Painting by Inge Löök

A lovely painting by Inge Löök (real name Ingeborg Lievonen) gives a real Christmasy feeling to this card. Thank you Pia for this pretty card. 

Zaan Streek Museum at Zaandam

This lovely painting of a tall ship reproduced on this card is at the Zaan Streek Museum  at Zaandam. The card was sent to me by Marijie from Holland.

Zaandam is a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the main city of the municipality of Zaanstad, and received city rights in 1811. It is located on the Zaan, close to the North Sea Canal, and is close to Amsterdam. The statistical district Zaandam, which covers the city and the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 72.597. Zaandam was a separate municipality until 1974, when it became a part of the new municipality of Zaanstad.

Minsk Railway Station Square

Viktor from Minsk sent me this pretty card. The square was formed in the period 1947-1956, before the beginning of the 60s near the square stood a water tower. In the late 20th century, construction of a new railway station began at the square. And in the early 21st century the square had acquired a modern look.

Minsk Passazhirsky  is the main passenger rail terminal in Belarus. It is located in the centre of Minsk. It is sometimes called Minsk Ploshchad Lenina due to the metro station serving the terminal, or simply Minsk.

The station was built in 1873 as Vilenski vakzal, Vilnius station. The initial wooden building was demolished in 1890 and rebuilt in stone. During World War II Minsk railway station was completely destroyed. It was rebuilt in 1945-1946 and served until 1991. The new building of Minsk-Passazhyrski railway station was built in 1991-2002. Its construction was delayed due to financial difficulties. However now Minsk boasts one of the most modern and up-to-date railway stations in the CIS. There are plans to move all suburban rail traffic from Minsk-Passazhyrski to smaller stations Minsk-Uskhodni (East), Minsk-Paudnyovy (South) and Minsk-Paunochny (North) by 2020.

The two large buildings at the Station Square are centrally located and are characterised by the obvious Stalinist architecture .

Finnish Christmas Maxicards Spread the Holiday Spirit in new ways

On Monday, November 5, Posti issued Christmas stamps with two seasonal themes: Christmas tree and stable lantern. The maxicards shown have these two stamps.

The Christmas Tree stamp comes in a triangular sheet that doubles as an impressive Christmas decoration. Thanks to its special fold, the 20-stamp sheet stands upright like a miniature Christmas tree. Use it to get your desk in the holiday spirit – and to remind you to send your holiday greetings!  

The Stable Lantern stamp creates the peaceful mood of expectation that is the heart of the Christmas season. 

Nina Rintala designed the 2012 Christmas stamp. Nina is a graphic artist from Turku who has previously designed stamps for Itella, including the Church Sleigh Christmas stamp, which was recognized as the most beautiful stamp of 2002. In 2008, Rintala designed the world’s first transparent stamp, Frosty Night, for Itella.

Thank you Ella for these lovely cards.

Merry Christmas

This is the Season for Greetings and Good wishes. Thank you Ella for this pretty card with Museum street, the children near a Christmas tree and The Helsinki Cathedral in the background.

Helsinki Trams

The Helsinki tram network forms part of the Helsinki public transport system organised by Helsinki Regional Transport Authority and operated by Helsinki City Transport in the Finnish capital city of Helsinki. The trams are the main means of transport in the city centre. 54.9 million trips were made in 2009. The Helsinki system is one of the oldest electrified tram networks in the world.

Since 1999, new low-floor trams have been gradually brought into operation, but technical difficulties have slowed this progress. In 2004, Helsinki City Transport bought old eight-axle trams from Germany for relief during this transitional phase.

Thank you very much Ella for this attractive maxicard issued on 26.9.2012. The stamp is the personalized stamp of Helsinki Post Office.

Season's Greetings

Season's Greetings to all, especially to teddy bear lovers.