COVER N. 708 - USA

Postmark: Mechanical postmark Milwaukee, WI 530 date illegible

Posted on ?;  Received on the 29th April 2026

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A pretty battered envelope (could it be that the ghost of Joe Frazier  found the envelope while in transit?) with the bright shining portrait of Muhammad Ali (1942-2016) who is regarded as the greatest boxer of all times, "The Greatest"  in fact being his nickname.  Thanks a lot, Norbert.

Well boxing is not my kind of sport... I am too much of a physical coward for that (I guess I have a lot of trouble not only understanding a sport where the aim seems to be punching the opponent as hard as one can until he or she is down on the ground, unable to repay in kind, but also why would anyone want - and pay - to watch someone do it...)

So I would rather remember Ali not as the boxing Champion he was, having held the heavyweight boxing champion title for three times, but as an advocate for Peace and Justice, and an icon of the 60s-70s counterculture and social activism.

And I will also never forget the image of Muhammad Ali holding the Olympic flame, to light the torch in the Atlanta 1996 Games. Such greatness, in spite of his physical limitation....

10 years after his passing, USPS honoured Muhammad Ali with a two "Forever/USA" stamp set, issued on 15JAN2026.

The stamps feature a 1974 Associated Press Photograph  of Ali and, according to the release notes the up or down positioning of the ALI legend suggests the way he moved in the ring.

Somewhere in the release notes it is mentioned that Ali once said, “I should be a postage stamp, because that's the only way I'll ever get licked.” 

Well, I have to say, "No way, champ... not even this way. These days, the damn things are self-adhesive!"

COVER N. 707 - SAMOA

Postmark: Samoa Post Apia Samoa Date: ? 

Posted on ?;  Received on the 29th April 2026

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Covers sent from  the small insular states that dot the vastness of the Pacific Ocean, are not that common on my letterbox, so whenever my friend Mr. Postman therein drops one of these I feel particularly happy.

Although the postmark bears no date of expedition, I would expect it to have undergone a lengthy journey. In fact, the other cover I have from Samoa took about a month and a half to reach me, so I would be surprised if this one had a faster transit.

Again, a friend and a friend's friend (who, according to a Portuguese saying is therefore my friend also, for “o amigo do meu amigo meu amigo é”) were instrumental in making sure I got this nice surprise from Polynesia.  

Eric, my generous Flying Dutchman friend, was the kind soul behind this operation who also enrolled the help of his friend Wolfgang.

My most sincere thanks goes out to the two of them!

Stamps:

The theme for the Europa Stamps this year is 70 years of the first Europa stamp. Curiously enough, the first stamp on this cover is the one issued by Samoa in 2006 celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first Europa stamp.

Strangely enough, quite a few non-European postal administrations issued stamps on this occasion. Samoa's issue, which saw the light of day on 07DEC2005, consisted of a four stamp set, available as individual stamps or included in a souvenir sheet, with 60 sene; 3; 4 and 10 tālā denominations.

The graphic conception of the four stamps followed the same principle: a blue background with the white stars of the Southern Cross, as featured in the top left quarter of Samoa's flag, with the Earth superimposed on it, being circled by a carrousel of Europa stamps from several years and countries.

As can be seen on the 4 tālā stamp on the cover, the CEPT and the 50th anniversary of the first Europa stamps 1956-2006 logos are also featured.

Samoa was known until 1997 as Western Samoa, that is “Samoa I Sisifo”, in Samoan. 

Such is the country's identification on the 8 sene stamp issued on 09MAR1973, featuring a Hawker Siddeley 748 of Polynesian Airlines, flying out of Samoa's international Airport.

The stamp is part of a four stamp set (8;10;12; 22 sene) dedicated to "Planes at Faleolo Airport". As a matter of curiosity three of the stamps are illustrated with the HS 748, while the one with the highest face value features a BAC One-Eleven.

William Willis (1893 – 1968) was  an American sailor who became famous for his oceanic journeys on balsa rafts.

In 1963 -1964 he single handedly sailed his raft Age Unlimited (he was 71 at the time) across 10,000 miles of Pacifc Ocean,  from Peru to Australia with a stop in Apia, Samoa's capital.

Sadly he would lose his life in 1968, at 74, as he tried to cross the North Atlantic on a small sail boat.

This great seafaring feat was chosen by the Samoan Postal Administration to be remembered on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Union Postale Universelle, highlighting in the 50 sene stamp encapsulated in a souvenir sheet issued on 04OCT1974, which occupies most of the face of the cover.

