Postcard Giveaway Winners

I'd like to thank everyone for the warm greetings and for joining my birthday lottery.  
I chose the three lucky winners using the HAT!

Congratulations Alma Lee, Cheerful, and Titish!  Please send me your mailing details.


Wishing you happy journeys...

My Birthday Postcard Giveaway

In celebration of my upcoming birthday, I'm giving out three postcards, three refrigerator magnets, plus surprise gifts.

Just leave a comment to enter the lottery.  I'll pick the winners on November 5, 2011. 


Find out who the winners are in this post.


Wishing you happy journeys...

Sunday Stamps: Suomi in Bloom and Stamps that Glow

"Flowers are those little colorful beacons of the sun from which we get sunshine when dark, somber skies blanket our thoughts."

Flowers, indeed, brighten up one's gloomy day. So for this week's Sunday Stamps, allow me to perk up your Sunday by featuring these lovely flower postage stamps from Finland. 


The first stamp features red amaryllis belladonna flowers.  It was released on 06 November 2009.  The rich red color of the flower evokes the festive color of Christmas. 

The two circular self-adhesive stamps below were issued in April of this year.  I received these two stamps separately from two Finnish postcrossers.

Apart from the interesting shape, the dahlia stamps also glow in the dark.  (Erratum: I'm sorry for the wrong information.  I relied on a blog entry claiming that the stamps are glow-in-the-dark kinds, but it turned out they weren't.  I did a little experiment to find out if they really glow in the dark, but they didn't.  I guess the blogger misunderstood the description of the stamps, which read as:  "the two incandescent dahlias are easy to pick up from the dark sheet....")


Below is what the dahlia stamp sheet looks like:    

Indeed, against a dark background, the dahlias would seem to glow.  


Anyway, don't despair because there are indeed glow in the dark Finnish stamps! 

The Finland Postal Service issued this souvenir sheet in 2003.  It is said to be the world's first  glow in the dark lighthouse stamps.  Featured on the stamps are the Bengtskar, Russaro, Ronnskar, Harmaja, and Sodeskar lighthouses.  


Printed in the border above the stamps are the years that the each lighthouse was built and the height of each structure above sea level.  The Bengstkar Lighthouse was built in 1906 and stands 43.8 meters.  The Russaro Lighthouse was erected in 1863 and measures 21.4 meters in height.   Constructed in 1800 and standing 30 meters tall is the Ronnskar Lighthouse. The Harmaja Lighthouse was built in 1883 and stands 14 meters.  The Sodeskar Lighthouse, which was built in 1862, measures 32.5 meters in height.  


On the other side of the world, Malaysia and New Zealand also issued interesting luminous stamps.

Glow in the dark butterfly stamps from Malaysia
Issued in April 2008

Glow in the dark nocturnal animal stamps
Issued in March 2008

Glow in the dark New Zealand lighthouse stamps
Issued in 2009

How I wish I could get my hands on these awesome glow in the dark stamps! 


Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting stamps, head on to Viridian's Blog

The Xiaoshang Bridge

As I've declared in this blog, over and over again, I love bridges.  So for this week's Postcard Perfect round, I'm sharing the very first bridge postcard I got from Postcrossing.  It was sent by Shiliang of China. 

Bridges have always figured in the history of nations as sites for historic battles.  I am pretty sure you have heard and learned of quite a lot of stories of great battles fought on a bridge.  In military strategy, bridges serve as choke points that allow numerically inferior  armed forces to impede the movement of larger enemy armed contingents.       


The Xiaoshang Bridge, built over 1,400 years ago, certainly has its share of war stories.  Accounts say that it was were Yang Zaixing, a lieutenant of the Song Dynasty general Yue Fei, met his death during the war against the Jin Dynasty invaders.


If the Xiaoshang Bridge served a military strategic function in the wars and battles of the distant past, today the very same bridge serves a cultural strategic purpose.   In fact, it was declared as an important heritage structure by the local government.   


Recognizing the bridge's cultural importance, China's State Postal Bureau included the Xiaoshang Bridge as one of the four featured special historic bridge stamps which were issued in March 2003.


Bridges serve a plethora of purpose.  These structures were used as strategic ambush points and choke points to weaken enemy forces.  They also serve as historical, cultural and architectural timepieces.  Most of all, bridges serve as important structures that connect communities and ensure the continuous flow of progress.



