Boa Vista

so, has the weather been acting weird on your side of the world? here it has...going to extremes of too cold and too hot....luckily we havent had snow at least, though it has occurred in some very neighbouring places...and such weather simply makes you dream of something like this....

which makes it also my first written and stamped card from Cape Verde!! The first one i had received was not mailed from there...and on the other hand, now i see how long it has been since then...huh...

I owe this beauty of a card to Michaela who was lucky to spend her holidays there, and kind enough to spread some joy around the world :)
This beautiful view comes from Boa Vista, which is the eastermost island of Cape Verde (which consists of 10 islands in general). Btw, Boa Vista means 'good view' in Portuguese...well, deserved!

the stamp was issued in a set of 4 in 2006, showing famous people, with this one portraying Francis Drake, a captain, navigator, politican of the Elizabethan Era.

Čukotka, Russia

card number two for today comes from the beautiful Russian peninsula of Čukotka. One of the parts of Russia that enthrall me to the utmost. I got this one in the favourites tag!

The writers call it the shore of two oceans.
It was named Chukotka after the most numerous population of indigenous peoples in the region, the Chukchi. "Chukcha" means "having many deer" in the local Chukchi language.
As much as I find appealing scenes portrayed in cards like the previous one, I am also deeply in love with the deep north sceneries, and there is this description about Chukotka which totally gets under my skin and makes me want to be there, like just NOW!
"your flight finishes on a different planet, not in the one where it began. You will encounter cool and humid air, a black and yellow landscape if you arrived in summer, and severe white bareness if you arrived in winter. There are no trees, only mountains and tundra, terribly naked" - Oleg Kuvaev.


If you have missed my initial fascination with this place, just take a look at this other Čukotka card 

the Kremlin stamps are definitives issued in 2009 while the fox is from a set of 15 definitives issued in 2008

Fort Lauderdale Beach, USA

a beautiful surprise from dear Jean-Pierre. Well, he always sends beautiful surprises...and you never know which part of the globe is gonna hit your mailbox :)

this is probably the most popular beach in Florida...at least for me...maybe coz Ive been hearing about it for ages...and in the lack of other info about Florida beaches, this one has remained engraved in my mind eternally.
Did you know that they call this place 'the Venice of America' coz of its expansive and intricate canal system? Ok, I doubt it has the charm of Venice...it is just too modern.
The city was named after a series of forts built by the United States during the Second Seminole War. The forts took their name from Major William Lauderdale, who was the commander of the detachment of soldiers who built the first fort.
(n.b - the Second Seminole War is also known as the Florida War, which occurred from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as Seminoles and the United States. It was a part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars. The Second Seminole War, often referred to as the Seminole War, was the most expensive Indian War fought by the United States.

the stamps come from this beautiful Hawaiian Forests' mini-sheet, issued in 2010.

India

the last card for today comes from India, and is one of the many fantastic cards I received as the April's WOTM on the PC forum (I dont know if I had mentioned, but I also was the lucky winner back in 2009....) :D

the card portrays us the Ottanthullal, which is a a type of performing art from the Kerala state in India.
This piece of art has a (mostly) single actor, donning a green make-up and wearing colourful costumes, and reciting the thullal lyrics (dance songs), all the while acting and dancing himself. The art form has of late found practitioners from among women too, and is occasionally staged as a group dance form with each artiste representing a character in the storyplay.
The art form has its satirical touch, often making fun of prevalent socio-political equations and prejudices of the region.
Just a fantastic card! In a way, these masks remind of the ones of clowns, but I guess, in a way, that is the point of the 'making fun' of.
Thanks a bunch to Georgy for the great choice!

there are three stamps on the card....the two stamps on the right were issued this year...the bottom one is from a mini-sheet of 4 stamps commemorating the 100 years of aviation, while the other one portrays the "Employees State Insurance Corporation".
As for the small stamp, my guess is that it was issued in 2001, and it represents Dr. B.R Ambedkar, who was an Indianwas jurist, political leader, philosopher, anthropologist, historian, orator, economist.....hmmm, this list of qualifications makes my CV look miserable =/

well, thanks for reading, and hope there will be a sunny weekend ahead of you :)

