COVER N. 788 - INDONESIACHILE

Postmark: ? 24.09.2026

Posted on the 24th September;  Received on the 13th November 2026

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Indonesia again calling on my letterbox.Terima kasih banyak, Bambang, 

Indonesia launched its first communications satellite, designated Palapa A-1,  on the 8th July 1976.

The launch, executed by means of a  Delta Rocket form Kennedy Space centre, Florida,  marked the beginning of the development of a domestic satellite system for Indonesia, a first for a developing country, and the third country to do so after the United States and Canada, so tells me Wikipedia.

40 years past this event, Indonesia Post issued a seven stamp set dedicated to Indonesian Satellites,  comprising six 4000 Rupiah  stamps plus  one 10 000 Rupiah single stamp souvenir sheet, which can be seen on this cover.

Each of the stamps in this particular set  is illustrated with an image of a particular Indonesian satellite, the one on the cover being the BRIsat (Bank Rakyat Indonesia Satellite), the first communications satellite in the world exclusively dedicated to the banking sector, operated by the Indonesian PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), which is seen flying over the Indonesian Archipelago.

The postmark is, sadly, illegible, but for the expedition date.

POSTCARD N.262 - INDIA

Postcard sent on the 26th October; received on the 9th November 2026

Postcard image:  The Taj Mahal

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The Taj Mahal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of India's most recognisable landmarks greeted me  as I opened up my letterbox. 

Bohoma Stuthi Ravi, I am sure you had a great time there and I appreciate you taking the time to  make me envious :-)

The white marble mausoleum on the bank of the Yamuna river was ordered to be built in 1631 by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan to serve as the final resting place of his preferred wife Mumtaz Mahal

Mumtaz married Shah Jahan  in 1612 and would bear 14 of his children, having died from childbirth complications after the last delivery.

Shah Jahan felt so grief-stricken by the death of his loved wife  that he would not participate in official ceremonies for a week. Also, for the ensuing two years, he would give up listening to music and would not be seen clothed in lavish garments.

The mausoleum would be finished in 1648, but I read that some sources state that Mumtaz Maha body was transferred to it in 1643.

Shah Jahan would die in 1666, while imprisoned by a son in Agra's fort, following a succession war between three of his descendents and he would be laid to rest by his beloved wife in the  mausoleum he had built for her.

The Monument has been subject to several reconstruction works throughout its almost 4 centuries  of existence and in later years it has been suffering from  environmental pollution which has given a brownish tint to its once  ivory white marble. Also the decrease in height of the waters of the Yamuna river have led to cracks appearing and tilting of the minarets, Wikipedia informs me.

Still a love story that has endured 4 centuries, will endure forever and I'm sure that no effort will be spared to ensure that the Taj Mahal will continue to dazzle visitors with its beauty and grace for many years to come.

Ravi used a 15 Rupee stamp, part of a set of two (15; 25 Rupees) stamps issued on 15AUG2019, in the "Gandhian Heritage in Modern India" series.

The stamp features a statue of Mahatma Gandhi with a village girl, erected in Old Goa, once the capital of the Portuguese India, which included the colonies of Goa, Damão and Dio.

The large and colourful 15 Rupee stamp on the right is part of a souvenir sheet containing four stamps in the Indian Fashion series, issued on 06SEP2019, entitled "Indian Fashion - Concept to Consumer"

The nice pictorial postmark of the Philatelic Bureau of Agra is also embellished with the image of the Taj Mahal.

COVER N. 787 - CHILE

Postmark: Correos Chile Despacho Suc. Principe de Gales 23.10.2026

Posted on the 23rd October;  Received on the 12th November 2026

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Another cover from South America. This time from Chile. Muchísimas Gracias, Jindrich, also for the stamps inside.

Nice to see a cover face so occupied with such an interesting and diverse groups of stamps.

left to right:

The Battle of Chacabuco, which took place on the 12th February 1817, marked the beginning of the expulsion of the Spanish royalists from the Captaincy General of Chile, which would be consummated by the Battle of Maipú in1818, the year when the independence of the Republic of Chile was declared.

In this battle,  the Army of the Andes, created by the United Provinces of the Rio de La Plata,  led by José de San Martin, the leader of the fight for independence in the  southern South America (who would become known as the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru), and General Bernardo O’Higgins (who would eventually become Chile's first Head of State) defetated the Spanish Loyalist forces, Commanded by Brigadier Rafael Maroto.

On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the Battle Correos de Chile issued, on 20AUG2027, the 340 Pesos  stamp on the cover featuring an image of what I presume to be General San Martín, with an image of the battle in the background.

- Foyer de Moi is the name of the painting by Chilean Surrealist painter Roberto Matta (1911-2002) reproduced as a minisheet of 9 x 410 Pesos stamps, issued on 26MAR2008. The 410 Peso stamp on the cover is part of this set.

