The 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Mission to the Moon, Brazil

Sometime, at the end of last year, I received this envelope in the mailbox. 

At first glance it looks as if it had gotten chicken-pox or that has been otherwise contaminated. 

 

 The most logical explanation is that it had been struck by some muddy rain, which had affected the front side, the back side, as well as the paper inside the envelope... so basically, everything was wounded here, including my heart since the Apollo stamps were ruined as well and you know how I feel to things astronomy-related. 

I had almost forgotten about it, since i had placed it in a plastic bag and tucked it away in my drawer and found it few days ago while looking for something else.

One of the postmarks had been completely soaked, but the other one has remained perfectly clear, which is quite strange. As you can see, it was sent back in March 2020.. but that was when this whole Covid mess started, mail was being suspended (with a lot of countries it still is), therefore it took so long, 9 months, to arrive... not that mail from Brazil is top-efficient in normal times, but still nine months is something beyond the usual timeframe.

I assume this cover was sent for the SCM group on FB, but for a reason unknown to me, I am unable to see that group any longer - I'd like to believe it is cos of how the whole postal system has gone haywire, and not cos I have been kicked out for some reason  👀 

Im sure we all have some ruined-mail stories. If you'd like, you can share the story in the comments or you can also leave a link to that story on your blog :)

Second birthday

Today’s date used to be very important in former Yugoslavia, it was president Tito's chosen birthday and also youth day of entire country. As hinted few weeks ago here I'm with second part of sage about one of the most influential persons in past century.

As you already know if you read my previous post (if not you can do it now by clicking HERE) his real birthday was May 7th but he preferred today’s date over it due to fact he managed to escape eminent death.

In May 1944 German Nazi military planed operation under the name Knight’s move; main objective was killing Tito, leader of partisan’s resistance in Yugoslavia. Operation failed due to many factors, including rivalry among German numerous intelligence agencies and fearsome resistance from partisan groups. It was a big blow to German army failing in the most spectacular assassination in near history (it included some of the best special forces of time available to Nazis). It resulted in stamps pictured below!

This stamps are first definitive issues of Democratic Federal Yugoslavia depicting Tito, at time Marshal and prime minister, issued not even a year after this attempt.

Much later on in 1953 he was proclaimed president and later on for lifetime president. On that occasion Yugoslav post issued stamp below on June 28th 1953. Is is based on Tito’s sculpture by most prominent sculptor Augustin Augustinčić.

In the beginning Tito had strong connections with Stalin, being communist and socialist but soon after WWII he severed that connection and adopted completely different form of socialism unique to former Yugoslavia, based on workers class rule. Set of stamps below was issued for 1st May 1950, workers day, and it relates to his commitment to make Yugoslavia country of well being for common folk.

Tito was often known under Marshal title rather then president due to his role as a prime commander of JNA, Yugoslavia’s people’s army. He was prone to that title as he begin his climb as a military leader of underground resistance in Nazi occupied Yugoslavia. He often appeared in public dressed in general style uniform which was often considered  dictatorial behavior by his opponents in country and abroad.

22nd December was day of army celebrated in all country and it was important enough to be commemorated by issuing commemorative stamps, like one below issued in 1951, depicting Tito with traditional partisan hat and tank in background.

That is all for now but hope to continue sage as there are more things to be shown and stories to be told about him so if you liked it stay tuned

The 75th Anniversary of Batman, USA

Nice chilly Sunday over here, which is kind of the perfect weather... not too cold, not too hot... just ideal. And it is time for our second letter of the alphabet, that has nothing to do with weather, but with one of the most cult... cultest (??) superheros of all times...
 Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na... BATMAN!

Well frankly I've never really watched the Batman movies, but when I was a kid I was impatiently waiting for every new episode of this Batman and Robin series from 1966. It was just so funny and entertaining!  (it was shown decades later here, I was far from born in 1966 btw :))

The character (whose secret name is Bruce Wayne) was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and first appeared in Detective Comics #27, in 1939.




So on October 9, 2014, the USPS issued stamps commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the superhero.