Magellanic Penguins, Falkland Islands

so, it is me here again...at last! What can I do...April was an EXTREMELY busy month, that I barely had time for anything....and probably it was the month when i had mailed the least number of postcards....and my mailbox would have remained empty if it wasnt for a few good fairies who surprised me...and also, coz i was such a lucky gal that i was the Winner of the Month on the PC forum. Yay! So thanks to all that my dear mailbox accommodated almost 100 postcards during the month :) I couldnt be more thankful for such a treat! :)

And one of those good fairies was Glenn, who took a nice cruise and sent me great cards from the places he had visited...and one of them is a totally new country for my collection....the Falkland Islands!!! And it is such a lovely card!! Thanks a bunch Glenn!

The card shows a number of Magellanic Penguins in the Gypsy Cove, which is one of the small bays in the Falkland Islands, particularly, on the East Falkland. (the other one is West Falkland, which along with 776 lesser islands, comprise the Falkland Islands). The capital is Stanley (from where this card was mailed) and it  is also the only city there. Interesting...
As for these cute Magellanic creatures....they are the largest of the warm-weather penguins and were named after Ferdinand Magellan who first saw them in 1519 on his first voyage around the tip of South America. They have a wide black strip under their chin and another is in the shape of an upside down horseshoe on their stomachs. On their chests they have scattered black spots.
They live on the stormy and rocky shores of the Falklands, Argentina, and Chile and are around 70cm tall and weigh about 4kg.
Im mostly used to seeing those bigger ones living on the Antarctica, so these seem a bit odd to me, more like a birdy i could see in my garden...but still they are just too cute :)

and here comes a matching stamp with penguins, issued in 2003 and intended specifically for airmail postcards! And I love the nice and clear cancellation!!

Thanks so much Glenn for such a treat!!

Pichi Richi Railway, Australia

A great train card sent by dear Heather!

the card shows the NM25 locomotive on one of the Pichi Richi Railway's heritage train journeys.
The NM25 is said to be one of two surviving Commonwealth Railways (CR) 4-8-0 locomotives used to operate the Port Augusta to Alice Springs railway, built by built by Thompsons of Castlemaine in 1925.
The Pichi Richi Railway is operating regular heritage train journeys on the oldest remaining section of the famous narrow-gauge old Ghan railway.

I wonder how many train journeys are out there that id love to take...zillions!

and Heather used three awesome stamps, issued this year in a set of 5 stamps portraying city traffic. The left one shows a train in Perth, the one in the middle shows a tram in Melbourne, while the one on the right shows a double decker train in Sydney.

Thanks a lot Heather!!!

Pottinger Street, Hong Kong

this lovely surprise arrived from dear Iris who thought of me during a Hong Kong PC meet-up held on 18 March this year.

Here you can see the Pottinget Street, or Stone step street, one of the oldest streets in the central district.
It is made of stone steps and is named after the 1st Governor of Hong Kong, inclining from Caine Road to Hollywood Road and down to Queen's Road Central (ok, that's what the back of the card says, I dont really know of what importance are those other streets...if any). The traditional stalls you can see here sell ribbons, bows and buttons and neighboured with the modern buildings, this is where the old and the new, charmingly mix.

Can you spot the tourists?
I love such scenes, and im pretty sure i would find something interesting to buy here, even if i dont really need it...too charming to resist it :)

the stamp was issued in 2011, commemorating the 150th Anniversary of Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. thank you so much dear for thinking of me! <3

Bicycles

Have I ever told you how much I love my bike and that it is my main means of transport from April till November, weather permitting?
Well, Ive obtained a number of bicycle cards over the time, and I thought it was about time to give them some attention...Im still not sure if Im gonna start a collection of bicycle cards....though it is very probable to happen...I mean, cards with bikes are just so charming!

the one above is from one of my fairies, and this is from the Bryon fairy :) It shows a lovely mountain bike and mine is just similar to this one....though due to problems with the gears, it is not suitable anymore for mountains or some tougher destinations, but it definitely does its job for my everyday needs....I should maybe start thinking of a new one (my neighbour has a fantastic mountain bike which i used for a few months last year while mine was at the repair service (read, at home, in the back of my yard, waiting for my dad to find the time to fix it).
However, for now, finances are focused on some other stuff, but in the future i will get down to getting a new bike maybe.