It should be noted that two other paintings by the same artist were also issued in 9 stamp minisheet format: "Enseñar la Eternidad" (to Teach Eternity) with 9 x 280 Peso stamps and Espejo de Cronos (Miror of Chronos) again with 9 x 410 Peso stamps.

- the 310 Pesos stamp is the 2014 Christmas issue, dated of 01DEC2014. the stamp bears an image of  pregnant Virgin Mary riding the donkey, which seems to have been inspired in the works of American artist Joseph F. Brickey.

The 70 Pesos stamp was issued on 09AUG2013 as part of a 10 stamp set celebrating historic aircraft and their role in significant events in the history of the country.

It features a LET - L13 Blanik, a Czech Glider first introduced in 1956 and still in production. The legend on the stamp highlights its use for the first crossing of the Andes Range in a glider, in 1964. 

Postmark from the Post Office at Avenida Principe de Gales, In Santiago, Chile's capital.

POSTCARD N.261 - EGYPT

Postcard sent on the 17th October; received on the 9th November 2026

Postcard image: Cairo Tower; Caitbay Citadel, Alexandria; Giza Pyramids

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It has been quite a while since I added a new country to the list of origins here on the blog, so I was really enthralled to notice this postcard on my letterbox. Vielen Dank Wilhelm. You sure made my day with this.

The first thing to note on this postcard is that it actually seems to be  printed onto glossy  photo paper, so the quality of the images is pretty good.

Three famous Egyptian landmarks are featured on the card. The first one is the Cairo Tower, which stands out against a nice cloudy sky on a head on view of the city taken from the East bank of the Nile as it passes through Gezira Island, wherein the 187 metres tall tower inaugurated in 1961 was built.

The middle photograph shows the façade of the Citadel of Qaitbay, erected on Pharos Island, Alexandria, in the final quarter of the 15th century where once stood one of the seven wonders of the ancient world: the Lighthouse of Alexandria, destroyed by several earthquakes, the last of which took place in the 14th century.

 

The last photo shows Egypt's most iconic landmark: The Giza Pyramids, built from  c. 2600 to c. 2500 BC, and the unavoidable camel  waiting to carry another tourist on a trip of the complex.

The postage on this postcard is an enygma for me. Since I couldn't find this particular stamp in any of the online catalogues I usually use for identification I ran a google query and this is what I got in return:

"

The Egypt 1980 5 LE (Egyptian Pounds) blue "Torch" Education Revenue stamp belongs to the 1980 Egyptian Fiscal/Revenue "Hand Holding Torch" series cataloged under Peter Feltus's Catalogue of Egyptian Revenue Stamps (where the 1980 Education Torch series begins around Feltus #735 for the 250 milliemes brown issue).

Key Identification & Context:

• Series & Design: Part of the 1980 Egyptian Education Tax (Rasm Ta'lim / رسم تعليم) fiscal series featuring a hand holding a burning torch, symbolizing enlightenment and education.

• Denomination & Color: 5 Egyptian Pounds (5 LE / ٥ جنيهات) printed in blue, representing a high-value denomination in the 1980 Torch series (which also includes lower values like the 250m brown).

• Purpose: Used as a mandatory fiscal/revenue duty stamp affixed to official educational documents, school/university certificates, diplomas, transcripts, and administrative applications in Egypt rather than for postal mail.

"

Since I could not find any evidence of any other stamp having been glued onto the card, I would assume that this stamp, although being a revenue stamp,  has been used for postage, for some reason, what  leaves me wondering...

Does anyone care to offer some explanation?

As far as I could make it with the help of  a translation app, the card bears the Postmark of the Urghada Post Office.

COVER N. 786 - BRASIL

Postmark: A C Central de SE/SPM 17.08.2026

Posted on the 17th August;  Received on the 2nd November 2026

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Talk about Snail Mail.... 2.5 months from Brazil to Portugal... nothing should justify it, since there are on average 5 daily flights from S. Paulo to Lisbon.... anyway, Muito Obrigado, Luis.  A carta  chegou tarde, mas chegou, e isso é o que importa 😀.

Some of the stamps on this cover had already been featured in another of Luis' letters, so I'll just replicate my notes for them:

- Ginásio Pernambucano is the oldest school in Brazil, having been functioning uninterruptedly since 1825, that is 200 years ago.

First located at Convento do Carmo, (Carmo Convent) in Recife, a Carmelite run convent, it occupied several facilities until finally being established in a purpose built building where it has been functioning since 1866, still in the city of Recife, the capital city of the State of Pernambuco.

Celebrating its 200th anniversary, Correios do Brasil issued a 3,7 Reais stamp on 01DEC2025, illustrated with an image of the building and the official logo of the institution.

- Think "Garota de Ipanema", the immortal song authored by Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Morais with a beat that in its essence is a watered down samba and there is Bossa Nova for you, the genre that became so popular in the 60s that it transcended frontiers with stars like Frank Sinatra or Ella Fitzgerald including it in their repertoire.