Four versions of the iconic DC Comics super hero are depicted from four eras of comic book history. In addition, there are four circular stamps showcasing the evolution of the Bat-Signal.
At first I actually thought the circular ones were like stickers, but then I realized they were actual stamps... super cool, eh?

Love the color of the envelope here... fits in perfectly with the stamps! Thanks to Bryon! :)

Enjoy your Sunday and check out the rest of the Bees :)

The 100th Anniversary of Alfa Romeo, Italy

Well it would be my first time to do a Sunday Stamps on a Monday, and I almost kinda skipped it since this time I didn't even manage to do a scheduled post but, being that this is the beginning of another A-Z round, I just didn't want to miss the first post, so here I am with my A for this third round....

... and this time A stands for this set of Alfa Romeo stamps, issued by the Italian post on 20th March 2010, commemorating the 100 years since the foundation of the company. I'm pretty sure you all are familiar with this car, while for the details, I'm totally ignorant myself. And this goes with just any car brand, where unless I see the name of the car, I cannot really tell if something is a Honda or a Hyndai or a Ford... I'm just totally helpless!

Anyways, speaking of Alfa-Romeo here, founded by Frenchman Alexandre Darracq on 24 June 1910, in Milan. The brand is known for sporty vehicles and has been involved in car racing since 1911.

The stamp on the left shows the ALFA 24 HP, 4.1-litre four-cylinder passenger car, introduced in 1910, the year ALFA was founded, and produced until 1914 in ALFA's Portello factory near Milan. The model's name comes from its tax horsepower rating, then frequently used as vehicle designation.

The stamp on the right shows the Giulietta is a five-door, small family car officially revealed at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show.  It is current top Alfa sales with about 40,000 cars per year. (I don't think this was the case back in 2010 when this stamp was issued though).


Alfa Romeo's logo (seen on the vignette) incorporates two heraldic devices traditionally associated with its birthplace, the city of Milan: a red cross, from the emblem of Milan, and the biscione, a crowned viper swallowing a Moor—emblem of the House of Visconti, rulers of the city in the 14th century.

So, cheers to another A-Z round and feel free to check out the rest of the great A's :)

The 100th Anniversary of the Titanic disaster

Letter T is very tempting for Trains lets say, but trying to be not so transparent and predictable, I will go with some Titanic stamps today, all issued in 2012, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of its sinking.

First is a cover from Canada, showing two of the four stamps that are part of the block showing the bow of the ship, as well as an international stamp, showing its side-view. These stamps were issued on 4th of April.

Even though many countries commemorated this anniversary on stamps, Canadians were among those personally involved with the world's most famous ocean disaster. In addition to a number of Canadians aboard, and the tireless efforts of the people of Halifax, it was a team of employees working at the Canadian Marconi company's wireless station on Cape Race, Newfoundland, who heard the early distress call.

Next we have the FDC issued by the BH post, on 29th of May.
No extra information regarding this stamp, but anyway, it is not like any extra info is necessary on this world-wide known tragedy.

then we have this FDC from Alderney, issued on 22 February, featuring 6 striking stamps. During its journey, Titanic had sailed past Alderney as well.
The story behind the six stamps is:

36p. - Leaving Southampton
47p. - Sailing past Alderney
48p. - The Grand Staircase
52p. - Orchestra plays the final rune
61p. - Captain Edward J. Smith
65p. - Lifeboats leave the ship

And just as it had caught me by surprise that I had never posted Titanic stamps before here, I was also surprised to see I have this FDC in my collection, issued by Macedonia Post on 17th April. The reason is cos I simply don't know why I would have bought this for myself, taking into account it is a bit pricey, and not as part of my collectibles. But I guess this was during the times I was just splurging on stamps (un)necessarily. Oh well :D

I have this gut feeling that I may be overlooking some other Titanic related FDCs or covers from my collection, but I guess these four will do for now.

For more T-related stamps, simply visit the Sunday Stamps blog.

