Sochi 2014 and other Olympic Games

Well, first of all, Happy Holidays to everyone! Hope the year ahead brings you love, joy, happy moments and, of course, lots of great mail :)
Been a while since I participated in the Sunday Stamps, but the entire year of 2013 was slow in general when it came to postcards, letters, blogs' updates...I am not into making New Year resolutions, but I do want to make 2014 a much better one mail-wise...
Today's Sunday Stamps' topic is about Sochi 2014, and other Olympic Games...and having this lovely envelope with the first day cancellations issued by the Russian post, I just couldn't resist participating...and I hope this will be a good start for taking part in as many Sunday Stamps' posts as possible =)

The event shall take place from 6 to 23 February 2014, in the Russian town of Sochi with some events held in the resort town of Krasnaya Polyan. On the envelope you can see the 3 Olympic mascots (the Amur Leopard, the European Hare and the Polar Bear).
I used to be much more into watching this kind of events when I was younger, but now, I barely watch TV and just follow sports online mainly...when Rafael Nadal is on court =)
Macedonia is going to have 3 representatives in this event, one in Apline skiing (men), and two in Cross-country skiing (men and women).
Not having any high hopes, knowing the conditions and the support Macedonian sports men and women get here, but I do wish they do have some great achievements which may open some doors for them in the future =)

Well, the main theme for today IS Sochi indeed, but it does open room for some other Olympic stamps so I decided to include two more (despite that as a general rule I do not include more than one country per post, unless it is some joint issue)

this second envelope is from Hong Kong with one fantastic mini sheet issued on July 27, 2012 to commemorate the 30th Olympic Games, released on day one of the London Games. These stamps form an exuberant circle that is bursting with sporting action.

the last one is a Serbian FDC, commemorating the XXI Olympic Winter Games that were held from February 12-28, 2010 in Vancouver, Canada.
Boy, it seemed as if this event in Vancouver took place just last year, but four years have passed indeed since then! Time simply flies so fast =/

well, I hope you liked my choice for today =)
See what others have picked, by clicking on the big button below

Nordic Maritime, Finland

Finland has been rather neglected on this blog, yet it has some awesome issues..so I thought that for today's Sunday Stamps entry, I'll show these two Finnish items...I think that Titanic as a ship theme is rather over-estimated (not that there aren't some great Titanic issues..some of which I proudly own :))

Here I have one FDC and one cover with a mini sheet...both coming from the Finnish "Nordic Maritime" series. The above FDC was issued in 2010 while the cover below comes with a mini-sheet issued in 2012 (yeah, those are coffee stains)
For the set on the FDC, "Top of the World", Finland chose to depict the award-winning Maritime Center Vellamo, the Finnish Wooden Boat Center, and the Tarmo Museum Ship in the Kantasatama Harbor in Kotka.

on the cover, the miniature sheet honors both The Finnish Lifeboat Institution (an organization for voluntary maritime rescue associations in Finland) and The Finnish Border Guard.)

for more sails around the world, check out today's Sunday Stamps

Preserve the Polar Regions and Glaciers, Serbia

this Sunday Stamps' theme is Arctic and Antarctic...and by some sort of inertia I went looking for Polar Glaciers...and then I was, but wait, how can I be sure if this is actually portraying the Arctic or Antarctic...I mean, you have glaciers in Patagonia as well...but well, I decided to interpret this a bit broadly =)

so here I am happy to present this Serbian FDC issued in 2011, on the topic of "Preservation of the Polar Regions and Glaciers".
Sometimes I find it funny that countries like Serbia for example, issue such 'polar's stamps...I mean, it may have somewhat like polar temperatures during winter, and I know that the so-called global warming is a global issue indeed, but still...I am not complaining, on the whole contrary...Serbia has such fantastic stamps that it is a pleasure to own this cover...I just never found the logic behind the decisions of issuing some particular themes...on the other hand, Macedonia is not issuing anything...not even Lunar stamps...go figure...

Anyways, this is what the Serbian Philately Service had to say about this issue.

"The Universal Postal Union in Bern is the initiator of a philatelic campaign, which is dedicated to raising awareness of the endangered state of the polar regions and glaciers in this era of global warming.
A glacier, as a product of glaciation is a moving body of ice. The development of the glaciation process occurs on altitudes with negative balance of insolation and radiation. The glaciation process falls into 'climate processes' and its beginning and ending depend on great climate changes - cooling, that is, warming. Those changes occur gradually and very slowly.
There are two main regions of glaciation process - the polar region and the high mountain regions - as well as two main types of glaciers, the continental and alpine. On Earth, 99% of glacial ice is contained within vast ice sheets in the polar regions (Antarctica, Greenland), but glaciers may be found in mountain ranges of every continent except Australia. Ice from the glaciers is the largest source of fresh water on the planet. It is assumed that if polar glaciers and ice sheet (which contain 2.5% of world's water resources), melted, the sea levels would rise up from 0,5 - 2 metres. During the past fifty years, around 7000 km² of ice sheet have desintegrated.
Since the middle of the 20th century, the global warming is a consequence of higher concentration of greenhouse gasses, which has increased as a result of human activities such as the combustion of fossil fuels and deforestation.
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol toe the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCC) aimed at reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. The Protocol entered into force on February 16, 2005. Since June 10, 2001, the Republic of Serbia is a member of the UNFCCC.
On September 24, 2007, Serbia ratified the Kyoto Protocol.