On 22NOV2025, Correios do Brasil issued a 3,70 Reais stamp celebrating this relevant musical genre, the stamp design clearly highlighting its Carioca origins trough the inclusion of the two main hills that dominate Rio de Janeiro's landscape, - the Pão de Açucar and the Corcovado -  over a shinning sun (summer for all) and a guitar in the foreground, the instrument that was at the forefront of Bossa Nova's creation.

- The shoemaker stamp, (0,20 R$) is part of the first set of three stamps of the Professions definitive series,  issued between 2005 and 2011. It was issued on 30DEC2005.

- According to an entry in Wikipedia, Marajó cheese is a type of fresh cheese made with Buffalo milk that has been traditionally produced for over 200 years in the Marajó archipelago, in the state of Pará.

It is featured on the 1,03 reais stamp on the cover, it being one of the 8 same denomination stamps issued on 25JUL2021 in mini-sheet format, dedicated to the Cheeses of Brazil.

As usual on Luis' covers, the postmark hails from the central Post Office from the city of São Paulo.

POSTCARD N.260 - GERMANY

Postcard sent on the 28th October; received on the 2nd November 2026

Postcard image: Sylt Island 

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Sylt, the largest island in the North Sea,  Danke sehr Alex for another fine postal from a place that I would be very happy to visit.... 

Sylt is some 38 km long from tip to tip and one its western coast it boasts a 40 km long sandy beach (something that, being Portuguese, fails to impress me since it is not difficult to find such long stretches of sand&sea along our west coast, too)

Although there are roads on the island and vehicles are allowed on them, there is no road connecting it to the mainland.

As such, Sylt can only be reached by train, from Germany,  or by ferry, from Denmark, as it was the case with this postcard, as Alex informed me, something that is attested by the stampmark of MV Sylt Express, the ferry, curiously registered in Cyprus, in which it made the crossing from Rømø.

Judging from the pictures in the card, the Island is a hotspot for lighthouse fans, and that alone would justify a visit, but there seems to be quite a few more constructions worthy of inspection...

  

Alex used two stamps of the "World of Letters" definitive series; a 0.15 € - Letters Peacock - issued on 10AUG2024 and a 1.10 € Letters Aircraft issued on 01MAR2022.

Postmark from Keitum, a village in the former municipality of Sylt-Ost, now merged with two other  former municipalities - Westerland and Rantum - into the municipality of  Gemeinde Sylt.

COVER N. 785 - INDONESIA

Postmark: Malang 17.09.2026

Posted on the 17th September;  Received on the 2nd November 2026

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Terima kasih banyak, Irene. Another nice Indonesian entry in my collection, 

I have the same problem that Irene had to deal with here, every now and then: souvenir sheets are a pain to glue onto regular size envelopes, since they tend to be oversize. I wish postal operators would always issue souvenir sheets bearing C6 envelopes in mind....

The Asian African Conference, that would go into history as the Bandung Conference, was held in that Indonesian city from the 28 to the 24 April, 1955.

The meeting was organised by  Indonesia, Myanmar (Burma), Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, and Pakistan, with delegates  29 countries having participated in the sessions.

The Conference reflected the dissatisfaction of Asian and African countries regarding the political domination of the world by the superpowers which emerged from WW2 and crystallised into the cold war years, and their strong advocacy for the promotion of  self-determination and anti-colonialism.

The conference opened the way for the creation in 1961 of the Non-Aligned Movement, dedicated to representing the interests and aspirations of Developing Countries.

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Asian African Conference, the Postal Administration of Indonesia, on 18APR2005, issued the 2500 rupiah single stamp souvenir sheet on the cover. 

The stamp bears the portraits of the five Prime-Ministers who promoted the Conference, namely (left to right) Ali Sastroamidjojo (1903-1975), Indonesia; Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964), India; U Nu (1907-1995), Burma; Sir John Kotelawala (1897-1980), Ceylon and Muhammad Ali Bogra (1909-1963), Pakistan.

The frame for the stamp is mostly occupied with an image of the Merdeka Building, An art deco building in Bandung, where the Conference took place, while the right fourth of the sheet bears an image of a section of two hemispheres.

- Quoting direct from Wikipedia:

 The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established in 1967 during a period of Cold War tensions in Southeast Asia. Formed by five non-communist countries, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, its primary goals were to promote regional solidarity, political stability, and economic development in a volatile geopolitical environment.

On the occasion of the 48th anniversary of ASEAN, Indonesia Post issued, on 08AUG2015, the 7000 rupiah stamp on the cover illustrated with The ASEAN logo, with the flags of the then 10 participating countries (eleven since 2025, with the adhesion of East-Timor): Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand (the founding countries), Brunei, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia.

Postmark from Malang, East Java.