Taiwan

One more card for today... this time a very cool official card from Taiwan.

TW-2701787

A very interesting way of portraying some of the most famous places and things / foods in Taiwan. How many can you actually recognize?

a stamp from a set of 4 Minerals' stamps issued in 1997. This one shows an enargite.

So folks, that would be all for today! Have a nice weekend ahead and if you had read the sticky post and you are still around, well thank you too :)

Bangladesh

Good day to you all.. after like a month after the previous post. But at least it is not a year. And in my defence, the last few weeks have been hectic, in several life spheres but now I am having some me-time, and lets put up a few posts here. This weather outside sucks anyway...

I've been doing some thinking and I have decided to do some posts dedicated to some of my postcard fairies. You know how I just cannot choose cards totally at random but always have to overcomplicate stuff and find some meaningful pattern and blah blah blah...
So there we go, and my postcard-fairy of the day is Sissel, a name you have encountered here on a lot of occasions, esp. with those breathtaking Norwegian cards ;-)
And today's first card from Sissel is as part of a fantastic trip she took last year (all her trips are fantastic though), and among all the other places, she got to visit Bangladesh too.
Not my first one from Bangladesh, the debut was here, few years ago. But also not my last since another Bangladesh card is on my way from what I know, I just hope it doesn't get lost in the dark halls of the postal service somewhere.
Regarding this one, I am not exactly sure what it represents; looks like some kind of a celebration for a National Day or something. I could say a protest as well, but the few faces I can spot look kinda cheerful and not in a protesting mood, so I don't know. Still it is a super cool card!

the stamp on the right was issued in 2012, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Bangladesh Police Academy, while the other one is from 1989, representing Bangladesh Landmarks, showing the Curzon Hall, a British Raj-era building and home of the Faculty of Science at the University of Dhaka. The building was originally intended to be a town hall and is named after Lord Curzon.

Hello from the other side....

sooo, finally a few words from here....from the far-away land of China! (well, that depends where you actually are...it may not be THAT far-away...in fact, China may be nearer than Macedonia to your place :)

anyways, not so long ago I kinda announced that I may be going to China....and that 'maybe' turned into 'i should really use this opportunity' which finally ended into me landing here in Guangzhou exactly one month ago...yep, believe it or not it's been a month since I've been living here. I know I should have made some post earlier, but for the first days I was all jet-lagged, and then there have been many things to do...and then when I have some free time, all I feel like doing is sleep sleep sleep, or just watch a movie....but I believe that I should really kinda commemorate this small anniversary and just say hello and say Im safe and sound and all :)

I could talk about my impressions for hours and hours...frankly, I feel as if I've been here for like a year...Macedonia feels so distant at the moment that it makes me even sad...I don't miss the country or the places there, but I really miss my family and friends, but I guess that's kinda normal...I miss them even when I go on short trips and all. However, this time is really different, and I still don't know for how long this trip of a life time will last, but I hope I won't have to pack my bags next month and go back home :)

I still haven't sent a single card from here, for two reasons - first, financially I am trying to be wise and not spend money on cards and stamps and stuff, and second, I still haven't even seen a place selling cards which is kinda weird since the city is just HUGE!! Yeah, HUGE!! 14 million people give or take, third biggest in China, and yet I still haven't spotted postcards....but I found a philatelic shop though, which may be even more dangerous! :D

But I have this feeling the language barrier will be a problem...you know, I've never felt more miserable in my life for not knowing a particular language, but here, I do..I feel like I've just dropped from outer space and have been randomly thrown here, feeling completely lost when it comes to the language...I mean, geez, it is even impossible to comprehend a single thing, not to mention that the only way I could make most of the people understand me is body language...cos no, they DON'T speak English and no they won't even try (most of the people - but there is this girl working in a supermarket nearby, and she really tries hard to talk to me in English, I really love her for that!

