Kizhi

In the far north-western corner of Russia is the Republic of Karelia. 

In Karelia is a lake, called Lake Onego. 

In the middle of that lake is an island called Kizhi.

On Kizhi is a "pogost",  a settlement or churchyard.

And in that pogost, are two wooden churches and a bell tower.

The church on the left has 22 domes while the one on the right has nine. The smaller church is known as the Church of the Intercession. It is heated and is therefore used as a winter church (October to Easter), whereas the larger church - the Church of the Transfiguration - is not heated and is only used during the summer months. Both churches date back to the 18th C and are built entirely of wood - no nails! Along with the belfry, these structures were built of pine (the main structure), spruce (roof) with aspen covering the domes. This pogost is an UNESCO World Heritage Site with the island and its open air museum of 87 other buildings (including more wooden churches, barns, mills, houses and saunas) brought to the island is a Russian Cultural Heritage Site.

So, apart from the Moscow Metros from last months post, this is one place I would love to see. (yes, I have thing for Russia!)

Sunday Stamps II

Inspired Sunday

Moscow Metro

Novokuznetskaya opened in 1943 (in spite of the war!) 

and won a state prize for its design. It has seven octagonal ceiling mosaics on the theme of wartime industry. The marble benches were rescued from the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour before it was demolished.

Taganskaya opened in 1950
It has majolica panels with floral patterns on each of the 48 curved pylons. Within each panel is also a bas relief of various WWII Red Army and Navy servicemen

Kropotkinskaya opened in 1935 after only 180 days
it has flared columns of white marble with lighting concealed in the top.

Belorusskaya opened in 1952
it has 12 octagonal mosaics on the curved ceiling and the floor is patterned to resemble a Belrussian quilt.

Novoslobodskaya opened in 1952
its most striking feature are the 32 stained glass panels in the pylons

The city I grew up in has a subway system, but its stations were mostly renowned for its bland 'subway tiles' (which I actually kind of liked for its minimalism and clean design) There were four trim colours and three - later five - colours of tile. The gentle repetition was soothing to me. I later found out that many people didn't even notice the pattern.
I cannot imaagine anyone not noticing the designs in these Moscow Metro Stations

for Maria's postcards for the weekend

with love from Australia

My Postcrossing profile says I like cute cats, so am not sure why I received this deadly snake. But, it is good to have your horizons expanded.

The Tiger Snake of Australia is
highly toxic.

Seek help immediately if you are ever bitten.

It is generally found in swamps and lagoons and areas near rivers and open forests in southeastern and southwestern Australia. Some other interesting facts:

• the laughing kookaburra is one of their predators
• they can climb trees as well as swim and dive
• females give birth to anywhere from 20-30 live snakelets
• from the moment they are born they have to fend for themselves

Madtown

A map postcard showing an interesting view of Madison Wisconsin came in my mailbox from Eleanor.

The only thing I previously knew about this city was that it is the capitol, has a university, and was named for President James Madison. (okay, that last bit was a guess)  But, as someone who loves maps and is a bit of a geek regarding urban planning, I was fascinated to discover that downtown Madison is built on an isthmus.

An isthmus is a narrow strip of land that connects two other areas of land usually with water on either side.  In this case, the water is two of the five lakes that are found in the city - Lakes Mendota and Monona.  Yes, this city has five lakes! The others are Waubesa, Kegonsa and Wingra. With all those lakes come 13 beaches. And a bonus 260 parks.

It is the creation of a local graphic artist, Lia Spaulding, who composed it according to characterizations gathered informally from an assortment of local residents. The “map” is an outline of the isthmus with labels superimposed, corresponding to different parts of the central city, walking a line on the funny side of stereotyping. Most of the image’s information is packed into the areas of campus, Capitol Square, and the near East Side. The Williamson-Marquette neighborhood is labelled “vegans,” “downward dogs,” and “hippies.” “Art fair,” “farmers market,” and “political protests” cover where the capitol sits. The neighborhoods where the majority of people of color in Madison live, on the South and North sides, are identified by landmarks or seasonal festivals rather than types of people. The South-Central sector, over 50% of whose inhabitants are people of color, is labeled “hospitals,” “runners & scenic route,” “mass brat consumption” (for the annual bratwurst fest) and “Christmas lights” (for the holiday light festival in Olin Park). “Duck blind” (the field where the Madison Mallards play), “airport,” and “Weinerville” (the Oscar Mayer factory) represent the North Side.

