A big Thank you to you all ....

NO I am not stopping my blog

but I am going to be so busy this week and maybe the

following week , returning to work after being

after being away over two weeks.

I really might not have time to blog.

 

 

I have so much to show still , more of France and even

Italy that I visited last year. And now Austria.

And more Postcards..♥

 

These are from me to you for all your support and lovely comments.

 

Thank You.

 

 

I would just like to say

 

 

Thank you to you all

for your support

 

Really means I lot.

 

 

I might have time to do a post this week , I might surprise you!

ENJOY 

 

YOUR

 

FLOWERS

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥



A trip to Bourdeilles - France .. Dreaming of France

This was a difficult post as for a start I had no idea where it was. I knew it was in France , I knew I was with Diane and Nigel but because my computer decided to rearrange all my photos out of their folders I had to sort them out.

It was this little plaque that helped me!!

After a long time researching I found out that he or she was an author.

I have searched and searched and unlike me I cannot find out any info except
that whoever he/she was they wrote books about Bourdeilles.

Must be in the name -- VERY SECRET!!!

JEAN SECRET

 

The castle of Bourdeilles was firstly a medieval castle, in the end of the 13th, then a Renaissance palace of XVI century, housing an impressive collection of nearly 700 items of antique furnishings. The fortress remained French until 1360 when the treaty of Brétigny ceded the Périgord to the English. - See more at: http://en.infotourisme.net/monument/bourdeilles/4936/chateau-de-bourdeilles#sthash.v8wfAQjE.dpuf

Chateau de Bourdeilles...





 

I think this Chateau is two different designs or there are two!

 

I am sure Nigel will be able to help me out on this one . 

Le Jardin du Presbytere

 



 

I hope you all have a super week . I am off on a trip to Austria

with my Formula 1 friends. I still have to blog about my last trip ..

Italy in September 2014.  Lots to keep me going .

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥



 



Le Jardin du Presbytere

 

Postcard from Penrith .....

As most of you know I am a

Formula 1 fan and go on trips

with my friend Linda.

 

I go with a company called Select Motor Racing and

they are brilliant, so well looked after and great fun.

 

Well since my first trip two years ago

I have become friends on Facebook with a few

of the  SMR "family" some I have not met

and Wendy is one of them.

 

Hopefully going to meet up with her

this year sometime.

 

Wendy sent me a lovely card from Penrith. I have never

been there, passed through on the train ..  

 



 Here we have the Clock Tower, The Castle , St Andrew's Church

and the The Giant's Thumb ..

 

The "Thumb" is in St Andrew's Churchyard. Please click on the link to

find out more.  I googled it and found out the alternative name is

Giant's Grave .

 

A church has stood on this site since 1133, and the present church was built in 1720,

 designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor, a pupil of Christopher Wren,

and modelled on St Andrew’s Holborn.

 

  The Victorian Clock Tower erected in 1861, is

   known as the 'Musgrave Monument' and

commemorates the death of Philip Musgrave of Eden Hall.

 

Big Thank you to Wendy ..

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

 

 

An Old Sign in France ...

When I was on my trip 1 year ago

with Diane and Nigel

we did a lot of sightseeing ..

and as you know in France you

can see so many different things.

 

And one is the old signs .

 

We came across this sign . (wonder if Diane remembers)

 

Diane has a few blogs , here is a link to her PhotoDiary.

 

 

BYRRH  is an aromatised wine-based apéritif made of red wine, mistelle, and quinine. Created in 1866, it was popular as a French apéritif.

 

With its marketing and reputation as a "hygienic drink", Byrrh sold well in the early 20th century. It was even exported, despite the similarity of its name to "beer", complicating sales in English- and German-language speaking regions

 

Brothers Pallade and Simon Violet, drapers from Thuir (France), decided to take advantage of the wine fever in the region to develop an apéritif wine flavored with cinchona. They mixed dry wines and mistelles and initially marketed the resulting product as a health drink or tonic. This was because the local apéritif producers were displeased about competition with their established brands.

 

Rebranding the brothers' aperitif as a health drink got around this problem, and Byrrh was sold in pharmacies

 

Interesting as I was doing my google search

I came across a sign just like the above  

 being  sold on Etsy..!! (click on link)

and an interesting

post HERE using Byrrh in a cocktail.

 

Enjoy if you do make a Cocktail !!

 

♥♥♥♥♥

 

 

 

Tulips from Amsterdam or is it a Postcard?

My great friend Diane and her husband Nigel

went off on their travels again .

Taking in Amsterdam amongst other places. 

 

They went to quite a few different towns , go and have a read!!!
They saw interesting places.

 

 

 Here we have  the intersection of the

 Brouwersgracht and Herengracht canals in Amsterdam.

 

 

Brouwersgracht is part of the canal belt connecting the Singel, Herengracht, Keizergracht and Prinsengracht and marks the northern border of the canal belt. 

