POSTCARD N.66 - Australia

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 11th January; received on the 26th January
Postcard image: Antonov 12
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It is not every week that I get two postcards from a place so distant as Australia. What's even more uncommon is to have different views of the same landmark on both postcards, but that's what happened, since a couple of days  after receiving Postcard I got this beautiful one with a general view of the Sidney harbour with the bridge and the amazing Opera building glowing in the dusk light. Thanks a lot for a beautiful card, Karen.

Australia is on my "most wanted" list and I'm sure that one day I'll be able to take a photo of the  Opera building myself and maybe go inside for a concert or so... (one can ever want....)

Conceived by Danish architect  and Pritzker laureate Jørn Utzon, Sidney's Opera House was inaugurated in 1973 after a complicated building process that started in 1959 but was to suffer several setbacks, including the mid course resignation of its chief architect in 1966.

In the end, after 14 years of construction works and a dramatic overspill of costs, the Opera was inaugurated and luckily so, because it is one of the most iconic buildings in the world, having been atributed World Heritage Site Status by the Unesco in 2007, and as such must have already generated notoriety revenues for Australia  that overshadow its 102 Million AUD pricetag, 

At another scale, this reminds me of our own beautiful Casa da Música at Porto.

Designed by Rem Koolhaas, another Pritzker award winning architect,  It was to be inaugurated in 2001 within the scope of Porto 2001 European capital of Culture, but it only opened in 2005 following delays in construction and a significant overspill in construction costs. Another common feature with Sindey's Opera is that Ove Arup was also one of the main building contractors involved.

 COVER N.63 - Australia

Postmark: SWLF CFCP 460. Sydney West Letter Facility. Sydney. Machine No 460.
Posted on the 30th December; received on the 26thJanuary
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A simple one stamp cover with a beautiful postcrossing postcard inside, for which I send my "Thank you!" to Karen.

The stamp used on it is part of a 4 stamp set issued on 22FEB21 (0,20; 2,70; 3.40; 3.50 AUD), celebrating 4 of the 66 RAMSAR sites of Australia. The Riverland Wetland in the State of South Australia is the site featured on the 3,50 AUD stamp.

Ramsar is the name of a city in Iran, where in 1971, an international convention for the protection of wetlands and of their resources was signed. Having entered into force in 1975, it has already adopted by almost 90% of the UN states.

The machine applied cancelation tells us that the cover was processed in the Sidney West Letter facility, Sidney, Machine No 461, on the 30th December 2021 at 20h47. Sadly the Vignette in the cancelation is almost illegible and I can only make the last word of it - "Merry" - so it mst have something to do with Season's wishes. Any help regarding the exact wording of this slogan would be greatly appreciated, so if you happen to know how it fully reads,  drop a line in the comments box. Thanks.

POSTCARD N.65 - Russia

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 11th January; received on the 26th January
Postcard image: Antonov 12
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Once again, Julia surprised me with an aoutstanding postcard full of beautiful aviation stamps. Thanks a lot, Julia!

The Antonov 12 is the Russian counterpart of the mother of all workhorse aircraft: the C-130 Hercules.

The 4 four engined turboprop aircraft, (Ivchenko AI-20L or AI-20M engines)  capable of ferrying a maximum load of 20,000 Kg, for a Maximum Take-Off Weight of  61,000 Kg,  first took to the air in 1957, entering service with the Soviet Air Force in 1959.

The An-12 is operated by a crew of 5 and, according to Wikipedia, is currently operated by 25 civil operators in 18 countries, while in military guise 9 countries still rely on its services.

Stamps:

Julia used three of the five 5 Ruble stamps issued on 06JUL2005 to celebrate the birth centenary of aircraft designer Artem Mikoyan, one of the founders of the Mig design bureau, the other corresponding to the G in the name, i.e. Mikhail Gurevich,

The Bureau started designing aircraft during the "Great Patriotic War" but its notoriety would  come with the Korean war when the Mig-15 (NATO codename Fagot) (1st stamp; second row) was first introduced and created havoc with the American forces that had no aircraft fast and manoeuvrable enough to respond to the tiny soviet jet in air combat, until the F-86 was rushed into service. 

The Mig 21 (Nato codename Fishbed) - 1st stamp; 1st row - was the standard fighter aircraft of the Soviet and Chinese blocks ever since its entering into service and it still is operated by a number of Air Forces around the globe, some, like the Czech aircraft,  having made the transition from the Warsaw Pact to the NATO side of things....

It holds a number of records, amongst them the fact that it is the most produced supersonic aircraft ever. with a large number of variants with different engines and armament being developed during its operational career.

Entering service in 1970, the Mig 25 (2nd stamp; 1st row) is an interceptor and reconnaissance aircraft that still holds some records for speed, time to height and altitude, being the second ever fastest manned serial produced aircraft designed, only surpassed by the SR-71. Since the latter has long been grounded for ever, the Foxbat (NATO codename) is currently the fastest aircraft in this category.

It was used by the air forces of several countries, being still operational in Algeria and Syria.

The 40 Ruble stamp was issued on 10MAR2020, celebrating the life of Hero of the Soviet Union - Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub (1920-1991), fighter pilot and triple Hero of the Soviet Union. the highest scoring WW2 pilot with more than 60 victories to his credit.

The postmark is almost totally illegible, but  it matches other postmarks from previous Julia's postcards, that identified the place of expedition as the city of Kaluga (Kалуга).

