The 34th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Åland

This cover is from the Åland capital of Marihamn. The 2025 stamp on the right is an abstract map of the Baltic region, with the countries around the Baltic Sea Represented by the colours of their flags, showing Åland’s location between Sweden and Finland. The stamp was issued to coincide with the 34th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) held in August of 2025 in Mariehamn. The stamp on the left from 2005 depicts the Schooner "Linden" in the summer.

Underwater Flora and Fauna of Italy

From the Italian city of Modena, a pair of 2024 Europa stamps. The 2024 Europa theme was underwater flora and fauna. Italy has close to 8000 km of coastline so I imagine the abundance of marine life depicted on the stamps is somewhat accurate. There is a Jubilee 2025 stamp in the bottom-left corner, obscured slightly by the machine postmark (which missed the Europa stamps that were hit hit by a barcode). I assume that commemorates the Great Jubilee celebrated by the Catholic Church this year. 

Olive Oil in Israel

A nice little cover from Tel-Aviv. The stamp on the left from 2015 commemorates the importance of military railways during the First World War in what is now Israel. And the stamp on the right from 2003 is from a set that commemorated olive oil production. A festival I believe. I don't think the applied postmark is related to the stamp.

Gibraltar's Windsor Bridge

On this cover from Gibraltar is the souvenir sheet from the 2023 "Visit Gibraltar" stamp set, showing Gibraltar's Windsor Bridge. It's a pedestrian suspension bridge with an impressive view of the city and the African coast across the strait.

85th Anniversary of the Salvadoran Philatelic Association

Sent to me from San Salvador: the capital city of El Salvador. The stamps, which feature images of philatelic covers from the past, and the blue magnifying glass postmark, commemorate the 85th anniversary of the Salvadoran Philatelic Association: AFISAL.

Italian Food Companies

This was sent to me from the village of Colnago in northern Italy. The stamp on the right from 2023 shows a jar of Santa Rosa fruit preserves, from a set of stamps that commemorates popular Italian food brands. And the stamp on the left from 2025 commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Loacker biscuit company. Tasty.

Wild Flowers of India

Sent from Gujarat's largest city Ahmedabad. The flower stamps on this cover are from a 2013 set of twelve showing wild flowers from various regions around India. The stamp commemorating Mother Teresa bottom left is a 2009 definitive.

Truth and Reconciliation, Canada

This is a first-day cover for the latest stamp issue in an ongoing series meant to raise awareness about the negative impact residential schools have had on the Indigenous Peoples of Canada. The artwork on these stamps shows three sides of the Brentwood box that was commissioned by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2009. This box was carved from a single piece of red cedar with imagery representing the First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. It was brought to several national events where those looking to heal spiritually could leave items in the box : photographs, books, memorabilia. Thousands of items were placed in the box. It now resides at the National Center for Truth and Reconciliation in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

National Landscapes, Finland

The stamps on this cover postmarked in Helsinki are from a 2025 set featuring landscape scenes of Finland. The stamp on the right is the hydroelectic dam on the Vuoksi river in Imatra. And on the left is  Helsinki from its south waterfront with the SkyWheel on the right and the cathedral in the distance.

Toyoda Beer 10th Anniversary, Japan

The postmark commemorates the 10th anniversary of the reintroduction of Toyoda Beer by the Ishikawa Brewery Company. It was one of the first beers brewed in Tokyo's Tama region in the 19th century. This new iteration of Toyoda beer is made from 100% locally grown barley.  The stamps are Year of the Tiger stamps from 2022.

The Inauguration of Korea's 21st President

These stamps and first-day postmark from South Korea commemorate the inauguration of Lee Jae Myung as the 21st president of South Korea. The stamps were issued on his 100th day in office on Sept 11. He's officially the 14th elected president but the 21st person to hold the office.

This was the first piece of mail to show up in my mailbox since the end of the national postal strike. It didn't last very long, fortunately. The postal workers union has shifted to rotating strikes in rural areas to highlight what will happen when Canada Post starts cutting services to rural customers. 

Another Canada Post Strike

It hasn't even been a year since the last one. Technically, postal workers here have been on strike for several months but their actions were not having an impact on letter mail. But that changed yesterday after the Canadian government recommended changes to the way Canada Post operates in order to remain solvent. One of the changes is to permit Canada Post to phase out door-to-door delivery. Doing that would mean reducing the workforce and that's a non-starter for the union. So... back to the picket line they go.

The last strike in 2024 was never really resolved. The employees have been working without a collective agreement for nearly two years now. It's hard to imagine when this current strike action will end. The last work stoppage was closer to Christmas and they only returned to work after the government intervened. 

Since it doesn't seem right to post something without including an image or two, here are stamps from the most recent issue featuring mushrooms found in Canada. I like these and I wish Canada Post would put out more flora and fauna stamps. I had a chance to use them on a batch of circuits that I sent out last week which hopefully made it out of the country before the strike action started.