Singapore: Night Safari

On Wednesday I got a postcard from Singapore.

It shows a Thumbuakar Performance at the Night Safari. The Night Safari was opened in 1994 and is thus the World's first nocturnal zoo, which means that it is only open at night and only shows nocturnal animals. Beside the animals also cultural performances are a regular feature at the safari. The Night Safari is today one of the most popular tourist destinations in Singapore and is visited by around 1million visitors every year. 

Stamp:
Vanishing Trades (from set of four) (issued 26-11-2014)
with an advertising postmark about Singapore's Bicentennial

Thank You very much Keiko!

cover from Montenegro

On Wednesday I got not only a postcard but also a cover from Montenegro.

Stamps:

Battle Cruiser Saint George (issued 05-01-2018)

Tourism (from set of two) (issued 14-05-2014)

PTT Museum (issued 15-12-2016)

Art through Ages (from set of two) (issued 05-02-2015)

Thank You very much William!

covers from Germany

On Tuesday I got five covers including four from Germany.

Stamp:

100th birthday of Helmut Schmidt (issued 18-12-2018)

with a matching special postmark from Hamburg

Stamp:
100th birthday of Helmut Schmidt (issued 18-12-2018)
with a matching special postmark from Hamburg

Stamps:
Winter Aconite - self-adhesive (issued 18-12-2018)
Cuckooflower - self-adhesive (issued 18-12-2018)
Bluebells - self-adhesive (issued 18-12-2018)
Cuckooflower - gummed (issued 18-12-2018)
with First Day Special Postmarks

Stamp:
Christmas (issued 02-11-2018)
with a special postmark about the 200th anniversary of the Christmas carol Silent Night

cover from Russia

On Tuesday I got five covers including one from Russia.

With nice stamps:

Christmas (issued 01-12-2016)

Christmas (issued 04-12-2018)

The stamp was printed with an Augmented Reality effect, but unfortunately the app that is necessary to use this does not work on my mobile phone.

Thank You very much Lena!

Germany: History of Bad Homburg vor der Höhe

On Saturday I got a postcard from Germany.

It is the Chronicle card of Bad Homburg vor der Höhe. Bad Homburg vor der Höhe got the town privileges in the 14th century. Between 1622 and 1866 it was the capital of the Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg. In the 18th century its mineral springs were rediscovered and beginning in 1834 it became one of the most important European spa towns. Famous visitors include the German Emperor Wilhelm II and King Chulalongkorn of Siam. Today is Bad Homburg vor der Höhe a part of the German State of Hesse.

Stamp:
Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz (from set of two) (issued 12-07-2018)

Thank You very much Jasmin!

cover from Italy

On Saturday I got not only a postcard but also a cover from Italy.

Stamps:

Italian Mail (from set of three) (issued 01-07-2010)

Centenary of the Victory (issued 03-11-2018)

Inside were two postcards about World War I.

The first card shows a tombstone from the Cimitero degli Invitti in Fogliano Redipuglia. The Cimitero degli Invitti was laid out in 1923. It was the first monumental memorial to the victims of World War I in the region, but lost much of its function when the big Redipuglia War Memorial was inaugurated in 1938.

The second card is a double-sided advertising card for the Italian World War I multimedia concert and movie Note dal fronte.

Thank You very much Cristina!

cover from Malaysia

On Friday I got a cover from Malaysia. 

Stamps:

National Day Celebrations (from set of two) (issued 31-08-2018)

State Definitive - Putrajaya (from set of six) (issued 24-11-2009)

Inside was a written and stamped postcard from Australia.

It shows a map of Australia.

Stamp:
Cruise Ships (from set of two) (issued 18-09-2018)
with a special postmark about the centenary of Poland's independence

Thank You very much Chui Choo!

Kyrgyzstan: Flag

Today I got my first postcard of 2019. It came from Kyrgyzstan.

The card shows the Flag of Kyrgyzstan. The Flag of Kyrgyzstan was adopted in 1992, seven months after Kyrgyzstan's declaration of independence. It consists of a red field with a yellow sun that contains a depiction of the roof of a Kyrgyz yurt. The red colour and the number of the rays of the sun both refer to Manas, the national hero of Kyrgyzstan.

