Greetings from Alabama

owls of Belarus

academy

Minsk.  The National Academy of Science

blue cats

artist: Irina Zeniuk

Sunday Stamps - E

1990, Germany

October 3rd is the Day of German Unity. This stamp celebrates the day the reunification was formally completed.

for the letter E - Einheit (Unity)

Casa Loma

Casa Loma Toronto
built between 1911 and 1914 by E.J. Lennox for Sir Henry Pellatt

V

V is for Victoria ... vegemite,
artist: Gavin Ryan
2016, Fair Dinkum Aussie Alphabet

sunshine

today the sun is rising for you
from Austria

pansy

Delta Premium Pure Light Blue

artist: Laurie Koss

Picturesque Bridge

The Zhivopisny Bridge, Moscow opened in 2007 and spans the Moskva River. 

Under the top of the arch is a dome that was origin ally meant to house a restaurant. 

This plan has since been abandonned

Jip en Janneke

Jip en Janneke, written by Annie M.G. Schmidt and illustrated by Fiep Westendorp

Sunday Stamps - D

1968, Singapore, Sword  Dance

Singapore is an island city state which gained independence from Britain in 1963 by joining Malaysia but later, in 1965, separated and formed its own state. For the first few years of independence, stamps in Singapore were interchangeable with Malaya. This sword dance stamp was in the first set of definitives issued in 1968. They were hand painted in photogravure and portrayed traditional dances of the three main ethnic groups.

D for Dance

sk8tr

Krtek - old school skater

happy birthday

Puss 'n Boots

Moscow Map

artist: Daria Gerasimova

cathedral and bell tower

The Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus, built in the centre of Vilnius, consecrated in 1793.

spreading his wings

Canada Goose
artist: Keith Martin

Sunday Stamps - C

2018, USA
illustrated by John Burgoyne

Meyer lemons are sweeter than true lemons with a taste that is said to have hints of mandarin orange and lime. The fruit tree was originally ornamental both in China and in the US where it was transported by Frank Meyer, an agricultural explorer, who was responsible for collecting new plant species for the US Dept. of Agriculture. How these fruits moved from ornamental to culinary is unclear.
The peak season begins in November and runs to late March ... so get yours now.
Peak season for these definitive stamps will be when postage increases.

for the letter C - citrus / citrus meyeri

the former yugoslavia

received froom Ana! 2019
Macedonia

VW

Russian Beauty

stormy sea

Sea rescue vessel
Bengstkar Lighthouse
stamp design: Asser Jaaro

Amsterdam

received 2019

meet up

Tews Falls, Tiffany Falls, Ancaster Old Town Hall,

Darnley Cascade, Tim Hortons Field,

Sunday Stamps - B

1964, Jamaica

This swallowtail is the largest butterfly in the Western hemisphere with a wingspan of up to 6".  It is now considered critically endangered with only two remaining populations each with a range of 10 sq km. It also features on four other stamps as well as the Jamaican $1000 bill (worth approx £5.90, €6.80. S7.80)

for the letter B - butterfly

les chats

received from The Netherlands

rooftops

received from Hong Kong,

Guac

USA received 2018

Lower Town

sent 2019

aphabet

 

received from Russia, 2019

A    B    V    G    D

YE    YO    ZH    Z    E

Y    K    L    M    N

O    P    R    S    T

U    F    H    TS    CH

SH (hard)    SH (soft)    hard sign    I    soft sign

E    YU    YA

Sunday Stamps - A

The front of the stamp booklet and the First Day Cover for Black History Month 2019

Stamp illustrated by Ron Dollecamp and designed by Andrew Perro

Albert Jackson is shown here wearing a circa 1890 uniform as he delivers mail on his route.

He is thought to have been the first Black letter carrier in Canada in 1882. Born into slavery in the US, he was brought to Canada via the Underground Railroad as an infant.  His position as a letter carrier was threatened when his [white] co-workers refused to train him and he was pushed into a porter's position.. When word spread about the way he was treated, political pressure, especially from the Black community, and intervention from the Prime Minister had him reinstated as a carrier delivering his route in Harbord Village, where a laneway has been named in his honour.

for the letter A - Albert Jackson

Le Petit Minou

received 2018
Le Petit Minou, Lighthouse

just looking around

sent, 2018
Harp Seal

year of the pig

received from Taiwan, 2019
Year of the Pig

This Year of the Pig ends a 60 year cycle in the Chinese calendar.  2019 brings Ji Hai - the Yin Earth Pig.