POSTCARD N.64 - Australia

Postcrossing postcard sent on ?; received on the 22nd January
Postcard image: Sidney Harbour Bridge
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Some landmarks are so iconic that photographing them can be very challenging: finding a viewing angle that has yet to be tried; a lighting that has never been captured; an uncommon choice of focal distance,  all these are options that photographers usually resort to, but in such cases, it can be a daunting task because probably the same photograph has already been taken by someone else... same as music, I often think. The combination of the 7 notes is almost endless, but at some point a single phrase or part of it will invoke in the listener a  déjà vu (or déjà entendu in this case :-)) sensation.

Wanting as I may, I have never been to Australia; I have never seen the Sidney Harbour bridge in the... iron!. And yet I can easily identify it if not for anything else for having seen it year after year on new year's eve, under the lights of the fireworks, on TV.

that is, until now. I got this beautiful postcard from Claire (thanks a lot, Claire) and i thought, oh, nice, quite a fine bridge, but only later, after reading the card  and looking for a while at the photograph on it did I realize that this was the arch of the Sidney bridge, from and angle I was totally stranger to and with a choice of focal length that isn't the obvious choice when photographing large infrastructures.

Sidney bridge, designed by the British concern Dorman Long is the eight longest spanning steel arch bridge in the world, and  was inaugurated in 1932, following almost nine years of construction that started in 1923 and as I write, I'm wishing one day I'll be able to add to this blog entry its photograph taken by none other than me!

Stamps:

 Claire used an Australian Post pre-paid postage postcard with a printed stamp valid for "Posting in Australia and delivery worldwide" No cancellation mark was applied to it.

 COVER N.62 - Palau

Postmark: ROP Postal Service - Koror 06JAN2022
Posted on the 6th January; received on the 21stJanuary
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Fantastic cover! Thank you so much Stephen!

I was not expecting to get any mail from such an uncommon origin in my letterbox. I'm sure Mr. Postman must have wondered too, when he delivered this beautiful cover, full of interesting stamps. 

Palau... I had once again to go and ask Google earth to help me locate this tiny archipelago country made out of more than 500 islands, although only eight have main island status.

Located in the Pacific Ocean, not very far from the Philippines to the West and Indonesia to the South, the Republic of Palau's history is one of constant domination by external powers, that began in the 18th century with the Spanish, followed by the German, the Japanese, direct administration by the League of nations, the USA,  until finally gaining its independence in 1994.

As to be expected  from such an exotic location, Tourism is its main economic driver although fishing also contributes to Palau's balance of Trade with products such as Tuna and shellfish.

Stephen used a lot of stamps on this particular cover. The four  20 cent stamps constitute a set that was issued on 05DEC1984 in se-tenant form dedicated to  flowers (local, presumably). The stamps integrate a small "Christmas 1984" legend, so they can be considered to be a Christmas emission.  The flowers depicted are (left to right):  Mountain Apple (Eugenia malaccensis); Beach Morning Glory (Ipomoea littoralis);Turmeric (Curcuma domestica) and Plumeria (Plumeria obtusa).

The two 25 cent stamps are the lower right corner of a 25 stamp (5x5) minisheet, dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the first manned landing on the moon, issued on 20Jul1989, and they depict respectively the command module reentry into Earth's atmosphere and the jettisoning of the service module.

 POSTCARD N.63 - Spain

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 4th January; received on the 20th January
Postcard image: Málaga Cathedral
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I was once in Málaga on the 15th August, a day that the catholic calendar registers as the day of the Assumption of the Holy Mother and also the day that was chosen to celebrate the conquest of the city from the Moors by the Catholic Kings Ferdinand and Isabella in 1487.

On that particular day, I'm sure you cannot find a place in the world more alive and buzzing than this Costa del Sol town, well known for its beaches that makes it a stopping point for the huge cruise ships that ferry hordes of tourists around the Mediterranean sea.

And what a sight it is, to see all those lovely ladies from 8 to 80 in their colourful sensual fiesta dresses so tight on their bodies  that they always seem to be about to explode and the  joyful and proud caballeros also dressed in traditional atire parading through the streets so as to see and, what's more, to be seen, while everywhere bottles of sweet moscatel wine flow as easy as the loud and happy conversations that bring together friends, relatives and tourists engulfing the whole city in  excitement and trepidation.

Thank you so much Anna, for a great postcard and for rekindling my memories of that day.

The postcard shows the North tower of the Santa Iglesia Catedral Basílica de la Encarnación standing 84 m high (the second highest Andalusian cathedral tower, only surpassed by the Giralda in Seville). The South tower was never finished what imparts a decidedly unbalanced aura to the building when viewed from head on, but also gives the cathedral another claim to fame.

Anna used a  self-adhesive Tariff B (up to 20g anywhere in Europe) stamp featuring King Felipe VI, issued on 02JAN2020 along with a tariff A (domestic, up to 20 g). Both stamps feature the same image, the difference being that the Tariff A stampis totally tinted in a bluish hue.

The machine applied postmark tells us that the postcard was processed in Malaga and it has an almost illegible vignette that reads Correos - La Compañia de todos (Correos, everyone's company).

POSTCARD N.62 - Costa Rica

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 4th January; received on the 20th January
Postcard image: Perezosos (Sloths)
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Sloths. Oh how I would love to photograph them in the wild, or at the very least, see them in the wild, just as my daughter Marta has, during her trip to Costa Rica. Thanks a lot Marta, for the beautiful card. Dad loved it and it is a great addition to the collection since it represents another entry into the list of countries.

Sloths... interesting creatures... it is amazing how they seem to live their life in stop motion... always hanging from a branch,  moving so slowly it is tiring just to observe them.

