A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: Z is for Zagreb

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I received this card from Zagreb, Croatia, on December 7, 2017 (one day before my birthday), hence the wintery theme. It took 16 days to get to me. Zagreb, of course, is the capital of Croatia. This is the only card I have so far that is from Croatia.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: Y is for Yooper Postcard

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

A Yooper is a term that is particular to a certain region in the United States. It refers to a person who lives in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. You can find this term in the urban dictionary, and it was added to the 2014 Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.

If you're not familiar with North American geography, the state of Michigan has two peninsulas that are connected via the Mackinac Bridge, the second-longest suspension bridge in the USA. The first word is pronounced as it it were written with a "w" at the end. The bridge is 5 miles long, and you can see it on the bottom of the card.

The lower peninsula is lower peninsula or mitten (I will explain the latter in a bit), but the Upper Peninsula is commonly referred to as just the "U.P." Hence, the word Yooper, a person from the U.P. Michigan is the only state in the USA that has two peninsulas. It is also surrounded by four of the five Great Lakes.

How do I know all this, having not been born in the USA? Well, when I immigrated, my first residence happened to be in the U.P. , and I spent 13 years there. My two adult children are Yoopers because they were both born there. While I have not been there since I left in the mid 1990s, I still remember the Yooper ways.

Anyway, I was quite surprised when I received the card you see above via Postcrossing (the largest postcard exchange site in the world) as the U.P. is not exactly a populous (nor popular) area. Only 3 percent of Michigan's residents are Yoopers. Lots of cold and snow there (it's the reason I left in the first place). The true Yoopers who were born there love their area, of course.

Anyway, as you can see, the card shows just the upper portion (U.P.) of Michigan. The lower portion (lower peninsula) looks like a gloved hand with the thumb to the right. That's why they call it the mitten.

Now, you probably wonder if I know the sender of the card. Sadly, no. While the card originated only one town away from where I used to live, it was sent by the staff from a long term care facility in St. Ignace, and they did not reply to my thank you message.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: X is for Xtra-Large Postcards

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

Okay, so the title exhibits bad grammar, but the letter x is always a challenge.

Many people who collect postcards seem to shy away from larger than normal postcards. Most likely, because they are challenging to store. I love big postcards because they are unusual. What is normal, anyway? Generally, 6 x 4 inches, 15 x 10 cm (or a bit less). It depends on the country.

For the USA, it's technically 6 x 4.25 inches because anything over that costs more to mail within the country than standard postcard rate. The beauty is that the postage is the same for an extra-large postcard and a regular sized one when mailing internationally.

On the picture above, you can see some of the largest postcards I have received. The first one on top that depicts scenes from Germany was sent from within the USA, I won it in a Facebook postcard group. It measures about 4.25 x 8.5 inches (approximately 11 x 21.5 cm).

The one in the middle was sent from Taiwan via Postcard United (a postcard exchange site). I have no idea what it depicts because the backside is in Mandarin, and the user did not describe the card in her message. It measures about 5.15 x 7 inches (approximately 13 x 18 cm).

The third one arrived from the country of origin (England). It's was sent via Postcrossing (the largest postcard exchange site in the world). I received it right after I started collecting postcards. It measures about 3.75 x 7.75 inches (approximately 10 x 20 cm).

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: W is for Wooden Postcards

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

As I already mentioned in my "C is for Cork ..." post, postcards come in a variety of materials, including leather, copper, the aforementioned cork and of course wood. I've checked eBay, and you can buy blank (un-mailed) wooden postcards for around $7.00 and up.

I was actually sent a wooden postcard that I won in a random giveaway. I didn't know what I won (it just said random postcard), so I was really surprised when this wooden one from Texas showed up in my mailbox. Indeed, it was mailed just like that, without an envelope. I've included the back of the card so you can see the stamp and cancellation.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: V is for Virginia City's Annual Camel Race

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

When I received this card, I first thought it was from Virginia. Well, it's actually from Virginia City, Nevada. While the origin of this card isn't necessarily that exotic, I've included it because of the subject matter. 

I was curious and checked this out online, and this is what I found: The annual camel race started over 50 years ago. It was actually born out of a hoax when an editor of a local newspaper printed a story about the camel race. The San Francisco Chronicle picked up the story and printed it, not knowing it was a hoax. The people from said chronicle were not amused, once they found out the truth.

