Brussels, Belgium

By now some of you probably know already where I had spent my New Year holidays. May seem like an odd choice, but when you find cheap tickets for a place you havent been to before, you just grab the opportunity and make the best out of it, and I must say the trip was really fantastic.

The best thing about Brussels? Our AirBnb, which included 5 cats and one dog. Endless joy! One of the cats would scratch on our door every day to let him in, and he would just climb on the suitcase and fall asleep, waking only to the rustling sounds, knowing it was probably food. (Make a wild guess which one was the frequent visitor :D)

Brussels itself is nice, just too crowded for my taste. But it was nice to see it. It didnt make the list of places I would never really like to go back to again, so thats a plus.

the place shown on the card is called Mont des Arts (meaning Hill/Mount of the Arts) which probably makes it one of the best places for taking pictures, cos the view is really stunning (however when your personal photographer cannot really grasp the idea of a good picture, you will end up without one with you in it...)

Not big fan of spending time in museums, at least not those standard types of Art and History ones, but I do love some unique ones, esp if related to my interests and Brussels has this super cool Comics museum, where if nothing else, you will realize how ignorant you actually were about the comics' art cos it is not all Tin Tin and Smurfs and stuff...

and of course, Belgium wouldnt be Belgium without the waffles, but to my surprise and to the disbelief of many I got to eat only two...but they were real good!

and probably just the best nachos I've ever eaten, so if you are in Brussels, and feel like having nachos, go to the O'Reilly's Irish Pub - their food is just fantastic!

so all in all a great stay in this small county and would like to visit it again and explore more of it (aside from Brussels, we also got to see Brugge, Ghent and Leuven, so not bad, eh? :))

the only downside is the lack of cancellation (or as in case with my card, it was upside down) on just all the cards sent but when I think about it, that is way better than some pen scribbles.

There is one of the birds' definitives (not sure which year it was issued), and two stamps from a set of 10 issued in 2003, under the name This is Belgium. Different places across Belgium are represented, and on these two stamps it is Vilvoorde and Turnhout, where the latter is obviously known for its playing cards industry, hence the playing cards' symbols.

Antwerpen, Belgium

The one before the last is a card from a mini meeting in Antwepen that took place on August 7th, 2015.

The card was sent by dear Valentina, who often surprises me with something in the mailbox :)
The card shows St. James' Church, a former Collegiate church in Antwerp, built on the site of a hostel for pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela. The present building is the work of the Waghemakere family and Rombout Keldermans, in Brabantine Gothic style. The church contains the grave of Rubens in the eastern chapel.

The guy on the left, Karel van de Woestijne, is from a set of 4 Culture Edition stamps issued in 1978, while King Albert should be from 1998.

Thank you so much for thinking of me Valentina!  ❤

Liège-Guillemins, Belgium

a great surprise I received recently from a Dutch friend who has been kinda spoiling me :D

one of the things he sent me is this great card from Belgium, showing the Liège-Guillemins train station in the town of Liège...looks really cyberish!
It is one of the most important hubs in the country and is one of the 3 Belgian stations on the high-speed rail network, used by 15,000 people every day.

This new station was designed by Santiago Calatrava (heeey, this guy and I share a birthday!!!) and was officially opened on 18 September 2009 with a show by Franco Dragone. The new station is made of steel, glass and white concrete and includes a monumental arch, 160 metres long and 32 metres high. It has 9 tracks and 5 platforms.

a nice self-adhesive butterfly issued in 2012 in a set of two stamps.

Thanks a bunch Sietse! I actually like this whole trip you've taken ;-)

The Atomium, Belgium

A card I received for the Surprise Group in Andy's Vacation RR just last week...

Looks really impressive, don't you think?
This is the Atomium in Brussels, originally constructed for Expo '58, the 1958 Brussels World's Fair.
Designed by the engineer André Waterkeyn and architects André and Jean Polak, it stands 102 m tall. Its nine 18 m diameter stainless steel clad spheres are connected so that the whole forms the shape of a unit cell of an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times.
Tubes connect the spheres along the 12 edges of the cube and all eight vertices to the centre. They enclose escalators and a lift to allow access to the five habitable spheres which contain exhibit halls and other public spaces. The top sphere provides a panoramic view of Brussels.

