COVER N. 352 - TAIWAN

Postmark: ? Taiwan R.O.C. 09.11.2023

Posted on the 9th November; received on the 17th November 2023

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The year is coming to an end, unfortunately not a very auspicious one, with all that is going on around, with millions of people suffering in ways that one would think not possible anymore, while we watch in abyssal impotence, but such is the nature of the beast we are....

There was a time when we could say we did not know... not anymore... we all get bombarded by images of people being bombarded by bombs, in conflicts that could well have been avoided if reason spoke louder than greed, egos, fanaticism, interests, revenge, ...

This is the year of the rabbit, according to the Chinese Zodiac, so I guess that since rabbits are good leapers, we would better leap fast forward into 2024, because we are now sure that there could be a much better year that this one that is coming to the last cross in the calendar....

2019 was the year of the pig... 2023 was a pig of a year...!

Thank you so much Maurice for a nice Year of the Pig cover!

A blue envelope makes for a change in the usual pattern of white C6 envelopes and it works fine against the yellowish and red dominants in both stamps.

- The souvenir sheet with a 12 Taiwanese new dollar stamp was issued on 03DEC2018, as part of a set which also included another three stamps, dedicated to the Year of the Pig, 2019. I am not at all versed in the  Chinese Zodiac, so I can't tell if the two images 

of pigs on the stamp have a specific signification besides their inherent representation of the animal.

- Steamboat Willie was the first commercially distributed film starred by actor Mickey Mouse. In it, Mickey is seen piloting a steamboat, which we later learn he his doing so unauthorized by the real captain of the boat, Mickey’s' archenemy, Pete.

Although the film shot in black and white, in 1928, Taiwan Post  used a colour image which was also used on an official 50th anniversary poster,  on the 5 NTD stamp , issued on 02AUG2005 as part of a set of four ( 2x 5; 2 x 25 NTD) honouring the most “famouse” actor in the world. 

POSTCARD N.106 - TAIWAN

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 8th June, received on the 19th June 2023

Postcard image: Songzhi road, Xinyi District, Taipei 
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A self-made postcard with an image of what is one of the most busiest shopping streets in Taipei, Michelle so tells me.

A quick search on the internet also provide me with the information that the Xinyi district in Taipei is the area with the biggest density of shopping malls in the world, no less than 14, so I suspect that when and if I'll visit Tawain one day, it won't rank as a priority in my places to visit list, since I feel shopping malls are much like cruise ships: once you've been in one (and I confess I've never and probably won't ever, unless there's no alternative), you've been in all of them....

This does not mean that I wasn't happy to receive Michelle's card, which of course I was, and it won't also refrain me from wishing her happy shopping, since she seems to enjoy it a lot!

I should also clarify that I do see advantages in the shopping mall concept. The convenience of having all you need to buy in one place promptly available with extended working hours is, of course... convenient, but I do acknowledge the effects they have on local small commerce and their contribution to transforming towns into lifeless dormitories.

also the inebriated shopping culture they thrive on with its constant appeal to consumism is something against which I try to shield myself as best as I can... 

I remeber when shopping malls were a novelty here... correction, I remember when big supermarket chains were a novelty here... correction, I remember when 1st generation neighborhood suppermarkets were a novelty here  (yes, I'm that old 😀). 

I remember when window shopping was a walk downtown. It all has changed since. All except one thing:

midway through our promenade we would pass by an home appliances shop and on the window, amidst the washing machines and fridges, there would always be a TV set turned on. As the promenade was usually on the weeked, invariably the TV would be airing a soccer match, so there would always be quite a few people stationed by the window nervously watching.... some 60 years after, If I go to my neighbouring mall on a weekend.... 

The 6 Taiwanese new Dollar stamp used by Michelle to mail the postcard is part of a set of two (6 and 13 NTD) issued on 01DEC2020, announcing the Year of the Ox, that would begin in 2021.

 POSTCARD N.94 - TAIWAN

Postcrossing postcard sent on the 24th November , received on the 3rd December 2022

Postcard image: black faced spoonbill (Platalea minor)
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Spoonbills are fun to watch. Their rather conspicuous "spoon" makes them quite distinctive and even if  the species portrayed in the very nice postcard  I got from Taiwan , is  confined to eastern Asia, I have on a number of occasions spent some time watching little groups of the species that occurs here - Palatalea leucorodia - in marshes in the south of Portugal (Algarve) or in the margins of the great Alqueva artificial lake in the  centre south (Alentejo) . So thanks a lot  Ying-Han, for  a nice card full of nice birds!

Chou Lan-ping (1926-1971) was a China born, Taiwanese composer,   who wrote several film and series scores in spite of a rather brief life and whose works became rather well known and regarded amidst the Chinese community at large.

On 06JUL2022 the Taiwanese Post issued a set of four 12  NTD stamps dedicated to modern Taiwanese composers. The Stamp design follows the same general concept on all four stamps with a B&W photo portrait of the composer superimposed on a photo of a page of one of his scores.

Further to Chou Lan-ping, whose stamp can be seem on the postcard, the set honours Deng Yu-Shian (1906-44); Hsu Shih (1919-80) and Yang San-Lang (1919-89).

The Postmark indicates that the card was mailed from the Capital - Taipei.

COVER N.133 - TAIWAN.

Postmark: Illegible
Posted on the ?; received on the 6th July 2022
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The red panda (Ailurus fulgens). No, it has nothing to do with the other one, the black and white king of cuteness, apart from also being listed as endangered in the red list of endangered species of the IUCN. In fact, to my eye, it looks a lot like a red haired racoon and upon consulting wikipedia, I confirmed my suspicions, since both are genetically related.

Thank you so much Maurice for this nice cover with four stamps that prove that even if not as famous as the B&W giant, Mr. red panda here also rates high in the cuteness department.

The red panda  is present in a long strip of land along the Himalayan range in Nepal, India, Bhutan, Tibet, Myanmar and China. Being an animal of nocturnal habits, it feeds primarily on an herbivore diet, bamboo being its favourite "dish", but it wont say no to a bird or small mammal for desert...

The four stamps on the cover, 2 x  5  NT$ - Taiwanese New Dollar + 2x 10 NT$, were issued as a set on 25APR2007.  The emission also comprised a souvenir sheet with a 12 NT$ stamp, equally featuring a photo of  red pandas.

POSTCARD N.77 - TAIWAN

Postcrossing postcard sent on ?; received on the 17th May

Postcard image: Think for others but live for yourself
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Taiwan. Another flag joins the list. Thank you so much, sorry that I don't your real name.

A simple postcard with a quote in Chinese (Mandarin?) and its translation, that reads " Think for others but live for yourself". Not a bad equation, and all things considered, another iteration of the old biblical suggestion of doing unto the others as you would have them do unto you,

12 New Taiwan Dollar stamp issued on 20JUL2017 illustrated with an image of a watermelon fruit and plant in the background, part of a 4 definitive stamp set dedicated to fruits, mango, orange and grapes being the fruits depicted on the companion stamps (3; 5,5 and 32 NT$, respectively).