The following year (1959), the local editor printed the story again. The San Francisco Chronicle people turned the tables and showed up with camels. They soon were joined by other contestants, and there you have it. The event now must be a big deal because it has postcards.

Oh, and if you're wondering: why camels? They were used as service animals in the local gold mines in the 1800s.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: U is for Uzbekistan

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

At first glance, this card might not seem that exciting, but it did come from a place I had to look up on the map. Uzbekistan is in Central Asia, and it borders Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

I'm not going to bore you with historical facts about Uzbekistan (you can look them up yourself), but I do want to describe the card briefly. (After all, that's the purpose of these posts). This card came from the capital of Uzbekistan, Tashkent. It depicts the Monument of Independence on Humanism, which is located at the city's biggest attraction, appropriately named Independence Square.

The stamps are rather boring, but I've included a picture because they don't come along every day.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: T is for Turkey

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

As of the time of this blog, I have received seven cards from Turkey.

For this post, I would like to highlight this card from Izmir, Turkey, which I received in the summer of 2017. On the picture, you see part of Efes Celsus Kütüphanesi (known to locals as ephesus). It is ancient Roman city, and tourists call it an outdoor museum.

Below are a couple of other cards that I received from Turkey.

Blogging from A to Z Challenge 2018: S is for Stamps

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

There is one additional benefit from getting postcards sent by users from all over the world as opposed to buying them for yourself from online market places: Stamps. Yes, stamps and postcards go hand in hand. It is interesting to see what kind of stamps different countries have. Some users go the extra mile and choose colorful stamps of different sizes and denominations when mailing postcards.

For example: In the U.S.A., it currently costs $1.15 to mail a card outside the U.S. (this includes Canada, but there are exceptions for U.S. territories). The post office sells a global forever stamp that you can use to make it easy. Or, you can buy stamps in the following combinations:

  $1.00
+$0.10
+$0.05

  $1.00
+$0.10
+$0.03
+$0.02

  $1.00
+$0.10
+$0.04
+$0.01

... and so on. Also since the current rate for U.S. global stamps is 50 cents, you can use two of those to make a dollar, and then add your extras that combine to make 15 cents for  total of $1.15.

Yes, it takes extra effort, but people love to receive cards with different stamps and show their appreciation in thank-you messages. The thing is, there is no 15-cent stamp, which would make it a bit easier and take up less space. Some postcard designs don't allow for use of multiple stamps, that's another problem too.

I do find that the U.S. has pretty boring stamps when compared to many other countries. Plus, they tend to range in the same size and I've not seen really big stamps in a long time. Although, the USPS issued a solar eclipse stamp last year that was pretty nifty. They also had planets, but I can't find them anymore.

The USPS does have a postal website where you can buy stamps, but they don't include everything that's been issued recently (and of course you have to pay for shipping). I have no idea who decides these things, but the selection on the site stays pretty much the same, except for the occasional new releases. However, not all of them stick around. It's anyone's guess how that works.

What makes a stamp interesting? To me, the following criteria apply:

1. Size (bigger is better)
2. Shape (the most unusual, so far, has been a hexagon)
3. Subject matter (to me, cats rule)
4. Variety of colors (bright, vivid = better)
5. Country of origin

So far, my most interesting country stamps come from Serbia, Slovenia and Israel. If you're wondering who has the most "boring" stamps (in addition to the USA), I would say United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Germany's stamps don't impress me that much either. Who has the best? Russia and China, although a lot of their cards tend to be on the meh side. The awesome stamps make it better!

Of course my view points are skewed because I've only received cards from 43 countries. Plus, I have lots of cards from some countries and only one or two from others. For example, I only have one card from countries such as Romania, Israel, Croatia, Algeria and Peru, and those stamps are interesting to me because of where they came from. However, I don't know what variety those countries have. So, I am sure there are plenty of cool stamps from other countries that I have not received yet.

Also, within Postcrossing circles, there is one coveted stamp design: The Postrcossing stamp, of course. Yes, that is correct. The site that I use the most for postcard exchange has its own postage stamp in numerous countries.

So far, I have received five international postcards that had the Postcrossing postage stamp of the respective country affixed. Two from Belarus (different designs issued in different years), one from Malaysia, one from Ukraine and one from Czechia. The card from Malaysia was sent from a user of Postcard United though, not Postcrossing. Go figure! If you want to see what those four stamps look like, you can see them about my review post about www.Postcrossing.com.