The stamp features Willis Effigy and an image of his raft, while the souvenir sheet frame is illustrated with a map showing the portion of Pacific Ocean between South Africa and Australia. Age Unlimited's journey path is also inscribed on the stamp, which features the legends; “Universal Postal Union centenary 1874-1974” and "Willis Raft mail Samoa-Australia"

The 60th anniversary of Elizabeth II, was celebrated by Samoa with a set of  5 stamps (32, 48, 56, 67 sene; 2 tālā)  issued on 21APR1986. While all stamps are illustrated with photographs of Queen Elizabeth, the 32 sene stamp on the cover also features Prince Phillip.

Pietà paintings by celebrated artists were chosen to illustrate a same denomination (2.70 tālā ) four stamp set, issued on 02AOPR2015, on the occasion of the year's Easter.

On the cover the Pietà of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, by French Illuminator and Painter Enguerrand Quarton (c. 1410 – c. 1466).

Postmark from Apia, Samoa's Capital.

POSTCARD N.226 - SLOVENIA

Postcard sent on the 22nd April; received on the 28th April 2026

Postcard image:  Moravske Toplice highlights.

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Francisca surprises me again with  a postcard from Slovenia,  featuring some images of Moravske Toplice, a Spa city in the  Rekmurje region of the country, located in its Northwest tip, just some 12 km, as the bird flies, from the border with Hungary.

Muito obrigado, Francisca. Espero poder retribuir muito em breve 😀.

Moravske Toplice is not a large town, by any means. In fact, according to Wikipedia, total population is less than 1000 inhabitants.

This restrained population figure, though, does not take into account the significant number of visitants that each year seek its Spa facilities, which not only provide thermal water treatments but also feature recreational pools with waterslides, as illustrated by the small thumbnails in the postcard face.

The other relevant landmark in town is the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church (centre thumbnail), whose neo-Romanesque tower was built in 1925, as an addition to an existing manor house that functioned as a church since 1893.

The current building is the result of renovation works which took place in the early 60s of last century.

Storks, from what I was able to read on the internet are  seasonal visitors to Moravske Toplice, being well liked (and protected) by locals, hence the predominant place this joyful bird occupies in the postcard.

Speaking of well liked animals.., otters (Lutra lutra) do  play in the first division, don't they?

The charming semi aquatic mustelid species that inhabits the Eurasia and Magreb regions is currently classified as “Near Threatened”, by IUCN standards.

I presume that this quality was what granted it inclusion in the  5 stamp set issued on 28SEP2018 by Pošta Slovenije dedicated to "Endangered Mammals", which further to the "D" Tariff otter stamp included a Tariff "A" Lynx (Lynx lynx); a Tariff "B" Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus); a 1 € Weasel (Mustela nivalis) and a Tariff "C" Mediterranean Water Shrew (Neomys anomalus).

Postmark from the town pictured on the postcard: Moravske Toplice

COVER N. 706 - NORWAY

Postmark: Søgne A 4640 13.04.2026  

Posted on the 13th April;  Received on the 24th April 2026

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A warm and friendly cover from the cold north of Europe.

Tusen takk, Kjell, I'll do my best to correspond, but as I said in my email message, I'm afraid it might not be much of a help anyway....

- Contrary to the majority of the Nobel Prizes, which, under the general supervision of the Nobel Committee are awarded by several Swedish institutions in the fields of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and Economics, the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded annually by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, in accordance to the written will of Alfred Nobel.

Norway's postal administration  has issued several stamps honouring Peace Prize laureates although not in a systematic manner.

The 5 krone stamp on the cover was issued in 25NOV1981, and it honours the 1921 recipients of the prize, awarded in acknowledgment for "their lifelong contributions to the cause of peace and organized internationalism":

Karl Hjalmar Branting (1860 - 1925), a Swedish politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister on three occasions from 1920 to 1925 and led the Swedish Social-Democratic Party until his death in 1925;

Christian Lous Lange (1869 – 1938)  a Norwegian historian, teacher, and political scientist, who was the Secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee between 1900 and 1909 and  also Norway's delegate or alternate delegate in the league of Nations, until 1938, amongst other public service commissions.

 

- the 5 krone stamp illustrated with the image of a sextant over a map was issued on 14NOV1985 as part of a two stamp set (2,5 and 5 Kr.) celebrating the 250 years of Norway's Port Authority and, I presume,  the 200 years of the first hydrographic map elaborated in Norway.

The 4.5 (Kayaking) and 7 (climbing) krone stamps constitute a set issued on 20APR2001 dedicated to adventure sports.

the 80 øre stamp is part of a set of three (.80; 1; 1.25 Kr) stamps issued on 22NOV1979, which although themed on wild flora constitute the year's Christmas issue. 

