Here we come a-carolling...

This is, as far as I know, the first Zazzle produced postcard I've received.  Some people don't consider them "real" postcards but in fact I think the quality is very good and the design is charming.  Moo postcards probably use rather better cardstock but this one is absolutely fine.  I've had much worse.  It was sent to me from Germany.

Remembering summer

Wild strawberry juice from Finland.  It looks delicious!  I just wish I had the recipe - and the wild strawberries, of course.

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

For 41 years Albuquerque has hosted the International Balloon Festival, held each year at about the time this card was sent to me, early October.  It has grown from a gathering of 13 balloons in 1972 to the largest ballooning event in the world.

A bear hug

We all need a hug sometimes.

Troilus and Cressida play American football

Unusual to say the least.  If I hadn't read on the back of the card that this picture was taken from a scene of Shakespeare's "Troilus and Cressida", I'm afraid I would never have guessed, certainly not from the costumes.  It was sent by a theatre lover in Germany.

The German translates, very roughly, as, "war is play and play is love and love is war".  I can't find any quote from Troilus and Cressida that's exactly the same.  The nearest is, "hot blood begets hot thoughts, and hot
thoughts beget hot deeds, and hot deeds is love".  

Smile

This was sent to me from Japan which may account for the slightly odd sentence, "I wish you are always smiling", but the message is there so I'll smile.  It seems like a very good idea.  :)

So little time...

The card came from Germany so I suppose it's not surprising to see the German flags.  It was quite some time before I thought it was odd that the message or banner was written in English.  Whatever the reason, I relate to it wholeheartedly.

Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry

I bought this card for myself today.  It is one of the pages from the 206 paged medieval Book of Hours which is now in the Condé Museum outside Paris.  The original is such a poor condition that it isn't on view to the public but it dates from the 15th century so it's hardly surprising.

A Book of Hours is a set of prayers and psalms to be recited during the day.  Each of them is generally beautifully decorated, illuminated manuscripts.  They were popular in the late Middle Ages.   Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry has illustrations for each month, the one above being September.  The peasants are gathering the grape harvest and taking it into the château, The Château of Saumur.

I have been wanting these postcards for a long time but they were very expensive - double the price of the ones I usually buy, so this was the only one I bought.  Of course I regret it now.

Housework

Well, I do the housework but I generally look less pleased about it.  The card came to me from the Netherlands.

Tiles from Holland

Before anyone corrects me to say the Netherlands, please notice it says Holland on the card itself.  :)  I like the old style Delft tiles but the one at centre right seems out of place.  All the same, I tend to agree with its sentiment:

"This house is clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy".

Citroen 2CV Charleston

What the well-to-do child has for transport these days!  I used to drive a 2CV myself, and though I grant you it was a tiny bit bigger, I'm not convinced it was any more substantial.  It often did feel as though it was using pedal power.

The card came from the Netherlands.  I suppose Citroen 2CVs were available in many parts of the world but I always think of it as being a French car.

Photo from Wikipedia

The grown-up's version came in different colours.  A fun car to drive but I did eventually grow out of it.

This is a post for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted on Beth Niquette's blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy.

Here comes the sun...

We have a beautifully clear and sunny day here today even though the wind has a sharp edge to it.  In fact we've had too many sunny days and not enough rainy ones this last winter.  We are now officially classified as in drought  in this south eastern part of the UK.  It doesn't matter though - I still enjoyed this card from Finland.

If only it were so easy

"Lovers' quarrels are soon mended" is the caption on this postcard from Russia.  Apparently all you do is write a long letter.  It set me off down on a search for quotes about quarrels and it seems there is no consensus: some have a more positive outlook than others.  Just like people really.

Quarrel? Nonsense; we have not quarreled. If one is not to get into a rage sometimes, what is the good of being friends? ~ George Eliot

Quarrels end, but words once spoken never die. ~ African Proverb

Quarrels would not last long if the fault was only on one side. ~ François de la Rochefoucauld

The truest joys they seldom prove,
Who free from quarrels live;
'Tis the most tender part of love,
Each other to forgive. ~ John Sheffield

The quarrels of lovers are like summer showers that leave the country more verdant and beautiful. ~ Susanne Curchod Necker

This is a post for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted on Beth Niquette's blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy.

I like coffee...

The last card I showed you was chosen for me by a 3 year old Dutch girl.  This one was chosen by 2 year old Amelie from Germany.  She signed her name too. :)

I love coffee, I love tea

I love the java jive and it loves me

Coffee and tea and the jivin' and me

A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

The Ink Spots

Fields of tulips

I know this is one of the standard touristy postcards from the tulip fields of the Netherlands, but I do love it.  Tulips are very much associated with the Netherlands.

I used to live in an area in the south of England where a farmer started raising tulips, not for their blooms but for their bulbs, to sell them at garden centres.  Of course you can't raise tulips without  the flowers so the fields around were a delight to see in springtime, not unlike the ones pictured.

It was a beautifully mild and sunny day today, a taste of spring, so I was reminded of this card.

To the potato warehouse

Michael Sowa: Zum Kartoffellagerhaus (To the potato warehouse)

At first I couldn't make out what this card was about but when I looked more carefully it brought a smile to my face.  Potatoes running down the road towards the potato warehouse with an aubergine (eggplant) policeman holding up the traffic:  three gherkins in a glass jar car and a carrot about to cross the road.  In the distance there is, I think, an onion going up the path.  I do admire the creativity and imagination of anyone who could think of this.

This is a post for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted on Beth Niquette's blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy.

Smile

Rise above those rain clouds!

Wishing you luck

Here comes ...
... a little lucky charm card for you!

This is what they call a lenticular postcard which changes its image depending on the angle at which it is viewed.  They are quite incredibly difficult to scan and in fact I had to resort to taking photos from different angles.  The technique was developed years ago and first became popular in the 1940s but recent developments have meant that different types can be produced, with different effects.  Some of them I've seen for sale make me feel dizzy.

This one though comes, from Germany, to wish you luck on this Friday 13th.

This is a post for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted on Beth Niquette's blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy.

Still eating

I am sinking with the amount of food I've eaten, but still reaching for more.

I've often noticed people asking for Jetoy cards and now at last I know what they mean.  Jetoy is a South Korean company (although the postcard came from China) specialising in stationery with a style not unlike Hello Kitty.  But the cats do have mouths - for all those cakes. :)

This is a post for Postcard Friendship Friday hosted on Beth Niquette's blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy.

Relax

It's all over for another year!