Speaking of mail...there should be mailboxes in the building where I am, but I still haven't seen them...plus I still don't feel comfortable receiving mail here...but my Macedonian address is always valid, so if you send me something there, my parents will take care of it, just that I'm not sure when I will be able to let you know it has arrived =/

Well, I have seen just a few places here, as I said, whenever I have some free time, I feel like sleeping..plus the weather here is sooo terrible (very hot and humid, or hot and with rain/showers) that often you don't even feel like going anywhere :)

But here are a few pics, just so you don't forget me :))

this is the view from my apartment (:

Yeah, I really am in China, in case you thought I was joking :D

If you wanna know whether I like it here or not...I don't know, everything is still interesting and there are so many new things and all...but I think that my adjustment has been going pretty well, and that's kinda really important to me...and thank God there are some other Macedonian expats here, so in the end you don't feel THAT lonely in a city of 14 million people. Of course, everyone is busy and all, but in a way it does feel comforting to know someone from your own country (one is actually a dear colleague of mine from University, so that makes things even better! :))

Funny thing about these two cards is that I received them both as a part of a swap...I don't know why I would swap for two flag cards, or maybe it was within a short period of time...who would remember, but anyways, I love the pictorial postmark on the first one...maybe if I am lucky, I will get something nice like this in that philately shop :)

However, I should do a better job in reading stamps from scans instead actual cards....I promise to do a better job for next time!

as for that next time, I can't tell when it;s gonna happen...you know, apart from the busy life, things like gmail and fb and blogger don't really function here in China unless you use some VPN services, which are not 100% functional, so sometimes you just feel like cut-off from the real world, which from time to time may not be such a bad idea :)

Anyways, big hug to you all, and see you around, sooner or later! :)

Gratulerer med dagen Norge! / Happy Birthday Norway!

17 May is like probably the most important day in Norway since it is the country's Constitution Day, which is the National Day of Norway.

The Constitution of Norway was signed at Eidsvoll on May 17 in the year 1814. The constitution declared Norway to be an independent kingdom in an attempt to avoid being ceded to Sweden after Denmark–Norway's devastating defeat in the Napoleonic Wars.

So for the birthday of my most beloved country in the world, here are a few Norwegian cards which I thought that thematically would be appropriate for today =)
In case you wanna read a bit more about the Norwegian's most important day of the year, take a look here - Understanding 17 May

PL-60549

First comes an official card which even though shows the Norwegian flag, was actually sent from Poland, but don't get me started on that now, let me tell you a few words about the flag instead :)

It was adopted on 13 July 1821, by a resolution by the Norwegian parliament, the Storting.

The idea for this flag belongs to Frederik Meltzer, Member of Parliament from Bergen. He got the idea of adding a blue cross to the Danish flag during a meeting in the parliament. The discussion on the flag circled around considerations about reflecting the past, that is the Danish colours, which enjoyed great popularity, and considerations that the union with Sweden should also be reflected in the flag. So we can say that the red and white came from the Danish flag, the blue from the Swedish. At the same time, the colour combination red, white, blue was also attractive to the Parliament because it reflected the colours of liberty, as in the flags of France, the USA, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.

here is that Polish stamp issued in 2009 for the World Post Day.



I have no idea how I obtained the following two cards (most probably a swap) - all I know is that I found them in the 2010 pile.

On both of the cards you can see a map of the country along with some beautiful nature scenes located in different parts of it (the one above actually shows views from the north of the country only).

The next map card - I received it twice....and funny thing is that both senders sent it like just a few days apart...what a telepathy!! :D
One was sent by Sissel and one by Cathrine - I can freely say my two most regular Norwegian contributors :))

Both Sissel and Cathrine have said on the cards that the map is a bit inaccurate - I don't know if it's cos its maybe an older edition or something...but still makes it a really nice map-card.

Among else it says that
- the country is a Constitutional Monarchy with a Parliamentary system of Government
- monetary unit is the Norwegian krone
- religion: Protestant
- main export: oil and gas, ships and offshore platforms, fish, paper
- capital: Oslo
- largest lake: Mjøsa
- highest mountain: Galdhøpiggen, 2469m
- average life expectancy: women - 80 years, men - 73 years  (what the hell are you doing to your men Norway?? or should I ask that the Norwegian women maybe? :P)
- national anthem: Ja, vi elsker dette landet

speaking of mountains, it reminded me of this thing I read yesterday - it is not the latest news, actually it is like more than a year old, but I still thought it may be worth sharing this article about the Future Library Project that is taking place in Norway :)

here are the two stamps that came along with these cards - the above one featuring the Revtangen, Klepp, Rogaland was issued in 2009 in a set of 6 Tourism stamps, while the one below was issued in 2011 in a set of three stamps for the Year of the Architecture.

