80th Anniversary of the Battle of Normandy, France

Postmarked at the philatelic bureau in Mende in southern France. The 2024 souvenir sheet commemorates the 80th anniversary of the allies landing on the beaches of Normandy. D-day. June 6. 1944. It was the largest amphibious military landing in history. 

Traditional Weapons of the Philippines

On this cover from Taguig is a set of four stamps from 2024 that feature traditional weapons of the Philippines. From left to right: a sinawit ax, a gunong knife, a kris knife and a falfeg javelin. 

World Post Day, Singapore

The stamps are from a 2020 set commemorating the end of the Second World War and the end of Japanese occupation. The well applied spray-on sorting center postmark commemorates World Post Day which marks the anniversary of the founding of the Universal Postal Union on 9 Oct 1874.

Apia, Samoa

There are hawksbill sea turtles on these 2016 WWF stamps from Samoa. The postmark says it was sent from Apia, the capital of Samoa, but it also says Fagamalo which is a village... on a different island. So I'm not really sure exactly where it was postmarked other than somewhere in Samoa.

Porto Cristo, Spain

The postmark from Porto Cristo on the east coast of Majorca depicts Hams' Caves (Cuevas dels Hams): a system of caves that is a popular tourist destination in Majorca. The stamps from 2007 showcase Spanish fashions held by the Spanish Garment Museum in Madrid.

Onești, Romania

Sent from the Romanian city of Onești. The stamp on the left is from a 2007 set that commemorates Sibiu being designated the 2007 European Capital of Culture. On this particular stamp is the Sibiu evangelical cathedral. On the right are a pair of hunting dog stamps from 2005. And lower left is a 1992 stamp from a set featuring Romanian porcelain. 

Freddie Mercury, FDC Germany

This stamp is the second in Deutsch Post's "Legends of Rock" stamp series. I don't think Freddie Mercury needs any kind of introduction from me. There was a limited edition version of this stamp made of gold selling for €99.90. It has a postage value of €0.85 so it could be used to mail a 20g letter from Germany. Provided you could figure out a way to attach it to an envelope. 

Flowers in Daily Life, FDC Japan

First-day postmarked in Osaka. These are fall greeting stamps from two sheets of ten. The stamp on the left is titled "Around the summer solstice" and the stamp on the right is a dandelion.

 

200 Years of German Immigration in Brazil

Postmarked at the Berlin mail processing center 10. The stamp commemorates 200 years of German emigration to Brazil. Just a standard postmark but I like the little graphic with the outline of the city of Berlin. Just because it's an everyday postmark, doesn't mean it has to be boring. 

Turin, Italy

I just can't read enough of the postmark to pinpoint the post office but the 10148 postal code is a neighbourhood in Turin so that's good enough for me. From left to right, a 2020 stamp featuring the Isola del Tino lighthouse, a 2021 stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Fréjus rail tunnel, and a 2022 stamp from the "Italian artistic and cultural heritage" series featuring "The Passion of Sordevolo". Every five years the citizens of Sordevolo participate in a huge open-air re-enactment of the passion of Christ. Forty performances of 100 days. 

 

Marion Dufresne OP2 2024, Tromelin Island

From the French research and supply ship Marion Dufresne via Tromelin Island in the Scattered Islands of the French Southern and Antarctic Territory. Sent during it's second rotation of 2024 through the islands of Amsterdam, Kerguelen, Crozet and Tromelin. On the front and back are the handstamps of captain Ganor Ginat, information agent Vanessa Larose, chief mechanic Armel Derrien, telecommunication manager Florent Payet and Crozet island chef Anne-Adelaïde Lasbareilles.

Sécurité Civile Canadair FDC

Canadair was an airplane manufacturer in Canada that operated from the 1940's until it's assets were acquired by Bombardier in 1986. The CL-215 scooper, and later the the CL-415 super scooper, is an amphibious aircraft used for aerial firefighting, aka waterbombing. They are able to land on large lakes, glide along the surface and suck up water, and then pick up speed and take off again. The water collected is then dumped to suppress a burning fire or prevent it from spreading.

France's civil defense agency: the Direction générale de la sécurité civile et de la gestion des crises or just sécurité civile, operates 12 of these planes. The first was a CL-215 purchased in 1969. Their current fleet are all CL-415s. LaPost issued a stamp commemorating this fleet in July of 2024.

This card is a little too glossy and was slipped back into the return envelope before the postmark ink was completely dry. So some of it was left in the envelope. I suppose I was really lucky it didn't smear all over the place.