Papua New Guinea Postcard - Port Moresby

Postcard
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Bilhete Postal

Papua New Guinea

My first postcard from Papua New Guinea. It shows the view of Fairfax Harbour and Royal Papuan Yacht Club. My friend is so kind to affix so many beautiful stamps, including an odd shaped spider stamp, on the card. Thank You very much to my friend !

China FDC on "Ancient Towns of China (I)"

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China


Ancient Towns of China (I)

Date of Issue : 19 May 2013

8-1 : Qiantong Town in Ninghai, Zhejiang
8-2 : Laitan Town in Hechuan, Chongqing
8-3 : Heping Town in Shaowu, Fujian
8-4 : Jingziguan Town in Xichuan, Henan
8-5 : Heshun Town in Tengchong, Yunnan
8-6 : Tangjiawan Town in Zhuhai, Guangdong
8-7 : Lizhuang Town in Yibin, Sichuan
8-8 : Jingsheng Town in Lingshi, Shanxi

Estonia FDC on "450th Anniversary the City of Kuressaare"

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Estonia

450th Anniversary the City of Kuressaare

Date of Issue : 8 May 2013

On 8 May 1563, Bishop Magnus of Oesel-Wiek and Courland granted the Riga civic charter to Arensburg, today’s Kuressaare, at his Piltene residence. Magnus’s privilege granted to the citizens the right to set up leading bodies of the city, to administer civilian and criminal law and carry out local government functions. The charter protected monetary rights of the citizens, regulated terms of trading and issues of welfare of the city. The day of granting the charter is marked as the birthday of Kuressaare, although the settlement was mentioned for the first time as early as in 1424.

China FDC on "Thanks Mom"

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China


Thanks Mom

Date of Issue : 11 May 2013

Thailand Cover

Cover
封
Sobrescrito

Thailand

A very nice cover from Thailand. Thank You very much to my friend !

Estonia FDC on "EUROPA – The Postman Van"

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Estonia

EUROPA – The Postman Van

Date of Issue : 2 May 2013

On Estonian and Livonian roads mail was carried on horseback until the middle of the 18th century. Constant growth in the carriage of mail and passengers caused the need that open-top carriages and covered wagons, called kibitkas, were taken into use. A new period in the carriage of passengers began in the 1820 to 1840s in connection with the introduction of stage coaches. According to the requirements a stage coach had to have iron axles, good appearance and built in accordance with drawings endorsed by the chief of the mail routes. One of the illustrations features a government stage coach dating from 1840 and the other a modern mail carriage vehicle. Today there are more than 350 mail carriage vehicles in Estonia, covering about 40,000 kilometres daily.

Slovakia FDC on "EUROPA 2013: Postal Vehicle"

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Slovakia

EUROPA 2013: Postal Vehicle

Date of Issue : 9 May 2013

The bus depicted on the postage stamp was manufactured with chassis of Škoda 125 and four-stroke petrol water-cooled four-cylinder engine with capacity of 1,944 cm3 and power of 30 hp.

A postman wearing a period postal uniform with a leaving bus Škoda 125 in the background is depicted on FDC.

Italy FDC on "Pontificate of His Holiness Pope Francis"

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Italy

Pontificate of His Holiness Pope Francis

Date of Issue : 2 May 2013

The stamp shows a photograph of His Holiness Pope Francis, chosen as the Bishop of Rome and Head of the Catholic Church on 13 March 2013.

There is also a Beatification of Pope John Paul II stamp (issued on 29 April 2011) on the left. Very nice. Thank You very much to my friend.

China FDC on "Earthquake Rescue and Relief in Concerted Efforts"

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China


Earthquake Rescue and Relief in Concerted Efforts

Date of Issue : 3 May 2013

A 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Lushan County on April 20, leaving 196 dead, 21 missing and 13,484 injured.

The stamp features earthquake waves, to represent the disaster, and a heart held in hands, to illustrate relief work. A total of 10 million stamps produced, costing 1.2 yuan (0.19 U.S. dollars) each, with all 12 million yuan worth of sales going to the quake-hit Lushan area.

Korea FDC on "The Restoration of Sungnyemun"

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South Korea

The Restoration of Sungnyemun

Date of Issue : 10 May 2013

Started to be built in the 5th year of King Taejo’s Reign (in 1396) and completed in the 7th year (in 1398), Sungnyemun is one of Korea’s oldest castle gates and at the same time, one of the oldest wooden structures left in Seoul.

On Feb. 10, 2008, due to a fire, most of the second story of the pavilion and a part of its first story were destroyed. Through a 5-year-long restoration work, Sungnyemun was restored to its original condition according to the traditional techniques.

Israel FDC on "Israel - Australia Joint Issue - Australian Light Horse Beersheba 1917"

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Israel

Israel - Australia Joint Issue - Australian Light Horse Beersheba 1917

Date of Issue : 10 May 2013

2 NIS stamp : Israel Australia Australian Light Horse
6.1 NIS stamp : Battle of Beer Sheba 1917

Australia FDC on "Australia - Israel Joint Issue - Battle of Beersheba"

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Australia

Australia - Israel Joint Issue - Battle of Beersheba

Date of Issue : 10 May 2013

60c stamp : Statue of an Australian Light Horseman in the Park of the Australian Soldier at Beersheva (Be'er Sheva) in Israel. The statue is the work of Australian sculptor Peter Corlett.
$2.60 stamp : Contemporary images of Australian Light Horsemen. The battle scene, once considered to be a photograph of the actual Battle of Beersheba, is now accepted to be a re-enactment made the following year.

