Holland, the Land of Flowers

Holland is a region located in the western part of the Netherlands. When we hear andldquo;Hollandandrdquo;, the first images that comes to mind are windmills, cheese, their national costume or klederdracht, and of course - tulips! Holland tulips have become popular all over the world due to their distinctive bulbous shape and shocking varieties of color. They are commonly grown in gardens, used as potted plants or fresh cut flowers sold in shops. Moreover, red tulips have become the symbol of passion and eroticism of young love. White tulips, on the other hand, stand for pure love while yellow ones symbolize a concern for the beloved.
While tulips are closely identified with Holland, the flowers did not originate from that province. Tulips actually came from the Ottoman Empire and only arrived in Europe in the late 1500's, introduced by a botanist Carolus Clusius to the Leiden University in the Netherlands. Not long afterwards, the flowers became such a hit in the Netherlands that one bulb, the most famous one called Semper Augustus, sold for as much as 6,000 florins (the average annual income at that time was only 150 florins). Semper Augustus was indeed very rare; it had red and white vertical stripes which can only be produced by a virus on a healthy tulip crop.
Around the time of its sale - early 17th century - the Netherlands was undergoing what historians call the andldquo;Tulip Maniaandrdquo; (incidentally, the phrase andldquo;tulip maniaandrdquo; have become a metaphor to a large economic bubble). The flowers sold for such exorbitant prices that they were even used as currency for trade. However, the market collapsed eventually, leaving the flowers worthless. Thousands of Dutch were left financially ruined in the wake of the crash, including noblemen and dignitaries. For a flower, this is indeed a very interesting history.
Tulips grow best in temperate climates, such as Holland's. The perfect weather for them is cool springs and early summers. In the Philippines though, they can be grown annually in natural conditions. The Philippine weather is not exactly suitable for tulips, but some growers make use of greenhouses to cultivate the flowers. This way, the problem with the high temperature and sometimes extreme weather conditions can be resolved. It's not Holland tulips, but if you want to get tulips here in the Philippines (and other flowers as well, such as roses), there are many flower shops that you can look into. Bjørna sent me this lovely card.

Forest Fertilising

This card shows a Forest-fertilising plane taking off from a road in Finland In 1985. Minna sent me this card.

Cyprus – Motherhood

Europa 1993 series consists of two stamps (10 and 30 c). The theme chosen by the European Postal Telecommunications Organization (CEPT) was Contemporary Art. The Cyprus Postal Services chose to present works of art on the general theme or motherhood - a choice indicative of the great concern of artists for this theme.

A bronze sculpture (originally of clay) height 25 cm by Nicos Dymiotis (1930-1990). This work was made around 1970 and some copies of it are found in private collections. Dymiotis was born in Strovolos, Nicosia. He attended the Pancyprian Gymnasium of Nicosia and studied sculpture at the Lyon National School of Arts, France (1948-1953). After his return to Cyprus he worked on busts and statues, steles and tombstones. The central theme of his sculpture is MOTHER AND CHILD a subject presented in various forms with new kinds of expression. Dymiotis' work is not confined to an external realistic description but extends to schematization with an emphasis on characters, the simplicity of form, and the rendering of the essential while at the same time it avoids narrative and emphasis on purely plastic values. Dymiotis uses a variety of materials mainly stone, marble, plaster, clay and wood. Dymiotis served as an educator from 1957 and in 1981 he was promoted to the post of Assistant Headmaster.

The card below shows an Applique (106 x 127 cm) by Christoforos Savva (1924-1968). This work was made in 1965 and is exhibited in the National Gallery of the Cyprus Ministry of Education. Chr. Savva was born in the village of Marathovounos and during the Second World War he served as a volunteer in the British Army. He studied at the Heatherly School of Fine Arts, England and later at the Studio of Andre Lhote, Paris. In 1960 he founded the gallery "Apophasi", later to become a place for theatrical and musical performances, lectures, exhibitions etc. He organized numerous exhibitions of his works. He contributed to the renovation of the Cyprus cultural life, to the introduction of modern cultural trends and has generally stimulated the interests of the Cypriot people in the arts. Savva used a great variety of materials and techniques. He used oil colours, water colours, ink and pencil. He made etchings and used mixed media to create appliques, reliefs, mosaics, sculptures with cement, metal, wire, pins etc. Merja gave me these two lovely maxi cards.