Anyway, not that the USA will ever have a Postcrossing-themed postage stamp. I did check the USPS website to see what the guidelines are for stamp designs, and, as usual, the post office governing body is strict and boring about these things. While anyone can suggest stamp designs (you can Google on how to do it, but you might not stay awake reading that).

Anyway, I have taken pictures of some of my favorite international stamps. Take a look below. I didn't crop them neatly as to give you an idea of the size of them.

A to Z Blogging Challenge: R is for Romania

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I received this card on March 12, 2018 through the Postcard United website. It took 46 days to get to me. Here is what the sender wrote:

"This is the Palace of Parliament, the largest administrative building in the world. Construction of the palace began in 1984 and initially should have been completed in only two years. But, even now it's not finalized. Only 400 rooms out of 1100 are finished and used. The building has eight underground levels. It houses the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, three museums and an international conference center." (I think the sender may have copied this from Wikipedia).

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: Q is for Quirky Postcards

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

What are quirky postcards? I guess that depends on the definition of quirky. I actually looked up the meaing, and these are some of them: eccentric, idiosyncratic, unconventional, unorthodox, unusual, strange, bizarre, peculiar, odd, outlandish, zany, informal, wacky, freaky, kinky, way-out, far out, kooky, offbeat. Plus, different websites even give more definitions.

I suppose it depends on which one of these appeals most to an individual when he or she hears the term “quirky.”  My initial reaction was that quirky means unusual. Well, there are odd-shaped postcards, cards made from different materials other than cardboard or paper, and cards in unusual sizes, but I already did posts on those.

Aha! I am going to talk about maxi cards aka maximum cards. No, those are not over-sized postcards. Maxi cards are a different animal altogether, and I had never heard of them until I started exchanging postcards. If you want a detailed explanation and the history, read the Postcrossing blog about maxi cards. In a nutshell, they are postcards that have a postage stamp on the picture (front) side of the card that matches the picture. You still have to affix proper postage on the back to mail them.

So far, I have four maxi cards. Two from Australia, one from Hong Kong and one from India. In some countries, post offices actually issue them, but I think anybody can create one (as long as you pay for the proper postage when  mailing them). They actually can cost a pretty penny when you try to buy them on eBay. Since they're thought-after and costly, I am surprised people sent me some as I don't list them specifically on my wish list.

The card on top is the maxi card from India (sent by a user via Postcrossing, the largest online postcard exchange site in the world). Here is what the description reads on the back: This hat (Naga hat) could only be worn by a successful headhunter that the Nagas used to be. Chang Naga warriors wear plaited cane work helmets ornamented with a hornbill tail feathers, goat or bear hair and two wild boar tusks. The chin strap is decorated with the ten claws of a tiger's two front paws.

Here is what the sender wrote about the card: "The card has a special limited edition stamp of Nagas headgear." It's not exactly a subject I am crazy about (headhunting and all), but it is one of my most unusual cards.

Below is the one from Hong Kong that was sent to me on January 1, 2018 (also via Postcrossing). The sender wrote: "I picked up this maximum card last year when the year of the rooster special stamps were issued."

The two below are from Australia and were sent by users via Postcard United, another postcard exchange site. Notice the first day of issue special cancellation on the (2nd) bottom card that also has the shape of a chicken. On a side note, I have found out that maxi cards are actually quite common in Australia.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: P is for Peru

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I received this card from Peru in October 2017. As you can see, it's from Lima, specifically. The sender wrote on it that Lima only has two seasons: summer and winter. Summer takes place from November until June. The coldest month is in August. Peruvians call the Lima winter sky panza de burro (literally belly of a burro which translates to donkey belly) because of its gray color. See, there's another P for you!

A to Z Blogging Challenge A to Z: O is for Orleans, France

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I received this card from France in May of 2017. The sender writes that Orleans is known for Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) aka Maid of Orelans, which I knew. She also wrote that they celebrate her on May 8. That part I did not know, so I did a quick Google search. 

This revealed that St. Joan's Day (Joan of Arc was canonized May 16, 1920) in France takes place on May 30, the day she was burnt at the stake. However, in Orleans they celebrate that day on May 9, which is one day after the army led by Joan saved Orleans from British forces. The sender was off by one day, but perhaps she meant that May 8 was the date Orleans was liberated.