CNN named it Europe's most bizarre building.

Seriously CNN?? SERIOUSLY??  I bet there are at least a few buildings over here that can take the crown of 'most bizarre'...

and yeah...another coffee incident just a few days ago..it was one of those days when everything goes wrong, so karma tried to kick in from all sides...well, I dont know how many things suffered...I honestly dont even want to know...life goes on....King Filip got to taste a bit of the Nescafe 3 in 1 strong...hope he liked it.
Issued in a set of 3 in 2013

Lommel, Belgium

Next comes an awesome cemetery card from Belgium!

I love the dim, mystic atmosphere...pretty ghosty :P
The card shows the German war cemetery in Lommel. It is the largest German military cemetery in Western Europe outside Germany itself. Established after World War II, the 16 ha cemetery holds 38,560 burials from World War II and there are also 542 casualties from World War I .
The remains of the fallen German soldiers which were provisionally buried at Henri-Chapelle, Fosse, Overrepen and Neuville-en-Condroz were transferred here in Lommel in 1946 and 1947 by the American Battle Monuments Commission

there is even a YouTube video about the place...nothing spectacular, but you can take a look if interested

beautiful stamp that was issued in 2010 in a set of 5 stamps portraying Regions of Belgium. On this stamp here you can see an orchard in St. Trond

Brussels, Belgium

one VERY misleading card!

unless there was an explanation on the back, I would have bet my head that this card comes from China...never in my life I would have guessed Belgium...but yeah, believe it or not, this Chinese style can be seen in Belgium's capital.
It was built in Paris for the world exhibition in 1900 and then bought by King Leopold II and rebuilt in Brussels in 1904. All the decorations are real 'made in China and brought to Europe so it does have the authentic Chinese style.

Cool, I must admit..

the stamp on the very right was issued in 2008 in a set of two flowers' stamps, this one showing a Marigold. The middle stamps is from a set of two newspapers' stamps issued in 1987, while the last, bird stamp is a definitive, showing a duck and was issued in 2010.

thanks a lot to David for such a cool card :)

Belgium Specialty, Belgium

well, my first association to Belgium when it comes to food is chocolate....but here we have some real food to show :)

this is what the Belgians call a national meal: beer, french fries and mussels. Uhmmm..ok, not really my type...first, coz i dont like beer...second, im not so fond of mussels...and third, I actually prefer baked or boiled potatoes to the french fries....just too much oil in it and not really nutritional values. (Sometimes I think im annoying people regarding food and what's healthy and whats not and all the labels' checking of products...). Just yesterday, I put back this cat-food on the shelf coz it simply contained too many food colourings...some considered really hazardous...

however, garlic and onion... I love adding them to my meals, esp garlic in raw form....one of the best antiseptics you could get and help your immunity during the cold winter days.

The stamp is from a set of 3 issued this year, showing the House of Erasmus. A really nice one!

National Jenevermuseum, Belgium

A really great official card I had received from Belgium!

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This card shows the National Jenever museum in Hasselt.

It is said that the French have their cognac, the Scots their whisky, the Germans their schnapps, and the Russians their vodka. And the Belgians… they have genever and have been drinking it for more than 500 years. In the English speaking world it is known as the Dutch gin, the juniper-flavored and strongly alcoholic traditional liquor of the Netherlands and Belgium, from which gin evolved. Believed to have been invented by a Dutch chemist and alchemist named Sylvius de Bouve, it was first sold as a medicine in the late 16th century. In the 17th century, it became more popular for its flavour. In its long life, genever has taken on many different forms. In good times it was made from corn, in not-so-good times from molasses. In some regions it was spicy, in other regions it had a neutral taste. Some loved it and other loathed it, it was a source of joy, but also of intense irritation. The government had a love-hate relationship with genever, which on the one hand was a great source of income but on the other, represented a danger to public health.

and i ABSOLUTELY love the stamp on this card! maybe it is not a jenever, but it really matches the topic, and still, such a lovely picturesque stamp it is. It comes from an m/s of 5 stamps issued in 2010 depicting the La Hesbaye region in Belgium.