For more penguins, polar bears or anything freezing-cold, click on the button below :)

Vintage and Classic Cars of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka

time for another Sunday Stamps episode...this time with the theme of cars...
I was actually surprised to realize how much material I have for today's post, but my decision fell on this FDC eventually, simply cos I realized I have never posted anything Sri Lankan before, so now it was a good opportunity :)

these four commemorative stamps were issued on October 28, 2011, showing Vintage and Classic Motor Cars, with the face value of 5.00 Rs each.
A leaflet with the stamps' information came inside the FDC, so I'll use that as my source today.

And the stamps go as follows:

- top left stamp shows an Austin 12 from 1928, which was Sir Herbert Austin's second model after WWI. It had a 1861 cc four cylinder engine with four-speed manual transmission. It remained in production until 1939, enjoying success throughout and recording peak annual sales in 1927.

- the top right stamp shows a Rolls Royce 20/25 from 1934 - One of the last two designs by the celebrated engineer Sir Henry Royce, before he passed away in 1933, the Rolls Royce 20/25 as introduced in 1929. It had a 3699 cc straight-6 cylinder and four-speed transmission with synchromesh on top two gears. Its gearbox came in one unit together with the engine. It could achieve 120km/h. Production ended in 1936 with 3,827 units made.

- the bottom left stamp shows a Jaguar ss 100 from 1937 - One of the most aesthetically appealing Jaguar cars, the ss100 was introduced in 1936. It was designed by Sir William Lyons. It was a two-seater sports car with a 2663 cc straight-6 engine. Its four speed gearbox had synchromesh on top three gears. The ss100 was capable of 153km/h. A rare car with only 314 units ever built, including the 3485 cc version introduced in 1938. Production ended in 1940.

the last stamp, the bottom right one, shows a Morris Minor from 1949 - Sir Alec Issigonis' revolutionary creation, Morris Minor, was introduced in 1948. Compared to other cars of its time, the Morris Minor excelled as a roomy car with superior handling. In 1961 the Morris Minor became the first British car to sell over one million units. It had a 918 cc four-cylinder side-valve engine. It had four-speed manual transmission with synchromesh on top three gears. It could reach approximately 100km/h


well, I hope you  are more familiar with cars and stuff, cos honestly, all that cylinder/synchromesh/cc kind of stuff is sc-fi for me :)

For more drives around the planet, click on the link below...and enjoy your Sunday :)

Industry, Bulgaria

when I first read the theme for this week Sunday's stamps, I was all, 'but I have no industry-related stamps'! But after a browse through my albums, I realized I was wrong...and that I actually even could choose from a few different issues...but in the end decided to go for this Bulgarian one, which I think is literally an industry issue :)

this is an old set of 5 stamps issued back in 1964...thanks to my mum, I have them in my albums nowadays.
I am not fond of used stamps in general, but they can come in handy when you are struggling with a topic somehow :P
These stamps depict several different types of factories in different Bulgarian towns...and not much info is available on the net, or at least not for the time I had available to search for it...so I'll just be thankful for knowing Cyrillic and can translate these myself, since Bulgarian and Macedonian have a lot of similarities :)

The first stamp on top, shows a Metallurgy Plant in Kremikovci, which, at least today, seems to be Bulgaria's largest metalworking company, whose construction of the facilities began on 5 November 1960 and the first production capacities were put into operation in 1963 to produce cast iron and coke, with production extending to cover other areas in the 1960s and 1970s.

The middle stamp shows a Non-ferrous metals plant in Plovdiv...I had to use a translator for this one, cos boy did I have a laugh at first...in Bulgarian it says цветни метали...and in Macedonian, that would mean 'flower metals' since цвет means flower...anyways, the factory is a leading producer of nonferrous and precious metals in Southeast Europe and the Black Sea Region, working actively for the environmental recognition of metals as efficient market products.

The third stamp ( i do not know where that stain had come from) shows a Cellulose-paper plant in what was back then known as the village of Bukovci, while in 1970 it acquired the status of a town, nowadays known as Mizia.

At the bottom we have two more stamps...the first one shows a Nitrogen-fertilizer plant near Stara Zagora, which is not operational at present...while the second stamp shows an oil-refining plant in the town of Burgas...im just not sure if THIS one is the plant that today is considered to be the largest oil refinery in South-eastern Europe.