For the end of this post I will share with you a small anecdote from my recent Spanish trip that is related to Norway :)

See, we were visiting Benidorm one day, and just as we parked the car, another car parked in front of us, and I don't know why I took a look, but something just got my attention and I realized the car was Norwegian! I couldn't really believe it and I just stood there waiting for the people to get out of the car in order to talk to them, in my terrible basic Norwegian! To make it worse, I was so excited that I couldn't even think of the simplest of words at the moment!! And I don't know who was more shocked, me, that I came across Norwegians at a random place in Spain, or them, that they came across someone at a random place in Spain who actually spoke Norwegian (or better said, had her attempts to do so :D) It was hilarious cos as I've probably mentioned before, spoken Norwegian is a nightmare to me, so not only they talked to me in Norwegian, they often had to translate in English what they had actually said cos my brain was duh? huh? what??!! Yeah, the joke's on me, I know, but frankly I am also proud of myself cos I didn't run away as I usually do when I have to talk in a language I am not fluent in (like Spanish or German), but on the whole contrary, I was waiting for them to get out of the car in order to exchange a few words.
They were an older and really lovely couple, so a big hug to them in case they ever come across this post and remember that clumsy girl in Benidorm who tried to talk to them in Norwegian :D

Greece

the following card arrived from Milda last year...you know I love flags, and slowly Im adding new ones to my collection

and you know, the Greek one is so marine..just like the country itself...this is exactly like those beautiful white island houses, with blue roofs and blue wooden window-shutters....now im pretty sure the Greeks didnt pick the colours of their flag based on that, but it does have some analogies...

well some basic facts about the Greek flag say that it was adopted on
22 December 1978, and that it consists of nine horizontal stripes, in turn blue and white; a white cross on a blue square field in canton.
The nine stripes are said to stand for the nine syllables of the Greek patriots' motto: Ελευθερια η Θανατος (Eleutheria ê Thanatos), meaning "Freedom or Death". This motto is now the national motto of Greece.

so much of the white-blue houses =)

Milda uses some awesome stamps on the card!
All three were issued in 2013. The middle one comes from a set of three stamps commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Liberation of Ioannina.
The stamp on the right is from a set of four stamps, representing the Award-winning Greek Cinema, while the ship stamp is from a set of 6 sailing stamps. Love them all!

The First Postcrossing Meeting in Belgrade

well, ok...you should all know by now about the first postcrossing meeting that was held in Belgrade on 29 October 2011...if you dont know about it, you should probably blame your postman :)

It came too spontaneously, but turned out great...the only remark would be the lack of time :)
And one of the most special things about this meeting was the special postcard design we had, done by Renato. A really unique card, representing all the participants (by their usernames) and all that nicely arranged according to the country they were coming from! Can you spot me? :P
Personally I addressed way too many cards...and I have no idea how many we signed in total, but it was a LOT LOT LOT!!! Well, after all, it was the first meeting :)
Unfortunately, I didnt manage to send as many cards as I had originally planned...the time simply didnt allow it, and funny but after the postcard shopping, I ended up writing out ALL of the cards, even though I planned to bring back some home...so do the math :)
If you hadnt gotten a card from this meeting and you are sure your postman is the most reliable guy on Earth, then let us know for next time :)

and somehow this post was perfect to present this fantastic map card of Yugoslavia...it was sent to me by Renato as well, a few months before the meeting. Here all the former republics of Yugoslavia can be seen with their respective flags...and this is somewhat what our meeting was about...postcrossers from different parts of  former Yugoslavia...unfortunately, Montenegro, BiH and Slovenia were missing, but we wholeheartedly hope that on the next meeting, at least one representative from each republic would be present. Ill do my best to fill in the Macedonian spot :)

Renato used a really nice definitive from a set of 8 issued in 2007 with this one representing Kopaonik.

A big hug to all my PC meeting friends, and of course, to the ones who couldnt make it this time :)

Battle Flags, USA

Dear Chrissy sent me this card back in 2009 and im pretty sure she has even forgotten she did coz almost two years had passed since then...but you know how lousy and behind I am with the posting of cards

Chrissy knows I love flags among else, so she surprised me with this card (among the others as well :))
The card shows the Battle flags of the Confederate States of America which were vital to the soldier; from them he recognized various units and regiments and knew whether to advance or retreat. But battle flags were much more, they stood for the southern cause and were an emotional symbol revering those men who had fallen advancing their colours.
The Confederate States are the southern states that fought in the Civil War.
It is funny how some of these remind me of some other world flags, for example, the one at the right bottom corner reminds me of Iceland...the one at the top reminds me of Somalia....and then there is the one that resembles the EU flag....interesting....