According to the Wikipedia, there is a total of 6 species, distributed by two genera whose main differentiating feature is the existence of 2 (genus Choloepus) or 3 (genus Bradypus) toes in the forelimb.

Sloths are endemic to the rainforests of Central and South America and are a close relative of another strange creature, the anteater.

While two-toed sloths are omnivorous, their 3 toed cousins are almost exclusively vegan :-) feeding on leaves from a very reduced number of tree species.

Another curious fact abouth sloths is that although they are slow on land, they are pretty good swimmers, and I've seen proof of this on a documentary on tv.

Marta used a self-sticking ATM label, first issued on May 2018, featuring the photograph of a  Red Legged Honey creeper (Cyanerpes cyaneus)  to mail the postcard to Portugal.

The machine applied cancellation is almost illegible and is upside down. Still, I managed to read the place where the card was mailed from: the town of Quepos, in Punta Arenas.

POSTCARD N.61 - USA

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 30th December; received on the 20th January
Postcard image: Pittsburgh - Hot air balloons launch from Pittsburgh's Point State Park during the Three Rivers Regatta, a boat racing competition and celebration held each summer.
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A New Yorker with good reasons to like Pittsburgh, it seems. Thanks a lot Hannah for the nice postcard.

Cities with rivers always make the case for good photo opportunities.... this I know, living right across Lisbon, on the other side of the Tagus River... cities with rivers means cities with bridges and these are always photogenic. The examples are many, but if doubts there were, this postcard of Pittsburgh would clearly erase them all.

Pittsburgh, in the state of Pennsylvania, sits on the confluence of three rivers: the Allegheny, on the left in the postcard image, the Monongahela, that on the right, and the result of both joining their waters: the Ohio, that flows on from the tip of the triangle on the left of the image.

With a population of about 306,000 Pittsburgh at one time was the biggest producer of steel in the world, but those days are gone now and the new technologies robotics and biotechnology in particular, have taken the lead of economic development of the city.

Stamps, left to right:

Three of the four "Forever" self adhesive stamps included in the set issued on 09APR2021, themed on Espresso Coffee Beverages. besides the Caffe Mocha,  Caffe Latte and  Espresso stamps on my card, there is also a stamp devoted to tthe Cappuccino.

POSTCARD N.60 - USA

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 3rd January; received on the 20th January
Postcard image: Springtime at the Cog Railway Climbing the tracks of Mount Washigton, White Mountains, New Hampshire
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Justin, a train lover, has sent me this beautiful postcard  of the The Mount Washington Cog Railway. Thanks you so much Justin.

This was the world’s first railway to use a system of rack and pinion, with the rack installed between the two rails of the track, so as to be able to conquer  steep ascents, in this case the journey to the top of Mount Washington in New Hapshire.

The 3 miles long track evolves over an average  grade of over 25%, with a maximum of 37%., the locomotive pushing a passenger car up the hill and pulling it on the way down.

Its construction, the brainchild of Sylvester March, started in 1866 and was completed in 1869.

The still functioning narrow gauge railway, was originally served by steam locomotives, but the carriages are now also pulled by diesel engines. 

Stamps, left to right:

Forever self-adhesive tamp, part of a 6 stamp set issued on 20APR2017, labeled "Delicioso - Foods from South of the Border" showcasing  delicacies of Central and South american influence like Tamales; Flan; Sancocho; Empanadas; Chile Relleno; Ceviche.

Forever Self-adhesive stamp, part of a two se-tenant Forever stamp set dedicated to Battles of the Civil War. This particular stamp is dedicated to the battle of Gettysburg of July 1-3, 1863, in which General George Mead defeated Confederate General Robert. E. Lee, although to an terrible price in terms of casualties on both sides, making it the civil war battle with the large number of casualties. The remaining stamp of the set remembers the battle of Vicksburg April 16 - July 4, 1863, on which General Ulysses S. Grant laid siege to the city of Vicksburg defended by the confederate forces of Lieutenant-General John C. Pemberton.

Forever self-adhesive stamp issued on 01SEP2017, honouring Father Theodore Hesburg (1917-2015) a social activist and public servant who was the President of the University of Notre-Dame, a private Catholic research University, in the State of Indiana,  between 1952-1987. Reverend Teo Habsburg was also the holder of the world record for honorary degrees, with more than 150 to his count.

 

The machine applied cancelation tells us that the postcard was sent through the post office of the city of  Manchester, New Hampshire

POSTCARD N.59 - Japan

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 1st January; received on the 17th January
Postcard image: ? (probably a Japanese comics character, but I am not sure at all).
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I said it before: it is almost infuriating not to be able to read a foreign language, but unfortunately I cannot get around it, not even with all the cyber help we have access to these days. I  have no idea who this character is, or what is written on the card, but he little bloke does look friendly and I do thank Daizo a lot for having sent it to me and also for the care she had when selecting what stamps to use. 

Stamps:

62 Yen stamp, issued in 22SEP993 as part of a 2 same price stamp set celebrating the 450th anniversary of the arrival of the Portuguese in Japan. The image on the stamp is that of a Jesuit  host box inlaid with mother of pearl. The other stamp of the set shows a detail of a folding screen.

The influence of Portuguese went as far as living its mark on the japanse idiom (that idiom I'm crossed because I can't understand it 😀) since Arigato, the Japanese word for "Thank you" comes from the Portuguese "Obrigado", meaning the same... we also introduced the shotgun to the Japanese, but I rather remember the influence of our beautiful language....