Wishing you happy journeys...

Visit The Best Hearts Are Crunchy

for more interesting postcards

Sunday Stamps: Spiritual Renewal

This is my first time to join Viridian's Sunday Stamps meme and I've chosen to feature a stamp showcasing the artwork of Canadian aboriginal artist Daphne Odjig. 

This stamp features the acrylic painting entitled Spiritual Renewal, which was done by the artist  in 1984.  It is one of the three artworks featured into stamps and released by the Canadian Post early this year.  


Odjig, who was born in 1919 at the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve on Manitoulin Island to a father of Native descent and an English war bride mother, has championed Canadian cultural diversity and love of her native heritage through her works.  She has received various awards and recognitions for her achievements and passion for the arts.  


Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting stamps, head on to Viridian's Blog

A Lovely French Pigeon Loft

I won this wonderful postcard by joining a giveaway at Shiela's postcard blog back in June. I'm definitely a pigeon fancier, so you could just imagine my thrill when I learned that I won one of the beautiful pigeon loft postcards that were up for grabs.

I used to help my elder cousins feed and take care of the pigeons in our grandparents' backyard when I was a kid. My cousins had built a pigeon coop that was almost as big as my room. Of course the loft wasn't as beautiful as the one above, but it nevertheless looked like a small castle to me back then. The stucture was made of wood, tree branches, tin roofs, and wires. There were a lot of little rooms where the birds would lay and nest their eggs. I remember the excitement of taking a peek at the mother pigeons as they warmed their eggs.

Although my grandparents never really approved of my cousins' interest in breeding homing pigeons, they nevertheless tolerated their grandsons' hobby. As for me, I just love watching the pigeons fly out and race. My cousins and I would clap our hands, whistle, and cheer as we craned our necks to watch the amazing spectacle of a group of pigeons mightily flap their wings in unison and fly in perfect formation. :)

Anyway, I also want to share this beautiful stamp that came with the postcard. I adore windows with flower boxes!

Merci beaucoup, Shiela! I hope the card I sent you reaches your mailbox soon.

Wishing you happy journeys...

Visit The Best Hearts Are Crunchy

for more interesting postcards

Brussels in Bloom: The Flower Carpet at the La Grand Place

The La Grand Place featured in this postcard is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The UNESCO website describes this famous square in Brussels, Belgium as:

"a remarkably homogeneous body of public and private buildings, dating mainly from the late 17th century. The architecture provides a vivid illustration of the level of social and cultural life of the period in this important political and commercial center."

The building in the center is known as the Maison du Roi (King's House). It was was built on the site of the first cloth and bread markets, so the building is still also referred to as the Broodhuis (Breadhouse).


I am certain you'd notice the colorful carpet in front of the Maison du Roi. Every other year, in the month of August, an enormous carpet of begonias is set up in Belgium's most famous square. The one on the photo is the flower carpet set up in 2006. (To read more about Belgium's flower carpet, head on to this site.)


The fauna and flora stamps that came with the postcard are simply awesome!

Dankje, Raquel!

Wishing you happy journeys...

Visit Willa Stock's website for more interesting postcards.

Revisiting the Past through a Postcard

I am grateful to Jenny for sending this old Philippine postcard. It's my very first vintage card!

I like how this snapshot of happily smiling women and children carrying clay jars (probably containing water) and other wares shows a glimpse of the way of life in the decades gone past.

I wonder what's the story behind this snapshot. Perhaps the women and children were on their way to the rice fields to bring food and water for their husbands and fathers who were working in the paddies. Perhaps they were on their way to a festivity. Did they fetch water from a nearby spring or river? Wherever they were heading, they sure looked so merry and not all burdened by the weight of the jars.

Jenny said nothing about the card, except that a fellow postcard collector gave her a bunch of vintage Philippine postcards. How I wish I'd be lucky to get my hands on a bunch of lovely vintage postcards, too!

Salamat, Jenny! Thanks for sending this card to my mailbox.

Wishing you happy journeys...

Here's my share for Postcard Friendship Friday

Cruising along the Seine River

This panoramic postcard was sent by Thadee.  It showcases a bateaux-mouche (fly boat) cruising along the Seine River, the Notre Dame Cathedral, Pont de l' Archevêché (Archbishop's Bridge), and the buildings of Île de la Cité. 

