Happy Birthday Mr. Gahan!!

In the spring of 1962, on 9 May, a baby came to this world that eventually grew up to a handsome man, started singing in a band and ended up changing my life forever. And that man celebrates his 54th birthday today!

Last year a man from down under asked me for swapping blank cards in an envelope...in general I reject those, but when I notice he had Depeche Mode cards for trade, my rule immediately became an exception :D And thanks to that today I can "toast" to Mr. Gahan's 54th birthday here on the blog!

Thank you Dave for all the energy and emotions ever conveyed through your or DM's songs and to the most fantastic performances on stage. However, as much as I appreciate your solo-career, nothing will ever come close to what Depeche Mode means to me :)

btw, if anyone has ever wondered the meaning behind my email address, this post may give a clue ;-)

from Gahan's last album with Soulsavers (my favourite song from it - it's what mostly resembles the darkness and beauty of DM)

Jamaica

So, after some weeks of silence, here I am back again...and of course that silence as always has been justified :)

I'll start today's update with this card from Jamaica that Glenn sent me like six years ago...yep, that long...but maybe it will again bring Glenn some nice memories after seeing this one :)

It shows a Fishing Pot...not sure if it is in Runway Bay exactly from where Glenn sent this card..but either way it is a cool one...I love such everyday-life scenes  and fishing certainly is a daily scene on the island.

the stamp is from a set of 8 definitives issued in 2006, showing Devon House St. Andrew.

Thanks a bunch Glenn (again)! And hope you are doing fine...and away from the fires at Fort McMurray....such a tragic and scary incident =/

Shenzhou 7 Mission, China

Next come two great space-related cards from China...erm, have I mentioned that I have this idea of going to China for a year in September? Nope? Ermm, well, yeah, it's an idea I've been having for a while now...have no idea if it will come true or not, but well, I guess I should start spreading the word slowly so in case it happens it ain't too shocking :)
Though it is my parents who still have no clue about this idea since I am sure they would be the most shocked ones (and most probably disapprove it), but personally I just feel that this is something I have to do...unless I find some freakin' super, extra-paying job here in the meantime...for which the prospects right now are like non-existent....

Anyways, whatever happens, you'll be timely informed - but for now, let's stick to the cards :)

Received these two in a swap 3 years ago, from frankly, have NO idea whom...

They were issued by the State Postal Bureau in 2009, commemorating the Shenzhou 7 Mission - Shenzhou is a spacecraft developed and operated by the People's Republic of China to support its manned spaceflight program.  

There have been 10 missions launched in total, and these two cards commemorate the 7th one which was the third manned spaceflight mission of the Chinese Spaceflight program, carried out by crew members Zhai Zhigang and Liu Boming (I believe that the upper card shows Boming).

It was launched 25 September 2008, by a Long March 2F rocket which lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 21:10 CST. The mission lasted three days, after which the craft landed safely in Siziwang Banner in central Inner Mongolia on 28 September 2008, at 17:37 CST
.

Here is how Shenzhou 7 looked like.
The next mission for Shenzhou 11 is planned for 2016 or later....who knows, maybe it will happen when I'm in China :D

no stamps, since both cards came in an envelope...and this is how the backside lookslike...with something that may be considerd as an printed stamp.

Kilchurn Castle, Scotland

A beautiful card from the beautiful Scotland that dear Anu sent me few years ago.

I really really wish to visit Scotland one day...doesn't matter if it is castles, or cities or nature or just anything....but this whole visa regime makes it so complicated =/

Ah well, till then I will have to enjoy Scotland through postcards only...and well at least thanks to them, I have a BUNCH of places in Scotland that I'd just love to visit...and this castle is one of them (the website says that for now it is closed until further notice anyways)... but just look at that surrounding nature....and the isolation...and the stillness....so enchanting!