The 75th Anniversary of Belgrade Zoo, Serbia

Good Day Sunday Stampers and anyone else who might have just stumbled upon today's post. Today we are about to close the circle of the first A-Z edition, with a letter not so popular among word games, but one that would actually bring you a huuuge amount of points if you play 'scrabble' or 'words with friends' etc. Reminds me I should get back to some of those words' games and give my brain cells some additional exercise...

Anyways, I had a few ideas in mind for today's Z, and none of them actually related to Zimbabwe, or Zambia, or Zanzibar (isn't it strange though how all these Z places are situated in Africa?)

So instead of countries, here I have a post with two FDCs issued on 12 July 2011, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Belgrade Zoo.

The Belgrade Zoo originated in 1936 and was founded by Mr. Vlada Ilić, industrialist and mayor of that time. The plans for the zoological garden were drawn up by the engineer Aleksandar Krstić, creator of many buildings and parks in Belgrade those days, who was also the first acting director of the Belgrade Zoo.
At the beginning, the Garden occupied a surface of a little bit more than three and a half hectares while today, after several transformations, it lies on the surface of seven hectares which are located on one part of the Belgrade Fortress, on Kalemegdan, the biggest and most beautiful park in Belgrade (Havent seen all the parks in Belgrade but I do agree this one is beautiful). All the facilities dedicated to the animals are newly built or fully renovated. The garden owns numerous animal species, of more than 2000 animals from 270 different animal species. In addition to many exotic flowers and other vegetation, the Garden also consists of some rare tree species like the Empress tree, Gingko biloba, Picea omorika, Sequoia, etc.
Along with a large number of institutions worldwide, the Belgrade Zoo Garden participates in the programmes for protection and reproduction of endangered animal species. Among many others, some really rare animals are being born and cared for in the Zoo. Some of them are represented on the stamps of this issue, like the Bengal Tiger, the Egyptian Vulture, the Bennett's wallaby, and the White Lion). Here should also be mentioned the Palm Cockatoo, the Griffon Vulture, the Goffin's Cockatoo, the Black Leopard etc.
Nowadays, the Belgrade Zoo represents a real oasis of beauty in the middle of the capital, a respected and modern institution of which this country can be proud and which worthily represents the city and the country across the world. Therefore you should listen to their slogan: "Escape from the city to the centre of the city. Escape for at least a while, from the everyday worries and problems, and spend with us an unforgettable day"  

I have had the chance to visit this place, and I know that many people would say, a Zoo is a Zoo, what can be so different about this one, but I do believe it is worth it to pay a visit. And the ticket price for such a place fairly cheap, around 4 euros. It is funny when I hear some people complaining it is expensive....

That would be all for today. For more Zzzzzzz stuff, visit today's edition of Sunday Stamps.

The 100th Anniversary of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, Australian Antarctic Territory

Hello to all the Sunday Stampers out there, to all interested in stamps, to all interested in science and well, to just anyone who has ended up here for one reason or another :).

For today we are talking about science on Sunday Stamps and here comes my contribution to it - 3 FDCs from the Australian Antarctic Territory commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (they are indeed issued by the Australian Post but for that AAT branch).

This was an Australasian scientific team that explored part of Antarctica between 1911 and 1914. It was led by the Australian geologist Douglas Mawson (the guy on the stamp at the very right on the above FDC), who was knighted for his achievements in leading the expedition.
In 1910 he began to plan an expedition to chart the 3,200 km-long coastline of Antarctica to the south of Australia. The Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science approved of his plans and contributed substantial funds for the expedition.
Accomplishments were made in geology, glaciology and terrestrial biology, unlike both of Ernest Shackleton's following expeditions which produced very little science. In a celebration of the achievements of Mawson and his men, a centenary scientific voyage, retracing the route of the original expedition, departed from Australasia in late 2013 and became stuck on 24 December 2013.
The team selected for the expedition came primarily from universities in Australia and New Zealand (there were also three British and one Swiss).