The stamp is illustrated with an image of a Glacier Buttercup (Ranunculus glacialis), an arctic-alpine member of the Ranunculaceae family, which can be found in the mountains of Southern Europe and the Scandinavia Peninsula as is said to be one of the highest-ascending plants in the Alps, flowering at over 4,000 m.

The 15 krone stamp illustrated with an image of a DC-3 is part of a part of a three stamp set (14; 15; 27 krone) issued on 18MAY2012, celebrating the centenary of aviation in Norway, which began in 1912 with a Rumpler Taube flight piloted by Hans Dons.

Postmark from Søgne, in the very south of Norway.

COVER N. 705  / POSTCARDS 224 - 225 - SPAIN

Postmark: Correos CTA Valencia 20.04.2026

Posted on the 20th April;  Received on the 24th April 2026

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Letters can hide all sorts of surprises inside their opaque envelopes. If not for the welcome splash of colour of one or two stamps, usually tightly framed in the upper right corner, most times they dress up in an almost antiseptic and absolutely neutral whiteness which gives no clue as to what might be lurking inside.

And so the ritual again begins: fuelled by anticipation and curiosity (provided he or she is not a cat...) - or fear and discontentment (yes, letters can also be the unpleasant harbinger of pain or sorrow) - he or she whose name appears on the front of the neat paper rectangle momentarily inspects the envelope, the stamps and the postmark, only to nervously turn it face down on the worktable and carefully insert a blade trough the fold of the rear flap. Then, with the time honed mastery and certainty of a cardiothoracic surgeon, he or she runs it through the top of that same fold, thus creating a clean access into the treasure chamber.

Two fingers, usually  thumb and indicator, then provide the mechanical element  that allows content to be extracted.

That does not mean that extraction can be void of its own set of hurdles to jump over. In fact, the written paper inside might have caught  some glue while the envelope was being closed and is now also glued onto to its inner face;  the paper inside was so tightly inserted into the envelope that it proves hard to extract...; the door bell rings and you have to leave it to deal with it later....

But most times it is a pleasant ride all the way down to the moment when you have the envelope and its contents all laying on your desk and you finally go through the latter with the calm and attention they deserve.

None of the difficulties I just wrote about arose when I opened up the nice envelope adorned with the most gracious handwriting that I got from across the border. In fact I don't even know why I would write all that stuff as a prologue to a post regarding a perfectly composed and treated envelope, such as the ones I get from Eva, of which this one is no exception....

A written train of thought, maybe... does this even exist?

Moltes gràcies, Eva. És sempre un plaer rebre una carta teva.

- I was in A Coruña just a couple of weeks ago, so the stamp with the photo of the beautiful Hercules Tower, the oldest operating lighthouse in the world, whose roman origins go back to the late 1st or early 2nd centuries, brought back pleasant memories of quite an enjoyable weekend escapade.

The 0,62€ stamp is part of a 6 same denomination stamp set themed on Spanish Lighthouses issued by Correos de España on 15APR2009.

- I confess I have never heard of  Gabriel Aragón "Gaby" (1920-1995), whom the internet informs me was a "Spanish clown and saxophonist, member of the trio Gaby, Fofó and Miliki". The trio was very famous as "The TV Clowns" all across Latin America, and of course in their homeland, so I read also.

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Payasos de la TV (The TV Clowns), as can be read on the legend on the side of the stamp,  Correos de España issued on 16FEB2024 the self-adhesive "A3" Tariff  (domestic up to 100 g) stamp, illustrated with the effigy of  Gabriel Aragón "Gaby".

Mechanical postmark from the Automated Treatment Centre of Valencia (CTA Valencia)

There are few things, if any, in this world which have no detractors or “dislikers”. But if there is one, then Lighthouses have got be it!

And rightfully so. What is not to like in the elegant towers, the more so since most times their warm and assuring light revolves around places blessed with unspoiled natural, even if harsh sometimes, beauty?

Cullera might not be the most spectacular lighthouse in Spain, as Eva tells me, but then again  who wouldn't stop  a while if driving along the winding road on the photo, to admire its beautiful trellised lantern?

Rice might not be as universal, as liking goes, as lighthouses, but it is still one of the most common and globally consumed staple food.

So much so that many countries have found endemic ways of cooking it, which have gone past the simple fruition at table status to become maters of national pride and honour. Many are the examples and  from Yangzhou fried rice to Risotto, from Biryani to Paella, a whole plethora of national declinations lies in between.

