Thomas Jefferson Memorial

This postcard is special not just because of its unique shape, but because it's one of the cards sent by my good friends Margaux and Filmore (and their future baby*) during their recent trip to the USA.

The description at the back of the cards says:

Rudolp Evans' statue of Thomas Jefferson stands within this graceful Roman-style marble pantheon designed by John Russell Pope. Four panels on the interior walls are inscribed with excerpts of Jefferson's writings about independence, liberty, religion, and government.

I certainly love the play of light and shadow in this postcard. The sun had cast lovely, soft hues on the imposing structure.

*Margaux is pregnant.

Wishing you happy journeys...

African Safari Postcards

These cards were the very first postcards I won in one of those Postcrossing Forum lotteries. The lottery host, Escamilla, had a surplus of cards bought from Africa so she decided to give them away. I was one of the lucky winners.

A pack of lions roaming in Mombo Park, Botswana

A Franklin Bird. They say this bird is too noisy.

A trio of zebras. I've always been fond of these creatures.

How about you, have you won any postcards lately?


Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting postcards, please visit The Best Hearts Are Crunchy

The Wooden Church of Heinävesi

This is my very first postcard from Finland. It was sent by Eeva of Postcrossing.

"The Heinävesi Church is located right in the heart of Heinävesi, Finland. Surrounded by fields, the tall church hill dominates the entire village and the surrounding landscape. The church hill is home to the wooden church, the churchyard surrounded by a stone fence and the old cemetery next to it. In addition, the church hill has the old parish hall and a granary that has been transformed into a museum. There is a road leading from the church to the harbor, which was a major inland waterway center.

The current church, a wooden cruciform building designed by Josef Stenbäck, is Heinävesi’s third church in the same spot. The previous church, which had been drawn by Carl Ludvig Engel and completed in 1840, burnt down in 1887. The current church was built by volunteers from 1890 to 1891 under the direction of construction engineer E. J. Holopainen. The church was designed to hold 2,000 people. It has organs that are from 1906 and 1980." (Source: Museums of Southern Savo)

The postcard came with this round-shaped stamp, which I initially thought was just a decorative sticker. Well, in fact, it's really a sticker. It's a self-adhesive stamp!

I wanted to know more about the stamp so I consulted Mr. Google. I found out that it is one of the two stamps issued in April of the current year featuring the dahlia flower. I also learned that Suomi is the shortened version of "Suomen tasavalta -- Republiken Finland," or the Republic of Finland.


I'm certainly looking forward to receiving another postcard from Finland! Finnish stamps are so cool, don't you think so?

Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting postcards, visit Willa Stock's

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Palo Sebo

I was going through my postcard collection and this photo of two boys climbing a greased bamboo pole caught my attention. It made me reminisce about my childhood days and my much-anticipated visits to my maternal grandparents' province.

Palo Sebo or greased bamboo climbing is a traditional Filipino game usually played by boys during a town fiesta. A long bamboo pole is greased and polished to make it slippery. The contestants are given the chance to climb the pole and try to reach the small bag of goodies tied at the end of it. The one who succeeds in reaching and untying the price is declared the winner.

The game can also be played by setting up two or more bamboo poles along side each other. The contestants race to untie the flag attached at the top of his designated pole. The first one to grab the flag wins the game and is awarded a prize money.

Well, if you'd ask me if I ever tried climbing a bamboo pole when I was a kid, my answer is no. I can't even climb a tree back then. Haha!

Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting postcards, head on to The Best Hearts Are Crunchy

and

Willa Stock's

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Balut Vendor

I am featuring a postcard rendition of one of the paintings done by Philippine National Artist Vicente S. Manansala (January 22, 1910 - August 22, 1981). Manansala is regarded as a "social realist" for depicting in his artworks the Philippines' struggle for a national identity after the Second World War. He is known as the pioneer of transparent cubism in the country.

This watercolor painting depicts the scene of a street vendor selling balut, a popular Filipino delicacy. Balut is boiled fertilized duck egg which is believed to be an aphrodisiac.


I've sent out about five pieces of this postcard design to art lovers and the recipients told me they loved it. A postcrosser from Poland even sent me a bar of her favorite chocolate because she really liked the card.

The postcards I sent would have been much more interesting had they been sent with any of the following stamps issued in 2010 to commemorate the birth centenary of the national artist. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to get my hands on any of these stamps. I believe another trip to the Main Post Office is in order. I just hope the Postage and Philatelic Department still have these goodies.

Wishing you happy journeys...

For more interesting postcards, head on to The Best Hearts Are Crunchy