Postcard # 13

I fell in love with this postcard when I saw it. The painter is Vlad Kravchuk. I love his brushstrokes and the colors in the painting are alive. I liked it so much that I even checked his website to see his other works. I am so glad to receive this postcard that I am thinking of ordering them online.

Date Sent: April 15, 2014

Date Received: May 8, 2014

Direct Swap # 15

Last, but definitely not the least, among the cards I received last May 2 is the Harry Potter postcard.  I really love it!  This postcard is from Lena from Germany.  I swapped this for a Philippine map card.

Date Sent: April 14, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Postcard Pal #2

Don't you just hate it when they stamp your postcard in front?

This one was sent to me by Defri and look at what they did to it.  This is a postcard of an old world map. I can see the Philippines in the map.

Date Sent: April 21, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Direct Swap # 13 and #14

This is my Postcrossing Meetup card.  The one who sent it to me is Amanda from Houston, Texas.  

Aside from the meet up card, she also sent me a wonderful postcard of a waterfalls.  This is in the Grand Canyon National Park, one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the United States. I love this postcard, too.  I am thinking of collecting UNESCO WHS postcards.

Date Sent: April 15, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Direct Swap # 12

My first postcard from Singapore courtesy of Eunice Lim.

She said that these flowers are in Singapore Gardens by the Bay. I think these are pansies but I am not sure.

Date Sent: April 14, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Direct Swap # 11

My first postcard from Latvia!

I had a surprise swap with Anda of Latvia and this is what I got. I wasn't able to ask her what place is in the postcard. Maybe I'll ask her later so I'll know more about this postcard.

Date Sent: April 14, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Postcard # 12

This is a postcard of Poltava. Poltava is the capital city of Ukraine. I tried to identify the places in these postcards. I hope I got them correctly.

The one that looks like a pole is the Poltava Oblast. To its right is The White Arbor.  The monument is called Shevchenko Monument. Top most building in the right side is the Poltava Regional Musuem. The two churches are the Uspenska Church (left) and The Holy Cross Exaltation Monastery (right).

Date Sent: March 27, 2014

Date Received: May 2, 2014

Postcard # 11

Yay! My first Aurora Borealis. There is something about the Northern Lights that fascinates me. I wish I'll be able to witness it personally someday.

I love it when people read what you wrote in your profile. This one definitely read mine because she sent me this postcard.  When I send cards to people, I also try my best to find postcards that they will like.

The location of this postcard, according to Paivi, is Lappland, Finland.

Date Sent: April 13, 2014

Date Received: April 28, 2014

Direct Swap # 9 and 10

I wrote 9 and 10 since Paja and I agreed to swap two cards.  I love these cards from Czech Republic. I love the stamps, the Postcrossing cancellation and the city view of Prague which is their capital city. Mole or Krtek is cute, too. I forgot to ask what these places in the postcard are but I'll try to find out from Czech Postcrossers. The only one I knew is the clock.

Aside from these two postcards that we agreed to swap with, she added two cat postcards.  So generous of her.

Date Sent: March 30, 2014

Date Received: April 25, 2014

Direct Swap # 8

I love postcard paintings or paintings in postcards. Too bad the post office ruined this one for me by stamping at it in the front. And it was in the middle! Anyway, I still love this postcard.

It was sent to me by Winni Chen of Taiwan. She said it was painted by a famous painter in Taiwan. I should have asked her who this painter is.

Date Sent: unknown

Date Received: April 25, 2014

Direct Swap # 7

This is a postcard of Alesund from Pamela of Norway. She said this city is close to the little town where she lives. 

Date Sent: Not indicated
Date Received: April 25, 2014

Lottery Prizes

As I've mentioned in my previous post, I won two lotteries and here are my prizes!

For the Rabbit Lottery, this is what I got.

Date Sent: not indicated

Date Received: April 14, 2014

For the Guess What European Country the Host will visit, here is my prize:

This is the Sun Moon Lake in Taiwan. It is largest lake in Taiwan and it got its name from its shapes look like the sun and the moon.