It should also be noted that the 450th anniversary of the arrival of the Portuguese in Japan was also celebrated by the  Portuguese Post - CTT -  with a 2 stamp set dedicated to this same event

8 Yen stamp, issued on 01AUG1952, with the image of a Japanese Serow (Capricornis crispus), part of a definitive set dedicated to Fauna, flora and national treasures. The Japanese Serow is a goat-antelope endemic to three of te 4 main islands of the Japanese Archipelago and is considered to be a symbol of the country. This did not prevent it from being over hunted an nowadays there are 13  special conservation areas all over Japan where the species cannot be hunted, to ensure its conservation, although elsewhere they'd better not show in from of one of the implements the Portuguese introduced in Japan, a long while ago....

The postmark indicates that the postcard was sent fom Japan's capital, Tokyo on the first day of the year.

POSTCARD N.58 - Germany

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 9th January; received on the 12th January
Postcard image: several thumbnail views of Luftkurort Hirsau
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Thank you Lisa for a somewhat vintage looking postcard although I presume it to be not that old an edition, due to the quality of the paper and the printing, of the town of Hirsau in the State of Baden-Württemberg. This little town grew around a Benedictine monastery founded in 830, now in ruins, having been destroyed by the French in 1692, and was also  known to be a "Luftkurort", or "Air Spa" , due to the quality of the air. This fact is highlighted in the legend in the front of the postcard amidst the thumbnails of significant buildings of the town, one of which is the "Sanatorium Dr. Römer", a giveaway of the importance these towns had in the fight against tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases.

Stamps, left to right:

0,10 € stamp, issued on 08JUN2017, from the "flowers" series initiated in 2005 with the image of a Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis),

0,85 € stamp, part of the "World of the letter" definitive set, issued on 02_DEC2021. This set is composed of 5 stamps with 0,5€; 0,85€;  1€; 1,60€; 2,75€ denominations, respectively illustrated by images showing letters as lotus flower; bird; ship; kite and boat by lighthouse.

the machine applied postmark indicates that the card was processed through Briefzentrum 80 (Munich).

The vignette contains the city of Munich's symbol (a monk with a book in one hand) and the phrase "München Stadt weltberühmter Biere"  (Munich City of World Famous Beers). This vignette has been in use for a long time because i found examples on the internet dating back to 1972

POSTCARD N.57 - Japan

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 30th December; received on the 12th January
Postcard image: night street scene in  Asahikava, Hokkaido
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How irritating it is to not be able to read  a foreign language.. even in these days of  computer assisted translations.. but I could not find a way of writing the Japanese characters into Deepl, so I went on presuming that the night scene gracing the postcard I thank Ikue for, was a depiction of somewhere in one of the cities of the Island of Hokkaido. But then I examined the post mark with a magnifying glass and  I was able to confirm that the card had been sent from the city Asahikava. A quick search and bang! I found a picture of the exact same place depicted in the picture on te card... so Asahikava it is!

Asahikawa is located in the centre West of the Island of Hokkaido and in 2008 registered a total population of  about 356.000. 

Stamps (left to right top to bottom) :

63 Yen stamp, part of a minisheet of 10 same price stamps, dedicated to the Pokemon videogame and TV series. I have to confess this is really not my cup of tea, but the success of the games first issued in 1996 and whose several iterations have sold hundreds of thousands of copies, not only in Japan, but all over the world, has warranted  the little monsters icon status.

1 Yen stamp depicting Posukuma, the Mascot of the Japanese Post, issued on 14APR2121 as part of a 2 stamp set (1YEN; 84 Yen).

The 5 Yen Stamp depicts a Japanese Macaque (Macaca Fuscata). The stamp is part of a 12 stamps definitive emission, issued on 02FEB2015.

 

POSTCARD N.56 - Germany

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 5th December; received on the 11th January
Postcard image: Night view of the Monument to the Battle of the Nations
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Leipzig... the city of Bach, I always thought I would have to go there someday, to Thomaskirche, to pay my respects and homage to someone who has given us so many reasons for wonderment and sheer happiness, be it through the exposed nakedness of  single instrument works or the phenomenal complexity  of multi chorus and orchestra oratorios. Our lives would be much different... for the worse.. if not for his music and his supreme legacy .

And that was all I knew of Leipzig... until now, that is! Thank you Hannelore! you have given me another reason to go and visit your city.

The monument to the Battle of the Nations... Wikipedia says it was built on the site of the Leipzig battle of 1813, when Napoleon's army  was defeated in what would be the largest European battle  before the 1st world war. In its aftermath, the allied nations of the sixth coalition (my own country was also part of it) would drive Napoleon out of Germany, forcing him into exile in the Island of Elba.

An extraordinary battle, would be remembered by an extraordinary landmark and so the city of Leipzing decided to build the tallest monument in Europe, standing 91 metres tall, to commemorate the centenary of the Battle, in 1913.

Modernism was the norm by then and the sculptures included in the immense structure to my eyes clearly evoke the geometric yet fluid lines of art noveau and art déco so representative of the beginning of the 20th century. 

The monument sits at the edge of a large pool that has the ability to reflect its image, what must make for an even more impressive sight, but this I'll have to confirm in loco... sometime in the future....hopefully...

Hannelore used the 0,95€ stamp issued on 01JUL2019, as part of the long standing definitive emission started in 2005 themed on wild flowers. it shows a cornflower (Centaurea sp.) 

The machine applied postmark indicates that the postcard was processed via Briefzentrum 04, serving the city of Leipzig.

Image credit: Deutsche Post

The vignette on the postmark  "Gemeinsam Gegen Corona sich selbst und andere Scützen..." (Together against Corona, protect yourself and the others...) began to be machine applied on correspondence in Germany on the 1st June 2021.