Thank you so much Chrissy! And sorry for not having posted it earlier (actually I still have some cards you had sent me that havent been posted...bad bad Ana)

Taiwan

Well, another flag card for today, coming from Taiwan this time.

I know I am taking the risk of UNINTENTIONALLY saying something inappropriate regarding the Taiwan vs China issues, and I apologize in advance for that, but what I say is based on articles I come across and does not reflect my personal opinions and beliefs.

The red in the flag represents the land of China itself, with reference to the Han race which is the dominant race among the many races of China. The white sun symbolizes the spirit of progress as the twelve points represent the twelve hours of the day (a traditional Chinese hour = two conventional hours), and the sun on a blue field is the party flag of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) which ruled Taiwan until 2000. This flag was first used in 1928.

Mr. Hou-tung Lu designed the basics of the national flag of Taiwan (the blue sky, white sun). Later the red field was added by Dr. Sun Yat-sen to become the national flag.

The symbolism of the flag is cited as follows: The "three principles of the people" represented by the white-twelve-pointed star -Equality, brightness and Min Sheng (People's Livelihood), the blue canton - Liberty, justice and Min Chuan (Democracy) and red field - Fraternity, sacrifice and Min Tsu (Nationalism).

so here you have one Year of the Rabbit stamp, issued this year of course, coming from a set of two stamps. The bird stamp is from a set of 10 stamps issued in 1991 while the third one is from a set of four flower stamps issued in 1995.

Åland

Wow, its crazy how fast time flies....before I know it and it's Friday already again....and Im embarrassed to admit that these cards have been waiting in the draft since last Sunday....but I just havent had the time nor have been in the right frame of mind to make posts....well, we'll see how I manage today :)

Well, you know I LOVE flag cards, and the flag of Åland has got to be among my favourite ones. I just LOVE its colours...they make the flag radiate with so much warmth and passion, and the you know that as long there is blue, its already having great chances for me to love it :)


The flag of the Åland Islands (Finnish: Ahvenanmaa, Swedish: Åland) is blue with a red Scandinavian cross fimbriated yellow.
When Finland declared independence from Russia in 1917, the Åland islanders feared for their Swedish language and culture and mobilized for a reunion with Sweden. In the Middle Ages the Åland archipelago was a province of Sweden. Ecclesiastically the islands belonged to the diocese of Abo (Turku) in Finland, and so the province was lost to Russia in 1809. The issue was finally settled by the League of Nations in 1921. The islands were to be a part of Finland, but they were to enjoy autonomy.
However, a flag was not granted until 1954. Unofficially a blue-yellow-blue triband had been in use from 1922. Several versions existed, the dominating one had equal horizontal bands. Another version had a narrower band of yellow - as when the vertical yellow stripe in the cross on the Swedish flag is taken away.
Blue and yellow were naturally the favourite colours, being both the colours of Sweden and the colours of the provincial coat of arms (a golden deer on blue), Therefore, when preparing a design for adoption in the early 1950s, the favoured design was a Scandinavian cross design of a blue field and a yellow and blue cross - that is, the flag of Sweden with an extra blue cross in the middle. This proposal was rejected by the president of Finland as too similar to the Swedish flag. Alternative designs were the old blue-yellow-blue triband, the flag of Finland with an extra yellow cross in the middle, and a design where a red cross was added to the Swedish pattern.

The outcome of the process was the adoption of the blue-yellow- red Scandinavian cross design. This flag was first hoisted on the town hall in the provincial capital Mariehamn 3 April 1954. The red colour was controversial at first, because people felt it lacked a local tradition. However, the colours can be said to come from the provincial coat of arms (blue and yellow - also Sweden's colours) and the colours of the coat of arms of Finland (red and yellow). Also, experts in heraldry have found out that at one point a Swedish king hoisted a flag of exactly the same design.

Slovakia

Another FANTASTIC surprise here, this time from dear Janek, who knows I love flag cards and sent me this lovely one from Slovakia!

