Jersey stamps: Europa CEPT and fauna

I ordered some beautiful Jersey stamps for my stamp collection:
Europa 2017 - Castles, issued on 2.3.2017.Europa 2018 - Bridges, issued on 9.3.2018.

This extraordinary fauna set is 25 Years of Darwin Initiative, issued on 14.6.2017.

And this mini sheet is Links with China, issued on 22.9.2016.

Matryoshka dolls from Russia

I arranged these cards with matryoshka dolls as a surprise for my Nina. Cards are really nice. They were sent in cover with beautiful souvenir sheet. You can see prepared cover on picture bellow.

This is photo proof received from sender. But look bellow what we received.

You can see part of postmark and that's all. You can't see from this picture, but sheet is torn from cover. This cover was indeed surprise. Sender later sent me this sheet again, but inside cover. I'll show this sheet later in another post.


Thank you Ekaterina!

Flags of the World Series: Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around 4.9 million, in a land area of 51,060 square kilometers.

Costa Rica was sparsely inhabited by indigenous peoples before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century. It remained a peripheral colony of the empire until independence as part of the short-lived First Mexican Empire, followed by membership in the United Provinces of Central America, from which it formally declared independence in 1847. Since then, Costa Rica has remained among the most stable, prosperous, and progressive nations in Latin America. Following the brief Costa Rican Civil War, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army.

Beautiful stamps and cancellation from Costa Rica as always:
Musical Instruments from Guanacaste (from set of two), issued on 25.7.2007.
UPAEP - Tourism (whole set), issued on 27.9.2017.


Thank you Randall!

Northern Cyprus: Bellapais Abbey

Bellapais Abbey, or The Abbey of Beautiful Peace is the ruin of a monastery built by Canons Regular in the 13th century on the northern side of the small village of Bellapais, now in Turkish-controlled Northern Cyprus, about five kilometers from the town of Kyrenia. The ruin is at an altitude of 220m above sea level, and commands a long view down to Kyrenia and the Mediterranean sea. The site is also a museum, which hosts a restaurant and a cafe. The Abbey's refectory now serves as a venue for concerts and lectures.

Stamp on postcard is from set Europa CEPT 2017 Castles, issued on 11.5.2017.


Thank you Muhammet!

Armenia: Haghpat monastery

Haghpat Monastery is a medieval monastery complex in Haghpat, Armenia. The monastery was founded by Queen Khosrovanuysh, wife of the Bagratid king Ashot III, probably in 976. The largest church in the complex, the Cathedral of Surb Nishan, probably begun in 976, was completed in 991 by king Smbat. A fresco in the apse depicts Christ Pantocrator. Its donor, the Armenian Prince Khutulukhaga, is depicted in the south transept. The sons of the church's founder, Princes Smbat and Kurike, are shown with Queen Khosravanuysh in a bas-relief on the east gable. Apart from one or two minor restorations carried out in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the church has retained its original character. The monastery at Haghpat is chosen as UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps used for this postcards are from set Armenian alphabet, issued on 22.4.2014.


Thank you Ritzval!

Cover from French military base in Central African Republic

I received cover from Central African Republic, but not sent through CAR postal system. This cover is sent from French military base in CAR. It looks like regular French cover, but if you look at cancellations, you can see unique postal code 0200 HUB ARMEES, reserved for French Army abroad. Code 0200 HUB ARMEES is reserved for land and air units, code 0100 is for vessels, etc.

Thank you Wolfgang for this rare gem!

Cover and stamps from USA

I received another beautiful cover from USA. This is one little bit ruined by Serbian customs. I don't know why these idiots needs to open cover from 3 sides and then place ugly tape across stamps. In top middle you can see one nice personalized stamp. Other stamps are:

Global Ocean Surface Temperatures, issued on 22.4.2014.
Year of the Dog 2018, issued on 11.1.2018.
Harley-Davidson 1965 (from set American Motorcycles), issued on 7.8.2006.
American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), issued on 12.6.1971.
Forget-Me-Not - Help Find Missing Children, issued on 18.5.2015.
Wonder Woman (from set of four), issued on 7.10.2016.
Alzheimer's Disease, issued on 30.11.2017.
Love Flourishes, issued on 18.1.2018.
P.S. Write Soon (from set National Letter Writing Week), issued on 25.2.1980.
Watermelons (from set Summer Harvest), issued on 11.7.2015.
The History of Hockey - Joint Issue with Canada (from set of two), issued on 20.10.2017.
Uncle Sam's Hat, issued on 16.2.2017.
National Museum of African American History and Culture, issued on 13.10.2017.

Inside was many nice surprises, and this one biggest of all, complete sheet Year of the Dog 2018, issued on 11.1.2018.

There is also First day cover Year of the Dog 2018.

There is also Year of the Dog, but from 1994!

 This fantastic complete set is American Motorcycles, issued on 7.8.2006. Four fantastic beauties!

Stamps dedicated to fight with Alzheimer's Disease, issued on 30.11.2017.

 Love Flourishes, issued on 18.1.2018.

 Stamps from set National Letter Writing Week, issued on 25.2.1980.

 And for the end, five definitive stamps with five different fruits, one of my favorite topics!

Red pears, issued on 17.1.2016.
Grapes, issued on 19.2.2016.
Strawberries, issued on 5.5.2017.
Lemons, issued on 19.1.2018.
Apples, issued on 12.8.2016.


Thank you very much Charlotte!

My stamp order from Portugal

When Portuguese post issued Star Wars stamps, I decided it's time to make my first order from this beautiful country. This beautiful sheet with 3 stamps and 6 individual stamps are dedicated to The 40th Anniversary of Star Wars, and it's issued on 25.8.2017. Sheet is dedicated to the original trilogy (now Episodes IV, V and VI), and individual stamps celebrate most memorable characters from franchise.

Beautiful design and coloring for legendary characters: Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Darth Vader and Yoda. 

I also bought Europa (C.E.P.T.) - Children's Books, issued on 7.5.2010. Fantastic design!

Portugal also have separate issues for their island territories, Madeira and Azores, and it's also issued on 7.5.2010.

This is Europa (C.E.P.T.) - Astronomy, issues for Portugal, Azores and Madeira. Release date was 8.5.2009.

I also bought this 3 joint issues:
Joint issue with Iraq - Birds of Prey, 21.9.2009.

Joint issue with Turkey - Porcelain, 12.5.2009.

Joint issue with India - Folklore/Dance, 7.1.2017.

And for the end, this is one of rare posts which sends philatelic material in cover with stamps! This is so rare today, unfortunately. They used two different stamps: Christmas, (10.9.2013), and famous Portuguese tiles rewarded with Aga Khan Award for Architecture (6.9.2013.)