Cove Bay, Anguilla

so another Sunday passing by....way too many errands that need to be done, but somehow I dont feel at the best shape for it...plus I have this huge urge to post some cards, finish some letters and books, write some cards as well...so lets start doing it one by one...and for starters, another brand new country in my collection...starting with my dear letter 'A'....ladies and gentleman, please be introduced to the country of Anguilla!!!

A card which is the treat for the eyes with this sandy beach and blue waters...and what I love most about it is that it is soooo empty...meaning no others'-towels intrusion...no people screaming over your head...no naughty children running around or yelling their lungs out....no mobile phones' ringing from all sides..just a lovely peaceful time....could kill for it me thinks!

And this beautiful paradise in the Caribbean is called the Cove Bay and is located on the west end of Anguilla which is the only major beach in the area not populated with hotels (that explains the lack of crowds). Definitely the perfect kind of beach for me.

And the acknowledgment again goes to JP....honestly, Im ENDLESSLY jealous regarding all these places he's been to!

lovely stamps and a very nice and neat cancellation! The right one is from a set of 6 wild flowers' stamps issued in 2009 while the other one is from a set of 12 definitives issued in 2003, showing ships.

merci beaucoup Jean-Pierre!!

Thailand

Next comes a map card I received back in 2009.

It is one of those very nice antique-kind of maps and this one shows the Kingdom of Siam, which is actually the name of Thailand before 24 June 1939 and again from 8 September 1945 to 20 July 1949

Here you can also see shown the Islands of Sumatra and Java as well as the Kingdom of Cambodia...as well as a glimpse of the Kingdom of Pegu (in what today is supposed to be Myanmar), China and Tonquin (which are both considered as part of Vietnam) and the K. of Chiampa (which is a region somewhere between Cambodia and Vietnam).
Quite a division they have had.....confusing for someone who doesnt actually have a good hold of today's geography and history...yeah yeah, I know...skipping lessons and not paying attention thereto in school.
But I have my cards to give me an insight and enlighten me...so see why postcards' collection is a valuable investment? :)

Biloxi, USA

This next fantastic card comes as a great from Bryon who has been one of the great contributors to this blog and has been pretty much spoiling me...though if I am to be honest, I do not mind that :P

and recently he sent me the fantastic set of lighthouses' cards issued along with the same set of stamps in 2009....there was another lighthouse set of stamps and cards in 2007 and I have them as well, thanks to dear Addis in Puerto Rico.

When choosing which of the lighthouses to post today, I was rather surprised to notice that so far I have no Mississippi card yet posted on my blog...I thought it might be a mistake in tags, but neither in keyword search I found a Mississippi card..

So im happy to add another US state to this blog, showing this beautiful Biloxi house. As the back of the card says: Of all the lighthouses that once stood in Mississippi, Biloxi lighthouse is the only one still standing. Named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, the white, conical tower was built in 1848, making it one of the first cast-iron lighthouses in the South.

one very interesting thing about the lighthouse's history is that light was civilian operated from 1848 to 1939, and is notable for its several female lightkeepers, including Maria Younghans, who tended the light for 53 years. So it is not like everyday you come across such info about women operating a lighthouse. Worth admiring!

And I just must add that I absolutely love the colours...such nice shades of blue!

and here come the stamps...the matching lighthouse one which is already pre-printed...while the one next to it is a 2011 stamp from the issue called "Garden of Love" which consists of 10 self-adhesive stamps. The one below it is a panther stamp issued in 2007. And look at that lovely cancellation!!

thanks soooooo much Bryon! For the kindness and thoughtfulness! 

Forks Marketplace, Canada

My last card for today (yeah sorry, 4 cards only) is one I received back in 2009, showing the Forks Marketplace in the Canadian Winnipeg.

From what Ive read, once you are in Winnipeg, this place is a must-to-see and a favourite tourist destination.
Located in the heart of downtown Winnipeg, at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, providing you many different opportunities to eat, shop or just relax.
The two rivers freeze during the winter, so you can also skate if you prefer.
Well, I would most probably exploit the cycling/rollerblading facilities.

I think that one of the things I love in Skopje is that SOMETIMES i have the opportunity to go cycling without too much trouble, just by the river Vardar...it is nice in the early morning when it is not crowded...otherwise, in the afternoons, esp. during the summer, it reminds you more of a catwalk with models on bikes and rollerblades...and cycling on the streets of Skopje is like suicide, coz you have no cycling paths and the pavements are always occupied by cars...or are in a reconstruction mode...or just have so many holes that neither the best bike-amortization will save your dear bicycle. So thats why I often wish I was in the Netherlands or Copenhagen or Paris...just for the cycling culture these places have...

anyways, enough of yada-yada :)

there are a number of stamps on this card, all different....the one on the very right is from a set of 4 sports stamps issued in 2009, representing the Ringuette (one of those sports I dont know much about...I think that just every day I see some newly invented sport out there). The stamp next to it is also from 2009 and is called "Montreal Canadians". Another 2009 stamp from the `Lest we forget` issue. The last two are from a set of 8 Handicrafts stamps issued in 1999.