 

The canal served as a site for ships returning from Asia with spices and silks, and  Brouwersgracht had many warehouses and storage depots for the ships inventories. Breweries were also prevalent in the area due to the access to fresh water shipments. Today the warehouses are now apartments, some of the most expensive in Amsterdam.,

Herengracht  is the first of the three major canals in the city centre of Amsterdam, and is named after the heren regeerders who governed the city in the 16th and 17th century. The most fashionable part is called the Golden Bend, with many double wide mansions, inner gardens and coach houses on Keizersgracht. Samuel Sarphati (1813-1868) lived at the house at number 598 and Peter the Great stayed at the house at number 527 during his second visit to Amsterdam.

 

Thank you Diane , looks like you and  Nigel had a great trip.

 

♥ ♥ ♥

 

 

Anyone been to Sodermalm Heights - Stockholm ... ?

My lovely friend Krissa

who lives in Singapore has just been

on business and I received a card too!

 

 She thought of me when she

was doing a little bit of sightseeing. Thank you ♥

 

Krissa's blog is

 

 Connections to the World

(Postcards (and stamps!) collection )

Very interesting , a great read.

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

 

Sodermalm is an island that forms the southern district of central Stockholm and

 until the early 17th century  was mainly a rural, agricultural area.

The first urban areas were planned and built in the mid 17th century.

 

  Sodermalm is also often referred to as "Soders hojder", the Heights of 'Soder', which reflects its domain  of sheer cliffs and rocky hills.

 

 

 In the 18th century, the working class cottages that clung to Mariaberget, the steep cliffs facing Riddarfjarden, were replaced by the large buildings
 that are there to the present day.
 

   Today parts of Södermalm have rural feeling to them. . This area was mainly known as working class and  renowned for its poverty and regarded as a slum.

 

 While there has been a romantic air about Sodermalm for

many decades, its slow ascendancy towards a

better reputation began as late as in the 1970s or 80s.

 

Today it is considered a fashionable place to live or to go to, and it boasts prominent shopping districts and a wide range of cafés, restaurants and bars.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

 

And for all you readers out there ...

 

"One of the literary phenomenons of recent years is the Millennium Trilogy by Steig Larsson, better known by their individual titles: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest.

Stockholm provided the backdrop for these compelling thrillers, so it’s no surprise that fans are flocking to experience the city for themselves, and in particular, visit the places featured in the books.  And now thanks to an exciting new walking tour, you can step into the shadowy world of investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist, and anti-hero Lisbeth Salander. You get to see many of the locations, including Blomkvist’s apartment, the editorial offices of ‘Millennium Magazine,’ and the bars frequented by Salander. You’ll even pass the café where Steig Larsson would tap away at his laptop, authoring the novels that would go on to sell millions of copies around the world, and even become hit feature films."

 

The above information was taken from a website P &O Cruises... !!

 

 

 



Japan came to me through the post ..

All thanks to

lovely Gaynor.

BIG THANK YOU GAYNOR..

 

Such a wonderful surprise as I didn't even know

she had my address ...

 

Gaynor of

 

La Petite-presse

 

went to Japan with her husband to visit

 their son who is working out there ..

and by her posts and photographs

they had a wonderful interesting time.

 

Please read her blog to find out more.. you will enjoy.

When I found this on my door mat I was surprised as I wondered who it was from ..
Did I know anyone going to Japan who had my address? Turns out I did !!


A beautiful envelope , we need more like this..

 

Inside was a lovely handwritten card .. not just any card though ..!!

 

This postcard is made from Senbazuru, a string of a thousand paper cranes, which is folded with a prayer of peace. A part of the proceeds collected will be donated to Peace Promotion Division in Hiroshima City.

 

There is so much to tell about Senbazuru, cannot possibly tell you all , so here is a LINK

 

also inside were two fabulous watercolour cards ..

Sakura or as we know it Cherry Blossom. I know that quite a few of us
have been posting photos of blossom seen in your towns and villages..

and here we have

Sakurajima - The active volcano.

The volcano is about 10 miles from her son (she says no danger) as sea is between them.

Sakurajima . "Cherry Island") is an active composite volcano (stratovolcano)
 and a former island in Kagoshima Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan.^[1] The lava flows of the 1914 eruption caused the former island to be connected with the Osumi Peninsula.^[2]

 

 

 I have included lots of links to this post as it is all so interesting.
Hope you hop over to Gaynor's blog and have look and maybe leave a comment.

Happy Reading ..

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥



Another beautiful postcard from Singapore

Big Thank You to Krissa ..

 

who I can say has started to blog again !! ♥

 

 

Her blog is

 

Connections to the World

 

All about Postcards and Stamps.

 

She has a fabulous collection. We have become friends because of our

hobby - Postcard Collecting and our love of the world. I would love you to have

a read and maybe leave a comment.

 

Would be good if you could tell her how you found her blog too!

 

 

 

Gardens by the Bay

Singapore

(Click on link above if you would like to know lots more info)

 

I would love to go back to Singapore , not been though for about 48 years , when I lived there as

as child. I know it has changed hugely. Now I have an idea , Formula 1 Grand Prix.. if only I could afford to go.. Maybe. !!

 

Krissa now lives there after moving from the Philippines for work.