A fun fact: In order to maintain morale over the prolonged period of isolation Archibald McLean (Australian bacteriologist known for his role as chief doctor during this expedition) hit upon the idea of publishing their own newspaper to keep the confined men entertained. Expedition members contributed poetry, short fiction, and literary criticism as well as scientific articles and accounts of their daily activities. The result was the Adelie Blizzard which had five issues between April and October in 1913. They were never officially published for the general public until almost 100 years had passed when a facsimile edition was produced.

With regards to these issues, the first and the third FDC were issued on 18 February 2014, while the middle one was issued on 10 September 2013 - why is this I really have no idea. They've all been designed by Andrew Hogg though.

For more science from around the world, check out today's edition of Sunday Stamps!

The 125th Anniversary of Atatürk's Birthday, Turkey

Well today it would be the 135th anniversary actually, but this are the only stamps I have related to it....plus this is like the first ever Turkish related post here, so inaugurating a new country on the blog too :)

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was a Turkish army officer, revolutionary, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey. His surname, Atatürk (meaning "Father of the Turks"), was granted to him in 1934 and forbidden to any other person by the Turkish parliament.

He is like one of the most, if not the most, glorified person in Turkey, and probably with a right and with his death Turkey lost something like Yugoslavia probably lost with the death of Tito.
He died young unfortunately at the age of 57 due to illness, but even after his death, he continued doing good things since in his will Atatürk donated all of his possessions to the Republican People's Party, providing that the yearly interest of his funds would be used to look after his sister Makbule and his adopted children, and fund the higher education of the children of İsmet İnönü. The remainder of this yearly interest was willed to the Turkish Language Association and the Turkish Historical Society.


This issue from the 19th May 2006 consists of 10 stamps, while here on the FDC you can see 5 of them, with Atatürk in different situations.

The 130th Anniversary of the Moldava-Saxony Railway, Czech Republic

Last year my mailbox was delighted to receive this awesome surprise from the kind Radim.
And this is one of the very few FDCs that were actually mailed to me ON the actual date of issue :)

It was issued on 6th of May 2015, to commemorate the 130th Anniversary of the Moldava-Saxony Railway. Designed by A.Absolon who used a 1884 photograph as the basis of his design.

From the website of the Czech post office:

The Moldava Railway, also known as Ore Mountains Railway or Teplice Semmering, is a railway connecting Most and Moldava in the Ore Mountains. It used to connect Moldava with Freiberg in Saxony and although it lost its international significance, it continues to belong to the most beautiful local railways in the Czech Republic.

Between individual stations the train passes through a couple of tunnels and crosses a valley on the third viaduct on the route. Although the times when fast trains from Prague travelled on the railway and continued further from Moldava on their way to Saxony are gone, less traffic does not detract anything from the beauty of this romantic railway. There is no shortage of attractive views on the forty-kilometres-long route.

The railway was built by Prague-Duchcov Railway Company whose main objective was to enable coal exports to the neighboring Saxony. Although the first projects to connect the Most coal basin to Saxony originated as early as the 1860s, the construction was delayed due to financial and technical difficulties. The Most-Hrob section was opened on 15 May 1877; the Hrob-Moldava section had to wait until 6 December 1884. The cross-border connection line to Freiberg in Saxony was opened on 18 May 1885.


(btw, Moldava is a village and municipality in the Czech Republic - and it has nothing to do with Moldova, even though my eyes often keep reading it as such).

Thanks a lot lot to dear Radim for this most awesome FDC with the great First Day postmark too!!

75 Years since the Birth of Gagarin, Macedonia

If it wasn't for his tragic death, today Gagarin would have been celebrating his 82nd birthday...but unfortunately he only managed to get to his 34th one.....

This FDC was issued on 2 February 2009 by the Macedonian Post Office, commemorating the 75th Anniversary of Gagarin's birth....with a face value of the stamp of 50 MKD - one of the numerous stamps with simply useless values, since they are just too high to be used on either a postcard or regular letter up to 20 grams. And that is such a pity cos I am sure that many people would love to see this stamp on the mail I send, but unfortunately the Macedonian postal authorities didn't really care about it.

Anyways, just wanted to commemorate this day, won't go into Gagarin stories...you all know about him and his achievements and importance :)
It just kinda surprised me that there was no google-doodle about Gagarin today....

