Hong Kong tram

A very nice official Postcrossing card from last year... I didn't even send that many officials last year.. I've been sending them a little bit more this year as I've received so many nice ones and I love the randomness of the official Postcrossing, but will have to cut back again as stamp prices will go up again at the end of this month. :( £1.05 is a bit much to send a postcard I think... :/

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Hong Kong trams fascinate me. I love the ones with illustrations like this. And well, I love trams in general :P

This card arrived in an envelope - the sender also included a big map of Hong Kong which I find very cool. I've got a bit of a thing for maps as well... :)

Hiroshima Electric Railway, Japan

A lovely, lovely card I received through the 'Japan - rest of the world' tag on the Postcrossing forum earlier this year. I love trams (and miss the ones in Helsinki. The local one here is too expensive for me :() and it's fascinating to see the changes throughout the years. I also have a bit of a soft spot for Hiroshima as I used to have a pen friend there years ago. I haven't heard from him for ages now, though, which is a real shame.

Hiroshima Electric Railway Co., Ltd. is a Japanese transportation company established on June 18, 1910, that operates streetcars and buses in and around Hiroshima Prefecture. It is known as "Hiroden" for short.

The company's rolling stock includes an eclectic range of trams manufactured from across Japan and Europe, earning it the nickname "The Moving Streetcar Museum".

Helsinki, Finland

I'm trying to go through the pile of postcards I'm hoping to post in this blog and my plan is going pretty well - the pile has gone down quite considerably. I should really take a photo... A lot of the cards are now ones I've received this year, such as this one from last month that mum and dad sent me from their holiday.

I have a bit of a soft spot for these trams in Helsinki. I think they are lovely and I vastly prefer them to buses, they are so much nicer. I have no idea yet whether I'll be going to Finland at some point this year. I hope I'll get to go, fingers crossed! My sister has just moved in Helsinki and I'd love to see her new flat as well.

This picture is from 1974 and well, the adverts on the trams do look a bit old. ;)

Isle of Man trams

This is one of my only written and stamped postcards from the Isle of Man. I was pretty surprised to receive this one as part of the 'summer round robin' on the Finnish part of the Postcrossing forum a couple of summers ago - one of the people participating went on holiday on the Isle of Man.

The description on the back of the card:  

Snaefell Mountain Railway tramcar No. 1, Isle of Man Railways locomotive No. 1 'Sutherland' and Manx Electric Railway tramcar No. 1 line up at Laxey Station on Friday, 10th July, 1998, during an event as part of the 'Steam 125' enthusiasts week.
 

Shau Kei Wan Road, Shau Kei Wan, Hong Kong

Just a very small update for today... starting with this lovely card from Hong Kong that I received earlier this year.

A Hello Kitty tram! :D Apparently they are not very common, or at least that's what Vince who sent me this card told me.

 Shau Kei Wan is a town in The Eastern District, located in the north east of Hong Kong Island. Literally, Shau Kei means a pail, and Wan implies that the town is developed along the coast. Nowadays it is a relatively densely populated town compared with some developing areas.

Christchurch, New Zealand

I've got a pretty random selection of cards for today.. next up is this one from New Zealand.

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's third-largest urban area. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of Christchurch. On this postcard you can see one of Christchurch's tramcars travelling the city loop route, passing by the Christchurch Arts Centre. The Arts Centre is one of the many buildings that suffered extensive damage in the 22 February 2011 earthquake.

Kraków, Poland

A wonderful official I received from Poland earlier this year. This card was in my favourites, too! It's always nice when people look at the favourites wall. I always do that, too, but don't always have anything from some people's favourites :(

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On this card you can see Tram No. 15 on its way to the Cichy Kącik estate in Kraków. I just love the atmosphere here, so mysterious! ...and I love trams, they have so much more character than buses or trains I think.

Lisboa, Portugal

Another meet-up card, this time from the Postcrossing International Meeting in Lisboa on 9th & 10th June 2012. This one was a proper surprise - it was sent by my dear Dutch friend Astrid, I had no idea she was going to this meet-up! :O...! I'm a wee bit jealous.. :P She's been to so many of these meetings. This particular one sounds like a lot of fun (..although I bet all PC meetings are :P), and I recognise most of the people who signed the card, yay! :D

On this card you can see Elevador da Bica, a funicular in Lisbon, Portugal, that forms the connection between the Calçada do Combro/Rua do Loreto and the Rua de S. Paulo. It is operated by Carris.