RU-683432

this is a great official card I received, showing some retro bicycles. Ive always wanted to try out those old bikes with the HUUGE front wheel, and a totally small one. I really wonder how does it feel to be riding such a bike and esp. how easy/difficult it is to get on/off. The Kripper (the tricycle) also seems extra cool!
Im just not sure if the bicyclette is just the french term for a bike or there are some differences between a bicycle and a bicyclette? anyone?

sorry for the slightly sidelong scan...I noticed it once i had uploaded the cards, so honestly, i didnt feel like doing it all over again :)
I had this card in my favourites for a long time, and in the end got it twice within a very short period of time :) The first one was sent by dear Peggy for her awesome Choose a country RR, while the other one for the favourites' tag :) Peggy says that there are 18 million bikes in the Netherlands, and 17 million people!? With 15.000 km of cycling paths! And here comes my frustration....recently, there was this law adopted, for cycling...which says that, you must ride your bike on a cycling path, or if there is no cycling path, on the ride side of the road, next to the pavement...otherwise, you pay a fine of 25 euros! For the love of God!! First of all, there are BARELY any cycling paths! And the ones existing, are almost always occupied with parked cars, or construction works or people walking and also, bus stops are always at the cycling path with people waiting, or people getting off the bus which makes it a great opportunity to simply stumble upon someone getting off! And in the end, it will be me paying the fine! I just dont know what smart head says that we should be riding ON the street, next to the pavement, and how on Earth could they find it safe? Not to mention that again, with the buses, and cars parked just right there, it is impossible to have a normal ride.

Here is a short reportage about the cycling paths in Skopje...it is in Macedonian, but however, the pictures say it all...and frankly, that is the route I also use =/ I guess they should invent flying bicycles....

http://greenbox.com.mk/blog/?p=3743

so, i cant promise when my next update will be...I have a lot of other things to catch up with, but I hope to see you soon...'till then, stay well :)

Turkmenistan

Well, first of all, Happy Easter to all celebrating today! Hope you are enjoying it, along with some nice meals too....this may especially count for those who have been fasting....so it is about time to indulge into something 'forbidden'. Here Easter is next week, so today is just another regular Sunday. And since ive ignored you this past week, ill make it up today with a few nice cards (well, they are always nice actually :))

well, first one comes from the favourites tag....Claus always has in stock some rare countries....i dont know how he gets them all, but it is amazing! And i was really thrilled when he tagged me for this one :)
Well, it was not sent from Turkmenistan, so dont be TOO jealous...but still, the card is just great! I mean, it was in my favourites after all :) And i love cards showing anything traditional!

Now, I couldnt really find some reliable information about the kind of traditional clothes featured on this card...like on what occasions it is worn and from which part of Turkmenistan it originates and such...so if anyone knows, please help. And also, if you have info about the vessel the lady is holding and also the carpet/rug in the background, that would also be very appreciated :)

The Sabah State Mosque, Malaysia

Ive received a number of great cards from Malaysia lately, so it was a bit hard to pick just one for today...but after some eeny meeny miny mo, we'll go with this one

I was actually amazed to see such a grand building being a mosque...reminds me of the majority of cards ive seen from Brunei in way...
It is considered as one of the most outstanding pieces of architecture in Sabah and is a unique combination of prevailing Islamic architecture and contemporary design.
It was constructed in 1974 and can accommodate up to 5,000 worshippers at one time. There is also a special balcony exclusively allocated for Muslim women during prayer time, with room for up to 500.
In case you want to visit it, avoid doing that on Fridays, which is the day of prayer for Muslims.

and im in love with these new Malay stamps...they are just soo cute! The set has 3 stamps, issued this year, under the title 'Yes to life, no to drugs'. They are indeed a number of happy stamps :)

Thanks a lot to Erica for this card!