On the backside is a postmark from the 72nd Salon Philatélique d'Automne in Paris showing Ivan Tourguenev.
Stamp:
Bridges (from set of two) (issued 22-06-2018)

Thank You very much William!

World War I Cover from the United Kingdom

On Monday I got a cover from the United Kingdom.

Stamps:

World War I Centenary (two from set of six) (issued 20-09-2018)

The right stamp shows two stanzas of Wilfred Owen's famous poem Anthem for Doomed Youth. Wilfred Owen was one of the most famous poets of World War I. He enlisted in 1915, but already in 1916 he was diagnosed as suffering from shell shock and sent to Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh for treatment. There he made friends in Edinburgh's artistic and literary circles and also wrote Anthem for Doomed Youth in 1917. In July 1918 he returned to active service in France. Wilfred Owen was killed in action on the 4th November 1918. In his poems he deals with the horrors of trenches and gas warfare and thus he stood in stark contrast to the public perception of war at the time and to the confidently patriotic verse written by earlier war poets.

Thank You very much William!

_________________________________________________________________________________

Anthem for Doomed Youth

What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?

Only the monstrous anger of the guns.

Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle

Can patter out their hasty orisons.

No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells,

Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, -

The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;

And bugles calling for them from sad shires.

What candles may be held to speed them all?

Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes

Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.

The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall;

Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,

And each slow dusk a drawing down of blinds.

Germany: Christmas Market in Frankfurt

Last Friday I got a postcard from Germany.

It shows the Christmas Market in Frankfurt. The Christmas Market in Frankfurt is one of the largest Christmas Markets in Germany and is visited by over 3million people every year. It influenced cities in Great Britain to hold their own "Frankfurter Weihnachtsmarkt". The biggest of them is in Frankfurt's twin city Birmingham.

The card was signed during a Postcrossing Meet-up on the market.
Stamp:
Variable Value Stamp (from set of two) (issued 03-01-2017)

Thank You very much Klaus!

New Zealand: Wellington Blown Away Sign

Last Thursday I got a postcard from New Zealand.

It shows the Wellington Blown Away Sign. The Wellington Blown Away Sign was erected in 2012. Actually a Wellywood sign was planned, but due to local disapproval the current sign was created instead.

Stamps:
New Zealand Heritage - Ships (from set of six) (issued 07-03-1990)
Thinking Outside the Square (two from set of twelve) (issued 05-09-2018)

Thank You very much Sharon!

Vietnam: Year of the Pig

Last Wednesday I got two postcards: one from Vietnam and one from Japan.

The card from Vietnam is a maxicard about the Year of the Pig. The stamp is from a set of two and was issued on the 1st December 2018.

On the backside is just a postmark.

Thank You very much Phan!

Japan: Dewa Sanzan History Museum

Last Wednesday I got two postcards: one from Japan and one from Vietnam.

The card from Japan shows the Dewa Sanzan History Museum. The Dewa Sanzan History Museum is a museum about the three sacred mountains of Mount Haguro, Mount Gassan and Mount Yudono in the Yamagata Prefecture.

Stamps:
Musical Instruments (from set of fifteen) (issued 06-12-2018)
with First Day Special Postmark
8 Yen Difference Make Up Stamp (from set of two) (issued 01-11-2018)

Thank You very much Keiko!

Year of the Pig Covers from Taiwan

Last Tuesday I got a cover from Taiwan.

Stamps:

Year of the Pig (whole set) (issued 03-12-2018)

with First Day Special Postmark

Inside was a Year of the Pig postcard.

Already last Friday I had got another cover from Taiwan with a Year of the Pig souvenir sheet and a different special postmark.

Thank You very much George!

Belgium: Place Royale in Brussels

Last Friday I got two postcards: one from Belgium and one from France.

The card from Belgium shows the Place Royale in Brussels. The Place Royale is located on the site of the former Coudenberg Palace, which was destroyed by a fire in 1731. The new neoclassical buildings were constructed between 1773 and 1780.

Stamp:
Diamant Sector (from set of five) (issued 27-01-2018)
with a special postmark from Brussels

Thank You very much William!