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

Flowers of Slovenia, Slovenia

Flowers are indeed like omnipresent when it comes to stamps...but when you need to choose some to post, you realize you do not really have that many stamps featuring flowers...and from the ones you have, you try to choose something that has not been already posted or is unlikely to be posted...therefore I decided to go with this Slovenian mini-sheet issued on May 20, 1994!

The stamps themselves are nice...but the surrounding map image is what really makes this issue so dear to me (and i have to thank my mum again for having purchased this many years ago)

Well, the map is just to give you an idea where Slovenia is in case you hadnt already known...you can even take a glimpse of Macedonia at the bottom..cut in half...

as for the flowers...four of them are featured on these stamps.

the top left one shows the Primula carniolica or the Carniolan Primrose, which is considered as one of the most famous Slovenian plants, first spotted more than two hundred years ago.
The flower has glittering bright green basal leaves , which are smooth and bare and are not speckled with a farinose coating. The soft, red- violet flowers are in clusters, with a sprinkling of white dust at the mouth. It flowers in April and May in shady, damp gorges in rocky fissures and has been protected in Slovenia since 1922, and is also on the Slovenian Red List of threatened plant species.

next to it is the Hladnikia pastinacifolia, which is one of the most distinguished plants of the Slovenian flora. It has tripartite, denticulate and shining green leaves with whitish flowersin characteristic umbellate clusters. It is the representative of an independent genus, which has only one species (the great majority of genera have a number of species).
It was first noticed in the second decade of the nineteenth century, on Čaven, by the Slovene botanist, Franc Hladnik, the founder of the Ljubljana Botanical Garden (1810). As it can be seen, this new species was also named after him. Hladnikia grows on rocky meadows and cliffs, in a very restricted range of distribution. It also has found its place on the Slovenian Red List among rare plants.

The 60 SIT stamp shows the Daphne blagayana, the plant about which the Slovenian botanists have probably written the most. It is a species of plant in the genus Daphne and was discovered in 1837 near Polhov Gradec (now northeastern Slovenia) by Henrik Freyer and named after the botanist Rihard Blagaj (who after receiving the flower was the one to send it to Feyer). It has been determined that with time, this flower has been distributed the majority of the Balkan countries as well.

The last, 70 SIT stamp shows the Campanula zoysii, or the Zoi's Bellflower, which is endemic to Slovenia, Austria and northern Italy. It is considered a symbol of the Slovenian Alps, and called "the daughter of the Slovene mountains. The plant tends to grow low, reaching anywhere from 5 to 7 cm (2 to 3 in) in height, and is unique among its genus of bellflowers. The mouth of C. zoysii's bell-shaped flower narrows, ending in a five-pointed star, while the flowers of other Campanula species are likewise bell-shaped, but open.(The "pinched" shape of these flowers nonetheless manages to allow insects inside for pollination.) The flowers are arranged one to three for each stem.The plant's pale sky blue- to lavender-coloured flowers bloom in June over a three- to four-week period. Its leaves are crowded at the root, stalked, ovate and blunt; stem leaves are obovate, lance-shaped and linear.

My overall knowledge and understanding of flowers is quite terrible I must say, though that doesn't prevent me from admiring them. My favourite here.....hmm, probably Zoi's Bellflower...for some reason it reminds me of the hyacinth...and I am totally in love with those..

for those interested, the size of the minisheet is 136 x 115 mm
well, for more springy-kind-of-posts, click on the button bellow and enjoy this floral Sunday :)

Space Stamps, USSR

well, Sunday Stamps is a good opportunity to make a come back here as well after "raising the postcards' blog from the dead" first. And ever since I read the topic for today, the notion of USSR got stuck in my head, dont know why...after seeing the entries today I realized how narrow my thinking was, but simply, the thought of Russia or another former communist country, made me think of USSR and USSR only...and even with particular stamps in mind. In the end I thought I should maybe take a look at my Russian stamps too, but in the end I decided to go with my gut feeling and make myself happy and content...going with something else would have left this feeling of 'something missing' inside me and that's no good now, is it?

well, some of you know how hyped I get with EVERYTHING space related, so that's why I was also so anxious today to show a number of USSR stamps that are space related...plus I have never shown USSR stamps here before, so here is the first and I hope not the last time :)

I'll start with these two stamps issued in 1962...at first glance they may seem the same but actually there is a difference in colour at the right side...one is more on the violet tone, while the other one is something between bluish/greenish. These two depict the first manned flight to space, launched on April 12 1961 - and the stamps were issued one year later, to commemorate the one year anniversary.
Тhis set comes in the perforated version -an imperforated one can be obtained as well.

another set where the two stamps only differ in colour a bit. Issued in 1962 as well, representing Vostok 2, a Soviet space mission which carried cosmonaut Gherman Titov into orbit for a full day (or 25 hours to be more precise) on August 6, 1961 to study the effects of a more prolonged period of weightlessness on the human body. Perforated version.