Gardens by the Bay is a park spanning 101 hectares  of reclaimed land^[1] in central Singapore, adjacent to the Marina Reservoir. The park consists of three waterfront gardens: Bay South Garden, Bay East Garden and Bay Central Garden.The largest of the three gardens is Bay South Garden, standing at 54 hectares.

Gardens by the Bay is an integral part of a strategy by the Singapore government to transform Singapore from a "Garden City" to a "City in a Garden". The stated aim is to raise the quality of life by enhancing greenery and flora in the city.

A beautiful stamp too !!

 

Thank you so much Krissa , I hope you get more visitors to your blog ♥

 



Postcards from One side of the world to the other. Big thank you to you all. ♥

View Larger Map



(Click on the link View Larger Map)



The first one is from my wonderful eldest grandson Aidan, Age 11.

 

He lives in Scotland and went on a trip with the school

to Dundee to have a tour of the RSS Discovery . 

He said he  thought of me when he went on the boat! ♥

 



RSS Discovery

RRS Discovery was the last traditional wooden three-masted ship to be built in Britain. Designed for Antarctic research, she was launched as a Royal Research Ship (RRS) in 1901. Her first mission was the British National Antarctic Expedition, carrying Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first, successful journey to the Antarctic, known as the Discovery Expedition. She is now the centrepiece of visitor attraction in her home, Dundee.

 

 

Next I can thank my lovely friend Diane and Nigel

who went to stay at this fabulous looking

Chateau for a few days.

 

 

 Looks a great place to take a break ♥

I am sure you had a wonderful time.

Thank you for sharing and thinking of me.

 

 

Avanton is a commune in the Vienne department

in the Poitou-Charentes region in western France.

 

 

Miles and Miles away from either the above is Malaysia.

 

A lovely lady named Krissa , who comes from the Phillipines but now lives

in Singapore , was on a business trip to Malaysia last week and she thought of me!

I really would of loved to have been there as this weekend is the Malaysian Grand Prix ..

 One day.

 

Krissa used to blog but alas no more.. I think she should blog about Singapore :-)

 

Thank you Krissa.



 

and

 

THEN

 

Australia

 

from the lovely Jackie

 

who is still on her fabulous trip and blogging nearly everyday ....!!!

 

 

How does she do it???? Well done Jackie.

Oodnadatta, in the Australian state of South Australia, is a small town surrounded by an area of 7,800 square kilometres (3,000 sq mi) with cattle stations in arid pastoral rangelands close to the Simpson Desert, 1,011 km (628 mi) north of Adelaide and 112 m above sea level. It can be reached by an unsealed road from Coober Pedy or via the unsealed Oodnadatta Track from Marree to Marla or from the north via Finke, Northern Territory ("Old Ghan Heritage Trail"). The name is derived from Arrernte utnadata, meaning "mulga blossom".

 

 The link for Coober Pedy is a link to Jackie's blog and her trip to Coober Pedy!!
 

 

BIG THANK YOU TO YOU ALL ♥



My collection just keeps growing .......

A big thank you to

 

Jackie (and John)

 

of

 

JUNK BOAT TRAVELS

 

 who are  on an

amazing trip.

 

" December 2014 we drove to Las Vegas and stayed until December 28 2015. We then headed to LAX for a flight to Singapore. From there we will go to Bangkok and then to Cambodia where we will take a Mekong River Cruise and on February 25 we will head to Australia and New Zealand for 33 days" .

 

Quote taken from Jackie's blog.

 

 

I have 3 fab postcards to show you .....

 

Panoramic Landscape of Singapore...

 

How wonderful it looks. Maybe one day I will visit.

 

 Not many of you know that I used to live in Singapore

when I was a child.  We went there for 3 years when my dad was in the Royal Air Force..

I know it would of changed immensely.

 

Jackie describes it as "Cosmopolitan , Vibrant and fun .. But so EXPENSIVE!!

 

I would love to do the Formula 1 Grand Prix trip . It would be amazing as it is a Night race.!!

 

 

 

Greetings from Thailand ...

 

"This has to be the most amazing place to visit says Jackie"

 

Wehart Chamrun Residential Hall,

Bang Pa-in, Ayutthaya.

 

I cannot tell you  much about this place 

but I did find a very interesting snippet.

 

 

The Death of Queen Sunanda In 1881, Queen Sunanda Kumariratana and her only daughter Princess Karnabhorn Bejraratana were on their way to the Bang Pa-In Palace when the royal barge carrying them capsized. According to Thai law at the time, touching a royal was punishable by death, so onlookers looked on helplessly as they drowned - and were instructed to do so by a guardian on another boat. King Chulalongkorn, shocked by the events, demoted and jailed the vizier who obeyed the letter of the law at such cost and erected a memorial to her in Bang Pa-In.

 

(Taken from the site Bang Pa-In travel guide)

 

 

 

And then the amazing,

 colourful and interesting scenes from the

Markets of Vietnam !

 

 

 Please go and have a read of Jackie's blog and catch up with her trips.

I can guarantee you will be reading for a while !

 

They are in Australia now !!!

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