COVER N. 533 - RUSSIA

Postmark: Illegible

Posted on (?); Received on the 19th November 2024

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The second letter from Julia came in a nice envelope with a maxim card inside. 

The interesting envelope and maxim card are themed on aeronautical and aerospace matters, and beginning by the former it is interesting to see that Julia, who usually sends me her correspondence from the city of Kaluga, managed to find an envelope related to this particular city.

It should also be mentioned that Kaluga bears a deep relation with the history of  space exploration going back to the days of space exploration pioneer theorist Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovski, so much so that it is the location of the Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky State Museum of the History of Cosmonautics.

The envelope is illustrated with the logo for the celebrations of the  650 anniversary of the city, in which space exploration is again very much present, the central object of the logo being none other than Sputink, I the first man made satellite to orbit the earth.

On each of the sectors defined by the satellite's antennae, landmarks of the city are included, these being the Gostiny Ryady (a complex of buildings of the XIX century with shops, cafes and restaurants) the Stone Bridge, the History of Cosmonautics Museum and the Local Folklore Museum.

On my search for information I also found out that there is also a satellite named in what I think might also be a way of celebrating the city's anniversary, this being the  Avion-Kaluga 650.

The CubeSat satellite was launched from Vostochny Cosmodrome in Eastern Russia, on a soyuz rocket on  27JUN2023 with the aim of "studying the temporal and spectral characteristics of electrons and gamma radiation", whatever that might be....

It is in geostationary orbit at an average height of 554.82 km and an average speed of 27308.65 km/h.

The stamp used on the cover depicts the decoration for the Order of Gagarin, which was established in 2023 and is to be awarded in recognition of outstanding contributions to space exploration, scientific research, and technological innovation.

The 90 Ruble stamp is part of a two same face value stamp set issued on 07Mar2024, in a series dedicated to Russian medals and marks of honour.

The decoration features the face of Yuri Gagarin, the first man to travel to space,  in his flying helmet and suit, framed by the Vostok 1 rocket flying towards the stars. 

Inside the envelope Julia kindly sent me a maxim card with Drones as the main subject.

Drones are here to stay! Everyday better and more advanced drones are made and new uses are found for these incredible flying machines.

Unfortunately, not all uses are so innocent as one might be led to think from watching the image on the card of an operator who guides a camera equipped drone, and it is well known the role that these devices play in the ongoing conflicts as vectors of intelligence gathering and precise targeting of human and material resources.

In this sad state of affairs it is expected that research and development as well as  the manufacturing of drones with both civil and  belligerent intent be intensified everywhere in the world and particularly so in those countries which are already using them for military purposes.

On 24SEP2024, Marka issued the 31 ruble stamp used for the maxim card, commemorative of the Russian Unmanned Aviation Systems (UAS) National Project, established on the 1st January 2024, which, according to the stamp release notes, aims at reinforcing the domestic share on the Russian drone market from the current 24% to 72%.

Quoting direct from the said notes: "the postage stamp features operators of unmanned aircraft systems, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles of the BVS VT-45, BVS VT-440 and Geoscan 801 models".

The First day postmark was issued at Kaluga.

COVER N. 532 - RUSSIA

Postmark: ПОЧТА РОССИИ - КАЛУГА  2480999 (Russian Post - Kaluga 2480899) 24.10.2024

Posted on the 24th October; Received on the 19th November 2024

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On the very same day, I got three philatelic items from Russia  dropped into my letterbox by my friend Mr. Postman. Two of them, the always carefully composed envelopes that Julia sends me with postcards inside. большое спасибо, Julia (I hope I ... and google... got it right :-))

Knowing my interest in aviation, Julia always tries to surprise me with something related to the theme, and this time she used a very nice pre-paid envelope dedicated to Vladimir Mikhailovich Petlyakov (1891-1942), a Russian aircraft designer and aeronautical engineer. 

Further to the pre-printed stamp with Petlyakov's effigy, the envelope features a  painting of his most famous design, the Petlyakov Pe-2, a dive-bomber which first flew in 1939 and was later  extensively and successfully used by the Soviet Air Force, during the second world war.

- The massive Sukhoy T-4, or project 100, was an high-speed (Mach 3) reconnaissance/strategic bomber aircraft, of which only 4 examples were built, only one of them having actually flown.

Those were the days of the super fast flying machines, like the SR71 or the XB-70 Valkyrie, on which, it seems,  project 100 was inspired. Like the later, Project 100 was also scrapped in 1975, the only flying prototype having never reached its intended Mach 3 target speed.