Still Life and Street, M.C.Escher

Well, Escher is one of my new discoveries...more precisely since last summer in when i accidentally got the chance to watch this video representing his works....i think my eyes were glued to the screen about how cool it was. I fell for the mathematical preciseness of his works and found it unbelievable in a way.

So I was sooo excited when recently i was asked for a swap, and found Escher cards to choose from! I have two so far, and two more should be coming, so im really really happy! If anyone has Escher cards for swap, please contact me! :)

This image here is called Still Life and Street and is Escher's first (woodcut) print of an impossible reality, dating back from 1937. His artistic expression was created from images in his mind, rather than directly from observations and travels to other countries.
This image is a classic example of Escher’s plays on perspective. In it, the horizontal plane of the table continues into the distance to become the street, and the rows of books on the table are seen to lean against the tall buildings that line the street.

And as for Escher, he was a Dutch graphic artist known for his often mathematically inspired woodcuts, lithographs, and mezzotints. These feature impossible constructions, explorations of infinity, architecture, and tessellations.
His real name is Maurits Cornelis Escher, but you will often find him as M.C.Escher, or simply Escher. A genius.

Indonesia

my last card for today comes from Indonesia as a swap with dear Shinta, who sent me this extra cool card which was in my favourites for sooo soo long! I think this is a favourite card of many out there! It is just soo lovely!

These are paper umbrellas and this lady, as the caption says, gives them the finishing touch! And what an artist! She is Japanese and us dressed in Indonesian daily traditional clothes 'sarong and kebaya'.

I used to have a paper umbrella...I think it was with Japanese designs...it was a really nice one, but still, the coulours on these here are so lively and give some fresh look to the umbrellas.

the two stamps on the left come from a set of 6 stamps issued in 2010, representing Cultural heritage, with this one showing a batik. The other two are from the Year of the Dragon stamps, issued this year. Really lovely! Too bad Macedonia does not issue these 'year of the....' stamps....actually, this year Macedonia has issued just one single stamp so far..which is disastrous...but i wont go into details about it here. Hopefully, the whole issue is going to be solved soon.

well again, Happy Easter to everyone celebrating, and a nice happy Sunday to all the rest :)

Osorno Volcano, Chile

well, finally, the silence can be broken! And no, this is not an April's Fools Day Hoax...it is indeed an update :)
Honestly, it is very hard for me to realize that it actually took me an ENTIRE month without an update! must be my record so far (to which im not proud)...but March was simply an extremely busy month, with loads of work to do and a number of other issues....that in a way, im glad it is over
Also mail was VERY slow in March...both ways! I dont know the particular reason behind this, but it definitely annoyed me...i mean, you come home and you are looking for a small dose of happiness...but your mailbox keeps being empty...for days...for a week...so I really hope April is gonna be better... in all the aspects....
today also the weather is simply AWFUL, so there is nothing better but stay at home...and do an update...AT LAST! :)

and first card comes from Chile, sent by Daniela, for the favourites tag

the view is just amazing! i love this contrast of the houses in the green surrounding, with the caped-in-snow volcano in the back!
The card shows the Osorno volcano, which is a 2,652 m tall conical strato-volcano and is one of the most active volcanoes of the southern Chilean Andes, with 11 eruptions recorded between 1575 and 1869.
The upper slopes of the volcano are almost entirely covered in glaciers despite its very modest altitude and latitude, sustained by the substantial snowfall in the very moist maritime climate of the region.

there are two really lovely stamps on the card, both issued in 2011.
the colourful one commemorates the centenary of UPAEP, while the mailbox is also from the UPAEP series.

Ybbstalbahn, Austria

this card arrived as a great surprise from dear Earney!

this is the Ybbstalbahn (or the Ybbs Valley Railway) which is narrow-gauge railway of the Austrian Federal Railways with a track gauge of 760 mm, located in the Lower Austrian Mostviertel.
The narrow gauge railway was built in 1898 by the Austrian Society for the local rails and has been operated since 1990 as a vintage train through the local railway operating company.
The one on the card operates from Kienberg through Gaming to Lunz am See.
Kienberg-Gaming is the starting point of the museum railway today and the original terminal of the Ybbs Valley Railway.