Still in 1962, this time an imperforated version of a set of three stamps. These represent Vostok 3 and Vostok 4. Vostok 3 was a spaceflight of the Soviet space program intended to determine the ability of the human body to function in conditions of weightlessness and test the endurance of the Vostok 3KA spacecraft over longer flights. Cosmonaut Andrian Nikolayev/Андриян Николаев (featured on the top right stamp) orbited the Earth 64 times over nearly four days in space, August 11–15, 1962. Vostok 4 was launched a day after Vostok 3, and this was the first time that more than one manned spacecraft were in orbit at the same time. Pavel Popovich (Па́вел Попо́вич)was on Vostok 4 (featured on the top left stamp)

Here is the lovely Sputnik, which was the first artificial Earth satellite, launched on October 4, 1957. The stamp commemorates its fifth anniversary.

and two more stamps from 1962, issued to commemorate all the Vostok Spaceflights, and in Russian you can read "Glory to the Conquerors of Space".

now, here is something from 1963..a fantastic se-tenant stamp if you are asking me! There is another single stamp in the set, but unfortunately I do not have that one. This is another issue to commemorate both Vostok flights going in the space together, Vostok 5 and Vostok 6.  A thing worth noting here is that Vostok 6 was the first human spaceflight mission to carry a woman into space, that is cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova.

two stamps from a set of three issued in 1964 - yeah, i miss the third one and what really bothers me is that I'm missing the stamp Gagarin is featured on...sniff ;-( but one cant have it all...
anyway, this set was issued to commemorate the Cosmonautic day and here you can see the Sputniks on the first stamp and the Space station Mars 1 on the second one.

a great stamp from 1965, representing the first space walk, done by Alexey Leonov (Алексе́й Лео́нов) on March 18, 1965.

and just one more set for today, again from 1965, again three stamps issued to commemorate the Cosmonautic day, and here you have from left to right: a Soviet space achievements monument, then a Sputnik sculpture in Moscow and at the end K. E. Tsiolkovsky's monument (Константи́н Циолко́вский), who was a Russian and Soviet rocket scientist and pioneer of the astronautic theory.

well, that would be all...I know it got a bit lengthy but since they were all topic-related, I couldnt just pick one.
A big hug goes to my mum who has collected these over the years while she was really into it ❤

and now it's time to check out what others have come up with for this communist-countries day :)

have a lovely Sunday!

Cultural Heritage, Macedonia

Hello Sunday Stampers! For today's episode we have the theme of folk-art...and if at first it all seemed easy peasy, in the end I realized I was stuck with what folk-art actually is...I mean, I know what the definition is and all, but where is the line drawn between folk-art and folklore...or folk-art and museum artifacts lets say...or do they overlap sometimes? what is what actually? As ignorant and ridiculous it may sound, I must admit I got stuck!
So with the potential to have totally gone wrong with my choices today, I still hope you will at least like the stamps =)

I have these three different issues, all representing Macedonian Cultural Heritage.

First we have four stamps issued in 2000, representing antique jewelry, in particular, from left to right, at the top, the 10 denar stamp shows a Bracelet from the 20th century from the region of Bitola (a Macedonian town), while the 5 denar stamp next to it shows a Pin with an Icon from the 19th century from the Ohrid region.
Below, the 30 denar stamp shows the Butterfly Brooch from the 19-20th century from the Bitola region, while the 20 denar stamp next to it shows 18th century Earrings from the Ohrid region.
Out of all these, the most famous one is the filigree butterfly...you can see it in all sizes sold around, sold either as a piece of jewelry or as an ornament to keep at home.