This card reminded me of my sweet sojourn in Paris a few years ago. I remember biking with my friends along the port dela Tournelle, the wide space along the left side of the river, and stopping just about where the two people on the photo are sitting to marvel at the majestic Notre Dame Cathedral from a different perspective.


Because I miss Paris so much, I decided to rummage my treasure trove of my photos.  Look what I found!

A snapshot I took of the Île de la Cité!  Isn't it amazing?  This is why seeing the postcard felt like deja vu! Oh how I long to come back and explore every nook and cranny of the City of Lights! I could walk for hours and hours (or days)! I could just stare in awe at the marvelous architectural structures for hours. 

These stamps came with the postcard:

I sure am happy to get a stamp featuring the blessed Mother Teresa.

Wishing you happy journeys...

See more interesting postcards at Willa Stock's

Familie Hofmann

Tonie sent me this colorful Dutch postcard in exchange for a map card of one of the main islands of the Philippines. Too bad, she didn't tell me anything about the postcard. I wonder who the Hofmanns are. Are they a famous Dutch family?

I so love the interesting stamps that came along with it! The elephant with earphones is so cute!

Wishing you happy journeys...

An entry for Postcard Friendship Friday

Gone Fishing

Britta of Finland sent me this nice postcard of a little boy fishing.

It came with a flower stamp and a cute sticker.

Wishing you happy journeys...

Siem Reap's City Temple

I'm sharing two amazing postcards sent by Cheerful of Postcrossing Mom.  The postcards feature the most famous architectural Khmer wonder that is the Angkor Wat.

These amazing captures of Siem Reap's city temple made me reminisce my visit to the Kingdom of Wonder back in 2009.  A Cambodian odyssey, as I refer to it, my trip to the land of the Khmers proved to be truly unforgettable.  (See a few snapshots here.)


The Angkor Wat is truly awe-inspiring and I cannot even begin to tell you how magnificent it is.  You have to go and see it for yourself!  I long to come back and experience being transported back in time.


Thanks Mommy Cheerful for the postcards!  I also absolutely love the stamps that you used.

Wishing you happy journeys…

See more interesting postcards at

The Best Hearts are Crunchy

The Stolen Kiss

Soon, yes, soon, we'll have our chance,

To embrace each other in love's dance.

A dance which I'll take her hand and show,

The love she's yet to know.

And yes, we'll know it with that kiss,

The look of tender bliss.

The hug and warm embrace will say it all,

Fall from the precipice into the abyss,

With that first sweet tender kiss.

~P. Bere

This postcard was sent from Russia.  It features an oil on canvass painting by French artist Jean Honoré Fragonard entitled "The Stolen Kiss".  The artwork, which is said to have been painted for the bailiff of Breteuil, French ambassador to the Order of Malta in Rome, is part of the collection of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

"The Stolen Kiss explores the theme of secretive romance and passionate moments grabbed in a fleeting moment. The painting captures a perfectly frozen moment in time; two lovers caught by the spectator in the act of stealing a furtive kiss while no-one else is looking.

The young maiden is coquettish, leaning in for the kiss while at the same time looking away back towards the other members of the party in the next room over.

The action is stilted, the figures posed in what almost seems to be a caricature of a passionate embrace. In keeping with the frivolity of Rococo style, the young lady's dress is painted with extraordinary attention to detail. The decoration and fashion becomes almost a third character in the scene.

This type of semi-erotic theme was quite popular in the heady days before the French Revolution, particularly with the French aristocracy who slouched fashionably around the halls of Versailles digging up romantic follies and gossip fodder of their own. Fragonard was the favored genius of this genre.

One can almost see in the sly look of the maiden's eyes the knowledge of the coming storm, knowing that the decadence couldn't last; and in this way The Stolen Kiss stands as a historical artifact, transcending the bounds of mere genre eroticism." (Source: artble.com. Read the entire article here.)

Many thanks to Maria for this postcard and the wonderful stamps that came along with it.

Wishing you happy journeys...

This is my share for the Wednesday postcard meme 
hosted by Willa Stock.

May the Force be with You

I won this Star Wars postcard from a lottery hosted by Kristin at the Postcrossing Forum.  I'm a big fan of the movie series so you can just imagine my reaction when I found out that I won.

It took quite a while before the postcard reached my mailbox.  I was afraid it has gotten lost.  Fortunately, it was worth the wait!