On 22JUL2020, Marka issued a souvenir sheet containing five 54 Rouble stamps and a vignette, honouring Pavel Osipovich Sukhoi (1895-1975), the founder of the Sukhoi design bureau, which was responsible for quite a number of famous aircraft like the  T-4.  Alongside the stamp, the vignette which Julia also included is illustrated with Sukhoi's effigy and a line drawing of what looks like his first operational design, the Sukhoi Su-2 reconnaissance aircraft.

- The  Grand Palace, or Catherine’s Palace, at Tsarskoye Selo, located some 30 km south of Saint Petersbourg, was the summer residence of the Russian Imperial family.

Originally ordered to be built by Peter the Great for his wife Catherine (hence its name), construction of the palace began in 1717 although the original two storey wooden building which would be replaced by a stone edifice in 1723, was much simpler than the one which would supersede it. 

Empress Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great,  after his father's passing,  would order the construction of the current building, which began in 1743 and was completed in 1756.

The immense structure, 325 meters long, in fact, was built in rococo style, and its façades were gilded with a total of 100 kilograms of gold...

The Palace is nowadays a UNESCO World Heritage  Site, as part of the Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments.

On 17JUL2006 a three stamp souvenir sheet illustrated with the façade of the Palace was issued, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Palace. The 5 Rouble stamp with the image of the left wing was used on the cover.

As usual, Julia also included a nice postcard inside the cover. 

Julia informs me that paragliders flock to this place, the Lysaya Gora mountain, located in the Samara region,  to practice their sport.

COVER N. 531 - FRANCE

Postmark: 58 Corbigny Nièvre 08.11.2024

Posted on the 8th November; Received on the 15th November 2024

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Merci Jean-Pierre for this cover which highlights the beauty of the solution French ingenuity found to ensure a greener (or should I say yellower...) light for the  Olympic Games pyre.

And Obrigado also to Mr. Postman, who did deliver the letter to its right destination, even if the address was missing the name of the street. By now, I'm sure Mr. Postman knows who is the only guy in the neighbourhood who frequently receives envelopes adorned with nice stamps... ;-)

One of the most anticipated moments of the Olympic Games inaugural ceremony is the moment when the Olympic flame is lit in the pyre.

It comes as no surprise, then, that with each Olympiad a newer, more spectacular, bolder solution is devised by the organising team. 

In fact, in time, one might forget much of the opening ceremony, but moments like the flame travelling upwards towards the cauldron, after being set alight by Mohamed Ali, in the games of Atlanta, or the cauldron being set alight by an arrow carrying the flame, shot by paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo, in Barcelona, will never be forgotten by those who watched it either in loco or by TV.

So Paris, the city of lights and of the first hot air balloon flights carrying human passengers had to come up with an unforgettable way of setting the cauldron alight too, and this it totally did.

And it all began with another unforgettable moment: Charles Coste, a100 years old cyclist, who won gold in 1948, in London, as a member of the French team who came first in the pursuit competition, handed the Olympic flame to  Teddy Riner and Marie-José Pérec...moving to say the least.

The two athletes then set the cauldron, which was suspended from a Helium Sphere resembling a hot air balloon, "alight"... wait... not set alight...  turned on the lights, is more appropriate, for the "flame" was mad of LED lights and water spray... impressionism as its best, or were Paris not also the city of impressionism... 

On 09AUG2024, La Poste issued  a collectors item comprising 4 self-adhesive  "International" rate stamps just like the one Jean-Pierre used on this cover,  illustrated with a photo of the lit Cauldron hanging under the helium sphere, that would lift it into the air every day for the duration of the games.

COVER N. 530 - BRASIL

Postmark: AC Central de São Paulo SE/SPM 28.10.2024

Posted on the 28th October; Received on the 8th November 2024

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Seems I'm on a South America streak.... after Argentina, Brasil (yes, I like to write it with an "s" for that is the way it is written in both Brasil and Portugal, that is to say, that is the way it is written in Portuguese.

Muito obrigado Luis por este belo envelope e pelos excelentes selos que nele vinham!

The Constitution... the fundamental law of a country, a precept that can be traced back to the days of  Robin Hood in the Magna Carta signed by King John in 1215, through which rights like that of property or protection against excessive taxation and the independence of the church from the Government were set in writing... so that Robin of Locksley didn't have to call on his band of merry men to defend the people's basic rights...

Now we all know that in spite of the abundance of constitutions sometimes Robins and Tucks are indeed needed, but at least in theory, it's good practice to have a state rooted in a fundamental law that establishes the rights and duties for its citizens, so that we all know the rules of the game, even though a not insignificant number of states do not have a written constitution. In fact, of the 193 member states of the UN, 33 do not have their fundamental law in writing.