So that would be all for today...hope you are enjoying your Sunday, regardless that Saturday was quite full with some not-so-nice events, following what happened in Norway as well as the death of Amy Whinehouse...that one came as a shocker, even though we all know what kind of life she led, but still.....such news always come out of the blue.

hugs to all!

Maho Bay, St. Maarten

well, I was just reminded that it's been like 15 days that I havent had any updates here....which sounded a real lot to me...with all things going on, I seem to lose track of time (again)...plus I had several attempts to make an update, choosing cards and all, and then it all is left for the 'next day' and of course, the next day other things happen and the update is postponed again....plus we've been enduring awfully hot temperatures lately...of almost 40 degrees, and at times like that I just feel so lazy and so inspirationless...even my dear postman seems to be having difficult times with this heat and stops by just once a week...when he overflows my mailbox with fantastic stuff.....so yesterday I said to myself that it was about time to get out of that frame of mind and post some cards....

 

...and here is where I wish I was at the moment...or at least any place like this (though I would probably skip the plane-thing)...near the sea/ocean/lake..first of all to get away from this unbearable heat...second, I really need some mental rest...

a fantastic card sent by Jean-Pierre....who sometimes I think has the magic wand actually, since he manages to send postcards from all those different spots in the world...this one here in particular is the Maho Bay in St. Maarten (the Dutch side - the other one is French) and shows also how this plane lands at the Juliana Airport...as much as the plane seems surreal, if you take a closer look, you will actually see some people looking towards the sky, taking pictures with their cameras....so there IS something there, and this American Airlines guy hasnt been photoshopped.. ..Ive experiences something similar back in Montenegro...at one of the beaches we got the chance to see dozens of planes flying over our heads since the airport in Tivat was very near...however, none of them was THIS low and close to us...if i got to experience something like this, I cant tell if id be terrified or hyper-excited and feel the adrenaline rushing up through my veins...most probably, it would be the latter...you know, the scarier, the more exciting :)

people at the St. Maarten PO seems to have been rather lazy to open their stamps' folders...what makes me laugh about these stickers is that they actually weigh the postcards too.. though maybe they still dont have stocks of the new stamps, since this is a rather newly formed country, bearing its own stamps (St. Maarten used to be part of the Netherlands Antilles). Well, maybe there is no real stamp, but thats why there is a great cancellation, showing this was indeed mailed from St. Maarten :D

Thank you so much Jean-Pierre!! You are amazing!

Kalavrita, Greece

Here is a great official card I received not so long ago....and what makes it even greater is that this is my first ever train card from Greece!

GR-18664

This is a scene from the Diakofto–Kalavryta Railway which runs 22 km from Diakofto through the Vouraikos Gorge and the old Mega Spilaion Monastery and up to Kalavrita, stopping en route at Zachlorou, built by Italian engineers between 1885 and 1895. Its length is 22 km and the journey is 68 min long.

Well, with this kind of scenery, id definitely love to take a ride on this one too...and compared to my desire to travel by the Trans-Siberian and the Rocky Mountaineer, this one seems to be the most viable.

two stamps were used on the card....the left one was issued in 2010 in a set of 5 stamps presenting the New Acropolis Museum, where this one shows the Parthenon Frieze (the low relief, pentelic marble sculpture created to adorn the upper part of the Parthenon's naos).
The other stamp was issued this year, in a set of 6 events stamps..though I cant tell to what event this one particularly refers to...

Maui, USA

This great surprise arrived from Glenn from his trip to Hawaii back in March

from the back of the card:  The Lāhainā - Kaanapali & Pacific Railroad train on its way to the centre of Kaanapali, Maui. And this is also known as the Sugar Cane Train, which is a 6-mile, 40-minute trip in open-air coaches pulled by vintage steam locomotives. Well, when one gets bored of the beaches, this is surely a thing to do..though I think that 40 minutes is just too little....

Lāhainā is said to be the largest census-designated place, in West Maui, and the gateway to the famous Kaanapali and Kapalua beach resorts. And it was interesting to read that until permanently moving to Honolulu, Lahaina was the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

the famous Grand Teton :)

thank you so much Glenn! And I feel even more honoured to have this card coz of the circumstances of its sending :)

Czartowe Pole, Poland

well, my last card for today will take you to Poland and to the Czartowe Pole reserve...and this should be the Sopot river...though I might be wrong about it...

btw, today im also trying to learn how this the new blogger functions...I cant tell if I like it better or not...im still not used to it so seems a bit complicated at moments and not so user-friendly...esp. when it comes to the posts and typing...the previous way this functioned was better for me, and Ill never understand why when something is working well, changes have to be made to it...but well, I guess it only takes time to get used to something and eventually you wont even notice the new stuff and will forget about the previous layout and all...

well, I better get down to some house errands....stay well and hopefully see you again soon :) And enjoy the weekend!