A Cat and Mouse in Love

O amor compreende todas as linguas....

The sender writes:
The cover translates: "Love understands all languages."

This unused postcard is from Lisboa, Portugal and features a cat and a mouse.  

Piccadilly Circus, London, England in 1978

Piccadilly Circus, London

Photo: D. Nobble, John Hinde Studios

For many people London means Mayfair, Park Lane, Pall Mall, Knights-bridge and Piccadilly Circus.  All these places fall within the boundaries of what is loosely called the 'West End'.  London night-life used to revolve around the statue of Eros in Piccadilly Circus - but the scene has been moving gradually westwards.  Nowadays you're more likely to find the 'jetset' in a Chelsea discotheque - though they may return to Piccadilly to take in the odd continental movie at the old Windmill Theatre.

This postcard is postmarked in 1978.

- - - - - - -

Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space that was built in 1819 to connect Regent Street with Piccadilly. In this context, a circus, from the Latin word meaning "circle", is a round open space at a street junction.

Great Britain stamp 1976

Queen Elizabeth II

Blue / Purple, 9 P

Operation Desert Storm

Operation Desert Storm

Thank you . . . .
For a job well done!

You kept the dream of peace alive. . . and burning strong in the hearts of all Americans.

This unused postcard was printed in 1991.

- - - - - -

The Gulf War:
Operation Desert Storm was the U.S. name of the airland conflict from 17 January 1991, through 11 April 1991.

Mitchell Park Conservatory in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Mitchell park

Horticultural Conservatory

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This unused postcard is from 2016. 

- - -

Here is another card...

The "Man made wonder", the Mitchell Park Conservatory in the Milwaukee skyline.  The three domed Conservatory offers a Tropical, and Arid, and a Floral display.  Nearly 600,000 visitors annually view the exotic flowering plants.  The Sunken Garden is an added feature during the summer months.

This oversized postcard is from 1993. 

Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

Welcome to Kelowna
British Columbia, Canada

A variety of floral displays and intriguing sculptures adorn the parks near Kelowna's waterfront walkway.

Photo by Mel Basaraba

This unused postcard is from 2016.

- - - - - - -

Kelowna name derives from an Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear".

Good Advise from Winnie the Pooh . . .

Winnie the Pooh

Don't give up!

Disney 

It looks like Pooh ate too much honey again. 

This postcard features, Rabbit, Pooh Bear, Christopher Robin, Roo, Kanga, Piglet, Eeyore, and Tigger.  It is postmarked in 2015 from Taiwan.  (One of the stamps features another bear.)  

Taiwan (Republic of China) stamp 2014

The 100th Anniversary of Taipei Zoo

Ursus thibetanus formosanus

Formosan black bear, 10

- - -

Taiwan (Republic of China) stamp 2013

Fruits / Berries

Rhodomyrtus Tomentosa

(rose myrtle) 2.50

Bohios, or Thatched Huts in Cuba

 "Bohios", or Thatched Huts, Cuba

Made entirely of the different parts of the Royal Palm tree, the native Bohio or thatched roof is very cool and especially suited for the Cuban tropical climate.

This is postmarked in 1948 with a Cuba Tabaco stamp.

Cuba stamp 1939

Havana Tobacco Industry

Tabaco Habano

1 correos

The Insignia / Emblem for NASA's 41-C, Space Shuttle Challenger

41-C Crew Insignia

The patch to be worn by the five members of NASA's 41-C space mission tells the story of that flight.  It features a helmet visor of an astronaut performing extravehicular activity.  In the visor are reflected the sun's rays, the Challenger and its remote manipulator system (RMS) deploying the long duration exposure facility (LDEF), the Earth and blue sky, and another astronaut working at the damaged Solar Maximum Satellite (SMS).  The scene is encircled by the surnames of the crew members.  They are Astronauts Robert L. Crippen, commander; Francis R. (Dick) Scobbe, pilot; and Terry J. Hart, James D. Van Hoften and George D. Nelson, all mission specialists.

Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas

Official NASA Photograph

This postcard is unused.

- - - - - - -

STS-41-C was NASA's 11th Space Shuttle mission, and the fifth mission of Space Shuttle Challenger. The launch took place on April 6, 1984.

Balloon Express in Florence, Italy

Firenze, 1992 - 2012
Balloon Express
Cavalcata dei Magi, Cattedrale Santa Maria del Fiore di Firenze
Umberto Visitini / New Press Photo

(translation from an on-line translator - -
Cavalcade of the Magi, Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, Italy)

The sender writes:

This is a collector's commemorative postcard celebrating 10 year anniversary of the most unique ballon shops in the world.

This postcard is postmarked in 2016.

- - - - - - -

The Cavalcade of Magi is a traditional parade of the Magi. They ride through the streets, as their page boys throw candies to children.

- - -

I started looking on line at all the different balloon activities and there are MANY!  I had no idea.  There is even a World Balloon Convention every year.  The sculptures are amazing.  However, it seams none of the artists are good at taking videos, so there are none worthy to share here.

If you are interested is seeing some of the balloon art though, I highly recommend you do a computer search for large balloon sculptures.  Beware, it is a bit of a time killer though once you start.  I ended up looking at videos and pictures for far much more time than I care to admit to.

USA stamp 2015

Black Heritage

Robert Robinson Taylor

Forever a first class stamp

- - -

Robert Robinson Taylor (June 8, 1868 – December 13, 1942) was an American architect; by some accounts the first accredited African-American architect. He was also the first African-American student enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1888. 

Tabor, Czech Republic

Tabor, Czech Republic
foto: Jiri Suttner a Ivan Rillich

This is postmarked in 2009 from the Czech Republic.

Czech Republic (Ceska Republika) stamp 2008 

 The 100th Anniversary of the Founding of 

Technical Museum in Prague

1908 Narodni Technicke Muzeum

(National Technical Museum)

18 KC

An Exaggeration Postcard about Wind Sailing

Florida
Learning to Sail in Florida is Easy with a "Helping Hand"

This is postmarked in 1993 with a 29 cent Elvis stamp.

USA stamp 1993

Elvis Presley

Rock and Roll Singer, 1935-1977, 

(January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) 

29 cents

Divi Little Bay in Saint Martin, The Caribbean

St. Maarten
Divi little bay
Philipsburg
Netherlands Antilles

The sender writes:
we enjoyed a bus tour of the island.  The water really was this beautiful!

This postcard is postmarked in 2015.

USA stamp 2014

Hummingbird 

illustrator Nancy Stahl. 

Issue Date: February 7, 2014

Postcard Rate 34 Cents

Happy April Fools Day

1er Avril (April 1st)

Fabricattion Francaise

This is a 'French Tint' postcard that is unused from 1921.

- - - - - - -

As well as people playing pranks on one another on April Fools' Day, elaborate practical jokes have appeared on radio and TV stations, newspapers, web sites, and have been performed by large corporations. In one famous prank from 1957, the BBC broadcasted a fake film of Swiss farmers picking freshly-grown spaghetti, in what they called the Swiss Spaghetti Harvest. The BBC were later flooded with requests to purchase a spaghetti plant, forcing them to declare the film a prank on the news the next day.