Cards From the Past Week

Good day to you all. Thanks for dropping in. Here's the cards I received this past week.They arrived from Singapore, France, Edmonton and Chile. That's a pretty good mixture from around the world. Let's do Singapore first. I actually have 2 cards from Singapore, so here's the first.
It shows the Fortress Plotting Room in the Battlebox. This is a former British underground command centre and now a museum in Fort Canning Hill. It was part of the Malaya Command. On February 15th, 1942, the decision to surrender Singapore to the Japanese was made inside this bunker. This was the worst defeat and largest capitulation in British military history.

Jobbo used a stamp from 2006. It is 1 of 10 in a set showcasing Old Occupations.

Here's the second card from Singapore, one of the busiest ports in the world. In 20111, the port handled almost 30 million twenty-foot containers and over one million refrigerated cargo containers.

This card is from Jean Pierre. He used a stamp from 2017, 1 of 2 in a set of Corals. It is a Joint Stamp Issue with Indonesia.

Next is this card from France. It's a look at Rocamadour, a small clifftop village in south-central France, with a population of 645. It attracts visitors for its setting in a gorge above a tributary of the River Dordogne. Rocamadour is classed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as part of St. James' Way Pilgrimage route.

Dominique used a stamp from 2016. It commemorates the 100th  Anniversary of the  Mining School at St. Etienne.

I live just a few kilometers north of Calgary. For 10 days every July Calgary hosts the Calgary Stampede - known as " The Greatest Outdoor Show On Earth" . This next card is from Edmonton - 300 km to the north. On it you see a portion of World Waterpark in WEM  or West Edmonton Mall - and incidentally called " The Greatest Indoor Show On Earth" . I wonder how they came up with that name. The weather is always warm at the world's largest indoor wave pool, with its 17 different waterslides.

This card is compliments of My Lovely Teena. She and I recently drove up to Edmonton for the Alberta Provincial Indoor Soccer Championships. Our grandson Zach was on a team representing Calgary. After beating teams from Edmonton, Fort McMurray, and another team from Calgary, Zach's team MSB Force played in the Gold Medal Game against Edmonton Xtreme and won. MSB Force are the provincial champs for 2018. Zach and the team were undefeated all year 2017 - 2018 and undefeated at the Provincials. Way to go guys. We had a great time, saw lots of exciting soccer and I even managed to pick up a few cards and get them mailed off.
Teena used the 2018 Year of the Dog stamp . Edmonton Post Office used a nice pictorial postmark called the Chinatown Gates postmark. It was introduced for the Chinatown Gates series of stamps from a few years ago.

Now it's last card time. This one is from Chile, but more than that, it's from Robinson Crusoe Island. It is the main island in the Juan Fernandez Islands located 670 km off the Chilean coast, with a population around 900 in 2011. The island is known for its native wildlife such as the Firecrown Hummingbird.
The island was home to marooned sailor Alexander Selkirk from 1707 to 1709 and is thought to have inspired Daniel DeFoe's fictional Robinson Crusoe in his 1719 novel, even though it was set in the Caribbean, not in the Juan Fernandez Islands. The Chilean government renamed the island Robinson Crusoe Island in 1966.
I can't say that I was all that familiar with this island until February 2010 when it was hit by a tsunami following a 8.8 magnitude earthquake . Sixteen people lost their lives and most of the village of San Juan Batista was washed away. Loss of life would have been much higher except for the actions of 12 year old Martina Maturana who gave the only warning. She ran 400 metres from her home to the town square to ring the emergency bell to rouse the people from their sleep.
David's card shows Rebaje de la Pina lookout from where a spectacular view can be obtained.

David used a couple of stamps from 2015. They are 2 of a set of 4 featuring Pelluhue, a popular resort town in Chile. In addition to the regular postmark, this card also received a special cancellation featuring a lobster, The Pearl of the Seas Forever.

That's it for today. Thanks for cards go out to Jobbo, Jean Pierre, Dominique, My Lovely Teena and David.

Thanks for dropping by today. Hope you find your way back here again soon. Take care.