Someone feels like doing a *cheers* with a glass of wine? Or jenever? :)

Belgian Beers

A very cool card I received as an official

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well, thing is, im NOT a beer drinker....actually, it is one of the alcoholic beverages I cant possibly stand...why exactly, i dont know but i know that just the smell itself puts me off, not to even mention the taste.
Last summer when I was out with some friends, the place we went to has all kinds of beers as their main menu...it is like a special beer-cafe....and of course, a problem occured coz i couldnt finds something suitable to drink...they had wines, but only large bottles, so somehow the waitress convinced me to take this dark beer telling me that you dont really feel the taste of beer there and that i will like it....but of course, i didnt...it was just as regular beer, maybe only not so strong....and she came later all smiling to ask me how it is....and left all disappointed when I made this 'yuck' expression on my face...i knew she shouldnt have convinced me, but lesson learned...
But despite the fact im an anti-beer lady, i still love this card...i like being introduced to cultures in such a way, even though ill never try any of these.

Btw, since we are talking of beer, i must tell you that there is this Macedonian beer which is very much praised by everyone and foreigners enjoy it a lot....we've had cases of foreigners getting awfully drunk coz they were sort of used to their own beer, which is not even close as strong as this Macedonian one, so after two bottles, which would do nothing in their own country, here they are in frantic laughter and behaviour! So if you come here, be careful with the Skopsko beer ;)  Cheers!

I have a feeling that Belgium has the most birds' stamps issued....well, you also have one very cute kitten stamp (covered by the cancellation). The kitten is from 2010, from a set of 10 stamps under the subject 'leaving the nest'.

Aalst, Belgium

The last card i chose today is a reprint one...coming from Aalst in Belgium.

Well, i barely have any info about this one...from what I could decipher this card shows a steamtram and  a Railway Station in Aalst...but nothing else...so if anyone may have more info about this one, please let me know...coz it is a really nice card....

thanks for dropping by again! :)

Ieper, Belgium

A great card Thomas sent me, showing cemeteries.

Well, I got to learn that Ieper actually is the home to a number of cemeteries, esp. dedicated to the WW1. Now, if I got it all right, this card SHOULD be representing several different ones, not just  particular cemetery...and according to my research, one might be the Ramparts cemetery, another one might be the Hooge Crater cemetery...there might be the Tyne Cot cemetery....but unfortunately im not certain about any of these, so I would refrain of getting into any details. If Thomas or anyone who is familiar with these cemeteries, reads this...please, HELP! :)

Mons, Belgium

Well, Ive noticed that the majority of my Belgian cards were dealing with Brussels, Brugge or Leuven....so i thought to interfere now with Mons (as you would call it in Belgium), or Bergen (as you would hear it by a Dutch)...rather awkward since i see no close relation to these two words.

Well it's a small city, and what you can see here is the Grand Place which is actually the centre of the historic town where is also town hall with the belfry in the background.
The City Hall, originally built near the current location of the belfry, was moved on the Grand Place in the 13th century. The flamboyant gothic building we see today dates from the 15th century. In front of it stands a statue of a monkey, which is said to bring good fortune to those who pat his head.
A million dollar question....can you see the monkey???  :)

and here comes the boring Belgian guy on a definitive stamp issued in 2009 in a set of 4.