Date Sent: April 9, 2014

Date Received: April 25, 2014

Isn't it cool to win lotteries? I hope I win some other lotteries. :-)

Direct Swap # 6

Sometimes when I have free time, I look for people that I can swap with. Zwesty from Indonesia was looking for traditional dances of different countries so I asked her to look at my swap album. She chose a postcard of singkil with vintas on the background.  On the other hand, this is what I got in return:

Zwesty said that this is a dance from West Java called Tari Merak or Peacock Dance.  The wings in the costume of the dancers are the feathers of the peacock.  They also have peacock head gears.

I love learning about culture through swapping postcards with others. I hope to learn more in the future.

Date Sent: Not Indicated
Date Received: April 14, 2014

Postcard # 10

Postcard # 10 took the longest time to reach me so far. It almost got expired. It is from China and it took 53 days before it arrived.

I wish I knew what this view is but Nicole didn't mention, I have no idea.

Date Sent: February 20, 2014

Date Received: April 14, 2014

Direct Swap # 5

Whenever someone asks me to swap with them, I always try to accommodate them.  Kiki from Thailand ask me for a swap so I agreed. I am happy with this swap because I got a good card from her.

Prior to getting this card, I saw an Indonesian postcard almost similar to this and I remember I even liked it. So when this arrived, I was really happy. The postcard is very colorful and shows Thai culture and art. Kiki said that umbrella painting is very famous in Thailand.

Date Sent: March 28, 2014

Date Received: April 10, 2014

Direct Swap # 4

When I saw this postcard along with the rest of the mail last Thursday, I was surprised.  Someone asked to swap with me and I remember replying to his email giving him my address but when he never send me a message again, I thought he didn't pursue the swap so I didn't send him a postcard. It turns out he did so today I mailed his postcard and apologize for not being able to send it soon. I hope he gets it ASAP. Based from experience, postcards sent to China takes a while to reach the country.

Date Sent: March 23, 2014

Date Received: April 10, 2014

Postcard # 9

One of my postcard preferences listed in my Postcrossing profile is butterfly.  I got this butterfly card from England sent by Serena. Some postcard collectors have specific collections and maybe this could be one of my collections. What do you think?

Date Sent: March 23, 2014

Date Received: April 10, 2014

Postcard Pal/ Direct Swap # 3

I love painting postcards so I was happy to receive this nature/painting postcard from Defri. Defri initiated a swap with me and after our first swap, we agreed to swap again. We also exchange emails every once in a while.

I love the colors of this postcard!

Date Sent: March 20, 2014

Date Received: April 10, 2014

Postcard # 8

I had a happy mailbox last week. I got 6 postcards, 3 official and 3 direct swap and 2 letters.

Ira from Minsk, Belarus sent me a postcard of the ancient town "Val" and the Saviour's Transfiguration Church in Zaslaue. This one tool 23 days to reach me.

Date Sent: March 18, 2014
Date Received: April 10, 2014

Postcard # 7

Some postcards take a while to reach me. This one took 31 days to arrive but I am so happy to get this one.  It is a Harry Potter postcard! The Ron Weasley/ Rupert Grint postcard was from Olga of Russia.

Date Sent: March 10, 2014
Date Received: April 10, 2014

Lottery!

Do you want free postcards? You may win free postcards by joining lotteries in the Postcrossing group page in Facebook or in the lottery section in the Postcrossing official forum.

Luckily, I've already won two lotteries but I haven't received my prizes yet. Here are the lotteries that I won.

In the first lottery that I won, the sponsor asked how many rabbits will be in her 200th postcard and what color. I decided to give a simple answer -- one white rabbit and I was correct!                                    

In the second lottery, she asked the others to guess two of the four countries in Europe she will be visiting. The answer are UK, France, Netherlands and Italy. I guessed France and Italy so I also won. 

I'm excited to receive the cards that I won from the lottery.  I will post them here once I get them.

Getting the Hang of It

I am new to this hobby of collecting postcards and swapping with people from around the globe so I am still learning the ropes but I am getting the hang of it. Here are what I've learned so far so if you want to join Postcrossing and do direct swapping, as well, these are tips that might help you.

On buying postcards

My suggestion is to buy at least three copies of each postcard. If you collect local postcards, one goes to your collection, the two can be for swap or official Postcrossing cards.  

Other collectors buy as many as one pack of each postcard but if you don't have a big allowance/allotment for cards, three cards may suffice.

I also think that you should note where you bought the postcards. There are postcards that are more preferred by others so it's good thing to know where you will return to buy more in case you run out of that kind of postcard. In my experience, map cards are requested more often.


