Ieper, Belgium

A really nice card from Thomas showing some spots in the city of Ieper.

I honestly had never heard of Ieper until I received my first card from Thomas..and it seems like an interesting place, and is if many things related to Ieper are also related  to some of the World Wars from which you can see traces implemented in the city nowadays. If im not mistaken, here you can see the Cloth Hall, which is also related to the WWI, and the cemeteries below commemorate something as well, though im not sure what. Thomas might have mentioned it, but can be rather absent-minded sometimes. 

What got me really curious, is the 'cat' on the very right, and ive learned that Ieper is the host of the Cat Parade, which takes place every 3 years on the second Sunday of May....and 2009 was a lucky year to have a Cat Parade happening. Really interesting....

The stamp....well, its not only a great stamp, but a great cancellation as well, and i have to say im proud and happy to have it! :)
Ive noticed that the EUROPA stamps are EXTREMELY popular among stamp collectors (why exactly, i cant tell) but as an issue its a really nice one and its something which is issued every year, on a different subject...this is something i first managed to grasp when i was at the philately and i overheard the conversation between the guy who was buying the stamps and the lady who worked there...so even though ive seen EUROPA stamps before, i didnt really know anything related to them, so this overheard conversation was probably my first more serious encounter. Ridiculous, i know...
I know that Macedonia also has EUROPA stamps issued and i know that this guy complained how to get the whole set of, FDC, Souvenir Sheet and stamps is just too expensive...and i also wonder why they issued the stamps in such values, which i can use neither on a postcard nor on a letter...it seems as if they are meant only for collectors' purposes, not for a wider usage...which is a pity...
Oh, and ive also overheard that this year's subject for the EUROPA stamps would be Astronomy ;)
Yay, this stamps thing is fascinating me more and more each day!!!  :-)

PS. In case i ever make a stupid mistake regarding stamps and say something which is nonsense or completely untrue, dont hesitate to correct me...thats how one learns things :)