POSTCARD N.55 - UK

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 31st December; received on the 11th January
Postcard image: Shropshire Union Canal - near Natwich
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Shropshire... the name rang a bell..yes, I have been to Shropshire County, but  I haven't seen the canal in the postcard which Nyssa kindly wrote me on the very last day of 2021. Thank you so much Nyssa!

I have been in the region not once, but twice, visiting and competing in Scale Modelworld - IPMS (International Plastic Modellers' Society) at Telford, which (and most of all, I should say) was also the occasion to meet good friends whom I've been exchanging electronic mail for quite a number of years.

Sadly, time always runs fast and I have never had the chance to visit the surroundings and I'm even ashamed to say that I have never found the time to go and take a look at the famous iron bridge....maybe next time...

Stamps

Once again I got a postcard without cancellation on the stamps... it's not the sender's fault, of course, but I can only think of pen cancellations as worse.... anyway:

I am not a Trekkie but I confess I saw quite a number of episodes of the original series on TV when I was a lad. Still I could not recollect the faces on the two stamps, issued on 13NOV2020 as part of a 12 Ist class stamp emission (2 se-tenant strips of 6) dedicated to the characters of the series. 

The characters on my stamps are Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), the captain of USS Voyager, and Johnathan Archer (Scott Bakula) captain of  Enterprise NX-01,

POSTCARD N.54 - Germany

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 2(?) January; received on the 10th January
Postcard image: The new Zollhof in Medienhafen, Port of Düsseldorf, also known as the Gehry Buildings, after the name of the Architect who designed them: Frank Owen Gehry
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Frank Gehry is without a shadow of a doubt one of the greatest living architects and I was lucky to have seen his works in Prague (the Fred and Ginger building) and in Bilbao (the Guggenheim Bilbao), both awesome examples of the twisted geometry that has become his trademark.

Anja has sent me a beautiful postcard of another of Gehry's masterpieces, this time the buildings of the new Zoollhof, in the city of Düsseldorf. Thanks a lot Anja, for the very nice card.

Stamps, left to right:

0,15€ stamp issued on 18DEC2018, as part of the long standing definitive emission started in 2005 themed on wild flowers. it shows a milkmaid (Cardamine pratensis). 

0,80€ stamp issued on 02APR20, as a single stamp emission  celebrating the birth centenary of Richard von Weizsäcker (1920-2015), a former President of the Bundesrepublik Deutschland from 1984 to 1994, its first president after the reunification, and a member of the CDU, Christian Democrat Union party. Alongside the photograph of Weizsäcker, the stamp contains the following quote from him: "Seiner eigenen Würde gibt ausdruck, wer die Würde anderer menschen respektiert." (Those who respect the dignity of others express their own dignity.)

Credit: Deutsche Post

The vignette on the postmark  "Gemeinsam Gegen Corona sich selbst und andere Scützen..." (Together against Corona, protect yourself and the others...) began to be machine applied on correspondence in Germany on the 1st June 2021.

 COVER N.61 - Chile

Postmark: Concepción - Centroain 24-11-21
Posted on the 24th November; received on the 10th January
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What a lovely cover with such great stamps and the opportunity to add another country to my philatelic atlas, the first one in Southern America....Chile, the land of the great Luis Sepúlveda of "Patagonia Express" and "The Old man who read loved stories" fame... Thank you so much Jindřich!  

Patagonia... I wish I had gone there... it has been on my list of "maybe one day.." for such a long time not only for the sheer undaunted beauty of it (by the way, I'd love to have a cover circulated from Cape Horn....) but also for the creatures that are the subject of the fantastic souvenir sheet Jindřich used on the cover: Penguins, and in particular King penguins, the ones in the stamps, with their lovely white and black overalls with posh yellow edging... what a show-off..!

King penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) at 70-100 cm tall are the second largest of the penguin species, the biggest being the emperor (makes perfect sense this monarchical hierarchy).

According to Wikipedia, these beautiful creatures' habitats are located between the  45 and 55°S parallels, so one really has to go down to the south tip of the American continent to be able to get a look at them. We've all seen photographs and films of penguin colonies, and it never ceases to amaze me how the hell fathers find their children upon returning from the sea with their bellies full of food to feed them, amidst the thousands of lookalikes...conversely, the images of baby penguins waiting for their parents, alone on the ice while the icy wind blows and predators wait for an opportunity are disturbing and I’m sure that many a nail has been bitten while David Attenborough told the tale and the images unfolded on TV....😄

The terrific souvenir sheet dedicated to the Chilean Antarctic  featuring two stamps with images of King Penguins was issued on 09SEP1996. The 250 Pesos stamp shows an adult couple with one of the happy pair  accommodating an egg under its body for hatching (another fantastic image that I'm sure everyone has seen  is that of penguins hatching their eggs, totally exposed to the elements); the 300 Pesos stamps shows the result to be expected some 55 days after the egg ahs been laid: a juvenile penguin with its brownish plumage.

The 370 Pesos stamp with the image of the Viejito Pascuero (Santa Claus) on Twitter or some other social media network was the Chilean Christmas issue for 2020, issued in December of that year (couldn't find the exact day).

COVER N.60 - Poland

Postmark: Comemorative postmark Przemyśl 1 14DEC21
Posted on the 14th December; received on the 6th january
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Thank you Roman, for a cover with a very nice and clear cancellation mark on the theme of aviation, my favourite!