The current form of the flag of Slovakia was adopted by Slovakia's Constitution, which came into force on 3 September 1992. The flag, in common with other Slavic nations, uses the white, blue and red colours. Slovakia's flag in its current form (but with another coat of arms on it or without any arms) can be dated back to the revolutionary year 1848. . It was also used semi-officially in Czechoslovakia before World War II, by the Slovak Republic during WWII, and finally adopted (without the coat of arms) on 1 March 1990 as the flag of the Slovak Republic within Czechoslovakia. Since the Slovak flag without the coat of arms is identical to that of the modern flag of Russia and it can also be compared to the modern flag of Slovenia, the Constitution of Slovakia added the national coat of arms in September 1992.

The stamp is a EUROPA one, from the 2009 Astronomy series.

Thank you so much Janek! I just LOVE this card!

Poland

Emilia sent me this great card from Poland, which is like 3 in 1, since apart from being a map, it is also a flag and shows the Coats of Arms.

The card represents the 16 voivodeships of Poland.... is a type of administrative division dating to medieval Poland, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Serbia (Vojvodina), ruled by a voivode. The voivode (literally, "leader of warriors", equivalent to Dux Exercituum or Herzog) was originally the military commander next to the ruler. Well, living in Macedonia, this word is rather familiar to me due to the Vojvodina region in Serbia, but I have never really known what it actually stood for.
Until 1997, Poland had 49 voivodeships.

In case you are from Poland or know Polish or anything, here are two websites I came across not that long ago. Both are dedicated to Polish girls who are ill from leukemia and who need financial or moral support from others. In case you can or want to help, then just click here:
Lenka
Paulina

I dont know these two girls, but I just felt that the least I could do for them is spread the word around.

the well known Polish stamp from 2001 representing Farms.

Australia

A flag card for my collection, which i ended up receiving twice...within just a week time or so...the first one arrived as a swap, the second one as an official...who could have guessed :) And i only have 2 officials received from Australia so far....

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The Australian flag is composed of 3 parts:

• The Union Jack (British flag) in the top left corner,
• The 'Star of Federation' in the bottom left corner, and
• The Southern Cross, taking up the right half of the flag.

The Union Jack shows that the first colonisation by Europeans was by Britain. In case you didn't know, Australia started as a penal colony. The Star of Federation is a seven pointed star. They came to the number seven, by giving each state (six in all) a point on the star, and having one more point for Australia's territories (of which there are several). There are two mainland territories, and several overseas, including two in Antarctica. The Southern Cross is a constellation that can be seen from all of Australia's states and territories.

the stamp on both cards was the same, with the same airmail label next to it...so im included just this one which was cancelled actually, and comes from the swap card....it was issued in 2008 in a set of 4 stamps representing waterfalls...and these are the Russel Falls in Tasmania.

Spain

Well, since the latest events are calling for it, here comes a Spanish post....and *cough cough cough*....yeah, a bit more ramblings about Rafa....sorry :)

But I am soooo happy, that I just have to give this event a significance. Mr. Nadal won Roland Garros!!! Again!! For the 5th time!!! (If he didnt have the problems he had last year, I think right now I would probably say that he won it for the 6th time...but well, thats how it is).
Well, apart from winning Roland Garros, he also regaind the 1st place on the ATP South African Rankings!!! Wohoooooooooooo!!! That calls for a double celebration!! And one more thing I must mention is that throughout the entire RG tournament, Rafa didnt drop a SINGLE set! He won all the matches by 3:0!!
The final match itself maybe wasnt of the greatest quality...was tense at times but not as much as plenty of other matches ive seen....but at least it was Nadal who won. I feel sorry for Soderling....he lost the final here last year....and Nadal told him today he was sorry and that he had played his best tennis so that he could beat him...and he did! I was honestly rather scared, coz it was Soderling last year who stood in Rafa's way and eliminated him in the first rounds....something I think was a shock for everyone, coz it was RG we were talking about, it was clay....but eventually we realized that the disappointments would follow throughout the year....thats how he lost his number one ranking and eventually fell to number 4! But *knock on wood*...this season Rafa has been playing his best tennis, and im really happy coz of that and really proud of him!

Well Rafa is actually from Mallorca, Manacor, but unfortunately i dont have a postcard related to it (or i might have overlooked it), so I decided to post a card with the map of entire Spain, where you can also have a glimpse where Manacor is situated..it is on the right side of the map, between Ibiza and Menorca. So thats where Rafa resides...at home...unlike many other sports' players who eventually move to some more fancy place, like Monte Carlo for example.

and here is a nice interview, taken sometime during RG 2010

And the second card was sent written and stamped, so it would be a pity to neglect the stamps. The one on the left is from a set of 4 issued in 2009, representing Renewable Energy Sources, this one shows Hydro.
The other stamp is also from 2009, showing a butterfly.