(source) 

Madison sounds like a fun and healthy place to live. Besides all those parks, there is an extensive network of bike paths and it recently was awarded a Platinum Status as a bike friendly community. (this makes it one of the five best biking cities in the country.) There are several museums – and a zoo – mostly free. And, it is less than 200km from Chicago and around 100kms from Milwaukee if you need more urban excitement.

Plus, in light of recent events, it was also declared as the "least armed and dangerous city in the US" (Men's Health Magazine, 2008) In that year there were only 10 homicides.

Anybody out there reading this who has been to Madison? Please do share your stories.

colouring in the lines

A memory I have from when I was young is of a deep despair when my colouring books were all coloured in and there were no more pages left to fill. Big, fat books they were as I recall. And, I was definitely one of those stay inside the lines colourists! So, you'd think I would be even a little excited about this recent adult colouring craze. There are books galore of almost every topic out there to instil creativity, or find your inner child, or whatever. Supposedly they are to induce calm and relaxation. Yeah, I also know people who knit for relaxation and truly, I cannot think of anything more frustrating than knitting. Except maybe colouring these new colouring books. Though, admittedly, I haven't really tried.

Maybe it's because they are so detail oriented. And tiny. Colouring postcards are also popular and this is one I received today from Sofiya. Perhaps I should buy myself some of the special pens/pencils you need and give it another try? I do like Matryoska dolls...

Interestingly, I also received these two cards - the same one - this past week.  

How cool to see how differently each one has been coloured. 

Damavik

I have seen several of these postcards from Belarus and have even been lucky enough to receive some. But, really I had no idea what this gnome like creature was all about. Was he part of some Russian fairy tale? And why is he only in Belarus and not Russia? The variety of cards didn't seem to suggest a story line, but he does appear in many settings. Maybe he is part of the Belarus tourist industry that has taken off on a life of its own?

Finally, I realize that this creature is known as Damavik.

and this particular Damavik is the creation of a Postcrossing postcard site that specializes in Belarus artists for their cards. if you look up the website (Vanilla Tree Vale) you can find out more about him.

He is a Belarusian folklore character, similar to the Russian Domovoi, (and other Polish, Ukrainian and Lithuanian versions) a house spirit, or elf. Traditionally, it is said that these elves inhabit every house and they help with the chores if treated well by the family.

This Damavik lives in a cozy country home and eats traditional Belarusian foods – his favourites are mushroom soup and potato pancakes.

 And by being a mascot of this postcard company, he sort of reminds me of the Travelocity gnome  as he travels around the countryside and visits such places as the Mir Castle (below) a birch forest (top) and collects mushrooms (second from top)

sunbathing at a motel

My Postcrossing wishlist was recently changed to include any old postcards of motels - even used ones - and to my surprise, I've so far had three sent to me. This beauty arrived today from Chris in Michigan.

I especially like the sunbather on top of the motel sign.  This place is not only steam heated, but also air conditioned. And you have the new fangled telephone in your room!

The back of the card tells you that the White Village Motel is one of London's most modern motels with a swimming pool. Each air-conditioned unit has wall to wall carpeting, T.V., telephone, bath & full tile shower. Restaurant is adjacent.

In trying to date the card, I googled the name and found it still listed on one site, with the same name and phone number. No postcards, unfortunately. But when I did a reverse phone number look up, I found it had become Knights Inn, a recently renovated motel near the airport.

The website tells you that 

The Knights Inn has a charming family atmosphere with family rooms available. All rooms are recently renovated and feature a microwave, fridge, and free high speed wireless internet.

We have completed all our Daily Room's Furniture, Carpet and Decor changes in year 2012. All our rooms have LCD TVs with all major cable channels.

We also feature coin operated laundry, and vending machine one site. We have security System monitoring entire property. All rooms have drive up access with free parking. All rooms have free local calls.

Good to know that there is still a telephone in every room. Though it seems the restaurant may have been replaced by a vending machine. And no mention of a pool.

The above (in italics) was pasted directly from the website - perhaps they need someone to help with their grammar?

PostcardFriendshipFriday.

Normandy

a delicious map card of the Normandy region of France. 

I've been waiting to post this on this occasion*

This site gives you all the info you might need if you happen to be in Normandy for the 70th Anniversary D-Day Celebrations



not quite a "we remember" or war-time era postcard as I don't have any 
PostcardFriendshipFriday

lost cat

This poor cat doesn't look so much grumpy as perhaps wary 

but he definitely needed to come in out of the cold. 