Well, hope you liked the post...tried to bring something new in here..and hopefully see you next Sunday!

In the meantime, check out some more industrial posts :)

Ecology - Balkan Mountain, Serbia/Bulgaria

It is time for another Sunday Stamps' entry...with the theme of birds this time...and here I come to show you these two awesome FDCs I got myself few months ago when I visited Belgrade...in a way, you can say I "robbed" the philately store during my visit :D

Anyways, I am happy to have this opportunity to present this joint issue between Serbia and Bulgaria...I really wonder why WE don't have such awesome joint issues...or why we BARELY have any joint issues in the first place?! The joint issues mean closer cooperation between the postal administrations and exchange o valuable experiences in the field of postal circulation. On this occasion, Serbia and Bulgaria have chosen to portray the Balkan Mountain (or Stara Planina as known in Serbia and Macedonia for example) which belongs to the big Balkan mountain range that runs 530km from the Black Sea, on the East, to the Vrška Čuka Peak on the West and is part of the Carpathian-Balkan Mountain range. The smaller, western part of the mountain is located on the territory of East Serbia. Its highest peak is Botev (2376m) in Bulgaria, while on the Serbian side, the highest peak is Midžor (2169m).
The area of the Balkan Mountain was declared a National Park back in 1997 and is also classified as an area of interstate (Green Belt Programme) and international (Important Birds Areas, Important Plants Areas, Prime Butterfly Areas) etc
The ornithofauna of the Balkan Mountain is very rich and until nowadays (speaking about 2009 here), has 206 recorded bird species, of which 104 are protected by the Bern Convention and the Regulation of the Serbian Government on Natural rarities protection)
The motif of these jointly issued stamps is the Balkan mountains landscape with birds: Scolopax rusticola (Eurasian Woodcock) and Monticola saxatilis (Rufous - tailed Rock-thrush)

The Eurasian Woodcock is 33-38 cm in length, including a 6-8cm long bill. Its eyes are located high on the sides of its head, giving it a 360° monocular vision. Eurasian woodcocks nest on the ground, in low cover in woodland. It feeds by probing in the ground for invertebrates with its long bill. This species has a global population of an estimated 15-16 million birds.

The Rufous - tailed Rock-thrush is a songbird which is regularly seen on the Balkan Mountain. It is a medium sized bird of 17-20 cm in length. This species breeds in open dry hilly areas, usually 1500m above the sea level. In Serbia, its population is estimated to be between 1400 and 2000 individuals, and according to this fact, is considered as a declining species in the country.

And here you have the s/s on the other FDC...it is just awesome, don't you think?

for more birdy stuff today, click on the link below...and have a great Sunday!!

Ukrainian Folk Costumes, Ukraine

lets use this lazy Sunday for taking part in the Sunday stamps...and the theme being ethnic or national costumes. I have a few of these, but for today I decided to share with you these three Ukrainian FDCs, with according to me, AWESOME stamps!

These were issued on December 20, 2005 and each stamp has the face value of 70 kopiyoks.
The first FDC has two stamps representing the Land of Zhytomyr. (Zhytomyr is a city in the northwestern part of Ukraine, and considered as the main centre of the Polish minority in Ukraine).
The stamp on the left represents the Melanka and Vasyl Holiday (St. Basil's Day).
Melanka is a Ukrainian folk holiday celebrated on January 13th, which is New Year's Eve according to the Julian calendar. Carolers in costumes and masks go from house to house in the village - from morning till evening, play traditional scenes and sing schedrivky. There are several traditional roles: "old man and old woman", "Melanka and Vasyl", "gypsy", "jew", "gendarme", "drunkard", "doctor" and many "devils".

The stamp on the right represents St. Zosyma's Day. St. Zosyma was one of the founders of the Solovetsky monastery,on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea of northern Russia.

The second FDC has two stamps portraying the Land of Rivne (Rivne is a historic city in the western part of Ukraine).
The stamp on the left represents St Yuriy's Day, which is the Russian name for either of the two feasts of Saint George celebrated by the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Russian Orthodox Church celebrates the feast of St George on April 23 (Julian Calendar)and in addition to this, the Russian Church also celebrates the anniversary of the consecration of the Church of St George in Kiev by Yaroslav I the Wise (1051) on November 26 (Julian Calendar).
The stamp on the right represents St Peter's and St Paul's Day.

and on the third FDC, we have two stamps portraying the Volyn province in north-western Ukraine.
The stamp on the left represents The Annunciation, while the right one represents St. Nicholas' Day. That one is celebrated on December 19 in most Orthodox countries and my grandparents do commemorate it each year as a celebration inherited from my grandfather's parents, because his father (my great-grandfather's name was Nikola (the Macedonian version of Nicholas) :)

for more traditional clothings, patterns and such, go to Viridian's blog...and I promise to check all the other posts later, but right now I am just in a terrible need of a short nap =/