The Kilchurn Castle was built in the mid-1400s by Sir Colin Campbell, 1st Lord of Glenorchy.
The castle comprised a five-storey tower-house at one corner of an irregular-shaped courtyard.
The tower house still stands substantially complete, overshadowing the rest of the complex. On the ground level of the tower were a cellar and prison. There was a hall on the first floor and private chambers above.
Colin’s descendants, the Campbells of Glenorchy (later earls of Breadalbane), were the most powerful of the numerous cadets of Clan Campbell. Indeed, there were times when this branch almost rivalled the clan chiefs, the earls of Argyll, for supremacy.
 Kilchurn remained their powerbase for 150 years. It was not abandoned until the 1700s.

Any used a bunch of great stamps....two are the Queen definitives (not sure which year, my guess would be they were issued in 2011, but I may not be 100% correct on this one). As for the rest, lets see...both of the 10p stamps are Christmas stamps - the upper one was issued in 1979, while the bottom one in 1980. The remaining stamp is from the four Olympic Stamps issued in 2012.

Anu, thank you dear as always!!

Josip Broz Tito

Three days ago, I wrote a post on my stamps' blog, commemorating Tito's death, and now since the day calls for it, here comes a post, commemorating his birth, since according to the data, he was born on 7 May, in 1892 or exactly 124 years ago...and for this post I have these two cards sent by my dear partner in crime (I could have sworn I have at least one more, but in all this mess, it remained not-found...well I guess I will have to keep it for some future Tito-related post.

Here you can see him with his wife, Jovanka Broz...well, one of his wives, since she was not the first one, but was the last one.
It is a public secret that he has not been the most faithful of men out there, but well, don't get me on the unfaithfulness issue in general, so who are we to judge him?
Sadly, Jovanka passed away too 2013 and even more sadly, it seemed that after Tito's death, she was like almost forgotten by the society and the Government and just anyone =/

One of my favourite Serbian stamps...cos it is a train of course :D Issued in 2009 in a set of two stamps, commemorating the 125th Anniversary of the Railroad in Serbia

This other card shows Tito playing tennis...often when I look at him on some pictures, he reminds me of my grand-father...esp the posture, but I don't know, maybe it is just some common appearance of the Yugoslavian men :)))
Here Tito is playing tennis in Belgrade on May 19, 1953, in the Užička street, where his residence was.

A great stamp issued in 2012, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the ANC - African National Congress....so many commemorations withing one post...

Aнчи, хвала ти опет за супер изненађења, и надам се да си ми добро керида! ❤

Switzerland

Ok, one more quick post for today, showing an idyllic view of a house somewhere in the countryside of Switzerland.

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The sender of the card says this is a photo he had taken - and I must say, WOW! Really WOW! Not just for the lovely vibrant image, but also the quality of the card...it is all just perfect. He says that this is somewhere near Bern...but where exactly, have no idea....and it doesn't really matter...it is simply a great postcard.

The stamp is from the set of 3 Flora stamps issued in 2012. Yeah, what you can spot are coffee stains. Yeah, my fault....you know I am clumsy....

Well, have a good rest of the weekend! Till next time...

Dambulla Rock Temple, Sri Lanka

well, as promised, here comes a new update shortly after the previous one....actually I planned to do it over the weekend, but for some reason Photbucket was having some issues (so in case you dropped by and all you could see were blank images, blame it on Photobucket, not me...)

on a side note, my assumptions regarding the most disappointing interview I have ever had, proved to be true and one really needs to have connections for everything....today I got that dreaded call of "I am sorry but we have chosen someone else..."  Oh well...

anyways, I will start today's update with a card dear Sissel sent me 4 years ago from her trip to Sri Lanka - I don't know if I had mentioned this previously, but I have kinda decided to start focusing more on the older cards cos otherwise, I will like never get to post them.....I will show some of the new ones received as well, however, the ratio would probably be more in favour to the older ones...

