A Bicycle Tire Track, The Printing Bike in Germany

The Printing Bike
Bristol - Mainz 2014

Bristol, Mere, Poole, Cherbourg, Montebourg, Bayeux, Falaise, Le Mele sure Sarthe, Nogent le Retrou, Voves, Malesherbbes, Donnemarie-Dontilly, Romily sur Sein, Vitry le Francois, Vitry le Francois, Bar le Duc, Thaiuccourt-Regnieville, Bouzonville, Birkenfeld, Bad Kreuznach, Mainz

This postcard is printed in 1914 and mailed from Germany.

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This was a Kickstarter project with two guys (Nick Hand and Robin Mather) who built a bike with a printing press on it.  Then one of them went on the  journey and mailed postcards that were printed on the bike!

Germany (Deutschland) stamp 2013

50 Jahre (Years) Fehmarnsundbrucke (Fehmarn Sound Bridge) 75

Fairbairn Dam in Australia

Fairbairn Dam
Emerald Central Queensland

Fairbairn Dam has a storage capacity of 1,170,000 acre feet, with a maximum reservoir area of 14,800 hectares.

Photography by Rod Murray

This is postmarked in 2009 with an Australia 1.40 Tasmania stamp.

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Fairbairn Dam is located 25 kilometres southwest of Emerald, in Central Queensland, almost on top of the Tropic of Capricorn line. Fairbairn Dam was constructed in 1972 across the Nogoa River "Gap" creating Lake Maraboon and is Queensland's second largest lake. Maraboon is the Aboriginal for "where the black ducks fly".

The primary purpose of Fairbairn Dam is for irrigation. About 300 irrigators are supplied with water for cotton, citrus and other horticulture operations.

Australia stamp 2008

Russell Falls, Tasmania $ 1.40

The Train Station in the Congo (1921)

Congo Belge   Port de Matadi.  Station du chemin de fer Matadi-Leopoldville. (French language)

Belgisch Congo  Haven van Matadi.  Stalie van den spoorweg Matadi-Leopoldville. (Dutch language)

English Translation:

Belgian Congo (now called: Democratic Republic of the Congo)  Matadi Port.  Matadi-Leopoldville Train Station.

This is postmarked in 1921 with a Belgian Congo stamp pre-printed on the postcard.  It looks like there were two more stamps on the card, but someone took them off.

A Coffee Calendar Postcard Made of Metal

 Gran Gusto D'Italia
(Great Taste of Italy)

Coffee House
Start your day with a smile

Classic Italian Coffee and a Place to Relax

This entire calendar postcard is made of metal.  It is mailed from Belgium in 2014.

Belgium (Belgique - Belgie) stamp 2013

Butterfly, Red Admiral 

1 - A Prior

Utah State Capitol and Battalion Monument

Utah State Capitol and "Mormon" Battalion Monument, Salt Lake City, Utah

Located on a hill overlooking beautiful Salt Lake Valley, the imposing Utah Sate Capitol was completed in 1915, at a cost exceeding $2,700,000.00.  On the right may be seen the "Mormon" Battalion Monument, a rose-pink granite triangle centered by a heroic bronze figure of a Battalion infantry-man, erected in 1927 to perpetuate the memory of "Mormons" who fought for the United States in the Mexican War of 1846.  At that time the Battalion marched from the Mississippi River to Southern California.

This vintage postcard is unused.

General Douglas Macarthur WWII, Real Photo Postcard

General Douglas Macarthur

This is an unused, real photo postcard by W. J. Gray.

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General of the Army Douglas MacArthur (26 January 1880 – 5 April 1964) was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army who was Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the Philippines Campaign, which made him and his father Arthur MacArthur, Jr., the first father and son to be awarded the medal.

During his lifetime, MacArthur earned over 100 military decorations from the U.S. and other countries including the Medal of Honor, the French Légion d'honneur and Croix de guerre, the Order of the Crown of Italy, the Order of Orange-Nassau from the Netherlands, the Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath from Australia, and the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers, Grand Cordon from Japan.

Buildings in Tripoli, Libya

Tripoli - Libya  2008

This postcard is postmarked in 2009 with two Libya stamps.

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Here are the names of buildings I could find:
Corinthia Tripoli Hotel
The Grand Hotel
Bab el Bahr Hotel
El Fateh Tower
That El Emad Towers

Libya Stamp 2001

The Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiraya

Handcrafts

Tripoli International Fair,  300

A Postcard with an Attached Reflector from the Finnish Red Cross

Tajuatko olevasi Ihan Pimea?
Kayta heijastinta.  se pelastaa ihmishenkia.

Translation:
Do you realize you're pretty dark?
Use a reflector, it saves lives.

The sender writes:

According to Finnish legislation, when it is dark, a pedestrian must wear an appropriate reflector when he/she is walking on the road.

This unused postcard has an attached reflector and is made by the Red Cross of Finland.  

Fishing for Cichlid Fish in Madagascar

Madagascar

Peche a la nasse (tondroho) pour agrementer le repas du soir

Translation:

Fishing in the trap (tondroho) to enliven the evening meal - (tondroho is a type of cichlid fish)

The sender writes:

Madagascar is an Island country in the Indian Ocean.  It's the 4th biggest island in the world.  It's people, known as Malagasy are very humble.