On collecting postcards

Some people collect specific cards -- bears, owls, cats, dogs, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, maps, national costumes, places of worship, etc.

I, on the other hand, do not have specific collections. For now I prefer view cards because I love seeing different view of different countries. I'll settle for whatever comes my way. Maybe later when I have enough view cards, I'll think of something specific to collect.


On direct swapping

You may get in touch with people who wants to swap through searching users in the Postcrossing website or you can join its official forum that has a special section for that. At the same time, you may also join Facebook pages of groups open to direct swapping.

In these pages, people post what cards they are looking for and what they have for swap. If you want to swap with them, you have to show them what you offer in return so I also suggest that you make a swap album. It could be in Facebook, Google+, Flickr or whatever works for you. As for me, I made a Facebook page for all my cards for swap. Here is my Facebook page.

On tracking your swaps

Once you start swapping with people, record your swaps (in your computer or in a notebook) and keep track of them. In the beginning I do not keep a record because I only swap with one or two persons in a week but when you start swapping more frequently, you will start to get confused so it's better to have an organized list of swaps.

I suggest that you write the name of your swap partner, the day you sent it and what you expect to receive. Take a photo of the back of the card or the envelope with your partner's address before you send it so you have proof that you are giving the card to him/her. This is not always necessary but some swappers ask for it so it's better to be ready.


There! I think I have written all the I can share about swapping postcard. One more thing, always be nice. Of course, people will be more open to swapping with you when you are nice.

Postcrossing Philippines Fort Santiago Meet Up

When I joined Postcrossing, I thought it would be nice to meet fellow Filipino members to share this hobby with and talk about postcard-related topics.  Luckily, I found the Postcrossing Philippines Facebook group.

The group was having a meet up in Fort Santiago on April 5 and I decided to join even if I am a newbie. When I went to the Fort Santiago, I immediately spotted them in the picnic tables.  They were easy to identify because they have photo albums of postcards and stamp collections.

I was actually nervous when I was approaching them.  It felt like my first day of classes when I was a transferee, when I attended the freshman orientation day in college or when I first time met my UPSCAn brods and sisses. I had questions running in my head. Will they like me? Will I feel welcomed?

But when I got near them, I felt at ease. They smiled and said "hello" when they saw me. I smiled back because I felt their warmness. I felt like I belong. It is a nice feeling to be part of the group.  When I was in college, I was a member of an organization and I miss being part of one.  I think this will be my new group now. :-)

Photo Credits: Sir Willie Monzon, Willa Stock and Edgar Ruiz

It is interesting to note that we come from different places, near and far (Ate Arlene came all the way from Iligan, I think) and we belong to different age groups. Deltiology, the hobby of collectig postcards, is for all age groups and gender.

I had a great time talking to fellow Postcrossing members and browsing their collections. We also talked about what types of photos we want to see in postcards and the improvements we want in the postcards that are available in the bookstores. After lunch, we signed meet up postcards and had mail art tutorial courtesy of Jona.  We spent about five hours together but it felt like time wasn't enough to bond with everyone.

If there is one thing that I noticed about Postcrossers, they are a group of generous people.  They love to share what they have.  It is a shame that I wasn't able to give them anything when I took home so many freebies. It felt like I have no right to take them because I wasn't able to give back. These are what I got from the meet up.

 I am definitely attending the next meet up if it's in an area near me. (They have meet ups in Palawan, Bacolod, etc. I don't think I have the money for that right now.) I promise that next meet up, I will come prepared.  I will also bring postcards that they can sign so that I can send meet up postcards to people.  

I am thinking Tagaytay could be a good venue for the next meet up. The meet up cards could be a picture of  Taal Volcano. It's not in Tagaytay but it is best viewed in the city.  I can also suggest to sponsor our lunch. Hmm... I think that's a really a good idea. I hope they'll agree. :-)

Direct Swap # 2

Finally, my postcard from Defri arrived! Defri is from Indonesia but she's currently studying in South Korea. She is the first person to ask me for direct swap. She seems to be a trustworthy person so I agreed.

One thing about that you need in this hobby is trust.  You have to trust that the postal service of your country and that of the person you're swapping with will work and that the other person will really send you a postcard.