Sissel sent me this amazing Dambulla Rock Temple, a UNESCO whs in the central part of the country.
It is the largest and best-preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka with rock towers 160 m over the surrounding plains.There are more than 80 documented caves in the surrounding area and the major attractions are spread over five caves, which contain statues and paintings related to Gautama Buddha and his life. There are a total of 153 Buddha statues, three statues of Sri Lankan kings and four statues of gods and goddesses. The latter include Vishnu and the Ganesha. The murals cover an area of 2,100 square metres. Depictions on the walls of the caves include the temptation by the demon Mara, and Buddha's first sermon.

Prehistoric Sri Lankans would have lived in these cave complexes before the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka as there are burial sites with human skeletons about 2700 years old in this area, at Ibbankatuwa near the Dambulla cave complexes.

two stamps from the 2007 Constellations' issue of 12 stamps - here are the Aquarius and the Libra.

Tusen takk Sissel!!!!

Our Old-Time Freight Train Eqpm't, USA

ok, this is like the only newer card for today, sent recently by Bryon....

this is a piece of art by Gregory Lee Blackstock, who among else is well-known for such visual lists...and I must say I find them really cool...kinda remind me of the Novelles Images.

Born in 1946, Gregory L. Blackstock, a retired Seattle pot washer, draws order out of all the chaos with a pencil, a black marker, and some crayons.
Blackstock is autistic and an artistic savant. He creates visual lists of everything from wasps to hats to emergency vehicles to noisemakers. In the spirit of the Outsider art of Henry Darger and Howard Finster, Blackstock makes art that is stirring in its profusion and detail and inspiring in its simple beauty.
He has never received formal artistic training, yet his renderings clearly and beguilingly show subtle differences and similaritiesenabling the viewer to see, for example, the distinctive features of a dolly varden, a Pacific Coast steelhead cutthroat, and fourteen other types of trout.

this particular card shows the "Our Old-Time Freight Train Eqmp't" dating from 2007, done in graphite, crayon and permanent market on paper.

really cool, dont you think?

The Moon stamp issued this year.

Thank you Bryon for introducing me to such a cool artist!! :)

Trains, Czech Republic

well, get ready for a longish post full of train cards from the Czech Republic, all coming with a whole variety of lovely Czech stamps....and you know, it was while selecting the cards for this post that I realized the huge number of Czech train cards I have received...my initial idea was like to post them all but that turned out absolutely inconvenient...so I decided to stick to a small part of it...

and first comes a card I received from Monika last year...
This illustration, showing the 220.1, the oldest locomotive in the Czech Republic, produced in 1858 and it was issued as a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the first train to Prague Masaryk Station.

the stamp on the left was issued in 1995 in a set of two 'Homeland' stamps, with this one showing the Panska Skala, also known as the Lord's Rock, while the other stamp was issued in 2013, commemorating th 400th Anniversary of the Bible of Kralice.



Next is a card I received from Katka in 2012...

The modern blue and white one is called Pendolino and is considered as the fastest train in the Czech Republic (well at least it was when this card was mailed). The other one is a regular train (and as Katka says, not very comfortable), bearing the logo of Poštovní spořitelna, one of the banks in the country...so it is something like an advertisement train...

both stamps here were issued in 2011....the one on the left was issued in 2011 for the Children's Day, showing the Little Witch, a feature film by Zdeněk Smetana...the other one is from the Young Animals series and shows the European Hamster.


The title of this one translates into "Full Steam ahead into the New Year"...I don't know if this was meant as a New Year greeting card or what, but I do like the correlation :)

sent by Radana for the Favourites Tag in 2013, this card shows the 354 195, CSD Steam locomotive, manufactured in 1925 by ČKD (Českomoravská Kolben-Daněk).

a beautiful car stamp showing the Mercedes Benz 540, manufactured in 1936. the stamp is from a set of 6 Classic Cars stamps issued in 2012.


This steam engine was sent by Milan on the very last day in 2010 for the Czecho-Slovakia meets the world tag...

it shows the U 46.001 Steam Engine train on one of the few narrow-gauge railways in the Czech Republic, near the town of Jindřichův Hradec in South Bohemia.