I tried to find information on the internet about this particular postmark, but I was not lucky. I would like to understand the reason for this particular postmark, because as Roman says in the notes he kindly included, the PZL 50 Jastrząb (Goshawk) was not a very successful aircraft. Its design began in 1936 and the aircraft was intended to be the main fighter of the Polish Air Force. Still, only one prototype was completed and flown, although not finishing the test programme, before the beginning of the second world war, and the project was laid to rest.

Stamps, left to right:

Not having any aviation related stamps at hand, Roman used two nice ones to serve as the base for the fine cancellations:

5 ZL stamp issued on 19FEB2019, as part of a definitive series started in 2018, dedicated to the cities of Poland, in this particular case the city of Białystok. The image on the stamp is that of the Branicki Palace, originally built between 1691 and 1697 and then refurbished, in Rococo style, between 1750-1771. 

Having sustained heavy damages due to aerial bombings in the course of the second world war, the Palace was rebuilt to his former glory and his now occupied by the Medical University.

´

3.30 ZL stamp part of a 4 stamp with the same face value, issued on 25JUN2019, in minisheet format, dedicated to Polish Clematis varieties. The stamp on the cover depicts the variety 'Maria Sklodowska Curie', introduced in 2014.

POSTCARD N.53 - Russia

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 21st November; received on the 6th January
Postcard image: Tupolev 134B
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This beautiful Tupolev 134B sent me inside cover #59, postcard is the second of this aircraft postcard series that I was sent by Julia, the first being that of an Ilyushin Il-14. Thank you so much!

Developed from the Tupolev 124, the Tu 134 was the world's first commercial jetplane with the now ubiquitous turbofan engine and it followed the design trend initiated with the French Sud Aviation Caravelle of mounting the engines on the sides of the rear fuselage, thus eliminating any disturbance to airflow on the wings caused by the engines, a solution that was also used by the contemporary DC9 and the BAC1-11.

Used in short to medium haul flights, the original TU 134 seated 50-60 passengers (single class or two class configuration) but later variants, would see an increase in  seating capacity, up to 96 in the Tu 134B, Crew would be composed of 3-5 members plus 4-5 flight attendants.

According to wikipedia, one of the main differences in the 134B was the relocation of the radar in the nose radome, thus eliminating the "glasshouse" up front. Still, the caption on my postcard identifies the aircraft therein depicted as a TU134B, so there might have been some aircraft of this variant that kept the old configuration (either that or the caption is wrong....)

According to Wikipedia, in 2019 three Tu134B were still active: one in Syria with Syrianair and two in North Korea, the type having been operated by airlines of at least 20 companies of the countries in the sphere of influence of the former USSR.

 

COVER N.59 - Russia

Postmark: 248033 Kaluga 21DEC21
Posted on the 21st November; received on the 6th january
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Thank you so much Julia, for such a nice Cover and stamps and card (postcard #53)!

It took me some investigating over the internet but I managed to conclude that the nice cover was issued as the FDC envelope for the 40 Ruble stamp issued on 10MAR2020, celebrating the 100th anniversary of Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub, fighter pilot and triple Hero of the Soviet Union.

The image on the cover shows Kozhedub Lavochkin La-7 downing a Junkers Ju 87 Stuka, one of his more than 60 aerial victories, that made him WW2 highest scoring pilot.

Stamps, left to right:

22 Ruble stamp, issued as a single stamp emission on 07MAY2018, on the occasion of the inauguration of the President of the Russian Federation, that is to say, Vladimir Putin's 4th inauguration as President of Russia.

The stamp shows a picture of the Clock Tower of the Kremlin with the cupola of the presidential palace with the Russian Federation Presidential Flag hoisted and flying, in the background.

30Ruble stamp issued on 21SEP2021 as part of a 4 stamp even priced set, themed on the 80th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 - Military Uniforms of the Red Army Navy and Air Force in 1941. The image on my stamp depicts a pilot of the Russian Air Force in front of what appears to be a Polikarpov I-16.

The Postmark is «illegible on the top half but the bottom half tells us that the cover was mailed from the city of Kaluga (калуга) on the 21st November.

Inside this beautiful cover Julia sent me a great postcard, that can be found here.

POSTCARD N.52 - Germany

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 25th November; received on the 13th December
Postcard image: Polar Aviation Il-14
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First postcrossing card for the year came from Germany, from the Baltic city of Kiel, the capital of the  Schleswig-Holstein state. Thanks a lot Joachim!

15 thumbnail views of some of the city highlights are contained in this nice card and although none of them particularly spectacular they were more than enough to make me go and read a bit about the city, whose main attraction is the Kiel week (/Kiel Woche), a sailing event involving more than 4000 athletes, competing in regattas of many sailing classes, held every year in the last complete week of June.

Even though I'm not a sailor of any sort, I'd love to got there someday, since cities with boats and ships ring a deep bell within anyone coming from a place like my own city of Lisbon.... I still remember the times that the Tall Ships Races touched Lisbon and the amazing sight of all those beautiful shopos going down the Tagus estuary under the 25th of April bridge....

2021 was meant to be one of those years but sadly, due to the bloody COVID 19 pandemic, the race it was cancelled, so no tall ships in Lisbon, this time...

Stamps

left to right:

The 0,15€ stamp was issued on 18DEC2018, as part of the long standing definitive emission started in 2005 themed on wild flowers. it shows a milkmaid (Cardamine pratensis). 

the 0,80€ stamp was issued on 05AUG2021, celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Fuggerei in Augsburg, 

The Fuggerei was the creation of Jakob Fugger (1459-1525) Europe's richest merchant and banker of his time, born in the Bavarian city of Ausgburg.