India

First of all, I must express my disappointment...its been two working days in the new year, and my postman hasnt visited me ONCE...not a single postcard or letter...I hoped he was gonna come on Saturday...he didnt....and then I was CONVINCED he would come today....nope...big ignore again....not a nice start of the year mail wise....*sniff*

well, the other thing is that this is the last place where i should be....i have bunch of work to do, a deadline over my head...but no...i have to post cards at times least inconvenient for that...some things never change....

And here comes a flag card from India! Now, before you get into the temptation to click the comment-button and tell me i had posted this flag upside down...let me tell you...thats how the postcard actually is....printing mistake, on purpose or accident, I dont know...I was wondering for a long while if i should place it the right way or leave it in the original...and decided to leave the original...so in case I see a comment correcting me the flag is upside down, I will know for sure that the certain person hasnt read the post :) So that way Ill know who really reads my ramblings and who just skims through the cards and stamps...he he he...evil me :P

The Indian flag is a horizontal tricolor in equal proportion of deep saffron on the top, white in the middle and dark green at the bottom. The ratio of the width to the length of the flag is two is to three. In the centre of the white band, there is a wheel in navy blue to indicate the Dharma Chakra, the wheel of law in the Sarnath Lion Capital. This center symbol or the 'CHAKRA' is a symbol dating back to 2nd century BC. Its diameter approximates the width of the white band and it has 24 spokes, which intends to show that there is life in movement and death in stagnation. The saffron stands for courage and sacrifice; the white, for purity and truth; the green for growth and auspiciousness.

I love flags with a meaning.

I had already posted the rose stamp before, where i said it was a definitive issued in 2002...like then, im still not sure if this info is totally accurate.

as for the other...regardless how much i hate to admit this...i have no clue about it

Portugal

Well, here is a card which enriches my flag card collection!

Portugal!
The portuguese national flag is a 2:3 rectangle divided vertically into green at the hoist (2/5 of the flag’s length) and red at the fly (3/5). Centered in this partition a coat of arms consisting on an armillary sphere charged with the traditional Portuguese shield.
there are few versions regarding the symbolism of the flag.
According to one of them, the flag means to symbolize Hope (the green colour) and Sacrifice (the red colour).
According to another one, the green and the red colour were adopted by the republicans without this symbolism, which was added later to give the flag more "dignity". It is a typical case of symbolism emerging from the design.

Cape Verde

Who would have thought that one day I would have a flag card of Cape Verde! Even though its not mailed from there, its still a great card and im more than happy to be an owner of one and to actually tick off Cape Verde from my flag card list...coz unlike maps, flag cards are much harder to get, so thats what makes this card really valuable to me....

there is an interesting meaning hidden behind the design of this flag:

The rectangle of the flag is seen as a large blue field symbolizing the infinite space of the sea and sky.
The ten yellow stars represent the 10 islands.
The circle of the stars symbolizes the Cape Verdean Nation and its unity.
The circle in a certain sense, is the world to which we are opened and that is opened to us; is the line of horizon which limits our freedom, that is the world map, but is also the mariner’s compass and the helm of the navigators.
The strips are the road to the construction of the country.
The blue is the sea and the sky.
The white is the peace we want.
The red is the effort

Cool!

and I have to say that this is one of the cards i received due to the WOTM or Winner Of The Month...or more precisely, i was the lucky winner for the month of October, and was delighted with all the wonderful cards i received (i may have mentioned this already, I dont know...but it wont hurt to repeat myself).
And this treat came from Gilles  who was kind enough to send me this flag card, knowing that i collect them...thanks a lot Gilles!! :)

Russia

A great card coming from my dear Anastasia.....who knows how much i love map/flag cards...

