built to last

from Slovakia, St Elizabeth Cathedral, the largest church in Slovakia.  Originally built in the 11th C, it was consecrated to St Elizabeth of Hungary around 1240.  As might be expected for a building so old, and so important, it has undergone numerous reconstruction phases which wikipedia outlines here

from Thailand, Wat Chaiwatthanaram, the Temple of Long Reign and Glorious Era,  It was constructed in 1630 by the king Prasat Thong.  The central 35 metre prang (spire) symbolizes the mountain Meru believed to be the core of the universe.

from Norway, an old wooden church known as a stave church.  Fewer than 30 of these medieval churches survive, and all are in Norway.

youth games

 

the shadows accentuate the sense of movement in these youth athletes

some illustrations for Sunday Stamps

houses

 An Edward Hopper house, alone in a bleak landscape

A bed and breakfast house in Cantabria, Spain

A bed and breakfast house in Ontario, Canada

some houses where you may want to stay for Thursday Postcard Hunt

on the st lawrence river

 

sailing a rowboat

 

dangerous, weird, and beautiful

 

the world's most dangerous bird, a southern cassowary

 

 

followed by the world's most bizarre animal, the duck billed platypus

maybe a trip to sunny Spain would be more up your alley

something blue for Sunday Stamps

i heart fish

 

CATURDAY

free public libraries

 A Tudor Revival style Carnegie library built in 1904

A Classical Revival style Carnegie library built in 1906. It was praised by the local newspaper for its "tasteful simplicity"

Most Carnegie Libraries have a distinct style with variations, making them immediately identifiable in any small town. Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie would give grants to build a library to almost any town that requested and agreed to conditions.

Vancouver had a Carnegie library but after a couple of moves for newer and bigger locations, in 1995, a Roman Revival* library was built to resemble the current day Colosseum.

*not a real term, I made it up

some free public buildings for Thursday Postcard Hunt

calligraphy

 

the comic font of NIPPON suits the comic design of this stamp

I'm not sure about this attempt to join the letters of GRENADA

and my favourite country for calligraphy on stamps CZECHOSLOVAKIA
 

 

some fancy writing for Sunday Stamps

year of the dragon

Tomorrow begins The Lunar New Year. It will be the year 4722

windmills

 

the Old Mill in Whitstable

below, somewhere in Netherlands

Zaanse Schans holds a special place for me as I lived near there and used to ride my bike through the area.

some windmills from Kent and North Holland for Thursday Postcard Hunt

sandbar lighthouse

 

The 34' cast iron Pelican Point Lighthouse at Walvis Bay, Namibia.  It sits on a sandbar that keeps growing.  Once located at the edge of the peninsula, it is now 2 km inland.  Beside the lighthouse is a tourist lodge.  When this was built, Namibia was part of South Africa.

a lighthouse for Sunday Stamps

loving kindnesses

 

CATURDAY

groundhog day

 

our local groundhog prognosticator is known as Wiarton Willie

the art of the lighthouse

from Germany

from Finland

from Taiwan

from USA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 from Belarus

 

some illustrated lighthouses from around the world for Thursday Postcard Hunt