Anyway, the postcard itself depicts La Place du Martroi, then and now. The statue is modeled after St. Joan.

Blogging from A to Z 2018: N is for Nassau, Bahamas

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I received this card through Postcard United (a postcard exchange site). It actually didn't take that long for me to receive a card from the Bahamas through that site. While there are only several Bahamas users who send postcards, about 3 as far as I know, they are prolific. Plus, the Postcard United website has under 9,000 members (as of the time of this post), so the odds aren't that bad.

(Yes, I know I probably should have posted this under "B," but I needed a post for the letter N. The card is from Nassau, so there you go).

According to the website statistics, the card took 58 days to get to me. Of course that's with a grain of salt because one never knows when exactly a user mails out a card. The website only tracks when a user's address is given out. However, like I said, the user is prolific, so I think the stats are pretty accurate.

As it turned out, I drew her address back in January and got to mail a card to her. It took 17 days for my card to get to the Bahamas. Yes, it's quite normal for cards to show differences in travel times when going between two places.

A to Z blogging Challenge 2018: M is for Monaco

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I've been fascinated with the principality of Monaco ever since I was a teenager, partially due to the death of Princess Grace in 1982 and the subsequent hoopla in the gossip magazines for years to come. Keep in mind that I grew up in Germany, so all this was a big deal there. I suppose my fascination was because of the ongoing coverage of Princess Stephanie's alleged "scandalous" exploits, who is just a couple of years older than I am.

While I've outgrown the gossip rags many years ago (thankfully), the receipt of this card made me wonder what ever happened to the royal family of Monaco. I did a quick Google check before writing this blog and was shocked to see how old Princess Grace's "kids" look. Of course they're now adults in their 50s and 60s, and it drove home the fact how OLD I AM now.

Anyway, this card was actually sent from someone who lives outside Monaco (in France, obviously) but works there. The card does have the Monaco stamp and was mailed from the principality, as you can see by the stamp image and postal cancellation. So, it is kind of unusual. It's strange what kind of memories postcards can jog loose.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: L is for Latvia

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I've always considered myself more knowledgeable than the average person when it comes to geography. When I was a kid, I used to spend countless hours looking through the atlas looking for exotic, foreign, unknown places. However, when I received a postcard from Latvia, I had no idea where that is.

So, I consulted ye olde Google. I can tell you that Latvia is between Estonia and Lithuania, but that only helps if you know where one or the other is. What I learned is that Latvia was annexed by the USSR (subsequently known as Soviet Union, Russia, Russian Federation, but you get the idea) in 1940. In 1991, it became independent again. So, no wonder I didn't find it on the map back in the 1980s. I probably learned something about the pre-1940 Latvia in school, but that's a lifetime ago.

Anyway, this card depicts the monument of Freedom, the Dome Square, the Convent Yard, the Liv's Square, the Latvian Academy of Art, and of course a panoramic view of Riga, the capital of Latvia.

Blogging Challenge from A to Z 2018: K is for Korea

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

I'm pretty sure that most people know that there is a North and South Korea and their differences. What many might not know (unless you're politically savvy or followed the 2018 Winter Olympics) is that, in Korea, people don't refer to to the countries as such. Instead, it's the Republic of Korea (South) and the Democratic Republic of Korea (North).

Now, in postcard circles, people do use South or North, if they would choose to send one to the latter. I don't know anyone who has sent a card to the latter and if it would even arrive. Keep in mind that most of the postcard collecting community sets politics aside, focuses on the fact that most citizens don't want to be judged by the actions of their countries' leaders and that they like to collect cards from as many countries as they can. Plus, people in general love a challenge and like to obtain the hard-to-get.

Anyway, I have received one postcard from South Korea so far (obviously none from the other). Strangely enough, a couple of months later, the postcard site (Postcard Hub) matched me up with the sender of this card, so I got to send a card to her. It took 47 days to get to her but less than 20 for the card she sent to me.

The card I received from South Korea is a very cute cat card, as you can see. It was sent just like that, without the envelope, and I'm happily surprised that the USPS sorting machines (that seem as angry as their human counter parts) did not rip the card. Below you can see the postage stamps that were attached. (It says Gracie on the card because it was addressed to our cat).