Her Highness Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak - Mother of the Nation, UAE

Usually with stamps I can tell what they are about based on the image or the text...with this one I was just lost based on both...the image itself kinda resembled either some flower or crown..but since the text is in Arabic, I couldn't get anything from that - this is one of those languages where I cannot even type it into google translate and see what I get...

Turns out this issue had something to do with Fatima bint Mubarak Al Ketbi (is like a logo or something)...and of course I have never heard about her...till now. She is the third wife of the founder and the first president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the late emir (ruler) of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. She is firstly called mother of sheikhs and then mother of the UAE or nation.


She is one of the women rights supporters in the country and has also done campaigns for girls' education and supports adult literacy and provision of free public education to girls.


In 1997, five different organizations of the United Nations, UNICEF, WHO, UNIFEM, UNFP and UNFPA, awarded Sheikha Fatima for her significant efforts for women's rights and the UNIFEM stated "she is the champion of women's rights". She was also awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order by the then Tunisian president Zine el Abidine ben Ali in 2009 for her contributions to raise the status of Arab women. Much more significantly she was given by the UNESCO the Marie Curie Medal for her efforts in education, literacy and women's rights, being the third international and the first Arab recipient of the award.

WOW! So many achievements and shame on me, had no idea who she was =/

Now it made me wonder if maybe I should have saved this for the subject on 'women'....but I think I have some other nice choices for that one...from a country not far away from this one, so you'll have to stay tuned :)

Date of Issue 24 July 2011
Width 40.0 mm
Height 40.0 mm
Denomination 1.00 AED
Perforations 13.5 by 13.5

Check out what's happening at Sunday Stamps for more unusual things

Sunday Stamps

The 15th Anniversary of the Death of Gilles Villeneuve (1950 -1982), Canada

First of all, I would like to thank you all for the kind comments on the last post and for your concern and wishes for well-being...it meant a real lot to me! Thank you!

And since it is Sunday today (well, early Sunday, just past midnight), it is time for Sunday Stamps, with this week's theme of  'commemorating a person' or 'event worth commemorating'. What seemed as piece of cake at the first thought of it, ended up with great doubts of 'what to post what to post'..and when I laid my eyes on this, I knew it had to be IT! (Though I must admit that my initial thought was also F1 related, but I'll save that one for another time =))

Anyways, it may also be a bit of a biased post - those who know me, know I am an F1 fan, though I must admit I haven't been so dedicated to following it the past few years as I used to be. But still, it holds a special place in my heart and if Raikkonen starts performing better, I will surely get back to watching it more regularly.
Well, it is not Raikkonen for today, but Gilles Villeneuve, whom I have never had a chance to see him racing, since he had died when I barely knew to walk, but I do admire him and that's why I thought he deserved to find his place in today's post...not to mention that I absolutely LOVE this sheet! And for an F1 fan it is a great treasure to have as well :)

*from the booklet in which it was enclosed:

Blinding speed, astonishing car control, fierce determination and ferocious tenacity; these are the characteristics that marked Gilles Villeneuve's remarkable 5-year Formula One racing career. Villeneuve is remembered for his superb performance, winning six Formula One championship races; he is revered for his strength of character and indomitable spirit. Gilles Villeneuve is a Canadian legend and one of the greatest drivers of auto racing.
His F1 career started in 1977 in the team of McLaren, at the British Grand Prix, while from 1978 until 1982 he was part of Ferrari.
Unfortunately, he had died in a 225 km/h crash caused by a collision with the March of Jochen Mass during qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder
At the time of his death, Villeneuve was extremely popular with fans and has since become an iconic figure in the history of the sport. His son, Jacques Villeneuve, became Formula One world champion in 1997 and, to date, the only Canadian to win the Formula One World Championship.

This unique 8-stamp sheet includes two images. One stamp ($0.90) depicts Villeneuve in the Ferrari 312-T3, the car in which he won his first Formula One victory, fittingly at the 1978 Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
The other stamp ($0.45) shows Villeneuve in the Ferrari 312-T4, which brought him his most single season wins.