3 stamps here (don't be fooled by the big one which came with the...well, I dont know if this is the vignette or the selvage but it comes as a nice addition - the stamp in question was issued in 2010, and it is from a joint issue with Luxembourg, commemorating the 700th Anniversary of the Succession of Luxembourg to the Czech Throne.
The one on the right is from 2000 from the Zodiac series, representing the Virgo, while the flower stamp is from a set of two issued in 2007.
It's been a while since I've seen Milan around, I hope he is doing fine :)



One from Radim for the June-November RR in 2012...

the card shows the IC 141 "Detvan" Praha-Zvolen train, which has just left the Ústí nad Orlicí station on 14 September 2006.
The 151014-8  Locomotovie (the Prague depot) in the Czech Railways was the only locomotive of this series, which had the advertising painting of Poštovní spořitelna in of 2006. Five other locomotives of the series 362/363 propagated also this company, while other vehicles were then given advertising stickers of this financial institution.

a stamp issued for the Olympic Games in London in 2012.




And a train card which I often confuse with the one above since they like bear the same colours and I often get to confuse them, but just now I realized it is because of that famous Poštovní spořitelna that they are advertising...

Sent in 2014 from someone called Erika or something...on behalf of Goran...and now I cant recall if I have ever figured out which Goran was in question here, since I know two who could potentially be involved in such a surprise...so I dont know now if i had ever thanked the right Goran...shame on me =/

from the back of the card:
Six red yellow locomotives (advertising colors of Poštovní spořitelna) were seen in 2006 on the Czech rails. It was three locomotives of the series 362, two locomotives of the series 363 and a locomotive of the series 151. The color scheme came from the Konting advertising studio.
On 13 September 2006, the locomotive 362121-6  Locomotive (from the Brno depot) was seen at the front of the fast train R 878 Brno - Česká Třebová, Praha near the stop Tatce.

and a fantastic Mucha stamp issued in 2010 in a set of two, commemorating 150 years since his birth !!


now comes a card that I dont know what did it actually go through on its journey, to arrive in such a condition in the end..

CZ-324884

This express steam train dates back to 1917, which for that time was considered as the company's largest and most modern machine and had its last journey somewhere in the mid-60s.

at least the stamps didn't suffer some greater damage....three nice ones...starting from the left, issued in 2010, from the "For the Children" series, here we have a stamp commemorating Helena Zmatlíková, one of the leading Czech female illustrators of children's books.
In the middle there is a Chrysantemum stamp issued in 2011, and at the right we have the Christmas stamp from 2011.


Hope you are holding on, since there are three cards left....

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an official card, showing the CD 715 001 (T426 001) rack diesel locomotive.

a nice stamp issued in 2013 commemorating Franz Kafka on a stamp which portrays a realistic-looking beetle. As a symbol of relentless metamorphosis, not always for the better, the beetle is set in austere, even unsympathetic modules.



Another card from Radim...

...where again you can see the Pendolino...

...and two nice stamps on the back..the one on the left is from the EUROPA issue from 1999 on National Parks, and here you can see the Šumava National Park. The other stamp was issued in 2007 and comes from a fantastic sheet on which the White Carpathian Mountains and Orchid Meadows Unesco Biosphere Reservation. On this particular stamp you can see the Ophrys holosericea.



aaaand as promised few cards above, here comes the last one for today..

CZ-422629

an official card sent by the Raab Family, showing the 310 006 Locomotive..

...which came with three lovely stamps (in case you have followed this post from start till end, maybe you noticed that all the stamps shown were different, no repetitions or such :)).
Anyways, the first stamp is from a set of three Old Aeroplanes, issued in 1996. The middle one was issued in 2003, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the First Electric Railroad Connection, while the last one is from 2000, showing a train from 1900 with a steam locomotive, service coach and carriages for passengers - it is from the set of two stamps for the Transport issue, comparing the Railway of 1900 and 2000.


so, no more trains for today, promise :D

Monterrey, Mexico

as I said, no more trains for today :)

received in 2009...yep, 2009 indeed, from Jhonatan, as a result of a private swap....from the days when my mailbox would be all head-over-heels for receiving a card from Mexico :)
It may look like a single view, but actually it is a few iconic places in Monterrey combined in one picture, like for example the Commerce Beacon, the Fountain of Life, the Obispado Museum and the distinctive Saddle Mountain (or "El Cerro de la Silla").

the stamp is a definitive from a set of 4 issued in 2009, representing ceramic objects.

