, a Canadian dessert named after Nanaimo.
So here's the card from My Lovely Teena.
Teena used a recent F1 In Canada stamp. The set of 5 was issued May 16th of this year. Scottish speedster Sir Jackie Stewart is the subject of this stamp. He dominated F1 racing in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The rest of today's cards all represent Salt Spring Island. Salt Spring is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island. Salt Spring was the first of the Gulf Islands to be settled back in 1859, when it was known as Admiral Island. During the 1960s , the island became a political refuge for United States citizens, for draft dodgers during the Vietnam War. The island's population is just over 10,200 and the largest village on the island is Ganges. Two famous residents of Salt Spring Island deserve a mention - Robert Bateman, painter and Paul Valdeman Horsdal or Valdy as he is commonly known, singer songwriter and musician.
Let's start with a card showing Ganges Harbour, a popular port of call for sailboats cruising B.C.'s Gulf Islands. Ganges was named after the British naval ship HMS Ganges.
This card arrived with a nice Salt Spring Cancellation on the Ayrton Senna stamp, another from the F1 In Canada series. The fierce and fearless Brazilian won the Formula I Grand Prix of Canada in 1988 and 1990.
Here's another card from My Lovely Teena. This one is of the Mermaid statue, designed by Tom McPhee , and installed in downtown Ganges. It is an 8 ft. bronze statue completed in 2001. Its inscription reads " Service Above Self " , the motto of Rotary Club.
Teena used a round Canada 150 stamp from a pane of 10. The pane was issued on Canada Day , July 1st and the one shown celebrates Canada's most famous robotics accomplishment - the Canadarm, which took flight in 1981 aboard the space shuttle Columbia.
The next 2 cards showcase another location on Salt Spring Island - Fulford Harbour. Fulford is a village on the southeast side of Salt Spring , near the island's southern end. It was named for Captain John Fulford of HMS Ganges.
St. Paul's Church is the first landmark to be seen by visitors as the ferry approaches Fulford Harbour. It is Salt Spring Island's oldest church and was built in 1883. The windows, door and bell were brought over from Vancouver Island by First Nations people.
It's Gilles Villeneuve this time. Canada's hometown hero was a force to be reckoned with from the late 1970s to early 1980s.
Today's last card is another , but closer, look at St. Paul's Church. I earlier mentioned the door, the windows and the bell, - well the stones used for its construction were also brought over from Vancouver Island. They were ferried in First Nations war canoes and then dragged across Salt Spring Island on stone boats pulled by oxen.
My Lovely Teena used the Ayrton Senna stamp so I don't think I need to show it again.
That's it for this time. Thanks to My Lovely Teena for her cards. Take care, see you again soon.
I will be away for a little while, going east for a bit - 6,125 km east.
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