And again a card coming from my favourite Slavic RR.....this time from the re-opened one, since Ksenia unfortunately couldnt keep hosting it....if you are asking me, personally id never be a good RR host...it may not be a hard task, but for people as disorganized and lazy as me, it certainly isnt something i SHOULD be doing...i mean, collecting addresses, arranging groups, sending addresses, making updates of sent/received cards....you really cant see me in that light...
btw, inside the map, you can see St. Petersburg on the left side and Suzdal on the right....and Anastasia actually told me about this card when we were in Budva this summer, and somehow i knew she was gonna send it to me sooner or later :P  yeah, that was a very self-centered statement...
oh, Anasty...do you actually know what arrived in my mailbox today?? :D :D :D yup, thats right...ill message you about it :)  But thank you soooo much dear!! I just love THEM!! Yes...THEM!!! :))

and as usual, great Russian stamps (where the one on the right has food on it!!!)
both stamps come from the EUROPA series....the one one the right is from the 2005 issue when the EUROPA theme was Gastronomy and the stamp is called "Bread & Salt", where guests are welcomed in Russia with these words for centuries. Both in old times and nowadays various delicious are put on the table and pancakes with caviar have been commonly served to feasts for many centuries.
the other stamp is from 2002 with the Circus as a primary EUROPA theme.

Lithuania

A great addition to my flags collection....i only wish it didnt have the postmarks on the front...it really ruins such a perfect card =|

The first of the former SSRs to break decisively with Moscow, Lithuania adopted its old tricolour as its official state flag in March 1989. Like the other Baltic states, and indeed, the other captive nations of the former USSR, the flag had been used during Lithuania's previous period of independence from Russia - from 1918 to 1940. In the flag, yellow stands for grain, green for forests, and red for the blood shed in defense of the nation.
According to the Grossen Flaggenbuch, the first horizontal triband adopted as Lithuanian national flag after WWI had the proportions 3:2. The current national flag, with proportions 2:1, is therefore not strictly a readoption of the pre-WWII flag.

there are also 3 really nice stamps on the card.
The one on the very right comes from a set of 3 issued in February this year showing the Coats of Arms of Lithuania, on this particular stamp Krekenava.
The stamp in the middle comes from the WWF series issued in 2008, with 8 stamps in the set, and here you can see the European Roller.
The last stamp on the very left is also from 2008 portraying the Wooden Sacral Architecture of Lithuania. There are 6 stamps in the set and this one shows the Church of Inturke from 1855.

Turkey

A card which came as a total surprise from dear Leslie....ok, i knew she was gonna send me something, but had absolutely no idea what...and when i saw this card, all i could say was that its just perfect....a flag and map in one! Could i ask for something more? :)

 

Hmmm....i must admit that im using a PC i shouldnt be...but since im home alone, i sneaked in the family pc into my room, since its MUUUUCH faster than mine...and i just cant find the words to explain the difference while just working on the blog...its inexplicable how much time i get wasted while working on mine and waiting for all those applications to start and work with them and how often it gets stuck and unresponsive...I planned to go for a lap-top hunt this weekend, but then i realized i dont have all the necessary info at hand and i dont want to just rush into decisions and make a wrong one...and then realizing i should have bought some oder model/version...but i think that i wont be able to cope with my pc for much longer...
btw...i was wondering where the Turkish logo (if i can call it so) originates from...I see it on all cards and on all Turkey-related commercials...so it must have come out from somewhere...
hm, yeah well...me and my digressions :)

 

the stamp comes from the set of 16 stamps issued in 2005 showing Turkish provinces...and here is Aydin...i actually think i have shown this stamp before...or no...well, nevermind :)

Leslie...thanks a lot again...not just for the lovely card but for the thoughtfulness as well :)

Germany

I definitely need a new PC/laptop ASAP! laptop preferably, due to its convenience....but my PC is really eating my nerves....it gets stuck and unresponsive way too often and just makes my updates a real hell to go through =|

Hmmm...flag card...jack pot!
The official name of the German flag is Bundesflagge (federal flag). However, this name is mainly used by authorities or in very official announcements. Today the black-red-yellow tricolour is used as the national flag and the merchant ensign. Im just a bit confused about the last colour....somewhere it is stated as *gold* and at other places as *yellow*...to me it has certainly seemed *yellow* ever since ive known about it, but now ive been overshadowed by doubts.
here is what it is said about the history of this flag:
The black-red-yellow tricolour flag has been used at least three times in the history of Germany. It was adopted in 1848 and abolished in 1852; readopted as the flag of the Weimar Republic on 11 August 1919, and abolished and replaced by the Third Reich flag 12 March 1933. It was finally readopted as the modern German flag on 8 May 1949. It was used by the German Democratic Republic until 1959 but had added to it a coat of arms from 1959-1989 when the Germanies were reunited.