Defri told me that this is Oryuk Islands during sunset.  It is famous because sometimes there are five or six islands seen depending on the weather and the tides. 

This postcard actually took a while to reach me! Thirty one days to be exact. Imagine that!

Date Sent: February 28, 2014

Date Received: March 31, 2014

Postcrossing PH Swap March 2014

I joined the Facebook group of Filipino Postcrossers in Facebook and this month they opened a group swap and I decided to join.  The theme of this month's swap is churches. Here is what I got from Buge.

This is the San Sebstian Church in Manila. It's odd that I lived in Manila for four years and I don't know where this is.  I don't remember seeing this while I was in Manila. Well, I didn't explore Manila so that's probably why.

A Postcard for You

What I love about this new hobby is that people who join are giving people. One of these generous people is Tyler of A Postcard for You. He just gives out postcards without expecting anything in return.  You just have to send him a message through his Facebook page and he will send you one.

So I gave him my address and this is what he sent me -- a postcard of Kentucky bobcat.  He wrote that Kentucky is home of horse racing and rural culture.  He described the bobcat as a cute animal but he wasn't sure how he'd react if he see one in real life.

Date Sent: March 15, 2014

Date Received: March 27, 2014

So, if you want to receive a postcard from Kentucky, just send him a message via Facebook.

Postcard # 6

Postcard # 6 is traveled all the way from Finland to the Philippines. It was sent by Jasmin who told me she read and interesting scifi book titled Obscura Burning.  I don't know, I think scifi isn't my genre. I don't know what these flowers are but they are pretty.

Date Sent: March 18, 2014

Date Received: March 27, 2014

Postcard # 5

This card took a while to reach me. It was sent to me by Oxanne from Russia. The flowers in the yellow shoe are marigolds. In the blue one, I don't know.

Date Sent: February 17, 2014
Date Received: March 27, 2014

How to Remove Ink from Postcards

If you notice my earlier posts, some of the postcards were stamped in the front so it left ink marks in the beautiful postcards. I thought of just leaving it like that but then I read from a post in the Postcrossing Philippines group in Facebook that you can remove it by using cotton and alcohol or nail police remover. I tried using alcohol and here is the result! There are still ink left but it's not as visible as before.

Anyway, I also asked the postman to tell those who receive my postcards to put the stamp at the back so as not to 'damage' the picture. I think that's a better resolution.  My next batch of postcards arrived last Thursday and all of them were stamped in the back. Very good!

Postcard # 4

This is the 4th card that I got last March 18. I think it's really beautiful.

It was sent by Bohus from Slovakia.  He said this is the place where he grew up. Wow! I would have loved to live in this place, too.

Date Sent: March 3, 2014

Date Received: March 18, 2014

Direct Swap # 1

Someone sent me a message thru Postcrossing asking if we can do direct swap. I think it would be a good idea so I said yes. Then I tried initiating a swap with someone and this is the card that I got.

This is from Celine from France. I asked her if she could get me a postcard of the Eiffel Tower.

Date Sent: March 6, 2014

Date Received: March 18, 2014

Postcard # 3

This is the second among the four postcards I got last March 18. but the stamp says March 14. This one is from Thomas from Germany. I tried translating what was written on it. It says:  "Romantic Nuremberg"


Tiergartnertor Square with Kaisenburg
Wine Store
Heilig-Geist-Spital - "was the largest municipal institution for care of the sick and the elderly in the imperial city (Wikipedia).
Imperial Castle
Main Market with Frauenkirche
Main Market with St. Sebald

Date Sent: March 7, 2014
Date Received: March 18, 2014

Postcard # 2

I was getting impatient waiting for the cards so I went to the post office to ask if I have mail.  The postman gave me four cards so I was very happy. Among the four cards, I think this is the first one because the date in the card said it was received on March 12 but it was already March 18 when I went to the post office.

This one is from Daniel from Asturias, Spain. He said this is the "Sanctuary of Covadonga in Asturias, a remarkable spot in the mountains in which a battle took place in the 8th century."

Date Sent: February 26, 2014
Date Received: March 18, 2014

Postcard # 1

I was excited to get this from the mail. This is my very first official Postcrossing postcard and it's from Ika from Netherlands. 

Date Sent: February 16, 2014
Date Received: March 3, 2014