Leuven, Belgium

Just now i noticed that Leuven actually lies at the heart of Belgium

and its right above Waterloo!

hmm, im actually having a problem....cant install my printer on the laptop...cant install the Sound Card due to the 'corrupted' HD...and thats really annoying, since it feels 'deaf' without music...so i had to switch it to the radio....which is not like the worst thing that could have happened, but still.....its annoying when something is not fully functional....and i have to scan my cards using my old pc...yeah yeah yeah, i know i complained about it and wanted to get rid of it, but there...it opened its arms wide to me when most needed...but still, i dont have the itch to be making updates using my old turtle-pc...so i just hope i will be able to save all my data and then solve the problem for good....or at least even if a problem happens, that ill be ready and prepared and wont have to go thru all this hassle again, and have sleepless nights...at least, i could afford those sleepless nights now...but maybe next time i wont be able to...though i hope there wont be next time and that things will work fine

ok...i see its pointless to keep posting cards today since all i do is talk and talk about my lap top...and i should take a siesta maybe...what i hate is that my entire biorhythm is going to its old bad habit again...

one of those flower Belgian stamps...dating from this January...showing the Lilac wonder...

ok, off to sleep....or at least move away from the screen....have a nice day....

Brussels, Belgium

this nice card comes thanks to Thomas.

at first glance, i thought that huge rectangle thing was stained glass...and i was wondering, how is it possible not to break it when its placed in the middle of a square where frequency is so high...turns out my imagination goes in a different direction and that this has nothing to do with stained glass  but that, the rectangle thing is actually a flower carpet on the Market Place.
Officially, the first Floral Carpet as its present-day form was created in 1971 on the Grand-Place by the landscape architect E. Stautemans, but, in fact, it was the culmination of a whole series created in various towns in Flanders. he had been experimenting since the early 50's making simple small carpets, more like rugs, mainly consisting of begonias. He very quickly realised that floral carpets would be an excellent vehicle for the promotion of his beloved begonias which he had always worked with, both technically, economically and aesthetically.

After years of attempts and calculations, this architect, who was inventive and imaginative, and knew how to make the most of the numerous resources of begonias, became an expert in the creation of superb floral carpets with sophisticated colors and complicated designs.
His fame spread and he was asked to make carpets not only in Belgium but worldwide. Some of these carpets were bigger than the ones created in Brussels (77 x 24 m), like the 1973 masterpiece at Sint-Pietersplein, Ghent that reached a gigantic 164 x 42 m.

However, as E. Stautemas himself says, "Nowhere is the carpet more beautiful and distinguished than in the unique, ancient surroundings of the Grand-Place in Brussels".

Well, i havent seen the others, but this one is definitely stunning.



the stamp was issued in April this year and comes from a set of 5 showing the World Heritage of Belgium - Major town houses of the Architect Victor Horta in Brussels.

thanks a lot to Thomas for choosing such an interesting card :)

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 :)

Brussels, Belgium

these are the Corporation Houses in Brussels dating from the XVII century...

Funny thing...just now i realized that this is my first Brussels card...i have numerous cards from Belgium, and i had no idea until now that Brussels was missing from my collection!
Funny thing numero due...i could barely find any info about something called Corporation Houses in Belgium...and when i looked at the building card, i even thought it might be a UNESCO! :)
So...all my Belgique readers....if you can...please...HELP! :)

Leuven, Belgium

You know, i actually need to be getting ready for work instead of making this update...but i promise, after im done with this one, im out thru the door :)

This is the St. Peter's Church in Leuven...the biggest but not oldest church in the town. It is situated on the city's main market square across from the Ornate Town Hall. Built mostly in the 15th century in Brabantine Gothic Style the church is in the form of a cross with a low bell tower that has never been completed.

hmm, ok...i have to get going...i know i know todays update may have been scarce and lousy in words....but i hope you liked the cards at least :) And maybe if i manage my time wisely, ill see you tomorrow again....if not, ill see you on Saturday...i cant miss that one...i have specific things to post...shouldnt be hard to guess what if we take in account what date is it on Saturday....but i do have things to tell :)

Christmas Cards

These are the cards i had received from my other dear friends....cards are again posted in order they had been received...if any additional cards arrive, ill add them to this post...

from Roberta in Italy

 

from Ana in Serbia

  

 from Asako in USA

  

from Nicole in the Netherlands

  

from Lucie in Czech Republic

  

from Rafal in Germany

  

from Leyla in Belgium

  

from Charity in Canada

 

Thank you everyone for brightening up my mailbox! Luv ya all!!!