Channel Squadron Gate

Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus, stands in the centre of the island, on the Plain of the Mesorea, four hundred feet above the sea. It is connected with Larnaca by a carriage-road, which has recently been repaired and rendered available for an omnibus that piles daily between the fort and the capital. This road runs direct to the Channel Squadron Gate (so named by British blue-jackets when they took possession). The wall and gates are strongly built of stone, and are in good preservation, although traces of neglect and decay are to be met with everywhere around. The moslems, as a military people, have made languid and fitful attempts to keep the ramparts in repair, while within the walls they appear to have left nothing worth the cost of a siege. The air was tainted close to the gateway, for animals were being slaughtered in an enclosed space hard by. The poor, make-shift abodes in the immediate neighborhood are strangely at variance with relics of the ancient magnificence of Nicosia; and the motley crowd that now-a-days passes to and fro through the massive archway, would form a striking contrast to the chivalrous bands that followed in the train of the Lusignan Princes when the town became a royal residence. A writer of the fourteenth century states that the nobility of Cyprus were, at that time, the richest in the world. But they have passed away, and their wealth and fame are almost forgotten. What of their descendants? The writer heard a poor muleteer (a man of the fine physique and courtly bearing) boast that he was a descendant of one of the most noble families of Cyprus. Merja sent me this nice maxi card.

East Sea Ships

Latvia is a European state, which is situated on the coast of Baltic Sea. One of the three Baltic states, Latvia is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, Belarus on the south east, and the Baltic Sea on the west. The most famous travel spot is the capital Riga, a World Heritage Site. There are also many other great places to see, both urban and rural, such as Liepaja with its unique former secret military town of Karosta and a magnificent beach. Kuldiga with Europe’s widest waterfall and Cesis with its medieval castle ruins are also interesting. Tourists can also enjoy the wild beauty of Latvia's unspoilt seacoast, which is 500 km long and consists mainly of white, soft sandy beaches. Forests, which cover approximately a half of Latvia's territory, offer many nature trails and nature parks.

The stamp on this maxi card is one of a set of three which formed a set which was a Joint issue between Latvia and Lithuania Post, and was issued on May 10, 1997. My friend Merja sent me this extremely pretty maxi card. The ship shown on the card Battle-ship Das Wappen der Herzogin von Kurland (17th century). Shipbuilding flourished in the former Duchy of Kurland in present-day Latvia under Duke Jacob (1642-82). Ships were built at the Ventspils and Kuldiga shipyards, at first by German and Dutch, craftsmen invited by Duke Jacob, and later by local shipwrights. During Duke Jacob’s rule ships of all kinds of ships were built in Kurland, and not only for local needs but also for England, France, Spain and other countries. The biggest battle-ship built for Kurland itself, Das Wappen der Herzogin van Kurland was a four-decked three master armed with 72 naval guns and capable of holding 400 sailors and 100 soldiers. The ship was modelled after the English battleship Sovereign of the Seas.

Chief Buckskin Charley

Chief Sapiah was the leader of the Southern Ute tribe from 1880 until his death in 1936. He was born around 1840 in the Ute lands before settlements. He was recognized as Chief of the Mauche and Servero Bands and Principal Chief of the Capote. He succeeded Chief Ouray as the official treaty negotiator. He learned English and took the "white man's name" Charles Buck, but he was best known as Buckskin Charley. He led the rescue of women and children who were abducted during the Meeker massacre. In 1890, he was given the Rutherford Hayes Indian Peace Medal by President Benjamin Harrison. He rode with Geronimo in Theodore Roosevelt's 1905 Inaugural Parade. His son, Antonio Buck Sr., succeeded him as hereditary chief and became the first elected chairman of the Southern Ute tribe. Fred sent this wonderful card to me. Thank you Fred for the nice stamps on the card. They have an historical background too.

Dynamo Stadium (Minsk)

Dynamo Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Minsk, Belarus. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Dynamo Minsk. The stadium has a seating capacity for 40,000 people. Dynamo Stadium was constructed in 1934, but was destroyed during World War II and rebuilt in 1954. The stadium was one of the venues of the football tournament at the 1980 Summer Olympics and was used as the home venue of BATE Borisov for the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League group stage and 2011–12 UEFA Champions League play-off round. Kseniya sent this card to me.