Podgorica, Montenegro

ok, one more card for today, sent by a long-absent postcrosser, but thanks to FB, I know he is doing just fine =)

The card shows the Church of St. George, which is the oldest Orthodox church in Podgorica, located at the foot of Gorica Hill, (that the town was named after). It was built between IX and XI century. During the turbulent history it had several repairs and rebuildings, so that its original look has not been fully preserved. The inside is decorated with frescoes that are the work of an anonymous artists.

Rajko used 3 nice stamps on this card...the two at the top were issued in 2010...the left one commemorates the 650th Anniversary of the Balsic Dinasty, while the other one is from a set of four Tourism stamps.
The bottom stamp was issued in 2011 in a set of two Art stamps (this one shows a painting by Vojo Stanić, a a Montenegrin painter and sculptor).

Hvala Riči na super razglednici i markice!!

So, that would be all for today folks! Till next time...

Yuri Gagarin, Italy

This post was supposed to happen 3 days ago, commemorating Gagarin´s travel into space...but due to a number of reasons I didn't manage to do it in time...and not even the next day...or the next...(I actually haven't been able to post anything for like two weeks even though I had some cards already prepared)....as for the reasons...my allergy kicked in and it's been terribly annoying, preventing me from normal functioning...then I had to do deal with some issues out of nowhere....and on top of it prepare for this job interview which took place yesterday....and which I must say was like one of the most disappointing job interviews I have ever had...like EVER!  It was not about something long-term...just one year for this future project...and you know, I was so delighted that I actually entered the shortlisted-candidates....but then because of a few factors my delight went down the drain...and then you leave the building, wandering like lost around the city and you have this sight of armed soldiers, tanks, water-cannons because of the current situation here and the protests going on.....yeah, quite a reality to live in...and when you sum it all up, postcards are not really something you think of...apologies to all waiting a card from me...I promise to put it in the mail in the next few days :)


Anyways, back to Gagarin...as you know, on April 12th, 1961, the charming Gagarin and his Vostok went on a journey into outer space, completing an orbit of the Earth...the first human to have ever done so...yeah, if I ever get asked to name like the 5 most charming men in the world, Gagarin would take one of the spots ;-)

now this maxi-card here was issued by the Italian post in 2011, commemorating the then, 50th anniversary of his journey into space....I have no cards or anything commemorating the 55th unfortunately

Yuri Gagarin, Russia

well, apart from the Italian maxi card, some Russian cards of course...well a bunch of them actually....though I still have this feeling that I must have overlooked some :)

if you are not such a Gagarin fan, maybe you love Russian stamps....and this post has plenty of beautiful ones to show...
But before I get down to that, just wanted to show a picture of Yuri's night here in Skopje (it is an event organized throughout the world), and this time it was organized by the Russian Embassy here which I thought would be something spectacular, but was utterly boring but at least I got to meet some of my astronomy buddies and other friends....and at least pose for the picture with Gagarin....thanks to Iskra for the picture :)

and after the introduction lets get down to the cards....where for some I have NO idea how I have obtained them....yeah, blank cards....and the very first one is of such kind....

Found it in the 2010 pile, and it says it was issued by the State Institution of culture of Moscow, "The Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics".....other than that, it says "Yuri Gagarin - the first cosmonaut of the planet fulfilled the age-old dream of the Mankind about flight to space. On April 12th, 1961 spacecraft 'Vostok' with Yuri Gagarin on the board, made one Earth orbit and successfully landed. The era of manned space flight has begun.

well, as I said, it is blank, so no stamps nor any idea who sent it to me....