But Brazil does and its first constitution, dated of 1824, was approved only two years after  Pedro I uttered his famous cry of the Ipiranga, considered to be the foundational moment for the new South American country, which, until then and since 1815, was a Kingdom integrated in the United Kingdom of Brasil, Portugal and the Algarves. 

Inspired by liberalism and the French constitution of 1791, the 1824 diploma although establishing the separation between the three powers, legislative, executive and judicial, as befits a modern state, also created a fourth power, the Moderating Power, which was the monarchs prerogative, and which set him above the other three constitutional powers, so as to solve dead ends whenever needed. Much as the UN’s  Security Council veto right I’d think….so I wonder if this was really  a good idea….

The first constitution of Brazil, also the first of the seven that the country so far has adopted, would be in force for 65 years until being replaced by the Constitution of 1891, issued after the proclamation of the Republic of Brazil, in 1889.

Although only in force for a period of three years, the constitution of 1934 was remarkable for having brought about a number of progressive reforms such as the universality of vote for citizens older than 18, irrespective of sex, or the establishment of a minimum wage.

The current Constitution of the Federal Republic of Brazil was adopted in 1968, under the government of President José Sarney. It again lays the fundaments for a modern democratic state, after the years of military dictatorship following the military coup of 1964.

These three Constitutions are the subject of the three 3,40 Reais se-tenant stamp set, included in a souvenir sheet, issued on 25MAR2024, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Brazil's first Fundamental Charter,  which Luis used to send me this nice cover. 

The stamps bear the image of these three documents in book form and a legend highlighting the most prominent feature of each of them: Consolidation of the independence (Constitution of 1824); Minimum wage and woman's right to vote (1934) and family and worker's welfare (1988)

The 0,05 Real, illustrated with the image of a seamstress is part of the definitive series issued between 2005 and 2011, dedicated to Professions. It is part of  the first set of three stamps of the series, issued on 30DEC2005.

COVER N. 529 - ARGENTINA

Postmark: Correo Argentino Santos Tesei NIS B0035 Pedro Diaz 444 B1688ZAA 31.10.2024

Posted on the 31st October; Received on the 7th November 2024

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"You've got to be kidding..", thought I... 

Adding all the face values on the stamps on this cover, both front and back I came to a total of  8,600 pesos.  

Now this didn't mean much, as I didn't know the exchange rate for Argentinian currency. So I hopped to Xe currency converter on the internet and typed in the 8,600 on the left box, asking for a conversion to my own Euros. 

And I got a result of 8 Euros!!!!!! Damn... how can this be true...? just to think that to send a humble rectangle of paper across the ocean in my direction someone would have to pay this enormous amount of money is enough to make me want to apologise to that person, and a sure measure of how some people have it amazingly hard to pursue such an innocent hobby as mine.

I know traditional mail has dwindled in later years due to us writing one another with bits of electricity, but mail companies and postal administrations have found ways of compensating for that with the increased number of parcel transactions and diversifications of services they provide.

And I also know that inflation is a tiger whose cage is sometimes very hard to close, but to think that to send an international letter one has to spend about 5% of the national average monthly wage (according to official  data cited here) is mind-blowing, to say the least.

Some countries share traditions, other share languages, some religious affinity, others political affinity, but some do share matter of wonder, and so do Argentina and Colombia, it seems. What best to share than to be blessed with the joy of having in  our waters some of the most impressive creatures that inhabit our planet?

Whales, the biggest mammals on Earth and they peacefully roam the waters of the oceans that bathe Argentina and Colombia.

The  Southern Right Whale (Eubalena australis) is dweller of the seas, south of the Equator and close to Antarctica, being thus present in Argentinean waters. 

Before the global hunting ban, its population was calculated in 1999 to be of  7500 individuals, but since hunting stopped it has been growing at a rate of 7% a year.

Adults can measure up to 18 m in length and weigh up to 90 tons.

Humpback whales are present in virtually every ocean of this world and can be found in latitudes up to 81º N, so it is possible to see them both in Argentinean and Colombian waters.

Diplomatic relations between Argentina and Colombia were established by treaty on the 8th May, 1825.

To mark the passing of the 200th anniversary of the treaty, the Postal Administrations of both countries created  a joint issue which began to circulate on 29JUL2024, highlighting whales as a common heritage, cherished by both countries.