USA – White Pass and Yukon Route in Alaska

The White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&Y, WP&YR) (reporting mark WPY) is a Canadian and U.S. Class II narrow gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other railroad. Equipment, freight and passengers are ferried by ship through the Port of Skagway, and via road through a few of the stops along its route. The railroad is a subsidiary of Clublink and operated by the Pacific and Arctic Railway and Navigation Company (in Alaska), the British Columbia Yukon Railway Company (in British Columbia) and the British Yukon Railway Company, originally known as the British Yukon Mining, Trading and Transportation Company (in Yukon), which use the trade name White Pass and Yukon Route.

Also operational, a few times a year, is an original steam-powered rotary snowplow, an essential device in the line's commercial service days. (The rotaries were retired in 1964, along with the remaining steam engines that pushed them, and snow clearing was done by caterpillar tractor.) While it is not needed as the tourist season is only in the summer months, it is a spectacle in operation, and the White Pass runs the steam plow for railfan groups once or twice a winter, pushed by two diesel locomotives (in 2000 only, it was pushed by two steam locomotives, #73 and #40). This card was sent to me by Eugenia.

Poland - Gdansk

Gdańsk , also known as Danzig, its German name, is a city in Poland on the Baltic Sea. It is the capital of Pomerania. Gdańsk with nearby Sopot and Gdynia are often referred as Tri-city (pl: Trójmiasto). Gdańsk is considered the most beautiful city on Baltic Sea having rich and magnificent architecture. Its position on the Baltic has historically made Gdańsk one of the most important port cities in Northern Europe, and tragically also the scene of a rather disturbing past. World War II was ignited by a dispute over the control of the city. By the end of the war the city lay almost completely in ruins. The German population was expelled and replaced by Poles as the city came under Polish rule and changed its name to Gdańsk. However, the impact of its former German ties is still evident. Although most of the old buildings were damaged or destroyed in WWII, they have been painstakingly restored or rebuilt. This lovely card was sent to me by Kasia.

In modern history, Gdańsk is known as the birthplace of Solidarity, the labor and democracy movement that helped to bring down the Communist government in Poland, and subsequently marked the beginning of the end of The cold war. The charismatic leader, Lech Walesa, who became Poland’s first post-Communist president, led the movement.

Do not be fooled by the fact that Gdańsk is famous for its shipyards, as it is a beautiful city with a charm of its own.

UK - Souter Lighthouse and The Leas

Souter is an iconic cliff top beacon, offering a great family-friendly visit. When opened in 1871, it was a technological marvel, being the first lighthouse built to use electricity. Decommissioned in 1988, the machinery remains in working order today. To the north, The Leas has two and a half miles of beach, cliff and grassland with soaring seabirds and, to the south, Whitburn Coastal Park provides walks and family trails. This year the spectacular glass optic from nearby Coquet Island Lighthouse is on display in Souter's Engine Room – offering a unique chance to see inside and outside of this vital machinery. Maria sent me this card.

Cyprus - Spaceship Giotto

The Giotto mission was designed to study Comet Halley, and also studied Comet Grigg-Skjellerup during its extended mission. The major objectives of the mission were to: (1) obtain colour photographs of the nucleus; (2) determine the elemental and isotopic composition of volatile components in the cometary coma, particularly parent molecules; (3) characterize the physical and chemical processes that occur in the cometary atmosphere and ionosphere; (4) determine the elemental and isotopic composition of dust particles; (5) measure the total gas-production rate and dust flux and size/mass distribution and derive the dust-to-gas ratio; and, (6) investigate the macroscopic systems of plasma flows resulting from the cometary-solar wind interaction. The European spaceship “Giotto” was launched from French Guiana on July 2^nd 1985 and met with Halley’s Comet on March 14, 1986.

The 18c stamp depicts the European spaceship "Giotto" launched by an Ariane rocket fro the Kourou launching site in the French Guiana on July 2, 1985. Its objective was to study Halley's comet, which it met on March 14, 1986 at a distance of 375 miles. Giotto's sensory instruments sent back to Earth a lot of information about the comet. Merja sent me this FDC. Merja sent me this interesting maxim card.