Earney was so kind that she also used a lovely train stamp too! the train stamp was issued in 2011 and commemorates both Karl Golsdorf's 150th Birthday and a Centenary of the 310 Class. The flower one is from the set of 5 flower stamps issued in 2007, with this one showing the Scotch Laburnum. Thanks a lot again Earney!

Latvia

well, here is one lovely card from Latvia.

recently I opened a thread on the PC forum, searching for my favourites...and have received loads of awesome cards since then...I just wonder why I hadnt thought of doing so earlier :)
so in case you can help me out too, feel free to check my thread on the forum :)
http://forum.postcrossing.com/viewthread.php?tid=65235

as for what's on the card....all I know is that this is at the Baltic Sea...I really dont know why Latvians are so persistent in not disclosing the names of the places they feature on their cards (unless it is Riga for example..)
But still, this makes a great card and im really happy to have it...I just dont know if I should consider this tree being in tranquility or in loneliness...

the stamp is from a set of four Coat of Arms' stamps, issued in 1994.

Thanks a lot to Svetlana for the great card!

New York, USA

Another card which arrived thanks to my favourites' thread :)

I had this NY scene in my favourites for a long long while, and im really happy that I have it in my collection now! Photoshopped or not, the image is freaking awesome! The full moon reminds me of those werewolf horror movies...
there is a lovely excerpt on the back of the card, from "The Lake" by Ray Bradbury. Goes like this:

"The next day, I went away on the train.
A train has a poor memory; it soon puts all behind it. It forgets the cornlands of Illinois, therivers of childhood, the bridges, the lakes, the valleys, the cottages, the hurts and the joys.
It spreads them out behind and they drop back of a horizon."

the 'train' moment is just so convenient....so thanks so much to Rozanne for selecting just this one for me

and Rozanne also used a bunch of stamps...I guess this increase in the postal rates gives the opportunity for loads of combinations unless you have the stamps with the exact amounts yet.
So here we have, from left to right, the Tiffany Lamp issued in 2008, then the Navajo Jewelry issued in 2006, next to its is the American Toleware from 2007. The fourth stamp is rather new to me and was issued just this year in a set of 5 Aloha Shirts' stamps (really cool!), while the last one is the most adorable to me, issued again this year, in a set of 4 stamps featuring 'Dogs at work'

I Hate Mondays...

and the closure for today...

Indeed! Coz the weekends are just not enough to do all what one wants to do and cant do it during the week.
Though once it starts, the week usually goes by so quickly, and before you are aware of it, another weekend is at the door...I mean, it is hard to believe it that it is already April....time simply flies...unfortunately.

Anyways, i totally adore this card! It is hilarious and adorable! Probably many people feel just like this ones Monday strikes again...

so wishing everyone a nice end of the weekend and a lovely Monday tomorrow...and hopefully see you soon :)

St. Barthelemy

So here comes another update...with a brand new country!!

and maybe it is not so hard to guess that it comes as a surprise from the world-traveller known as JP..I really wish i had the chance to visit at least half the places he had visited...esp since they are all so rare and exotic!
At least for now ill find consolation in the cards he sends me...and hopefully one day ill get the chance to pay it back :)

well St Barthelemy is an overseas collectivity of France (these overseas territories can be really status-confusing).
It is a volcanic island fully encircled by shallow reefs and has an area of 21 km².
It is the only Caribbean island which was a Swedish colony for any significant length of time; (Guadeloupe has also been under Swedish rule only briefly, at the end of the Napoleonic Wars - Im mentioning Guadeloupe coz of something later)
The language, cuisine and culture, however, are distinctly French.
Im not sure which place is exactly shown on the card...my guess is that is Gustavia (the island's capital, named after the Swedish King Gustav III) ...but then again, the airport (which you can see in one of the pictures, should be in St. Jean...so it might be that too...since I do not have a confirmation on this, ill leave it as a guess for now)
well, whichever place this shows, it is a lovely card and a fantastic addition to my collection...crossing out a country i scarcely hoped i would cross out from the list :)