And I know that if he was part of Formula One today, I would have liked him as a driver.

See where the other famous people or events are coming from today...I am sure that by clicking on the button below, you will be offered a lot of great things to read :)

Have a lovely Sunday!

The 75th Anniversary of Superman, Canada

In today's Sunday Stamps post, I'd like to ask you all a small favour. I usually don't do this, but sometimes life situations call for it and right now, all help is more than welcome...not to me, but to the people in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, who have been struck with one of the worst flooding disasters in more than a century. The images from there are heartbreaking. And right now these two countries need all the help they could get. The current situation is terrible, but its consequences are gonna be a real struggle as well.
I know that not everyone is able to donate money or goods, but sharing the news and making others aware about the actual situation is of great help as well and would mean a lot to me.
In the following Facebook links you can read more about it, follow the situation and see how you can donate if you want to.
https://www.facebook.com/HelpSaveBosnia?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/helpforserbia?fref=ts
http://revolution-news.com/call-help-worst-floods-bosnia-serbia-contact-info-vital-donations-supplies/

We may not be superheroes like Superman. Superman tried to save the world and help the people in need. But people can be superheroes in their own special way and help the ones in need!


And I have these two Superman covers, one containing the stamps, the other one the mini-sheet. Sent by one of my mailbox superheroes! And they just came in appropriate for today.

The stamps were issued to commemorate the 75th Superman Anniversary...one of my favourite childhood characters - with Christopher Reeve being my favourite Superman of all times! (never really read the comic books I must admit)

Since this is an 'anything you wish day' click on the button below to be surprised at the variety of thoughts and ideas for today's entries

Anniversary of Iraqi Railways, Iraq

Well, im REALLY happy that today's Sunday Stamps topic is Transportation! This of course includes planes, trains, cars, trams....but even though I can say I have stamps of each of these, it would feel extremely illogical that I post something NOT regarding trains....I mean, how can I neglect my favourite topic! Thanks so much to Viridan for choosing this subject. To see what others have come up with, please visit Viridian's blog by clicking on this big 'button' below:

Well, while looking at my train stamps, I was wondering which ones should I choose for today...I really wanted for it to be something special, and eventually the final choice fell on this amazing Iraqi issue...so not only that the stamps are amazing, but they come from such a rare country that Im extremely happy and proud to have them in my possession (the WHOLE set!!) and all that is thanks to dear Joey from Norway!

The stamps were issued in 2010, commemorating the Anniversary of the Iraqi Railways.
We have three stamps issued, face valued of 750, 500 and 250 dinars ( I guess that apart from doing a lousy scan, I put the stamps in a reverse order, but I hope you dont mind it so much). The funny thing about the dinars is that it ALWAYS reminds me of Yugoslavia, coz the dinar was the currency we used back then...so it is kind of funny to find this currency in other countries too...\
The date of issue is 25 January 2010 and the size of the stamps is 50 x 40 mm.....perforation is 13 x 13

and apart from the three great stamps, the issue contains one FABULOUS mini sheet! I feel for this ever since I saw it long time ago, and I still cant believe it that it is actually mine right now!
It is imperforated and its size is 80 x 80 mm, with a face value of 1000 IQD.

Well, a few words about the Iraqi Railways.... The Iraqi Republic Railways Company (IRR), founded in 1905 (Im honestly confused about the anniversary here, coz ive come across several different data). It runs over approximately 1,900 kilometres of standard gauge track and runs from Rabiya in the north southward through Mosul, Bayji and Baghdad to end at Basra, with a number of branch lines.
The first section of railway in what was then the Ottoman Empire province of Mesopotamia was a 123 kilometres length of the Baghdad Railway between that city & Samarra opened in 1914.
(So it seem like the anniversary is something in-between.)
IRR uses Soviet-style SA3 automatic couplers. In order to allow interchange with CFS and Turkish State Railways which both use screw couplers, IRR locomotives and most wagons are equipped with screw couplings and buffers. In Iraqi service the buffers do not make contact and the screw couplings hang down unattached.