In the Christian religion, the metamorphosis a butterfly undergoes is symbolic of the spiritual evolution all Christians go through. In ancient mythology, the butterfly stands for wisdom and everlasting knowledge, while as a part of the jewelry dates back to the end of the 19 th century. It has been made according to the traditional Macedonian brooch and represents the most exquisite filigree work by the Ohrid Handicraftsmen School from the end of the 19 th and the beginning of the 20 th century. It has been made in a hard technique of filigree work, spinning round several thin handmade silver stripes into one remarkable whole. This kind of manufacture could be afforded only by the masters, wealthy tradesmen and other rich people from that period.


The FDC below shows two more pieces of jewelry...golden earrings with doves dating back from the II century B.C from the village of Marvinci, and а lion-head earring, dating from IV century B.C from the region of Demir Hisar.

And something a bit different...and FDC showing some textile, often used as a pattern for carpets or rugs as shown here. You can often see these in the houses in the rural areas especially.

well, that would be my contribution for today...again, sorry if I went somewhat astray with the topic :)

for more folk-art, click here:

Cats

Gosh, I can not believe how silly I am sometimes...all day long ive been just doing stuff around and with this notion in my head that I dont really have some nice pet stamps to show for today...what an idiot! At quarter to midnight, while browsing thru some stuff in my stamps' folders, I was proven so wrong! Cos I have actually a BUNCH of stamps related to pets! aaarghh! And you know that feeling when you hurriedly are trying to find where they are, then trying to scan them...and you feel like you arms and hands are shivering cos you have no idea if you're gonna be in time (i really do not know at what time does that linky tool expire, and beyond which point i am no longer able to post a link?! Anyways, I hope im gonna make it, cos I really wanted to show you these adorable kitties...and from what Ive checked, no one else has posted them today, so a reason more to be all anxious to make it!

here, I have this booklet with four cats issued by the Finnish post on May 4, 2006. What I do not like about them is that they are self-adhesive (im a bit old-fashioned when it comes to stamps), but they certainly look nice in this booklet..I love the paw prints! :)


the other ones come from Germany... i have both the mint stamps and the FDC...these were issued on 3 June 2004, and portray both cats and kittens...and if im not mistaken, these stamps are issued for those young people interested in philately...well, if i was a kid, these would surely grab my attention :)

I am both a cat and a dog person...just adore them...esp  I have fondness for stray dogs and often wish i could adopt them all...anyways, for today I decided to stick with cats...cos with the lack of time im having for this post, i really couldnt afford to spend more time on thinking what to post :)

for some more adorable creatures, click below

A cover from....

Another Sunday has knocked on the door...and time for Sunday Stamps.
The topic for today is anything you wish...and you may be thinking, oh no, not trains again!!

Well, true...trains are like a saviour for my indecisiveness....but not today...so you can sigh with relief =)

Today I wanted to show this cover that arrived in my mailbox yesterday...and it is a pity to remain unshown, so I think it fits perfectly in the 'anything you wish' idea =)

Thanks a bunch to my friend Chris for this awesome surprise! Yep, it arrived as a surprise..never ever expected it, and as you know, the surprise factor is what adds so much to the thrill in receiving mail...esp. when it comes from a land far far away...like for example, Tristan da Cunha!!

yep, I can really call it a land far far away, cos it is indeed the land that is the most remote one in the world, where the closest piece of land to it lies within 2816 km, and that is South Africa! Can you imagine, living in a country that is an island, where the next nearest land is almost 3000 km away?? well, as much as I love getting isolated sometimes, as a European, I prefer being able to travel to different countries that are just hours away driving...and no one can argue this but, there are just so many fantastic destinations to travel to in Europe =)

anyways, back to the cover...there are two stamps attached...the one on the left is from a 4 stamps series issued in 2011, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the evacuation in 1961, when the entire population had to be evacuated due to the eruption of Queen Mary's Peak. Most families returned in 1963. And just as a side note, according to the 2010 census, the population was 264...no additional zeros or so, just 264...
the other stamp was issued in 2010 in a set of 12 stamps depicting Nature Conservation, with this stamp showing a cute little seal, representing the counting of the seals.

so, it feels really really special and such a treasure to receive such a cover from an island so remote, with such small population. Where mail is collected for some time, and then dispatched all at once...cos to get to and from the island you can only go by ship/boat...no plane!
Btw, I love the cancellation saying 'South Atlantic'.
If anyone is interested, you can check out my postcard blog for some Tristan da Cunha postcards.

see what others have chosen as a topic today...just click on the button below

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