This postcard is postmarked in 2014 with two Madagascar stamps.  

Madagascar (Madagasikara) stamp 2012

Lapan'ny Tananan' Antananarivo, 300,00

(City Hall of Antananarivo)

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Madagascar (Madagasikara) stamp 2012

Haut Fourneau du Jean Laborde, 1600,00

(Blast Furnace of Jean Laborde)

Red Cliff Chippewa Indian Reservation

Drummer at Raspberry Camp

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Buffalo Art Center

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Dancer at the Red Cliff Pow Wow

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View of Lake Superior
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Today, Red Cliff is the site of a fish hatchery run by the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. Red Cliff also runs Legendary Waters Resort and Casino, which sits on the Banks of Lake Superior.

St. John's in Newfoundland, Canada

Newfoundland
Canada's Natural Beauty
Splendeurs naturelles du Canada

Sailing Flotilla, St. John's Harbour.
Flottille pittoresque dans le port de Saint-Jean.

This is postmarked in 2010 with one Canada's Maple Leaf stamp (which is printed on the postcard) and one stamp featuring Basketball.

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Newfoundland and Labrador is the most easterly province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador to the northwest.

 The capital and largest city is St. John's.

Star Cluster NGC 2074 in the Large Magellanic Cloud

The sender writes:
This is Star Cluster NGC 2074 in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
It is God's power displayed!

The postcard is postmarked in 2014.

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The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is a nearby galaxy, and a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way.

A Rice Farm in Thailand

Planting Rice
Thailand

Farmer busy planting rice, Thailand

Photography: Jotuporn Rutnin

This postcard is postmarked in 2014 with two Thailand stamps.

The sender never wrote who they were and wrote this:
Surprise! Keep on Blogging - You're doing a fantastic job.

Thailand stamp 1999

H.M. The King's 6th Cycle

Birthday Anniversary 

The 72nd Anniversary of the 

Birth of King Bhumibol Adulyadej

12

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Thailand stamp 1996

Golden Jubilee

The 50th Anniversary of King Bhumibol's 

Accession to Throne as Rama IX

3 BAHT

Little Church of the West at Hotel Last Frontier in Nevada

Little Church of the West at Hotel Last Frontier
Las Vegas, Nevada

The Hotel Last Frontier, like Las Vegas, is a fascinating combination of modern urbanity and old-fashioned western freedom.  The huge number of marriages that have taken place in its quaint church is out of proportion to its small size.

This postcard is unused.

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The Little Church of the West is a wedding chapel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada that is listed in the United States National Register of Historic Places. Built of California redwood, it was intended to be a replica of a typical pioneer town church. It is the oldest building on the Strip.

Recipe for Maine Wild Blueberry Muffins

Maine Wild Blueberry Muffins

1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups Maine wild blueberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease muffin pan.
Beat egg slightly, stir in milk and oil.  Mix in the dry ingredients until the flour is moistened.  Batter should be lumpy, do not over mix.  Add the blueberries.  Fill the muffin cups and bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Yields 12 muffins.

This is postmarked in 2010 with a USA Liberty Bell stamp.

Seven Vintage Postcards of Bryce Canyon in Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

This road tunnel in Red Canyon is not really a part of Bryce Canyon National Park.  However, as one leaves Highway 89 and approaches Bryce, the road enters Red Canyon and winds up the west side of the plateau from which the formations of Bryce are carved.  In the opinion of some, the beauty of Red Canyon "steals the show" from Bryce.
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Bryce Canyon from Rainbow Point

From Rainbow point, the southernmost spot reached by highway, the observer can look northward over most of the Park area, and see some 30 miles of Pink Cliffs.  Included in this panorama are beautiful amphitheaters of Black Birch Canyon and Agua Canyon, and magnificent views across "the land of the purple sage" to Navajo Mountain, 80 miles to the east, and Trumbull Mountains, 99 miles south.
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Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

This towering formation, named Gulliver's Castle, is a fine example of what nature can do with her tools of wind and water.  Erosion has been at work on these soft sandstone deposits for countless generations.  Old forms are gradually being worn away and new ones begin.  But the process is so slow that living memory is hardly long enough to note a major change.
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The Temple
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Resembling the Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City, this intriguing formation is only one of thousands to be seen in spectacular Bryce Canyon - a horseshoe-shaped amphitheater cut by water erosion, and extending down a thousand feet through pink and white limestone.  The ever-changing shadows create a thrilling panorama for the observer, with colors blending from white and gold to deep red and purple.

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Queen's Castle, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Of the many fantastic formations in the great horseshoe-shaped bowl, the Queen's Castle is one of the most interesting.  Wind and water have carved the pink and white limestone into myriads of unusual forms and figures.

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Fairyland, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

The beautifully-colored formation formed by wind and erosion through many ages is called Fairyland because of its fantastic figures and weird castle shapes. 