Citing from the foundations website: "The Fuggerei is the oldest existing social housing complex in the world, a city within a city with 67 buildings and 142 residences as well as a church. Jakob Fugger founded in Fuggerei in his own and his brothers' names in 1521. Approximately 150 needy Augsburg citizens of the Catholic faith live here for an annual base rent of €0.88 and three daily prayers." 

The image on the stamp depicts a general view of some of the houses and church of the Fuggerei in Augsburg,

The machine applied cancellation indicates that the postcard was processed via the Postal Centre at Kiel city.

COVER N.58 - Czech Republic

Postmark: Betlémské svĕtlo (The Light of Bethlehem) Olomouc 23DEC21
Posted on the 23rd December; received on the 3rd january
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The first cover for the new year, came on the very first day there was postal distribution, hailing from the Czech Republic. Thanks a lot, Ivan, and a very Happy New Year for you and yours.

Ivan used three very nice stamps on this cover, that also features a commemorative postmark.

left to right:

1 Koruna stamp issued on 15FEB2021, part of a definitive series themed on Butterflies started in 2020 with 3 stamps. The butterfly depicted is the "orange tip" (Anthocharis cardamines), a common species of the Pieridae family, that is present in all of Europe (Portugal included) and Asia, up to the Himalaian region.

B Tariff (domestic, Ordinary Letter - Standard up to 50g) stamp issued on 11NOV2021celebrating the  Christmas season, featuring a detail of a Christmas tree with ginger cookies, an apple and a blown glass ball decoration, something for which the Czech Republic is famous for, According to the Czech Post website, this particular stamp also had a special Christmas lavour added, a first for the Czech Post, but I guess this can only be experimented by the person licking the stamp 😅😅😅.

Another B tariff stamp, issued on 23JUN2021, dedicated to the "Ride of Kings", an event that takes place during the annual Kyjov folk festival, which is included on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Citing directly from the Czech Post website "The Rides of Kings, originating as a summer solstice celebration, have a history spanning at least two centuries. The king is a young boy dressed in a girl’s costume, wearing a rose in his mouth and riding a horse. He is accompanied by a large retinue of costumed aids with drawn sabres and scarves carried as banners. They go around the village, begging for money."

After a few hours riding the procession rides back to the House of the king where everything ends up merrily in dancing and feasting.

The special commemorative postmark highlights another Christmas tradition, imported from Austria to the Czech Republic: the distribution of the Bethlehem light. Every year Scouts ensure the distribution of a symbolic Christmas light originated in Autria, all across churches in the Czech Republic, so that believers can also light their candles with the same light. This is the reason why the Fleur de Lis, the symbol of the Scout Movement, is present in this postmark that was available in Brno, Olumuc (the one on my cover) and Prague from the 18th till the 23rd December.

 COVER N.57 - France

Postmark: Père Noel 2021 - Libourne
Posted on (?); received on the 28th December
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Second proof that he really exists, and that he is all over the place. This time he wrote me from France, kindly replying to the letter I sent him via "Le Secrétariat du Père Noël" on the La Poste website.

Upon opening the big C5 envelope, I was greeted by a nice letter, in French and English, since English is modern times Esperanto, inviting me to explore the many activities La Poste made available to children on a special purpose website (groupelaposte.com/pere-noel) and a connect the dots postcard with none other than the old man himself. 

Le Pére Noël is also featured on the pre-printed Stamp on the envelope, with the also pre-printed indication “Lettre Prioritaire Internationale”. 

Éric Contesse on his immensely knowledgeable Mon Blog Timbré, provides, as usual, very interesting and well informed details on this subject, including information about Le Secretariat du Père Noël, a service that, according to him, has been running for the past 59 years. 

I was also able to compare the envelope I received with his and I notice that while Eric’s is the French Version, mine corresponds to the International version, with the inscriptions in English.

All in all a very nice addition to any collection of postal items and a big Thank you! to all those that devote their time to answering the wishful letters from children, whatever their age may be.

 POSTCARD N.51 - Russia

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 25th November; received on the 13th December
Postcard image: Polar Aviation Il-14
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Ilyushin Il-14 - Itself a development of the Ilyushin Il-12, that aimed at replacing the DC3 Dakota workhorse (or as locally built, Lisunov LI-2) in soviet use, the Il-14  first took to the air in 1950. The trycicle undercarriage  aircraft, powered by two radial  Shvetsov ASh-82T-7 engines each delivering 1,900 hp, was operated by a crew of 4 and could transport 24 to 32 passengers. Besides the Soviet Union, the Il-14 was built under licence in the former DDR (FWD - Flugzeugwerke Dresden - Il-14), in Czekoslovakia (Avia-14) and in China (Y-6).

The Il-14 was, unsurprisingly, extensively used by the air forces of the countries that formed the Warsaw Pact and also by many of the countries that gravitated around the Soviet Union centre of influence during the cold war, for a total of more than 2 dozen operators

Conversely , the Il-14 was also used as a commercial transport aircraft by the airlines of of the countries of the Warsaw Pact and a few of the countries that used it for military purposes.

Currently, according to Wikipedia, only 3 confirmed airworthy IL-14 aircraft exist in Russia, with a suspected 4th airframe in the United States. 

The Il-14 on the beautiful postcard that Mr. Postman dropped into my letterbox depicts an aircraft of the Soviet Polar Aviation Fleet, operated in the 1960s, in the same livery as shown by the restored "Penguin" and "Blue Dream", two of the 3 aforementioned airworthy  aircraft flying in Russia. Thank you so much for such a nice card, Julia. 