Now, when it comes to the next one, I have two copies of it, one received for the WOTM in 2012 from Alexandra, and the other one as part of a swap from Ekaterina in...unfortunately I cannot read the cancellation...

but both are written and stamped, so a few words about the stamps now...

on the first one we have one of the Russian Kremlins' stamps from 2009 (the Moscow Kremlin) and the other one is from a set of 4 stamps issued in 2011, for the Olympic Games in Sochi, showing Krasnaya Polyana, the only ski-resort at the Black Coast.

on the other card we have another of the Russian Kremlins' stamps  (the Rostov one) and three more - there are two stamps from the set of 5 issued in 2005, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of A.I.Mikoyan...and the one on the right, issued in 2008 in a set of 4 stamps showing the Decorative-Aplied Arts of Dagestan.



next we have another blank card from 2010...with a smiling Yuri! ♥

now this one is not a maxi-card, even though at first glance it may seem so...

the sender, Natalia, had designed it herself, and she says this was her first designer's experience with a retro photo....well done Natalia!! And thank you for sending it to me! :

and she used nice stamps too....two more of the Russian Kremlins (haha, maybe by the end of the post I will have them all :P) - here you can see the Zarask Kremlin and the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, and also a fantastic stamp issued in 2010, showing the Curonian spit...and if you actually touch it, you can feel the rough sandy-surface!


Next is probably one of the most iconic Gagarin pictures, where he is holding a dove...but in general there is a trend of famous people being photographed with doves, promoting peace and all...

blank card unfortunately...



another one with this super-charming Gagarin smile :D

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received this one as an official from Elena in 2014 (I also have a blank copy, so if anyone is interested, let me know).

and among the three stamps here, we also have a matching one with Gagarin!!! Issued in 2009, for the 75th anniversary since his birth...we also have one of the 2008 definitives, and one from one of my favourite Russian cartoons with Karlson - it comes from a set of 4 cartoons' stamps issued in 2012.


Ok, i think we are like half-way through, and next comes a card dear Maria sent me in 2010

It was indeed issued to commemorate April 12th, and the world's first spaceman!



Next is probably one of my favourite Gagarin cards where you can see him in the company of Gina Lollobrigida at the Second Moscow International Movie Festival in 1961

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Received it from Polina in 2011, when Russia still had 6-digit IDs :)

On the stamp you can see another one of the Kremlins - the Ryazan Kremlin.


A card I received in 2012 from Anna for the wishlist-tag...

The English translation on the back of the card says "Long Live the Son of the Communist Party"!
I don't know how come the translation has the word 'communist' in it...or maybe it is understandable it refers to the communist party...but I do somewhat disagree with such wilful addition/omission of words..

anyways, the card comes with a nice stamp issued in 2011, showing the Pechora-Ilych Nature Reserve.


this next card is from the same series as the one above...an official received last year, sent by Larisa and Anastasia...sisters I guess :)

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the English translation says, "We are creative and friendly and clever, we're making space to be peaceful forever"! 

which word means 'clever' in Russian here? 

one more Kremlin stamp :D it shows the Astrakhan Kremlin. There is also one from the 2008 defintivies and one Sochi stamp from the set of 15 issued in 2014, showing all the different disciplines.


The next-to-last....

...received from Irina for the (no-more-existing) Favourites RR.
I wonder what's going through Gagarin's pensive head here....

A gorgeous stamp with Orcinus Orca from the set of two whales' stamps issued in 2012....and another 2008 definitive.


And this last card for this post, and today came as a surprise from dear Katya in 2013

another pensive Gagarin-look....probably before take-off :)

Here you can again see the Moscow Kremlin and another beautiful stamp issued in 2013 in a set of 3 Contemporary Russian Art stamps.


Sorry Yuri for the delay in this post....but I hope it still counts :)

and wishing you all a nice weekend....yeah sorry, that would be all for today, but I just wanted to make one update dedicated to Gagarin...I will try to come back soon with a new regular kind of update...promise! :)