Have a great Sunday everyone, and let me know if you've had the chance so far to travel with IRR or if you're gonna do it so in the future :)

125 Years of the Macedonian Railways, Macedonia

This could probably be considered as my favourite Macedonian FDC...no need to explain why :)

It was issued back in 1998 when I was only admiring stamps and went to the philately in order to get them for my letters to my penpals...my mum was the one in charge of getting the stamps for the collection...but she never got FDC's....and not so long ago, during my last stamps-shopping, I was more than happy and excited to add this FDC on my purchase list :D

As the title says, the issue is commemorating the 125 years of the Macedonian Railways, and on the picture you can see the railway line from Skopje to Thessaloníki in Greece, showing the stops in Veles, Gradsko and Gevgelija...Gevgelija is also the border-control town if you are going by train and it also acts as a rail depot between Macedonia and Greece.

Details about the stamp on the left:

Face Value: 30 denars (equals to 0.50 euros)
Sheet: 9 stamps
Perforation: Comb 13 1/4
Size: 30 x 40,5 mm
Printing Technique: multicolour offset
Motif: The Railway station in Gradsko, showing a locomotive, while the background shows a Turkish bond.

Details about the stamp on the right:

Face Value: 60 denars (equals to 1 euro, more or less)
Sheet: 9 stamps
Perforation: Comb 13 1/4
Size: 40,5 x 30mm
Printing Technique: multicolour offset
Motif: The first locomotive in Macedonia

Czech Republic

Here is a great cover Milan sent me....well, it has train stamps on it, it cant be anything else but great :)

the train stamp in the middle was issued in 2009 in order to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Former Pardubice-Liberec South-North German Junction Line.

Width: 43.5 mm
Height: 26.0 mm
Denomination: 10 CZK
Number in set:  1
Layout/Format:  sheet of 50
Perforations: 11.5 by 11.5
Stamp issuing authority: Czech Post


the third stamp was issued in 2008, representing The Tradition of Czech Stamp Production

Width: 23.0 mm
Height: 40.0 mm
Denomination: 10.00 CZK
Number in set:  1
Layout/Format:  sheet of 30
Perforations: 12 by 12
Stamp issuing authority: Czech Post

and we shouldnt forget the flower stamp....coz if it wasnt for it, to cover up for the postage, i wouldnt have received this cover in the first place :)
It was issued in 2007 under the subject Beauty of Flowers, and shows a Cyclamen. It comes from a set of two stamps, where the other one shows a Greanium.

Thank you SOOOO much Milan!

60 Years of the Philatelic Society in Macedonia

Well, I thought that this would be the most appropriate way to make the REAL inauguration of this blog (leaving aside the intro post).

29th of January was a commemorative day since it was the 60th anniversary of the Macedonian Philatelic Society, and due to that they published this commemorative envelope which could have been bought at the philately on the actual date with the special postmark of course.

It was designed by one famous Macedonian artist, Živko A. Popovski, who mainly paints flowers, and on this envelope, the Macedonian flag is symbolized (the red and the yellow colour).
Well, since it had a special postmark, I had to grab this and send it to myself (sending it on any other day wouldnt have been possible, neither it would have made any sense....). And it arrived, safe and sound in exactly 4 days, which compared to the postcard, is an improvement.
I just dont like it that they didnt issue a special stamp either...it would have been MUCH MUCH better, instead using some "left-in-stock" ones (it was issued in 1999 in a set of 4 stamps)....I guess they used this one coz of the flower (since it relates to what this man mainly paints).
Unfortunately, if you wanted to send some of these abroad, you had to add other totally random stamps (depending whats available)....so quite a disappointing point, but still...i preferred to have it than not have it at all, since 60 year anniversaries dont happen every day....I only dont know why it is "60" and not "50" which would make more sense.

On 31st January there was also a meeting held at the Philatelic Society....nice event, where probably I was the youngest one...I also got a signed picture from the above mentioned Mister, who had brought some of his work to be shared with the fellow philatelists.