Stamps, left to right; top to bottom:

- Single stamp set issue with a face value of 15 Rubles, issued on 13FEB2012, celebrating the 125th anniversary of the birth of aviation pioneer  P.N. Nesterov.

Pyotr Nikolayevich Nesterov (1887-1914)... one of the names that attained the status of timeline milestone marker in the history of aviation ... the first man ever to Loop the loop, at a time when pilots weren't even strapped to the seat and aircraft were not much more than DIY contraptions made of wood and fabric.

But even if this was enough to guarantee Nesterov a place in the olimpo of aviators, his name would in time  be enwrapped in the aura of legend due to his extremely combative nature in war times, what would eventually supply the element of tragedy that fosters the myth.

At a time when air combat was almost impossible because the pilot had no other weapon than a revolver or a shotgun, Nesterov came up with quite inventive solutions like flying above the opponent and  dropping an anchor with explosives into his aircraft, or attaching a sabre to his skid and trying to literally cut the fabric of the enemy aircraft. These all proved rather difficult and ineffective, though. So he went the extra mile and decided he would ram the enemy out of the air with his own aircraft. The first time he tried the manoeuvre, against an Austrian Albatross B.II reconnaissance aircraft, although successful, would also be his last since both aircraft entangled and plunged to the ground, Nesterov falling out of his Morane Saulnier Type G to his sad demise.

- 15 Rubles stamp, issued on 18APR2014, part of a 4 stamp even priced set, dedicated to Aerial ramming. Besides Yekaterina Zelenko (1916-1941), the set includes stamps honouring P.V. Eremeyev (1911–1941), B.I. Kovzan (1922–1985) and A.S. Khlobystov (1918–1943).

It seems Nesterov's example would in time be followed by quite a few pilots with absolute disregard for their physical integrity, Yekaterina Zelenko, a woman pilot that fought bravely against the German forces during WW2 was one such case and after having spent all her ammunition she chose to ram a Me Bf109 with her Sukhoi Su-2 in her final combat, thus losing her life. 

- Single stamp set issue with a face value of 21.5 Rubles, issued on 20MAY2016, celebrating the birth centenary of  A.P. Maresyev (1916-2001) 

The story of Aleksey Petrovich Maresyev echoes the more familiar one to us on the western side of  Europe of Douglas Bader.

Both lost their legs in accidents involving aicraft (although Maresyev lost them in combat during WW2 and Bader in a practice flight, long before that) and both, showing relentless stamina, resiliance and a tremendous will managed to become air aces during the second great obscenity. Both would also survive the conflict. 

- Self-adhesive 50 Kopek stamp, part of the 7th definitive issue of the Russian Federation, started in 2019. It exhibits the State Postal Administration Emblem and was issued on 07AUG2019.

COVER N.56 - France - Saint-Pierre et Miquelon

Postmark: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon 23-11-21
Posted on the 23rd November; received on the 3rd December
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Saint-Pierre et Miquelon..., Saint Pierre et Miquelon.... Saint Pierre et Miquelon... (sound of fingers turning the electronic pages of Atlases and Encyclopaedias...)

Hmmm.... Discovered by  Portuguese navigator João Álvares Fagundes (well done, the Portuguese!😀) who called it the land of the eleven thousand virgins (we, the Portuguese, are so immensely creative....) in honour of Saint Ursula whose day  coincided with the date of discovery:  the 21st October, 1520. 

Hmmm,... The last remaining hold of France in what was once a huge North American territory - New France - that started to be colonised in the 16th century and that ran from as North as Newfoundland to as South as Louisiana. Over the years at the centre of the colonial dispute between France and England in the North  American continent, compounded by the emergence of the united States of America in 1776, New France would dwindle in size, its territory being either integrated into Canada or absorbed by the USA, with only 2 tiny islands in the southern extremity of Newfoundland retaining its allegiance to the European power: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon.

Today SPM is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France, with a population of around 6000, its economy, as would be expected, having been deeply rooted in fishing. In later years, though, the restrictions imposed by Canada on cod fishing (something that would also affect Portuguese fishing traditions) and the results of overfishing have had an important negative impact on the Islands' main economic activity and the Islanders are now turning to fish farming and tourism as viable sources of income and employment.

Another curious thing about SPM is that Basque was one of the languages spoken on the islands until the late 50s of last century,  Basque presence (as well as Norman and Breton, the three flags included in the unofficial flag of SPM) dating back to the 19th century as the Islands were again resettled under French ruling. Today, a Basque festival takes place every year and the unaware visitor might be surprised to see people playing Pelota Basca at such northern latitudes...

I couldn't be more happy to have received a cover from such an uncommon origin. Thank you so much Roland. Again and again, your contribution to my collection is outstanding.

Roland used what I consider to be a tremendously beautiful stamp on this letter. Issued on 06MAR2021 as a single stamp issue, denominated at 1,55€, this beautifuly engraved stamp depicts the trawler Béarn of the SPEC - Societé de Pêche et de Congélation, a  mixed capital local fishing company that finished its activity in 1974.

Unfortunatley I could not find any information specificlly related to theis particular ship but a document concerning the insdustry of fishing at SPM stated that as of 1960 SPEC had 4 chalutiers (trawlers) with another joining in in 1961. (the image of  the Béarn does seem to fit this vintage origin)

The general features of these ships were: lenght: 34 -40 m; Moulded depth 7m; speed: 9,5 - 12 knots and they were built upon a Dutch design deemed as fit for te local conditions.

SPEC Béarne is shown on the stamp against the backdrop of the East coast of Saint Pierre with SPEC's own fish freezing facility, now also decomissioned, being clearly identifiable on the shore line.