Two Cards From Last Week

Hey there, I have just two cards for today. One from Belgium and one from Turkey. Let's look at the one from Belgium first. It shows the Basilica of Our Lady of Scherpenheuvel, located about 50 km east of Brussels. The basilica dates from 1627 and is reputedly the most frequently visited shrine of pilgrimage in Belgium.

Gerda used 2 stamps on her card. On the left is a stamp from a set about World War I , issued in 2017.  The other stamp is from 1999, 1 of 20 in a Millennium issue.

My second card arrived from Ankara, somewhat of a surprise, as I hadn't heard from Leslie in a while now. Her postcard blog has even been taken down. I'm glad she has sent a card again and the fact that she hasn't totally given up postcarding. Leslie's card shows a classic Turkish minibus.

Leslie used 3 fine stamps on her card. The 2 octagon shaped stamps on the left were issued in 2012. They are from a set of 4 showing regional foods. The stamp on the right is from this current year and shows a Historical Fountain.

That's the report for today. Thanks to Gerda and Leslie for the cards. A short update but that's how it goes sometimes. Take care.

Johan's Day On GemsWorldPostcards

  Hello again - as the title above implies, it's all cards from Johan that will be showcased here today. I received three cards from him this week.
Let's start with this card showing St Michael's Cathedral . This is a Roman Catholic church in Brussels. It was given cathedral status in 1962. Construction took about 300 years and was completed in 1519.

        

        Johan used a very recent stamp, issued on March 3rd of this year, It is from a set of 5 Animal Footprints.

              


Johan's second card shows Peter Paul Rubens self portrait. It is an oil on canvas , painted between 1628 and 1630. Rubens home, studio and even his grave are all located in Antwerp.

  

The stamp  is from a set of 5 Rubens's Paintings. It received a special Rubens cancellation from it's First Day sale.

          

Sadly the infamous pen canceler struck again and ruined a great stamp. Belgium or Canada  - who can say ?     


Here's the 3rd and final card from Johan for this time. It's an artsy card of the Kosmopolote Art Tour - the international graffiti festival founded in 2002.

On this card we see 2 quite large  and  fancy stamps. They are 2 of a set of 5 issued  to showcase Street Art, which Johan's card celebrates.

That's it for today. All thanks go to Johan for his cards. Feel free to come back again soon. I have 2 nice cards on hand which I hope to put up here sometime this weekend.     Take care.               

More Unseen Sri Lanka, Now Seen

Howdy once again. I just have a single card for today. It arrived from Colombo, Sri Lanka. Of course it's from Ravinda, another of the Unseen Sri Lanka cards. This time we have a look at Fort Hammenhiel in Jaffna. This fort is built around a small island between the islands of Kayts and Karaitivu in northern Sri Lanka. Dating from 1618, the fort has been used as a fort, a maximum security prison, an infectious diseases hospital and is now a tourist hotel operated by the Sri Lankan Navy.

Ravindra used 2 stamps on his card. On the left is a 2017 Endemic Birds of Sri Lanka stamp showing a Chesnut-backed Owlet The 2nd stamp, of the same design as the postcard, is from the 2016 set of 12, called Unseen Sri Lanka.

Well , that's all that's new for this time. Thanks for this card goes out to Ravindra. Thanks for reading and drop by again.  Take care. 

An Update With No Name

Hello once again, I'm back with a few cards. It's been a slow week with just four cards arriving so far. Let's hope for big things tomorrow. Today's first card is from France and gives us a look at a few houses in Kaysersberg. I wrote about this town in my Friday, Feb 23rd blog. Check it out.

Dominique used a stamp from 1975. It celebrates Stamp Day 1975.

Next is my 4th Manhole Cover card. The collection grows ! It;s a manhole cover in Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. It was designed by Agnes Bomers in 1994. She designed 3 covers that year.

Barbara used a nice 2018 Year of the Dog International Rate stamp.

Let's jump over to South America next. I have two cards , both sent by David, and they arrived from Chile and Argentina. We'll look at the Chile card first. David's card is a look at Plaza de Armas, the main square of Santiago, the capital of Chile. The card shows a number of old buildings and one recent addition. The 1748 church is the Metropolitan Cathedral , while the 1804 building is the National Museum of History. In the foreground is a statue of Perdo de Valdivia, Santiago's founder.

