POSTCARD N.164 - PORTUGAL - R.A. AÇORES

Postcard sent on the 9th September, received on the 23rd September 2024

Postcard image: the islet of Vila Franca seen from the Island of S. Miguel___________________________________________________________________________, 

As it is well known, The Phantom, the ghost who walks, knows no boundaries, so I wasn't surprised at all to receive a nice postcard from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, from one of islands of one the nicest archipelagos on the planet: S. Miguel, in the Azores.

Thanks a lot, Mr. Phantom. I wish I was there with you...

The vertical drone view of the Islet of Vila Franca off the coast of the town with the same name, midway down the south coast of S. Miguel Island  Island is one of the recent years iconic views that have been promoting the Azores as an outstanding tourist destination.

If you google it, you'll understand why... suffice to say that red Bull has chosen the location as one of the venues for their cliff diving series...

Hydrangeas are also one of the Azores trademarks and the view of the Islet against the never ending sea, framed by a bunch of  vivid hydrangeas couldn't be more eloquent as to what the Azores are about... 

To send me the postcard, Alex used a stamp with from my country's other Autonomous Region, the Archipelago of Madeira, issued on 08SET20223 as part of an outstandingly beautiful issue comprising 3 stamps (0,61; 1,05; 1,15 €) and a one stamp souvenir sheet (3 €) dedicated to endemic species of the region.

The Postmark  indicates that the postcard was mailed from São Pedro, a parish of the city of Ponta Delgada, S. Miguel's capital.

Of note is the (negative) fact that in spite of paying for  "Correio Azul", what should mean 2 working days delivery from the islands to the mainland,  as clearly indicated by the appropriate label on the card and by the use of a stamp with a face value exceeding that needed for the service (0,90 € at present), the postcard took no less than 14 days to arrive.....