Paella was invented in the Valencia region and is today one of Spain's most well known dishes.

Still,  just as with the Italian Pizza, what is served as Paella in many a restaurant worldwide, is a far cry from the original simple yet tasteful dish, that Eva tells me is locally better known simply as Arròs (rice) and cooked with a lot more vegetables (artichokes, peas, green beans...) in it than what is usually proposed elsewhere.

In my own country, we used to have a dish called Arroz à Valenciana (Valenciana Rice) that sadly seems to have but disappeared from our tiny local restaurants' menus... another sad sign of times....

POSTCARD N.223 - NETHERLANDS

Postcrossing Postcard sent on the 14th April; received on the 24th April 2026

Postcard image:  Mehringdamm, Berlim.

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A nice ambient night shot of a street in Berlin, near  Mehringdamm U-Bahn station, with a quote on the back that reads "even if 5 mini spring rolls for 2.5 €uro isn't a bad offer, the gastronomic leader of the U-Bah station at Mehringdamm is still Mustafa's famous Vegetable kebabs"

This got me curious.... I'll be sure to check if it still holds if I ever return to Berlin again.

Danke sehr, Anna.

Anna also included a "quirky historical fact" on his postcard, this being Postcrossing's writing prompt  for March:

She writes:"Did you know that in the 18th century the Prussian state had its citizens checked to see if they were secretly roasting coffee to avoid paying taxes?

So-called "coffee sniffers" sneaked through the stair wells and sniffed to see if they could smell coffee roasting".

No I did not know that, but as far as stupid taxes go, I remember when you had to pay a tax (in order to protect the matchbox industry) if you wanted to use a cigarette lighter here in my own country, in plain 20th century. This tax was only abolished in 1970.

On to the stamps:

- 5 and 15 Euro  cents World of letters series stamps:

0,05€ - Letters as Lotus Flower - issued on 02DEC2021 

0.15 € - Letters Peacock - issued on 10AUG2024 

- 0,45 + 0,20 € welfare surtax stamps, part of a set of 5 (.45 + .20; 3 x .55+.25; 1.44 + 56 €) dedicated to climate types in the wonderful world series, issued on 07OCT2004.

The  Polar climate is the type illustrated by this particular stamp, which features a photograph of icebergs  in the ocean.

- 0,45 € self-adhesive stamp, issued on 09FEB2012, celebrating the  125th Anniversary of the Narrow Gauge Railways in Harz, illustrated with a photo of one of the company's steam powered trains. 

The first narrow gauge railroad in the Harz mountains, in Central Germany, opened to traffic in 1887, with a service between Gernrode and Mägdesprung.

Today the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways network extends over 140 km of narrow gauge railroad.

Mechanical postmark from Briefzentrum 10 - Central Berlim.

COVER N. 704 - RUSSIA

Postmark: Pochta Rossii Russian Flora Premier jour Moscow 101000 31.03.2026  

Posted on the 31st March;  Received on the 24th April 2026

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Pochta Rossii, the Russian postal operator has been issuing lovely flora sets of self-adhesive stamps, each set comprising 4 same denomination stamps, since 2013.

I recently received the a First day Cover with the 2026 issue, courtesy of Vadim, who also helped me get a very nice Russian federation "National" cover for my National Covers collection, which I will post one of these days.

So большое спасибо, Vadim, for the cover and also for the ncie postcard inside.

The flowers depicted on this year's flora issue, which comprises the four stamps to the left of the first one, which was used to complete postage and is part of the 2024 issue, are, from left to right:

- Lonicera tatarica, an asian species of honeysuckle, a member of the Caprifoliaceae family, whose shrubs can reach up to 3 metres in height and produce white to rose and deep rose inflorescences.

- Prunus tenella, (dwarf Russian almond) a dwarf edible almond producing deciduous shrub, native to steppes of Eastern Europe and Western Siberia, as well as dry open sites of Caucasus, Western and Central Asia.

- Philadelphus coronarius Elbrus is what I believe to be a Philadelphus coronarius (sweet mock orange) cultivar, the original being a species of deciduous flowering plant shrub in the family Hydrangeaceae, native to the Caucasus and northeastern Turkey, which can grow up to 3 metres high.

- Berberis vulgaris (common barberry)  is a It is a deciduous shrub growing up to 4 metres. Being native to the old world it produces edible but sharply acidic berries

- the flowers on the 2024 issue stamp are those of the Rhododendron caucasicum, or the Georgian snow rose, a species of flowering plant in the genus Rhododendron native to the Transcaucasus and Anatolia.

The first day postmark was applied at Moscow.