In late March I received an email from a frantic Postcrosser anxious about her card that she'd sent more than a month previous. I checked over my messy desk to make sure, but no. She wrote back, saying she'd send me another if I didn't get it. It was taking a long time, but with everything happening in Ukraine, I waited another week or so before writing back that, still, no card. Bless her heart, but she did send another and it arrived just 3 days before the final 60-day expiry date. I thanked her profusely, and then thought no more about it.

This card arrived in my mail on Tuesday and I immediately went from the mailbox to my computer to register. It had already been registered. How could that be?

I searched further and recognized the user name.....

You can clearly see the the cancellation from Ukraine that dates it 20 Feb 14 (200214) 
and the Canadian mark stating it's arrival on 1 May 14 (140501)

Where has this cat been hiding all this time? 

He looks the type who will probably never tell.

PostcardFriendshipFriday

maps and animals

I don't have nearly enough postcards from Australia but was thrilled to get a second map postcard earlier this month to go with the one I got last December.

this card's arrival means a little shuffling is in order as my album of maps and large letter cards is now full

and some more iconic images

I spent a long six months backpacking around (a tiny portion of) AU and NZ and for years thought of little else but going back. It was a bit of a shock to realize (due to someone's significant birthday next month) that that trip was 25 years ago. 

For sure, if/when I do make it back, it won't be with a backpack.

PostcardFriendshipFriday
for ANZAC DAY

Wesołych Świąt

An Easter card from Poland

with a 2014 Easter egg stamp


Happy Easter to everyone who celebrates



PostcardFriendshipFriday

cats enjoying themselves

all cats have wonderful stretches 

(Cat Yoga)

and love to play

(Irina Zeniuk's Blue Cats)

and after all that,

there's the sleeping to be done 

(Jeffrey Brown from "The Cutest Sneeze in the World")

PostcardFriendshipFriday

cats and balloons

these 1930s kitties don't really look too thrilled to be sending out birthday wishes

so  I was thrilled to get this hand made postcard from Finland this week

PostcardFriendshipFriday

hanging out in trees

There was a theme to some of the cards received from Postcrossing today...

The top card is of a Norwegian Forest Cat (doesn't he have a lovely mane!) and of course we all recognize the panda with those lovely eyes. But I can't quite identify the bird with the lovely colours. It might be a blue tit?

PostcardFriendshipFriday

1000

It has finally arrived. The much anticipated 1000th Postcrossing postcard!!
Seriously, I was stuck at 999 for a week. Every day I would (almost) run down the stairs to check the mailbox.  And every day I would slowly drag myself despondently back upstairs after seeing it was (almost) empty.

and.... it is a lighthouse! well, actually several lighthouses.

I change my profile every few months adding and subtracting themes for cards, and only added lighthouses in November.

Interestingly, three of the four previous cards were also lighthouses (all received on the same day), each from a different country.

Lietuva (Lithuania)

Pervalka

Germany (right) and Poland (although it is of Annisquam Lighthouse in Maine)

PostcardFriendshipFriday

a walk in the forest

What I learn from Postcrossing. This postcard arrived today from Dasha in Siberia.

Barnaul band type pine forest. 

This is in the Altai region where there are around 13,ooo lakes. There are five pine forest bands, with this one being the largest. It stretches for 400km but is as narrow as 15km wide in some spots.

There is an old legend about pine forests telling of the God of Wind that was flying above these lands in the Altai region and saw a beautiful girl with a wonderful name, Aigul (it means 'Moonflower' and is common in Kazakhstan). He decided to take her to his castle beyond the clouds and cajole her to marry him by showering her with marvelous presents. But the girl knew that it would be very hard to love him as the Wind frequently changed his character and mood, was frivolous and often flew away from home. Aigul heard the Wind sneaking up to her while smelling the unusu­al flowers he carried and scared of being torn off her native land she rushed home along the meadow. But the Wind turned into a hurricane, ran the beautiful runaway down, picked her up and took her away to his celestial chambers. Aigul was crying and where her drops of tears fell there appeared small lakes. The green bands from her braids flew down to the ground and where they dropped there grew forests to show her brothers the way to find their sister. Whether they found her or not nobody knows…

source with slight adjustments to the translation

timey wimey

I get so excited whenever I see a "Hooray! Your postcard has been received" in my inbox. First, I have to read the message from the recipient then, before I know what I'm doing, I'm logged on and requesting an address to send another card. Sometimes, I regret being so impulsive. Especially if it's a Friday when I know the mail won't go out until 5pm on Monday. That adds 3 or 4 days to the travel time.