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Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

A vast amphitheater shaped like a bowl, Bryce Canyon is twelve miles long and two miles wide, its walls rising in sculptured terraces and pinnacles 800 feet above the pine-covered floor of the canyon.

A Proboscis Monkey from Brunei

Proboscis monkey (Nasalis carvatus) is confined to Borneo.  It is mainly found in coastal swap forests.  One of the largest monkeys in the world, the male proboscis monkey with its long and pendulous nose and outsized stomach has a harem of up to 10 females, attracted by his weird good looks.  Feed mainly on leaves and seed of a variety of trees.

This was postmarked from Brunei with two Brunei Darussalam stamps in 2008.

 

Lace Balconies in New Orleans, Louisiana

 New Orleans Lace Balconies

La Branche Balcony
700 Royal Street

This lovely old building was built about 1835, by Jean La Branche.  Its beautiful iron lace balconies, with intricate designs of entwined oak leaves and acorns, are outstanding among the many for which New Orleans is famous.

Photo by Bob Reardon
postmarked in 1995 with 40 cent stamp
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Here is a vintage postcard .... could it be the same building ???

"Lacy Balcony"  New Orleans
This "Embroidered Ironwork" on the balcony of a home in the French Quarter, forms a striking frame for the St. Louis Cathedral.

From a set of 8 postcards, the envelope reads:
8 Pen and Ink Sketches of Famous French Quarter Scenes
"New Orleans" America's Most Interest City
25 cents the set
These Cards (as Post Cards) easily mailed to friends ... and can be framed for the home.
Louise Sarrazin. Artist
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Here is just one more postcard...

Iron Lace Balconies
New Orleans French Quarter

The French Quarter's stunning architecture is one of the many aspects of New Orleans culture that makes this city unique.  One of the most pronounced features is the intricate ironwork on the balconies adorning the historic buildings.  The architectural details of these homes were influenced by French and Spanish settlers back in the late 1700's to the early 1800's.

Photographer: Alex Demyan

This unused postcard was bought in 2014. 

A Postman on the Beach in Taiwan

The sender writes:

Greetings from Taiwan!  On this postcard you can see the postman of our country.  The letters you see on the front mean "post office" and "small town", so this is from the post office of a small township.

This postcard is postmarked in 2009 with a Taiwan lighthouse stamp.

Taiwan (Republic of China) 1991

A lighthouse at sunset 12.00

Batman the Television Series

This Batman and Robin in the Batmobile postcard is postmarked in 2014 with two batman stamps. 

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Batman is a 1960s American live action television series, based on the DC comic book character.  It starred Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City.

It aired for three seasons from January 12, 1966, to March 14, 1968. The show was aired twice weekly for its first two seasons and weekly for the third, with a total of 120 episodes produced during its run.

USA stamp 2014

Forever a 1st class stamp

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For 75 years, Batman has protected Gotham City from the forces of evil.  

In 2014 the U.S. Postal Service chronicles the evolution of the character, 

from his origins to present day.

Issue Date: October 09, 2014

Art Director/Designer: Greg Breeding

Predjamski Grad, Predjama Castle in Slovenia

Predjamski Grad

Slovenija

Foto: Arne Hodalic

This postcard is postmarked in 2014 with a matching stamp from Slovenia.  

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Predjama Castle is a Renaissance castle built within a cave mouth in the village of Predjam, Slovenia.

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The legend of Erazem of Predjama

The castle became known as the seat of Knight Erazem Lueger (or Luegger), owner of the castle in the 15th century and a renowned robber baron. He was the son of the Imperial Governor of Trieste, Nikolaj Lueger. According to legend, Erazem came into conflict with the Habsburg establishment, when he killed the commander of the Imperial army Marshall Pappencheim, who had offended the honour of Erazem's deceased friend, Andrej Baumkircher of Vipava. Fleeing from the revenge of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III, Erazem settled in the family fortress of Predjama. He allied himself with the Hungarian king Matthias Corvinus and began to attack Habsburg estates and towns in Carniola. Thus enraged, the Austrian leader commissioned the governor of Trieste, Andrej Ravbar, to capture and kill Erazem. This is when the impregnability of Predjama Castle was tested.

For a year and a day, Erazem was besieged in his fortress. But to the dismay of his adversaries, he continued to survive and taunt the attacking soldiers by pelting them with cherries. They could not understand how he was obtaining supplies. As far as they knew, there was only one way in and out of both the valley and castle; but the Erazem knew better. Unbeknownst to the soldiers, Erazem knew of a secret tunnel leading from the castle, which allowed him to travel to the nearby village of Vipava and collect supplies, including hoards of fresh cherries when in season.

But it seemed that the soldiers were to have the last laugh. With the strategic placement of a small signal flag, a servant of Erazem was bribed to reveal when his master was in attendance at that place where the elusive knight and even the noblest of men needed to go after consuming lots of cherries and wine: the outhouse. Unfortunately for Erazem, the toilet, situated on the top floor and at the very edge of the castle, was the one place that was not impregnable. When the moment came, the flag was placed there by the treacherous servant. A single cannonball was launched, and Erazem was literally caught with his trousers down.

Slovenia stamp

Predjamski Grad Castle

C