David used 2 copies of the 2017 stamp commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the EM School.

Time now for the last card for this time. It's David's 2nd card, this one from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Here we see a few views of Caminito , a colourful street in the La Boca neighborhood. Brings back great memories of My Lovely Teena and I having a cold one in Caminito back in 2012 and seeing The Tango performed while having it. Good memories for sure.

The 2 smaller stamps on this one are definitives, from a Fruits set of 9. The large stamp on the right is from 2017. It commemorates the 100th Anniversary of the First Postal Flight between Buenos Aires and Montevideo, flown by Pedro Teddoro Fels.

That's the blog for this time. Thanks for cards go out to Barbara, Dominique and David. Great cards, great stamps all around.

Last bit of business for today. I just have to show this cover that I received in the post today. It's just loaded with stamps. Now , what stamp collector wouldn't want to find this one in his mail ? Nice stamps, too !

As Porky Pig so often said " That's all folks. "

March 9th, 2018 - 12 Years of Postcrossing For Me.

Hello once again. Cards are a little scarce this week. To put it mildly, I'm all out. I'm sure next week will be better. I'm really here today, just to say that today is the 9th anniversary of my participation in Postcrossing. I have enjoyed Postcrossing immensely for  all 4383 days of those 12 years. During that time I have received  2523 postcards as a result. Not bad at all !

In addition to postcards, I often receive an envelope of stamps every now and then from a Postcrosser and today was one of those days. Margot from Nuremberg sent a great selection of German stamps.  Included were two Aviation themed stamps, which I'd like to highlight. Here they are.

 
This first stamp was issued in 2004 - it's a Dornier Do X , the largest , heaviest and most powerful flying boat when it was produced in 1929.

The second stamp was issued in 2005.

It shows a Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation. That's the same aircraft I showed and wrote about in my Friday March 2nd blog.

That's it for this time and this week. Thanks to Margot for her stamps today.   Catch you next week.

Wednesday - Midweek , A Few Cards

Hello again, just a few cards today, these three are the only ones that have arrived so far this week.
I am starting with another addition to my Airlines / Aircraft postcard collection. It's a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 747-400. This airline used to operate a fleet of B747, but in July 2012 all their B747s were retired. But the story doesn't end there. In early 2016 Malaysia Airlines brought a single B747 back in service, just in case they needed a spare plane. Then in the summer of 2016 the airlines decided to operate the 747 twice a week between Kuala Lumpur and London. It never happened, actually the reactivated 747 didn't operate a single commercial flight after it was brought back from retirement. Then the airline again officially deactivated their reactivated deactivated 747. I know , it's  almost too much for one man ! In the four months it was reactivated , it never operated a single commercial flight. Don't expect to ever again see a commercial Malaysia 747 flight.
Here's the card - it's still a great looking airplane. I guess many airlines have retired their 747s now , so if you get the chance to travel somewhere, and there is a B747 in the schedule, go for it, the opportunity won't always be there.

Jean Pierre sent this card, he was in Kuala Lumpur last month. He used a 2016 stamp , 1 of 3 in a set, celebrating the 14th Yang di- Pertuan Agong. He served from 2011 to 2016. He also served as the 5th Yang from 1970 to 1975.

White Sands National Monument in New Mexico is the focus of my second card today. It is in the northern Chihuahuan Desert in New Mexico. It's known for its rare white gypsum sand dunes. The area covers 275 square miles and is the largest gypsum dune field on Earth. National Monument status was granted in January of 1933.

This card was a complete surprise, having been sent by Lily, a new reader of this blog. She used  a nice selection of stamps. The top left stamp was issued in 2017, 1 of a set of 4 Sea Shells Postcard Rate stamps.  The middle stamp, the butterfly, is a Non-Machinable Surcharge issued in 2016. Items posted with this stamp must be hand cancelled. The stamp on the right , issued in 2015, is from a set of 2 Patriotic Waves. The last stamp showing Grapes was issued in 2017.