The Bica funicular was opened on 28 June, 1892. It climbs the Rua da Bica de Duarte Belo for 245 metres from the Rua S. Paulo. The lower station of this funicular railroad is almost hidden behind a facade on the Rua de S. Paulo with the inscription "Ascensor da Bica". It was constructed by Raoul Mesnier de Ponsard and opened to the public in 1892. In 2002 it was designated a National Monument.

Lviv, Ukraine

I know I've already written about Lviv here, but I just couldn't resist posting this card here as well. It had suffered quite a bit on its way to England, but I simply adore this card, there are so many lovely details in it! ...and I'm not usually all that fond of multiviews!


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According to Vasylyna, who sent me this card (and added cute stickers and a pretty drawing on the back of the card), Lviv is the cultural capital of Europe, and also a city of coffee :) I don't actually like coffee at all, but I wouldn't mind sitting in a cafe in such a pretty city, maybe drinking a cup of tea instead? ...and then travel on that tram and admire the gorgeously colourful houses. Mmmmmmm...!

Helsinki, Finland

I've only just realised that I've already had this blog for over a year! I'm quite impressed as when I started this blog I wasn't sure whether I'd manage to keep up with this or whether this would be interesting enough to keep updating. Turns out it has been well worth it. :)

I'm a little nervous at the moment because of the ash cloud from the Icelandic volcano. I'm supposed to fly to Finland for a week with Matt next Sunday, I really hope the ash cloud will have settled by then. I don't want to miss this opportunity, I'm really looking forward to seeing my family again. Hopefully everything will be fine. *fingers crossed* Anyway, in anticipation of this little trip I thought I'd post a Finnish card here. I received this from one of my favourite postcrossers, Essi, not long ago and *really* like it. I find this to be a very typical image of Helsinki.



Hopefully I'll get to ride these lovely green trams again in Helsinki. :) I much prefer them to buses, they have so much more character and the atmosphere is great. My sister doesn't live right in the centre of Helsinki anymore, but these trams go near to where she lives now so I should get to ride these. Yay! Trams were first introduced in Helsinki in 1891 and were initially horse-drawn.



The awesome mailbox stamp is from a set of 5 stamps issued earlier this year, showing - obviously - mailboxes. The smaller stamp showing a birch leaf is a definitive, also issued earlier this year.

The Peak Tram, Hong Kong

This card is from a swap with a very nice postcrosser, but it reminds me more of friends. One of my best friends here in England is from Hong Kong, and she once sent this same card (or at least I think it's the same) to two other friends of ours when she was visiting home, in fact I think they still have the card over their fireplace. ;)



Hong Kong's oldest form of mechanical transport, the Peak Tram opened in 1888. Originally run by steam it converted to electricity in 1926 and then to microprocessor control in 1989. The upper terminus is 397 metres above sea level and the single journey takes 8 minutes from the lower terminus in St John's Building.

Lisboa, Portugal

I may not have ever been to Italy but I have been to Portugal. Not to Lisboa, though, but Algarve in the south. It was about twenty years ago but I still remember it as a lovely time. I'd love to go back one day to see if the place is anything like I remember it as being, but right now I'd be more interested in Lisboa.



This card comes from Miceu in Portugal. I've done a number of swaps with Miceu and have received some truly AMAZING postcards of Portugal. All those old houses, pretty windows and doors, narrow alleys, bright colours... ahhh!

I don't know much about the place shown on this card, apart from the fact that it shows 'Elevador da Lavra', a funicular that helps people climb the slope. Isn't the old tram (?) charming?!



This card came in an envelope with a bunch of other lovely postcards. The stamps on the envelope were equally wonderful. The top two were both issued earlier this year. The one on the left is from a set of 7 stamps depicting Rock in Portugal. This one here shows the cover of Moonspell's 'Wolfheart'. The stamp on the left is from a set of 6 stamps depicting Portuguese Cheeses, this one here showing Serra da Estrela. The smaller stamp underneath is from a set of 6 stamps issued in 2006, showing Portuguese Masks.