The Battle of Beersheba took place on 31 October 1917 and was part of a wider British offensive known as the third Battle of Gaza during World War I. The final phase of this day-long battle was the famous mounted charge of the 4th Light Horse Brigade, widely considered to be the last great mounted charge in military history. Thirty-one Australian Light Horsemen were killed in the charge and 36 were wounded. The capture of Beersheba allowed British Empire forces to break the Ottoman line near Gaza and then advance into Palestine, a chain of events which eventually culminated in the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948

Portugal FDC on "500 Years Portugal - China"

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Portugal

500 Anos Portugal - China

500 Years Portugal - China

Date of Issue : 8 May 2013

2013 marks the five hundred years of the direct relationship of cooperation and friendship between Portugal and China.

In May 1513, Jorge Álvares sailed under the Portuguese Malacca captain Rui de Brito Patalim in a junk from Pegu and landed on Lintin (Nei Lingding Island, 内伶仃岛) which was about three miles from the Chinese mainland coast. Upon landing, he raised a Padrão from the king of Portugal

Jorge Álvares later joined the venture of establishing the settlements in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong around 1513 to 1514. This visit was followed by the establishment of a number of Portuguese trading centres in the area, which were eventually consolidated in Macau.

(Information above is from Wiki and also from Portugal CTT website)

Macau Postage Due Cover to Hong Kong

Postage Due Cover
欠資封
Sobrescrito com Selos de Porteado

Macau Hong Kong

Date Sent: 30 April 2013

Macau ATM
~~~ Macau "Year of the Snake" ATM (Issued on 30 April 2013)

Hong Kong Postage Due Label
~~~ Issued on 23 September 2004

On the cover, I just affixed 2 "Year of the Snake" ATM stamps with total face value of 1.5 Patacas out of the normal postage of 2.5 Patacas. On 18 May, I went to the GPO to get the mail and paid the postage due. The postage due should be : ((1 / 2.5) x 2.3) + 4 = HK$4.92, which was rounded to HK$4.9. On the cover, you can see the round-shaped T 1/2.5 postmark from Macau and a Hong Kong "To Pay" chop.

Philippines Aerogramme - Puerto Azul Beach Resort

Aerogramme
航空郵簡
Bilhete Carta-Avião

Philippines

Another aerogramme from the Philippines which shows the Puerto Azul Beach Resort, Cavite. Thank You very much to my friend !

Russia FDC on "The Postman Van – Postal Vehicles"

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Russia

The Postman Van – Postal Vehicles

Date of Issue : 26 April 2013

The Russian Post is one of the oldest in Europe, it started in the 9th-10th centuries. The coachman driving was used to deliver written messages; it was a system of postal yards (yams), connecting cities of Russia with Moscow. In the first half of the 18th century the coachman driving gave place to post troikas among the advantages of which there were high speed, endurance, large capacity and good passability.

The era of famous Russian troikas came to an end when horses were replaced by the railway transport and cars.

Suriname Postcard

Postcard
明信片
Bilhete Postal

Suriname

My first postcard from Suriname. It shows a view seen from the Suriname river. The stamps on the card are beautiful. Thank You very much to my friend !

Taiwan FDC on "Outlaws of the Marsh (Issue of 2013)"

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Taiwan

Outlaws of the Marsh (Issue of 2013)

Date of Issue : 10 May 2013

The stamps feature "Capturing Daming Prefecture by Ruse", "Heavenly Inscriptions on Stele", "Liangshan Outlaws Granted Imperial Amnesty" and "Successful Expedition against Liao Empire".

Brunei Darussalam Aerogramme

Aerogramme
航空郵簡
Bilhete Carta-Avião

Brunei Darussalam

Another aerogramme from Brunei. Thank You very much to my friend!

Estonia FDC on "First Estonian Satellite"

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Estonia

First Estonian Satellite

Date of Issue : 2 May 2013

ESTCube-1, a cubesat measuring 10 x 10 x 10 cm and weighing little over 1 kg is the first Estonian satellite and it is built in Estonia by students from Tartu University (coordinator), Estonian Aviation Academy, Tallinn University of Technology and University of Life Sciences. The satellite's payload has been developed in conjunction with Finnish Meteorological Institute and German Space Center (DLR). The main mission of the satellite is to test the electric solar wind sail, a novel space propulsion technology that could revolutionize transportation within the solar system.

Slovakia FDC on "Historic Mills - Windmill in Holic"

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Slovakia

Historic Mills - Windmill in Holic

Date of Issue : 26 April 2013

There were more than 5 thousand mills using water energy in the 19th century in Slovakia and more than 20 windmills. One of such mills preserved until today is a Dutch-type windmill in Holíč. It is located in the south-eastern part of the city, on the forest’s edge above the Theresian granary. The mill was built in the 1880s and was in use until 1926. The builder of the mill's technology was a joinery master František Sláma from Jevíčko.

Sri Lanka Postcard - Sigiriya Gardens

Postcard
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Bilhete Postal

Sri Lanka

A Sri Lankan postcard which shows the aerial view of the Sigiriya gardens. Thank You very much to my friend !