Monday, September 15, 2008

Four Postcards From Friday

I received four postcards on Friday past. They arrived from Belgium, The USA, Taiwan, ROC, and The Netherlands. My first card shown today is from Leuven, Belgium and shows the University Library Building. It was sent by Thomas , who lives in Ieper. Thomas writes the blog My stamps and covers, and you can find a link to it , over on the leftside.Leuven is in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is located about 30 kms east of Brussels. Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, one of the largest Belgian universities and the oldest Catholic University still in existence, is located here. It was founded in 1425. This library was deliberately destroyed by the German Army on August 25, 1914. It was completely rebuilt after the was , a gift from the American people. The library tower houses one of the largest carillons in the world. Thomas used 3 different stamps on this card. The 2 smaller bird stamps on the left are from a set of 3 definitives , issued in 2008. The larger stamp on the right was issued in 2006 , 1 of of a set of 4 showing paintings. The painting on this stamp is the 1907 painting "Woman With Hat" by Leon Spilliaert (1881-1946). Thank you Thomas.
The next card from The USA , is from Evansville, Indiana. It was sent by Postcrosser Alison M of Evansville. Evansville is the 3rd largest city in Indiana with a population of 121,582. Settles in 1812, the city is situated on a gentle horseshoe bend on the Ohio River and is often referred to as River City. This postcard shows a view of the pagoda with a sculpture of the founding fathers of Evansville. Alison used 2 new US stamps , neither of which I had in my collection. They were both issued in 2008. The one on the left is from a set of 4 showing Disney Characters , Mickey himself in this case. The stamp on the right, from a set of 16 featuring art and antique objects, honours Charles and Ray Eames. Thank you Alison.
My 3rd card for today shows Marroad International Hotel in Narita, Japan. Also included on the card is a night view of Narita International Airport. The card though is not from Japan, but from Taiwan, ROC. It was sent by a regular contributor to my postcards, Wei Yi. He used 2 great stamps. The one on the left was issued in 1990, 1 of a set of 4 featuring butterflies. The one on the right, issued in 1977, is 1 of 2 issued for industry and railways. It was operprinted to honour Little League Baseball Championships and 1977 World Little League Champs- Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Thanks Wei Yi for this.
My last card shows a multi view of Friesland, Netherlands. it was sent by Postcrosser Ingeborg, who lives in Leeuwarden, the capital of the province of Friesland. Leeuwarden is the starting and finishing point for the Elfstedentocht, a 200 km-long speed skating race over the Frisian waterways, held when winter conditions permit. A couple of interesting people born in Leeuwarden include, William IV, Prince of Orange and Mata Hari, who was executed by firing squad for espionage during World War I. One more thing that I must mention about Leeuwarden is the following: During World War II, after extensive occupation by the German forces, on 15 April 1945, the Royal Canadian Dragoons, disobeying direct orders, charged into the heavily defended city and defeated the Germans, who were driven out by the next day. Thanks to Ingeborg.
Today's mail just arrived and what did it bring but 5 more postcards. There will certainly be another posting tomorrow . Be sure to come back then.
As always, your comments are welcome.

No comments: