Vanuatu.

Mystery Island.: VANUATU.:

This Mystery island is what it is called ,  a truly amazing Island in what seemed the middle of nowhere...My first view of this Island from the boat was one of amazement, a small island with a mostly circular reef with breaking white water around its perimeter  ( known as a "Makatea" )with the  most lovely blue lagoon and the clearest of turquoise blue water...just like it was in a Travel Brochure, Card shows the small jetty that was accessable for the ships tender to drop off the people who wished to go ashore here,...Many of the people who visited were diving and snorkeling and swimming in its lovely clear water ..with an abundance of tropical fish even turtles..The day was lovely with lovely blue sky with tufts of cotton wool clouds.with a temperature of 32 degrees C.

Australia.

2015 RELEASE   MINI-SHEET  YEAR OF THE GOAT.

Christmas Island.: AU.

This is the new Chinese New Year release  by Australia Post.The Year of The Goat for 2015 and Posted from Christmas Island.Thank you Karenn.These always are such a nice colorful cards and stamps.

United States ofAmerica.

                                                         "Two Moons"   Cheyenne War Chief

USA:

This is a fine sepia card depicting The Cheyenne War Chief "Two Moons" in his splendid national dress. Standing over six feet four inches this handsome Chief is best remembered for his brave and daring exploits as one of the nine Warrior Chiefs of The Fox Warrior Society that fought General Custer and the seventh Cavalry at the "Battle of the Little Big Horn" He is credited with being the only Cheyenne warrior to have carried a  repeating rifle during that battle. Following the surrender of the Cheyenne to General Miles at Fort Keogh.  Two Moons was chosen as one of the principle Chiefs.
Thank you for this very interesting card Amy..I really like it. This is a very admired and interesting culture and history.
 Posted NC 20 January 2015.: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015 : Traveled 8 days..fast delivery !

United States of America.

DELAWARE.:USA.:

Thank you Arnold for another State map card for my collection. This is of the State of Delaware.
Thank you mate for your constant supply of State cards for me. Also many fine stamps that you always send.
Posted 12 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015: Traveled 16 days. Thanks again Arnold.

United States of America

Montgomery: AL.

Thanks heaps Mel, you always send me great cards from your travels around the Country. This card shows two things that I collect map cards of various States and State Capital Buildings..".two in one"  The map is of the State of Alaabama and also shows the State Capital building in Montgomery.

 Posted 16 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015: Traveled 12 days. Thanks again Mel.

Kazakhstan.

Almaty: KAZAKHSTAN.:

Always nice to receive greetings from far away places and this card is from a postcard friend in Almaty. Kazakhstan..One doesn't receive too many cards from Central Asia!! Thanks Lana .. a nice card showing the place called "Kok Tobe" This is from the top of a hill overlooking Almaty and is the now unfortunately defunct Cable Car Station.
 Posted Almaty 15 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015: Traveled 13 days..a quick trip also.Thank you so much Lana for this card from your hometown.

Vietnam.

Sa Pa: VIETNAM.:

Another surprise card from my friend Trang in Saigon...What a lovely card showing the terraced fields of Sa Pa..located in the North West of Vietnam this is an extremly productive area for rice..The green terraced gardens are a scene from around May in the year..for when they are ready to harvest in September... they are yellow..Thank you so much for this card Trang and also the lovely "Year of the Horse" stamp...love it and very thoughtful of you..Cam On.   This was a quick delivery !!
Posted Tan Binh 22 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015: Traveled 6 days.Cam on Trang..

United States of America.

Texas: USA.

 A great colorful card from my mate Ruby...thank you for this card. this is a lovely card of one of my favourite places "Route 66"...I traveled a little of this Route 66 when last year in Oklahoma and drove from Oklahoma city to Yukon..."Home of Garth Brooks " stopped at the "Horseshoe Saloon" in Yukon (isn't that a great name for a pub..!!!)  had a few beers  ...wonderful...great country hospitality..Also stopped on the way in Bethany for a great breakfast at a 50's diner...great atmosphere great memorabilia all around the diner and the trip back in time was free..Really would love to drive the whole of this highway from Chicago to LA..Thanks Ruby for this very thoughtful postcard of Route 66 and the great "Heavy Chevy" on the card..
 Posted Texas 12 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015: Traveled 16 days..Thanks Ruby...

Malaysia.

Sabah.: MALAYSIA.:
 This is a lovely card showing the Lowland Forrest on Mount Kinabalu. This is a Dipterocarp Forrest and covers around 35 % of the Park at an elevation of 1,000 meters above sea level, this Forrest encompasses Kinabalu Park in really tall stands of dark dim trees extremely lush with a Forrest canopy as high as 50 meters. Within it ,the forrest life is thriving in an orchestra of sounds and sights This is a lovely card and always lovely natural cards of the environment..Thank you so much Fiona for this nice card..
 Posted Kota Kinabalu 20 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 28 January 2015:Traveled 8 days. Teri Makasi

SWAP CARDS only.

SWAP CARDS only.         THINGS THAT STING SERIES.

                               top left : BULLANT:                       top right :   EUROPEAN WASP :

             bottom  left: TIGER SNAKE.:(DEADLY )        bottom right: STONEFISH (DEADLY )

SWAP CARDS only.

RECENT RELEASES..
 top left : LION FISH        (THINGS THAT STING SERIES )              top right: STINGRAY:

Bottom left AUSSIE BEACH       release.   bottom right SYDNEY CIRCULAR QUAY FERRIES

Kiribati.

Kiritimati Is. TARAWA.: KIRIBATI.

 A nice surprise..a card from Kiribati. (pronounced Kira bas )This my first. Kiribati is now a sovereign State after becoming an independent nation from England in 1979.: Located in the Central Pacific Ocean the Nation comprises of 33 Atthols and reef Islands and one raised Coral Island named Banaba. with a total land area of 800 square kilometers the island group is spread out over 3.5 square kilometers  (1,351,000 square miles ) The population is just over 100,000 that live mostly on Tarawa Athol. The Capital and most populated area is South Tarawa. This is a part of what was the the previous" Gilbert and Ellice Islands" group.. Tarawa being in the "Gilberts".   Tarawa and other Islands of the Gilbert group were occupied by The Japanese Military Forces in the Second World War from 1941 to 1943.as a supply base and airfield on Betio Island.. This  became the scene for one of the first and most ferocious and bloodiest amphibious landings in 1943 by US forces that they had encountered . Tarawa was a costly and very gallant victory for the US Marines.
 Thank you so much Rianna for this lovely card that shows the Squeezing out and extraction of coconut oil in the traditional way on Kiritimati Island by local smiling Kiribati women..
 Posted Bairiki Tarawa: 02 December 2014: Received Sydney 03 January: 30 days. Xie Xie Rianna.

Chile.

Caja.:   CHILE.:

 What a lovely card ..a surprise from a friend in Chile..This is a swap card that I asked for some time ago but was no longer available...and all of a sudden here it is as a gift for New Year..Thank you so much Hernan...so kind of you .. Mucho Gracias..
 The card shows local traditional dancing called La Cueca the traditional dance of Chile.It is a complex dance and many people take lessons to learn its movements.Men and women wear traditional dress in this dance ..The men are called "Huasos" and the women "Chinas".. this is in the indigenous language of Quechua.The" Chinas" are very feminine and graceful in their movements while the men" Huasos" are Gallant wearing their expensively embroided "Mantas"on their chest and also wear hats and silver spurs..The men and women while dancing use a white handkerchief but each moves in a different fashion..  love this card..Thank you also for the many marvellous stamps that are so much of the card...beautiful.. I have just received another card from Chile and the stamp was removed.!!! I see this card has the very stamps of my other cards "Chinchorro Museum"
 Posted Chile :Caja January 05 2015....Arrived Sydney 22 January . Traveled 17days.. Muchos Gracias..

Vietnam.

VIETNAM :                                            YEAR OF THE HORSE 2014.:VIETNAM  POST

 Thank you Trang for these lovely big Chinese New Year stamps : 2014 Year of The Horse.. release by Vietnam Postal Service..thank you...Com on..Trang

Vietnam.

Ho Chi Min City ( Saigon ) :  VIETNAM.:

What a lovely card.. I am so glad that this card finally arrived after such a long trip of 112 days...but certainly worth the wait.. Card shows the student girls cycling to school in their beautiful Ao Dai dresses and Non La conical straw hats..all with their briefcases in the bicycle baskets...typical of the region.. This is a lovely card and I thank you Trang. Also for the lovely  Chinese New Year stamps"Year of the Horse " issued by Vietnam Postal Service..Thank you...Cam on..!!
Posted Saigon 23 October 204.: Arrived Sydney 20 January 2015.: Traveled 112 days.. (a record )

Czech Republic.

Prague: CZECH REPUBLIC.:

 Thank you for this nice map card of the Czech Republic...I know how hard it is sometimes to find such a card and this will go nicely in my map collection..The card shows the different counties (areas ) within the country..Thank you so much Lenka for this card.

 Also thank you for explaining the stamps...I really like that as the stamps are so much a part of the card ..The first stamp of  Lidice is in commemoration of the many innocent male civilians that were killed here by the invading German army in WW II and to the many women and children deported to the concentration camps..The other stamp shows Agnes of Bohemia.. thank you again..
Posted 12 January 2015: Arrived Sydney 22 January 2015.: Traveled 10 days..

New Caledonia.

Back soon..                AN AERIAL VIEW OF THE BEAUTIFUL ISLE OF PINES

Isle of Pines.: NEW CALEDONIA.

New Caledonia.

THE HAPPY SMILES OF LOVELY CHILDREN IN THE ISLANDS.

                                                Isles of Pines :       NEW CALEDONIA.

The Isles of Pines was for me the best island stop on this whole trip.The island was such a change from the Vanuatu group of islands. This community here was just so well organised..The land is owned and allocated by local Cheiftan rule and is all native land ..and foreigners cannot own it...although the administration is French. The people that I came in contact with were very friendly and helpful  although I understand the tourist dollar is sort after there is no pressure to buy anything..My trip around the Island was of great interest stopping at various sites..The Old Prison ,The Church ,some various beaches..all very photogenic..The day like all was very hot with the temperature being around 33 degrees. I love this type of climate and the only downside was the daily rain showers  always when i was on the beach..I liked also the markets here were the best as well with many more variation in the items for sale.. All in all a great Island to visit..



                                                

Local outrigger canoe by someones home.

A really peaceful small Island in such clear turquoise waters.

Some of the many handmade bracelets

Locals welcoming visitors ashore..

New Caledonia.

WHAT A WONDERFUL ENTRANCE TO THIS HOUSE..

A TRADITIONAL KANAK WOODEN CARVED POLE

A NICE PHOTO OF THE ISLANDS' PINE TREES.

 

the Isle of Pines for me was the nicest island stop of all. This lovely small community on this Island is really how one would picture living in the islands. The French do a great job here as the Island seems to be well looked after with its great roads compared to most islands I've seen . This Island had the most wonderful beaches and was also really wonderful for swimming and snorkeling with its amazingly clear turquoise waters. Although they are different this reminds me of the special island pines grown on Norfolk Island not far away to the South west of this group of Islands. A very popular pine tree and are exported world wide. They are famous for their presence on a lot of Australian beaches.

ONE OF THE MANY CARVED FACES ON THE ISLAND.

  Here also our group got togeather for a very interesting trip around the Island looking at the many different sights to be seen of great interest was the old Gaol with the figures  "1881" above the door in the walls entrance, it was not hard to conjure up thoughts of the brutality that would have emenated through the corridors of the prison with thoughts of Isle du Diable  (Devils Island ) off the coast of Guyana in South America...another French prison. A walk through the prisons grounds and decaying structure showed the cells that were there and their sizes were quite small.                                                                                                              

Australia.

Berry.:  N.S.W.

A lovely card from the town of  Berry on the N.S.W. southern coast.. Thank you so much Heather for this card.. This truly is a lovely town..very popular for its antique shops.
 Posted Berry 13 January 2015. Arrived Sydney 14 January 2015: Traveled 1 day.Thank you.

New Caledonia.

Local Karnak  wood carving Art

A scene out of Adventures in Paradise.

enjoying the day and the location..

Well it's New Years Eve.. I am not feeling really well and am having an early night.
bummmmer.
not to worry tomorrow is a new day..and a new place to enjoy this great part of the world. This is a card that I sent home as a souvenir.