Blogging from A to Z 2018: J is for Jerusalem's Western Wall

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

Postcards are exciting for different reasons. They can show interesting places, they can come with nice stamps, they can show favorite subject matter (in my case, the three front runners are cats, cacti and sunflowers). Or, they can include fantastic insight about the sender/subject matter in the written section on the backside.

This card from Israel has all of the above. My favorite part is that the sender took some time to give a cultural insight that you can't get anywhere else, except from a person who lives the life in the place of origin. Here is what the sender wrote, ad verbatim: (Yes, I am also amazed how he fit all that on the card, plus there is a personal intro about him that I omitted for privacy sake).

"The large, round structure in the center is somewhat iconic of the city and is known as the Dome of the Rock. According to legend, when God was creating the universe, he used a large rock as a cornerstone. That same rock lies in the foundation of the Dome, and visitors can see it for themselves, after descending to the basement.

This magnificent building is located on top of the Temple Mount in the old city of Jerusalem. In ancient times, the small mount was the basis of the large Jewish Temple, but it was destroyed by the Romans 2000 years ago. Since then, it changed hands several times, and now is predominantly Muslim

There are some Jewish extremists who are thinking about taking it over, However, at present, this is definitely not happening. A delicate balance is maintained for the benefit of all."

Okay, so the politically and historically savvy know most of this already, but I think the last sentence says so much, imo. The card was written in October 2017, and circumstances are always changing, but it speaks of hope. In the end, it also gives a glimpse about how one tip of the scales, one way or the other, can affect humans' lives who want nothing more than to just go about their business in peace.

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2018: I is for Irregularly Shaped Postcards

(My theme for April's A to Z blogging challenge is postcards. If you want, read my intro post).

What constitutes an irregularly shaped postcard? Technically, it's an odd-shaped postcard, but I needed a topic for the letter I. To me, it's any postcard that isn't rectangular or square. Although, the USPS has strange postal regulations that can be difficult to understand but include that a postcard has to be rectangular. From what I gather, the regulations are so finicky because of the U.S. sorting machines.

Those machines seem as angry as their human counter parts. I get damaged mail all the time. I wonder how mail then moves in other countries where you are allowed to mail things that you can't mail here supposedly?

For example, I have received a few square postcards (mainly from the Netherlands where these seem popular). Doesn't mail that comes into the country have to ride the sorting machines here too? The square postcards arrive here just fine. Or perhaps they're being hand-sorted?

I do know that some mail qualifies as "non-machinable" and there is an extra postage fee for that because this mail has to get hand-sorted. So, it's possible that the square ones get separated when they come in and get processed by hand. (Of course they can't charge me for that as the senders already paid correct postage in their country). I would ask my local postal workers, but they're grumpy, except for one lady, and I usually forget what I want to ask when I see her.

Anyway, while our post office might deem square postcards odd-shaped, in this context I am referring to what I stated above (non-rectangular and non-square). Until I started exchanging postcards, I had no idea that they even came in shapes other than rectangular.

For example, I received a postcard from South Korea that has cat ears. It was sent without an envelope, and I would have been quite upset had it gotten damaged. The post office did good on this one. So, that was my first odd-shaped card that I received.

What totally blew me away though are the cat cards that you see above (the ruler is to give you an idea as to their size, which is smaller than a regular postcard). Not only are they odd-shaped, but they also don't fit the size regulation of the USPS.

That's right, postcards here have to be a minimum of 3.5 x 5 inches. (I believe letters have to be at least that big too because of those dreaded machines. I did receive an international letter once that was only 3 by 4.25 inches. While it did get here, it was all wrinkled and abused by aforementioned machines). I also received a postcard that was 3.5 x 4.25 inches (the size of a Polaroid, for you older folks like me) from Taiwan (without an envelope). This one survived without problems, amazingly!

The USPS also has maximum size specifications, but I don't want to get into that right now because it will be addressed in a future post soon. Anyway, as you can see by the picture below that I took of the reverse, these cute cat cards have all the makings of a real postcard: lines for the address and a stamp outline for the postage stamp. Luckily, the sender put them in an envelope and mailed them that way.

It makes me wonder though: If they make cards like these, does that mean in other countries you can actually send them through the mail without an envelope? Don't other countries use sorting machines? So, the cat-eared postcard from South Korea is, so far, the only odd-shaped card I have received that was sent the way a postcard is supposed to be sent (without an envelope). That doesn't make the other two less special to me though.