Sunday Stamps - Z

1981 Zambia, musical instruments

On the left is a kankobele - a keyboard, on the right is an inshingili - a double headed drum

for the letter Z - Zambia

Sunday Stamps - Y

1970, Yugoslavia, Europa

This Europa stamp design of a sun woven with 24 stands which represented the 24 CEPT member countries was designed by Irish artist Louis Le Brocquy

for the letter Y - Yugoslavia

leave a link to your Y in the comments

Sunday Stamps - X

1981, Mexico, Fauna of Mexico
designer: Cesar Rojas

This colourful bird is a Trogon mexicanus, or Mountain Trogon. Its name comes from the Greek trogon which means gnawing or nibbling. This may be a reference to their tendency to gnaw into rotted trees to make their nests. The Mexicanus comes from the first place where it was collected for study. I'm sure it is just a coincidence that its primary colours are also the colours of the Mexican flag. They are also found in Guatemala and Honduras. 

for the letter X - Mexico

the link up 'inlinkz' has made things so overly complicated that I have no idea how it works...
am trying 'Simply Linked' again.
If neither of these work, we may have to resort to linking in the comments section.

Sunday Stamps - W

1972 West Germany
 designer: Werner Hans Schmidt

For the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, this set comprises track, field hockey, archery, and sailing.

for the letter W - West Germany, Werner Hans Schmidt

Sunday Stamps - V

2015, Vatican City

Issued for the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Vatican Observatory in Castel Gandolfo.  As "smoke and sky glow" encroached on Rome, Pope Pius XI, shown here, moved the observatory 25 miles southeast of the city.

for the letter V - Vatican City

Sunday Stamps - U

2015, Ukraine, Flora of Ukraine

Although the walnut plantations are small, Ukraine is among the top five exporters of shelled walnuts. The Dutch Royal Court values them so highly that they have been on the menu there for more than 20 years.

for the letter U - Ukraine

Sunday Stamps - T

1948, Trinidad and Tobago, Silver Wedding

One may wonder what is going through the minds of Queen Elizabeth and King George VI as they posed for this anniversary picture. They seem to have the same expression; perhaps sending telepathic messages to each other...

I cannot find if they ever actually visited Trinidad, though Prince Edward did visit in 1920 as did his father, George V, as a child in 1880. The current Queen Elizabeth visited for the first time in 1966.

for the letter T - Trinidad and Tobago, three cents

Sunday Stamps - S

1985, Singapore definitive insects

We always need honeybees - though maybe not such a supersized looking one?! The apis cerana javana is one of four bees found in Singapore and is not even the giant honey bee (apis dorsata). This is an Asian honey bee, and there is also a dwarf honey bee as well as a stingless bee.

for the letter S - Singapore

Sunday Stamps - Christmas

1973, Canada Christmas
designer: Arnaud Maggs

Wishing everyone a bright and blessed Christmas

Sunday Stamps - R

1976, Rwanda, African trees and shrubs
designer: J Van Noten

This Southern and Central African native tree, Ilex mitis, is commonly known as Cape or African Holly - or in the Kinyarwanda language of Rwanda as 'umunywande'. The stamp shows the tall, straight tree which can grow to 20 metres, and the leaves withe smooth edges which are unlike the traditional holly used for Christmas decoration in Europe and North America with its spiny leaves.

for the letter R - Republique Rwanda

Sunday Stamps - Q

 

1972, Umm al-Qiwain, Masks of Africa

designer: Gyula Vasarhelyi

Most of the African masks in this set are rather scary or gruesome looking (as I imagine they are meant to be).  I could find no information on the masks as to where they originated, or why this theme was chosen. Umm al-Qiwain, or Quwain as it is sometimes spelt (or spelled), is one of the United Arab Emirates. It is the least populous within an area of around 300 square miles. The designer, Gyula (also known as Julian) Vasarhelyi is from Hungary and throughout his career as a freelance artist, designed  more than 7500 stamps in 650 countries.

for the letter Q - Umm al-Qiwain 

Sunday Stamps - P

 

2010, Poland, Cats (koty = cats)

designer: Andrej Gosik

The Maine Coon is one of the oldest North American breeds of cats and is native to the state of Maine (and is their official state cat). Maine Coons are large, social creatures with long bushy tails and an uneven two layered coat.  No one knows exactly how the Maine Coon originated, but it may have been from a pairing of short-haired domestic cats with long-haired cats arriving on English or Norse ships (there is a resemblance to the Norwegian Forest Cat, a breed also thought to have traveled with the Norsemen).

for the letter P - Poland