This morning I had a message from a Postcrosser exclaiming shock that her card had reached me in 3 days. She was from Germany. She was sorry, she hadn't even gotten around to uploading the photo of the card. It's true, a card travelling between Canada and Belarus or Ukraine, can easily take anywhere from 25 to 59 days to be received. But after checking the stats on my account, I can confirm that it is not unusual for a card from Germany to arrive in 5 days or less. Talk about efficiency!

I have been rather lax in uploading my received cards and I now have several dozen that need to be shown. So this afternoon, I got out my little tabletop tripod and set it up to take pictures of them all and am at the moment taking a break from posting them on the Postcrossing site. When done, I'll finally be able to sort and file them into their appropriate boxes.

I'm also staying inside to watch the Doctor Who marathon that has become a Sunday afternoon tradition. (I know, I've already seen each one at least twice - okay, three times - but there's always something you may have missed)  Tonight we have Doctor Who: Doctors Revisited 'The Fifth Doctor'.  This is actually the first doctor I remember watching (Peter Davison, if anyone needs reminding). I have been struggling with some of these old episodes. They seem to plod along slowly and aren't nearly as engaging as the recent ones with the ninth, tenth and eleventh doctors. But it has been interesting to see how each of the doctors differed over the incarnations and the years.

There are many other things I could be doing, but for now this is the most enjoyable.

and this is the card that Sandra sent - my first subway map card!

guilder stamps

The Netherlands made a deal when the euro was introduced that they could continue to use the guilder stamps for 10 years, and that is now coming to an end.

As of November 1st, 2013, the old guilder stamps from The Netherlands will no longer be valid and it seems I've been getting a few more interesting stamps lately as a result of this as people get rid of their old stamps. For Sunday Stamps, I'm showing the above set sent from Paul "from below sea level" in Groningen as it has a handwritten note of the values in guilders and euros!

1999 - The International Year of Elderly People
These stamps show that elderly people can still look very good and can still be very active. To avoid a stately portrait I photographed the persons in profile, while they ‘walk’ out of the stamp, and look at you. The grey stripes change in colourful background patterns once the portraits appear.
[artist's description, from a website I can not find again....]





These next two are from 1991 for Child Care. I couldn't find a description for them which is a shame as I'd like to know the backstory behind these designs. The little girl with the robot doesn't look terribly happy, but maybe she is just pensive. Maybe they are exchanging toys and she is going to be stuck with the Barbie doll. I'd have been a little sad, too.  In the second one, the boy seems to be blindfolded and the girl is excitedly whispering something to him. I'm wondering about that disembodied arm....

foreign felines

kittens from Thailand

 from The Netherlands, this little one is missing his mouse

and finally, from Germany, the perfect card for someone with a cat and a turtle (even though this is actually a tortoise)

"Luck is to have a strong friend who takes care of you when you need help"

PostcardFriendshipFriday

photography of Gabor Szilasi

this is a postcard of one of my favourite photographers, sent to Violet in Finland. Apart from the grand sweeping staircase, I love how he has captured the texture of the wall.

Gabor is known for his architectural and street scene photography as well as informal portraiture. Most have been taken in his adopted home of Montreal and his native home of Budapest.

Everything is constantly changing around us: what my camera captures at this moment is already of the past. That is why it is important to me to record the world as I see it today through photography. I am not interested in the past or the future: I am interested in the present. Through the photographic image, I can directly record the signs of the past and the future as they appear in this moment.”

— Gabor Szilasi, 1977

you can see more photos and read up on his biography and influences here

Escalier, Lörinc tér 2, 8e arrondissement, Budapest, sept.-oct. 1995_Musée canadien de la photographie contemporaine, Ottawa_Gabor Szilasi, 2009

so I was pleased to see that he was featured in the first of a new series of stamps celebrating photography,

the image chosen for the stamp is of Andor Pasztor, a friend of his father. this was taken during a period when he created diptychs with a black and white photo of the sitter and a colour photo of the room in which the photo was taken.

I am a little disappointed that this stamp is perhaps the weakest of the series 

in that it is more difficult to see the image. all the stamps are the same size - 30mm x 36mm

Gabor Szilasi was born in Budapest and left Hungary in 1957 to eventually settle in Montreal.