As you can imagine, the latter letters of the alphabet make it more difficult to find appropriate topics. There are only two countries that start with W: Wales, and Wallis & Futuna. The latter is really an autonomous territory, and Wales is part of the United Kingdom.
This means that Wales does not have its own stamps. None of the UK countries do, including Scotland and Northern Ireland (I have mail from all UK countries which indeed has the same stamps). However, the Welsh tongue is alive and well, and it's still the official language there (in addition to English). Street signs even list Welsh first and English second. Some even lack the English translation.
At one time, Wales was an important political and cultural center of Celtic Europe. While it borders England and isn't far from Ireland, the Welsh still pride themselves on their unique cultural aspects which differ from their British neighbors. If you have ever known a Welsh person, you understand. Its fantastic landscape, characterized by various grasslands, woodlands, mountains, valleys and rugged coasts, allows some mammals and birds that are extinct elsewhere in Britain to thrive.
This postcard was sent blank to me in an envelope by a former pen pal. Strangely enough, I don't have any other mail, including stamped postcards, from Wales.
3 comments:
What an interesting hobby you have. I was surprised to learn that the individual UK countries don't have their own stamps particularly as the Welsh are so proud of their language and there are different bank notes in Scotland. Dropping in from the A-Z challenge.
There is a lady in the blogosphere that documents her travels walking in Scotland (at least she had a blog but haven't seen her in awhile) that shows how magnificent Scotland is for natural environments. I'm glad you covered them today.
I really enjoyed reading about Wales. I have a friend who lives there and I hope to visit her. Maybe next year?!
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