My last card for today arrived from Czech Republic. It shows a train leaving the station in the village of Krizany in northern Czech Republic in 1997. The small village has about 960 people living there. 

A Postcrosser named Stana sent this card. She used a round stamp from Czech Republic, issued in 2014. It's from a set of 2.

It certainly seems like just about every country has a round stamp or two in their inventory of recent issues.

That's the short update for today. Thanks for cards go out to Jean Pierre, Lily and Stana. See you again soon. Take care.

A Few Cards To Get Through The Weekend

Hey again, I just have a couple cards here today, the last cards for the week. They arrived from Russia and  Finland.

First up is this card from Yaroslavl, a city located 250 km northeast of Moscow. The city is said to have been founded in 1010 with the historic part of the city named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005. The scene on Yulia's card shows Komsomolskaya St, Yaroslavl in 1913. Last point about this city - this is the hometown of Valentina Tereshkova- the first woman in space.

Yulia used a number of the often seen Russian buildings definitives  from a number of years. I wrote , a few blogs ago, that we have all seen these stamps many times , and I decided not to show them anymore, so I won't.

The second card today, also from Russia, shows a bronze eagle sculpture holding a snake. It is located on a hilltop high above Pyatigorsk, southern Russia. The eagle is the official symbol of the city and the surrounding area of the North Caucasus.

Katerina also used some of the aforementioned  Russian building definitives. So it goes.


Here's the last card for this time. It's from Finland. The picture is from 1959 and shows mail being delivered via helicopter to an island.

Risto used a Christmas stamp from 2016. It is 1 of 2 Christmas stamps issued that year.

That's it - short and sweet today. Thanks to Risto, Katerina and Yulia for their cards. See you next week after a few cards arrive.

The First Cards of March

It's another snowy day here on the Prairie, so a good day for postcards . Today my cards are from Germany, France, Albania and Czech Republic. Let's start with this wonderful card from Nordhorn, Germany. It's a look at one of the most beautiful aircraft ( my opinion of course ) to ever take to the skies. I'm talking about the Lockheed Super Constellation. The one shown on the card is the Breitling Connie. The Constellation was built between 1943 and 1958. Many Connies are on display around the world, but only two remain airworthy - the Breitling and one in Australia. There's a great video of the Breitling  starting up and taking off on YouTube. Check it out , if you're any kind of aircraft nut , you'll certainly enjoy it.

Martin, a Postcrosser in Nordhorn sent this card along. He used 2 copies of the 2017 Gaia Satelite stamp.

Gaia is going to map a thousand million stars over it's 5 year mission.


Today's second card is from France , as if the front of the card left any doubt. The info on the front is a mini geography and history lesson of the country.

This one is another card from Jean Pierre. He used a 2016 stamp commemorating the Field of the Cloth of Gold summit between Henry VIII and Francis I which started on June 7, 1520.

Next it's a card from Albania showing a view from Shkodra, a city of just over 135,000 located in the northern part of the country. The city is one of the most ancient cities in the Balkans, dating back to the 4th century BC.

Indrit used 1 of 3 stamp in a 2014 set showcasing the World Cup in Brazil .

The Museum of Communism opened in Prague, Czech Republic  on December 26, 2001. It's a museum dedicated to presenting an account of the post- world War II Communist regime in Czechoslovakia. It offers a look at life behind the Iron Curtain. The museum offers artifacts, interviews, photos, artworks and historical documents bringing the Communist way of life to life. Dominique's card shows one of the photo displays.

Dominique used a couple of stamps on his card. On the left is a stamp showcasing the Chronicle of Dalimil, the first chronicle in the Czech language. In the middle is a 2008 Rose definitive and on the right a 2017 stamp showcasing the Aero A-14.

It's time now for today's last card. It's another one from Albania, again sent by Indrit. This one shows Kruja Castle. Located in the city of Kruja , the castle was built in the 5th or 6th century. and was the center of Skanderbeg's rebellion against the Ottoman Empire.

Indrit used a nice selection of Harry Potter stamps from 2008. They are part of the set of 4.

There you have it, the end of this update, the first for March. Thanks for cards go out to Indrit, Martin, Dominique and Jean Pierre.

See you all next time.