Ready for the Winter?

 

'A smurfy beginning is half the battle'

Sent by Melissa (the Netherlands).

'Happiness is when your soul
stops asking for it doesn't have
and starts enjoying the things it has'

Sent by Olga (Russia).

Sent by Phillip (the USA).

European Capitals (Postcrossing)

Vienna (Austria)

I got this postcard from Vienna last November, through the Postcrossing site. I like to read postcrossers profiles and know about their preferences. Sometimes people are quite specific, and funny. There are also some people who are not, but they ask for postcards like "a view from the capital city of your country". 

Browsing among my received postcards, I have found that getting postcards from the capital cities is not as common as you might think. Maybe is just that I do not ask for them. But these are almost all the European capitals I have got as Postcrossing postcards.

I think it is curious that I have never received postcards featuring Berlin, Lisboa, Madrid...

Zagreb (Croatia)

Tallinn (Estonia)

Helsinki (Finland)

Rome (Italy)

Riga (Latvia)

Vilnius (Lithuania)

Amsterdam (the Netherlands)

Warsaw (Poland)

Bratislava (Slovakia)

Confusing Halloween

And a postcard I got from Heleen soon after Halloween 2022. Sent from Belgium, although the meet-up was in the Netherlands:

And another one from a meet-up in Belgium... But the postcard travelled first to the Netherlands, then to my country!

This one came with a wonderful (favourite!) stamp on the back:

Medieval Matters

I sent a letter on this reused envelope, slightly decorated, to Laura (the UK). Of course, you cannot tell by the cover (the stamp is a hint), but all it contained were medieval matters. 

So, the reply in the form of the postcard below was most appropriated!

King David, enthroned, with his musicians
The Vespasian Psalter
second quarter of the 8th century

Hope Your Birthday Is a Splash

 Two beautiful birthday cards with mermaids, received the same day (months ago). 

Today's the 12th birthday of Mail Adventures so... Thanks for reading!

 And more birthday cards...

On this occasion I will give you good advice...

Don't worry! (Also meaning: Don't hit yourself!)
Happy Birthday!

Three Stamps from Germany

Three favourite stamps from Germany arrived the same day last week. How lucky am I?

Surprise!

Letter sent to Heleen (the Netherlands).

Every Letter Is a Party

Letter sent from Alan (the UK).

It turns out that this stamp, which I had never seen, was voted the worst of 1999 (?!). What do you think? Do you have a least favourite stamp ever?

HitM | Smurfhouse

No collection of houses would be complete without a Smurfhouse! Heleen (the Netherlands) painted this one on the back of a Smurfs packaging. 

Also, you can read the name of the Smurfs in different languages: 

-English: The Smurfs

-French: Les Schtroumpfs

-Spanish: Los Pitufos

-German: Die Schlümpfe

-Dutch: De Smurfen

-Portuguese: Os Smurfs

-Italian: I Puffi

In my language, Catalan, they are Els Barrufets (although when I was a child I had to read the comics in Spanish).

The Smurfhouse arrived inside of a plastic bag, protecting it. So the letter it contained inside a concealed pouch arrived safe and sound!

Smurfcookies

I received a box of Smurfcookies as part of a wonderful birthday present. Of course, the design was too nice to just throw it away, so I added some stickers and tape, and made and envelope for Fabienne (France). I believe that all the Smurfs arrived safe and sound!

Sunday Stamps | S for Smurfs

Letter S of Sunday Stamps gives me the chance to show the stamps of my favourite comic characters: Smurfs!

Belgium has featured Smurfs on stamps often. I recently got these, issued on 29 January 2018, for the 60th anniversary of the blue little fellows.

And I had got, years ago, one of the 7 stamps issued in 2008 for their 50th anniversary.

And also from the UN:

Hands Up

One of the things I love about the Smurfs is that happiness seems to be natural to them. As on this envelope drawn by John (the UK). Don't tell me that this Smurf isn't a happy one!

I am amazed of the matching of the stamps John chose: the man, even the lion, are on the same position (so... happy?).

Now I realise that I had received another stamp from the same set:

HitM | The Willows

This drawing of John's house (I guess, because of the willows...) arrived a bit battered, also by the rain (snow?) and the customs agents. I think they opened the letter and were really surprised to find... two smurfs inside! :D

A different house on one of the stamps: the Felin Cochwillan Mill (Gwynedd). It belongs to the set Windmills and Watermills, issued on 20 June 2017.

Sunday Stamps | U(nited Nations)

I received these letters months ago, sent by Phillip through the United Nations postal system. Both sets of stamps promote the 17 Sustainable Development Goals adopted at the 2015 UN Summit.

The stamps above were issued on 24 October 2016, and sent from New York (the USA). You can see the whole set here. Have you noticed that pretty postmark?

The letter below arrived from Vienna. The Smurfs stamps were launched to celebrate the International Day of Happiness on 20 March 2017. They want "to encourage people to take action to protect the planet and promote a peaceful and just world", with the slogan Even a small Smurf can make a big difference! 

I am adding this post to Sunday Stamps-II, for the letter U.

A Letter Full of Smurfs!

Sent by Micu (Hungary). The postcard features a church in Třeboň, Czech Republic.