A Reflection

A rushed Postcard for the Weekend because I'm a bit busy at the moment.

This was from my friend Danielle in Nebraska.

Children by Elisabeth Bem

I've joined Maria's Linky of 'Postcards for The Weekend' at Connections to the World - an invitation to all postcard lovers to share their cards - this week's theme is children.   All postcard bloggers are invited to join.

Card no 1932 - from Natalia in Russia.

Elisaveta Merkuryevna Bem or Boehm or Böhm (1843–1914) was a Russian painter; a popular designer of postcards.

She was born in Saint Petersburg to a noble Russian family that had a Tartar origin.  At the age of 14 she entered the School of Painting at the Society for Promotion of Artists . In 1865 she graduated from the school with the Large Silver Medal.   She married a prominent Russian-Hungarian violinist Ludwig Boehm, professor of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory.  Elisabeth painted many watercolors, illustrated children books of the Folk Library series. For her silhouettes, etchings and works of glass she received medals at the World Fairs in Chicago of 1893, Paris of 1900, Munich of 1902 and Milan of 1906 (gold medal).   She is mostly known as one of the most prominent Russian creators of postcards. She painted more than 350 postcards creating a recognisable style that depicts children's faces and silhouettes.

  Thanks Maria for hosting this Linky.

Mail and post...

I've joined Maria's Linky of 'Postcards for The Weekend' at Connections to the World - an invitation to all postcard lovers to share their cards - this week's theme is - Postal/Mail Related Items.  Next weekend's will be Children.  For details of the launch see this page on Maria's blog.  All postcard bloggers are invited to join.

4117 - from Sini in Finland.  I collected postcards as a child and still have some of those from that era.  Since it was Postcrossing that fairly recently renewed my interest in collecting postcards this seems an appropriate one to start this blog post with.

4144 - from Eva in Spain who informed me that the word 'post' in Arabic was not well written.

And this was one of its stamps - most appropriate.

4113 - from Irina in Russia - an airmail box.

4155 - from Katya and her Mum, Marina, in Ukraine.  This is Pechkin the mailman based on the book book 'Uncle Fedya, His Dog, and His Cat' by Eduard Uspensky.  Uncle Fedya or Uncle Fyodor is a very independent six year old city boy, "a boy on his own". After his mother forbids him from keeping his talking cat Matroskin, Uncle Fyodor runs away from home to live on his own. He and his friends arrive at the village Prostokvashino, where a house is provided for them. There is a lot of extra space in the house, and therefore the local dog Sharik was called to fill it; he joined them cheerfully and amicably.  Uncle Fyodor's parents became very agitated at the loss of their son, and even put out a missing persons notice in the paper … Such a notice couldn't pass the nose of the extremely curious mail carrier Pechkin, who right then and there declared his hopes to earn a reward for the boy's safe return — a new bicycle.

Thanks Maria at Connections to the World for hosting this Linky.

A miscellany

4137 - From Susanne in Germany

3084 - From Hanka in the Czech Republic.

Karlštejn Castle, a large Gothic castle founded 1348 CE by Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor-elect and King of Bohemia. The castle served as a place for safekeeping the Imperial Regalia as well as the Bohemian/Czech crown jewels, holy relics, and other royal treasures. Located about 30 kilometres (19 mi) southwest of Prague above the village of the same name, it is one of the most famous and most frequently visited castles in the Czech Republic.

4076 - From Renate in Austria.

Admont Abbey is a Benedictine monastery located on the Enns River in the town of Admont, Austria. The oldest remaining monastery in Styria, Admont Abbey contains the largest monastic library in the world as well as a long-established scientific collection.

4067 - from Heleen in The Netherlands.

Zaanse Schans - a neighbourhood of Zaandam, near Zaandijk in the Netherlands.
It has a collection of well-preserved historic windmills and houses. From 1961 to 1974 old buildings from all over the Zaanstreek were relocated to the area using lowboy trailers. The Zaans Museum, established in 1994, is located in the Zaanse Schans.

4081 - from Susanne in Germany.  Interior with a young man reading - Wilhelm Hammershoi (1864-1916)

4092 - from Heleen in The Netherlands.  Michael Sowa 'Visiting the beetle'.

4094 - From Eva - Tabarca on the Costa Blanca.  Eva told me this is the smallest inhabited island in Spain with just 17 permanent inhabitants.

4110 - From Monica in Sweden.  This vintage card shows an area of Boras in Sweden that remains pretty much the same today.

4129 - also from Monica, Varberg in Sweden.

4116 - from Eva in Spain, a view of Bilbao.

4133 - And also from Eva, a selection of different varieties of paella to make you lick your lips...

4119 - a super alphabet card from Monica in Sweden.

4122 - From Anastasia in Belarus - a wonderful picture of Castle Bran (also known as Dracula's Castle) in Transylvania.

4126 - And Anastasia sent this card while holidaying in Romania.

4123 - Last, but by no means least, of this miscellany is a beautiful card from Ameland sent by Rudolf, Kim, Finn and Faye. Ameland is one of the West Frisian Islands of the north coast of the Netherlands.

Cats galore!

I am a cat person.  I also like dogs but having owned both I prefer cats.  Dogs are like young children, constantly demanding exercise and attention.

Cats are more like older children.  So long as you provide them with food, clean up after them and give a space of their own to snooze they are usually content.

4080 - from Susanne in Germany.

4045 - from Danielle in Nebraska, USA.

4046 - from Heleen in The Netherlands.

and one of the stamps from Heleen-

4138 - Another from Susanne in Germany.

4154 - from Katya and her mum, Marina, in Ukraine.

Katya told me that the inspiration for this picture (just one in a wonderful series of blue cat pictures) came from Alexander Pushkin's 'Ruslan and Ludmila'.
   On seashore far a green oak towers, 
   And to it with a gold chain bound, 
   A learned cat whiles away the hours 
   By walking slowly round and round. 
   To right he walks, and sings a ditty; 
   To left he walks, and tells a tale.... 

I've joined Maria's Linky of 'Postcards for The Weekend'  - an invitation to all postcard lovers to share their cards - this week's theme is Domesticated animals.  Next weekend's will be Postal/Mail Related Items.  For details of the launch see this page on Maria's blog.  All postcard bloggers are invited to join.