The postcard features Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia, played by Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher.  In the background are Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, played by Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman in the latter films.  It's a family picture, after all.  If you are a Star Wars fan, you'd know that Luke and Leia are twins separated at birth.  They are the children of Anakin, who later assumed the identity of Darth Vader, and Queen Amidala, who died right after giving birth to the twins.

May the force be with you...

Wishing you happy journeys...

Times Square

Here's another postcard sent by my good friends Margaux and Filmore during their USA trip.

 "Formerly named Longacre Square, Times Square was renamed in April 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the newly erected Times Building, which is now called One Times Square and is the site of the annual ball drop on New Year's Eve. Times Square, nicknamed "The Crossroads of the World" and "The Great White Way," has achieved the status of an iconic world landmark and is a symbol of New York City and the United States."

I like how the photo brings me right smack in the middle of New York City's Times Square.  It shows a glimpse of the hustle and bustle of the iconic district of the city that never sleeps.


This colorful stamp featuring the Grand Teton National Park was pasted on the back of the card:

Thanks, M & F!  You are right, I should come to NY someday! 


Wishing you happy journeys...

Head on to The Best Hearts Are Crunchy 

to see more interesting postcards.

A Lighthouse, an Erratic Boulder, and a Stonecastle

I got this beautiful postcard as a prize for solving a word puzzle back at the Postcrossing Forum. Getting a freebie card is already a treat, but getting a lighthouse postcard from Estonia is certainly such a blessing! (I have already confessed my fascination with lighthouses in a previous entry.)

Anyway, the postcard that Alexandra sent me is actually a multiview postcard showing the images of the Köpu Lighthouse, the Ehalkivi Boulder, and the Rakvere Stonecastle.

Read brief descriptions of the featured sites below:

"Kõpu Lighthouse (Kõpu tuletorn) is one of the best known symbols and tourist sights on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa. It is one of the oldest lighthouses in the world, having been in continuous use since its completion in 1531. The lighthouse is built at the top of the highest hillock of Hiiumaa island, Tornimägi which is 68 meters above sea level." (Wikipedia)

"Ehalkivi or the Sunset Glow Boulder is Estonias biggest pegmatite granite boulder at the tip of Letipea peninsula. It is the largest erratic* boulder in the glaciation area of North Europe with a height of 7 meters, circumference of 48.2 meters, volume of 930 square meters, and a mass of approximately 2500 tons." (Wikipedia)

"Rakvere Castle dates back to the Medieval Period. It was ruined during the wars of the 16th and the 17th centuries when Russia, Sweden and Poland-Lithuania were at war over the nearby land. It has been owned by Denmark, the German crusaders, Russia, Sweden and Poland." (Baltic-Castles.org)

The postcard came with this horn stamp issued just this year.

Much thanks for the card, Alexandra! I truly appreciate the effort to find out which type of postcards I love to get my hands on. :)

*FYI: A glacial erratic is a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock native to the area in which it rests. "Erratics" take their name from the Latin word errare, and are carried by glacial ice, often over distances of hundreds of kilometers. (Wikipedia)

Wishing you happy journeys...

See more postcards at

Trakai Island Castle

This is my very first postcard from Lietuva (Lithuania)! I got it from a swap with Grazvydas, who asked for a postcard of Coron, Palawan.

I absolutely fell in love with this card when I saw it on her trade album.  Who wouldn't, anyway?


Here are some information I got on the Trakai Castle:

"The centrepiece of the old Lithuanian capital of Trakai is its picture-postcard Island Castle. The painstakingly restored red-brick Gothic castle is perched atop an island on Lake Galvė. It probably dates from around 1400, when Vytautas, Lithuania's Grand Duke of the time, needed stronger defences than the nearby peninsula castle afforded.

A footbridge links it to the shore and a moat separates the triangular outer courtyard moat from the main tower with its cavernous central court and a range of galleries, halls and rooms. Some house the Trakai History Museum (Trakų istorijos muziejus) which charts the history of the castle. The castle's prominence as a holy site is reflected in its collection of religious art on display in a seperate gallery. In summer the castle courtyard is a magical stage for concerts and plays."  (Source: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/lithuania/sights/museum/trakai-island-castle)

The postcard came with this nice train stamp:

Ačiū for the card, Grazvydas!  Man tai patinka! 

Wishing you happy journeys...