The full Argentinean issue was used on the cover and the two 2300 Pesos stamps feature  photographs of:

-  a Humpback whale (stamp on the left), with a legend containing the Spanish and scientific names of the species and a silver ink silhouette with the indication of the typical  size the animal can reach and the information that the photo was taken at the National Natural Park of Gorgona, Colombia;

- a Southern right whale, the legends and silhouette now relating to this particular species and indicating that the photo was taken at Península Valdés, Chubut, Argentina.

- the infamous 8,600 Pesos postage rate was completed with two 2,000 Pesos, stamps on the back of the cover, with a photograph of the Campo San Juan Federal Park, part of the 2023 issue of the definitive series dedicated to national parks, initiated in 2019.

The postmark indicates that the cover was sent from the post office at Santos Tesei, a town in the outskirts of Buenos Aires.

COVER N. 528 - FIJI

Postmark: Levuka Post Office - Post Fiji PTE Limited 15.10.2024 

Posted on the 15th October; Received on the 6th November 2024

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The Flying Dutchman does it again... and I couldn't be more amazed and grateful for the opportunity to add another country to my list. I really appreciate it. Hartelijk dank, Eric. Muito obrigado mesmo.

This time Eric's letter came from the Fiji Islands, an archipelago of some 330 islands plus hundreds of islets, in the South Pacific, 

Fiji became independent from the United Kingdom, the colonising power since 1874, in 1970, and the first decades of self-determination seem to have been rather turbulent with an history of coups and political unrest that even saw it being suspended from participating in the Pacific Islands Forum and the Commonwealth of Nations, due to the failure of its government in organising free elections.

In 2014 and 2018 general elections were indeed organised and deemed as credible by international observers and in 2022 a new national suffrage dictated the change  of the head of the government, who now rests in the former opposition leader.

Fiji is of course one of those places that exude the allure of the Pacific, and tourism is probably the most important source of revenue. But I was absolutely amazed to learn that water is on the list of the countries main exports.....in fact Fiji is the 4th main water exporter in the world.... go figure!...

Stamps, left to right

- Muslims account for 6.3% of the Fijian population, that is circa 60,000 people. I could not find much information on Lautoka Mosque, though, the subject of the 4 cent stamp issued on 15JUN1983, as part of a two stamp set in a series dedicated to architectural landmarks, which ran between 1979 and 1984.

The building depicted in the stamp though seems to no longer exist in the depicted shape, since current images show a much larger building.

- Dravuni Beach, located in the same name island is the subject of the 43 cent stamp, part of a set of three (6; 43; 50 cents) dedicated to Fijian beaches, issued on 18AUG1980.

- The Fiji Goshawk (Accipiter rufitorques), a 30-40 cm long bird of prey is endemic to the Fiji Islands. It is beautifully depicted in the 63 cent stamp on the cover, part of a lovely 16 stamp definitive set themed on Fijian birds, issued on 07NOV1995.

The Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II was honoured by the Fiji Postal services with the three stamp set on the cover  (10; 25 and 30 cents), issued on 07FEB1977.

The stamps depict the Queen wearing a cloth of gold supertunica; King Edward's chair - the coronation chair used in the coronation of British Monarchs - and Queen Elizabeth receiving flowers from a child during her visit to Fiji, in 1970.

The Postmark was issued at Levuka's Post Office in the Island of Ovalau.

COVER N. 527 - FRANCE

Postmark: Musée de La Poste Paris 28.10.2024 

Posted on the 28th October; Received on the 4th November 2024

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Another French cover with a single stamp issue joins the fold, thanks to Roland. Merci bien.

I have to confess I had never heard about the "Planches de Deauville" until I tried to get some information on the stamp Roland used on this particular cover.

If proof needed be that stamps can foster knowledge, than one should look no further. In fact, time and time again, I have to go and search for information (on the internet mostly, these days) on a particular item being highlighted in a stamp, because I am not familiar with it.

Such is, then, the case of the Planches. As I understand it, Les planches are a 643 m long boardwalk promenade in front of an amazing Art Deco building comprising bars, shops and  250 bath cabins (les Bains Pompéiens) , each one of them nowadays being named after an actor/actress in connection with the American Film Festival of Deauville that has been taking place in the city every year since 1975.

This interesting infrastructure was inaugurated in 1924, having been conceived by Architect Charles Adda (1873-1978).

For its centenary, la Poste has issued a single 1,96 € stamp issue, on 22JUL2024, illustrated with an head-on photo of a section of the boardwalk and bath cabins, on which the official logo for the centenary celebrations replicating the art deco dividing screens (for lack of a better word...) that define the entry to each bath cabin  was superimposed in white.

The stamp was cancelled with the nice pictorial postmark of the Paris Postal Museum, featuring a stagecoach in action.