Torronsuo National Park

Torronsuo National Park is a national park in the Tavastia Proper region of Finland. Even before its declaration as a national park in 1990, the near-natural state swamp area was a protected area. Its area is 25.5 square kilometres (9.85 sq mi). Tammela is a municipality of Finland. The first mention of a village named Tammela was in documents from 1423. It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Tavastia Proper region. The municipality has a population of 6,559 (31 January 2012) and it covers an area of 715.12 square kilometres (276.11 sq mi) of which 74.72 square kilometres (28.85 sq mi) is inland water (2011-01-01). The population density is 10 inhabitants per square kilometre (26 /sq mi) (31 January 2012). The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Tammela is also a district in the city of Tampere.
The park area is a typical ombrotrophic raised bog – a thick turf layer with its middle part raising above its edges. The turf layer is one of the thickest measured among Finnish bogs, locally extending to 12 metres (39 ft). Torronsuo is valuable for its birdlife and butterfly species. Roughly a hundred species nest in the area. Part of the birds and insects are species that typically live in the northern areas, and they aren't seen much elsewhere in southern Finland. My friend Pia sent me this maxi card.

100 years of the incorporation of Floridsdorf into Vienna

This nice maximum card was sent to me by Daerden from Belgium. The card and the stamp on it were issued to commemorate 100 years of the incorporation of Floridsdorf into Vienna  Today's Floridsdorf, Vienna's 21st District, with an area of 44.46m2, stands on land cultivated and developed by early man. The discovery there of stone axes suggests that it was inhabited as early as the Neolithic Age (ca. 4000 to 2000 BC). Celts settled here around 500 BC and the whole settlement area to the north of the Danube, known to the Romans as "Transdanubia", was fought over first by Germanic tribes and later by other invading peoples such as the Lombards, Avars and the Slavs. The settlement was initially called "On the Peak" ("Am Spitz") and belonged to the seminary of Stift Klosterneuburg. In 1786, the prelate at that time, Floridus Leeb, gave 30 plots along the Schlosshofer road to settlers and it is from him that the area takes its present name "Floridsdorf". What began as a predominantly agricultural area rapidly grew and developed as a result of the Nordwestbahn railway, flourishing industries and the steam tramway, which opened in 1885. In 1894 its status was elevated to that of a town.
Throughout the ages Floridsdorf's survival depended on the Danube as an important trading route. At the same time the raging torrent with its countless tributaries and branches wreaked havoc each year with severe flooding. It was not until 1870-1875 that measures were taken to regulate the Danube. Between 1972 and 1988 the high water defences were again reinforced so that Floridsdorf, like the other districts which border on the Danube, has since been protected from flooding.

Machairas Monastery

This scenic card was sent to me by my dear friend Merja from Cyprus. Machairas is a historic monastery dedicated to the Virgin Mary located about 40 km from the capital of Cyprus, Nicosia. It lies at an altitude of about 900 m and was founded at the end of the 12th century close to the current village of Lazanias. The monastery is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and officially celebrates the feast of the Entrance of the Virgin Mary to the Temple (Eisodia) on the 21st of November.

Legend has it that an unknown hermit smuggled one of the 70 icons said to have been painted by Luke the Apostle secretly from Asia Minor to Cyprus. This icon of the Virgin Mary remained in its hiding place until the arrival of two other hermits from Palestine in 1145: Neophytos and Ignatius who stumbled across the icon in a cave. To reach it, they had to machete their way into the cave through the thick plant growth, so the icon assumed the name 'Machairotissa' in reference to the Greek word for knife (Makhaira). The whole monastery founded on this site takes its name from this icon.
Following the death of Neophytos, Ignatios travelled with Prokopios (another hermit) to Constantinople in the year 1172 where they succeeded in obtaining financial assistance from the then Byzantine emperor Manuel I Komnenos. The monastery was also granted ownership of the entire mountain on which it is now situated and the status of stavropegion (meaning it remained independent of the area bishopric). The initial monastery was then enlarged by the monk Neilos in the early 13th century. He became the first abbot of the monastery (later he even became bishop of Tamassos). The monastery received further grants from two other Byzantine emperors: Emperor Isaac II Angelos granted cash and land in Nicosia and Emperor Alexios III Angelos donated 24 serfs.