All thanks to JP!

and now here come the stamps (just like French Guiana, St. Barth also uses French stamps). The butterfly one is just awesome and was issued in 2010 in a set of 4 stamps, with this one showing the Morpho menelaus (its colours are just lovely!). The other stamp was issued in 2009, in commemoration of Aimé Césaire, a French poet, author and politician from Martinique, one of the founders of the négritude movement in Francophone literature.
now the whole deal with the stamps is actually the cancellation...coz it bears both the names of St. Barth and Guadeloupe....which is somewhat illogical to me....so I copied the following extensive info from Glenn's blog...I hope he doesnt mind..but often I go there to check for info on some stamps, if he has them featured...and I think that regarding this issue, the info, left in the comments, is really explaining the whole thing...


France is divided into 27 régions, similar to provinces in Canada but with less power. Each région is divided into a number of départements, similar to counties, but with considerably more status than in Canada. The overseas régions of Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Réunion and, since last year, Mayotte are small enough to only be made up of a single département each. Until 2007, Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin were administratively a part of the Guadeloupe région/département, when they voted to split away from Guadeloupe and become separate . At the time, they were granted distinct postal codes (977xx and 978xx respectively), but for some reason La Poste doesn't want to play along and continues to apply Guadaloupe's 971xx postcode to these islands. So, in summary, your "Saint Barthélemy - Guadaloupe" postmark should have stopped being used in 2007, but wasn't. :-)

 I told you these overseas territories are complicated :)

Baked Potato Soup, USA

next is something which could come in well during these winter days (as much as I had enjoyed the sun this Saturday, the weather has gone crazy again here...)

so here is your ultimate guide on how to prepare an Idaho baked potato soup.

what you need for this are:
- ⅔ cup butter or margarine
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- 7 cups milk
- 4 large baking potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed (about 4 cups)
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
- 1¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper

Basic cooking instructions: In large soup kettle or Dutch oven, melt the butter. Stir in flour; heat and stir until smooth. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened. Add potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil; stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients; stir until cheese is melted. Serve immediately. Yield: 8-10 servings.

Bon Appétit!
thanks a lot to Tina for this angel card that she sent on behalf of one of the cards in this RR that never arrived. Tina always sends great cards. This one from The Subway is just a proof of that.

and the stamps...with the new postage rate....the Monarch butterfly is a definitive issued in 2010. Next to it is a stamp issued in a set of 4 in 2003 from the Third American Treasures Series, featuring works by Mary Cassatt, an American painter and printmaker. The third, 4c stamp featuring a stagecoach from 1890s, was issued in 1982.

Torre de Hércules, Spain

another great surprise in my mailbox, this time coming from dear Bea, who decided to contribute to both my lighthouse and UNESCO collection! :)

the card shows the Tower of Hercules, which is an ancient Roman lighthouse, and a UNESCCO whs since 2009, located in the city of Coruña. It is the oldest Roman lighthouse in use nowadays and the oldest one in the world as well, built in the second century! (So I guess it did deserve to be inscribed on the UNESCO's list!)
And since I love myths, here is what is related to this lighthouse:
-According to a myth that blends Celtic and Greco-Roman elements, the hero Hercules slew the giant tyrant Geryon after three days and three nights of continuous battle. Hercules then—in a Celtic gesture— buried the head of Geryon with his weapons and ordered that a city be built on the site. The lighthouse atop a skull and crossbones representing the buried head of Hercules’ slain enemy appears in the coat-of-arms of the city of Coruña.
Another legend says that King Breogán, the founding father of the Galician Celtic nation, constructed here a massive tower of such a grand height that his sons could see a distant green shore from its top. The glimpse of that distant green land lured them to sail north to Ireland.

and the card comes with a matching stamp too!! ♥ ♥ ♥   It was issued in 2009 in  a set of 6 lighthouses' stamps! The definitives from the Juan Carlos' series are something you are familiar with I guess...if im not mistaken, the blue and the greyish one were issued in 2002, while the pink one should be from 2009...I hope i got it right :)

Muchas gracias por la sorpresa querida!!!