lost

by

With love from Dawson, Canada (2002)

with love from Yukon

June 12/2002  Hello everyone! I know it has been a really long time since I have been in contact, and I hope you are still at this address. All of the children must be getting so mature, as I believe it has been almost 3 years since I left England. Lots is happening, I am ½ way done my university degree in Victoria, B.C, but I am living and working up in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory this summer. The land of the Midnight Sun, I will go to Dawson this weekend, Right now they are having 22 hrs of sunlight. Hope all is well. Love Allison Carr xo

What an interesting status update! But we are left wondering what Allison is doing in Whitehorse and why she is visiting Dawson, which is a good six hour car journey away!

The stamp is a 1.25 value featuring Sculpture from the Traditional Trades definitive set issued in 1999

As a young woman, Allison lived and worked in our town in the late nineties, which was when our children were very small. In a bid to escape, what could be a very hectic domestic environment, Simon and I decided that a regular, weekly date night was a good idea! Allison was recommended to us as a babysitter, and she came once a week for about a year to look after the children while we were out. The children were fascinated by her accent and her world travels. Eventually, she went back to her home country, Canada, to continue her studies. Sadly, she didn’t give us a forwarding address, so we were never able to respond to this card. If anyone out there knows this Allison Carr, then please ask her to get in touch, as I would love to catch up and exchange news with her.

by

With love from Antibes (1983)

with-love-from-antibes

Sun 29/5/83 Dear Hilary, Hi! The journey by coach wasn’t too bad & we arrived with beautiful weather at about 3.30pm yesterday. The site & facilities are very nice & clean & the caravan is ideal. Right now we’re sitting on our little grass patch with table & chairs. The beach is just across the rd & the sea looks beautiful. On Wed 1/6 we’re going to St. Tropez & Port Grimaud. We also hope to visit Monte Carlo some time. Hope you and your family are all well. Lots of love, Wendy xx Hope you had a lovely time in Cyprus. BYE xx

Clearly postmarked ‘ANTIBES 15H 31-5 1983′ this card was written promptly on arrival to ensure that it would reach the UK before the travellers returned home.  Despite only arriving ‘yesterday’ Wendy has plenty to say about her surroundings and the weather, both of which she is obviously enjoying.  I suspect her travelling companion is her boyfriend at the time.

The stamp is a 1 franc 60 centime Marianne Liberté de Gandon engraved by Pierre Gandon.

This is another card from Wendy; I’m still trying to recall a surname for her, so at the moment we’ve not reconnected 😦

by

With love from Germany (1981)

with-love-from-holland

Dear Hilary, 11.00am Hope you are getting on OK in Norway as I’m sure you are. We have been in Germany 2 days and are really enjoying ourselfs. The weather is really hot – 90°, but as we are not near the sea-side we have to make do with 2 olympic size swimming pools on camp (Army Camp!) and at Winsen Aller there is a lovely lake where we can go wind surfing and water skiing. 12.30am Have been to Hannover tonight with Martin, Alan’s mate – Really nice at night. Will write properly soon Vanessa xx

This card is clearly postmarked ‘BAD HARZBURG 8.8.81’ and I received it shortly after arriving to live and work in Norway.

It sounds as though Vanessa would have preferred a beach holiday to an inland holiday, despite the lake and the swimming pools offered at the military base.

Sadly I have no recollection of Vanessa (or Martin and Alan mentioned in the text)… which is a shame as her writing is plentiful, informative and descriptive 🙂

by

with love from River Tagus, Lisbon (c1982)

With love from River Tagus, Portugal 198

Hello Hilary, Happy Birthday. Yes it’s 27th Oct so hopefully this will get to you in time Hope to see you all at Christmas Take Care Love Sue xxx

Sent in plenty of time for my birthday, this greeting does not contain even the briefest of status updates – there is no clue as to why, or for how long Sue is in Portugal.  She hopes to see us ‘all’ at Christmas, suggesting that Sue knew the whole family, rather than just me. Look closely, and above ‘Miss’ she has written, in brackets, ‘I THINK’ Is she wondering if I have got married?

The crucial final number of the post mark date is missing ‘Lisbon 27 Oct 8?’ so I am guessing at ’82, but it could be later.  The stamp is from The Development of Working Tools series issued on 2nd January 1980 and in circulation until 31 August 1989.

The atmospheric picture on the front is of the mouth of the River Tagus, Lisbon.

 

This is the third Sue that has featured; sadly, also the third that I am unable to identify and with whom I have lost touch 😦 If your name is Sue and you think you recognise your own handwriting, please leave a comment – it would be lovely to reconnect… Here is the first Sue, and the second Sue. 

 

by

with love from Costa Brava (1986)

With love from Costa Brava

Tuesday  Dear Simon & Hilary, We didn’t quite make it to the Greek Isles but we’re still on the Mediterranean in an apartment outside Estartit. It is very quiet here and not too far from the beach. We’ve been to a local market and a few towns & have booked trips to Montserrat, Gerona and a flamenco show. The weather is very warm – even at night, although it is rather windy which makes swimming in the sea quite tricky. We have been eating out a lot & discovered everything said about the Spanish waiters is true! Love to you both, Sue xxx

Post marked ‘L’Estartit 18 Sept 86 Girona’ with the additional post mark message ‘CONSIGNE EN SUS ENVIOS EL CODIGO POSTAL’ which I believe roughly translates to ‘Always use the post code’.

It carries two 20 peseta stamps featuring King Juan Carlos

Lots of information is being shared, although there is no clue as to why they didn’t make it to Greece; likewise no clue as to who is with her on holiday – their name is excluded from the signature so I can only assume that we did not know her travelling companion.

The picture is not referenced on the reverse but, having visited the area some years ago, I can confirm that it is typical of the rocky coast of the Costa Brava which features many, tiny hidden coves and is probably best explored from the water.

Having studied the sweep of the ‘S’ and the style of the ‘E’ I am confident that this is not the Paris Sue. Amazingly I do not remember this Sue either! As she has addressed Simon first I suspect she was a friend of his, but he cannot shed any light. So, once again, I have to admit to losing touch with Sue 😦 

 

by

with love from Paris (1981)

With love from Paris

Tuesday  Dear Hilary, Yesterday we went on a boat trip down the Seine which showed many of the famous sights. Later we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and then onto Les Invalides. Today we went to Versailles to see the palace, we’re having a great time and the weather couldn’t be better. See you soon Sue + Chris

Post marked ‘Paris 21H 7-7-1981 Gare St Lazare’ and carrying a 1 franc 20 centime stamp, this is another 1981 card featuring the Sacré-Coeur  together with its funiculars.

There is plenty being updated here – Paris and the weather combining to offer the proverbial ‘great time’.

 

Sue is a very popular name amongst my peers and I was at school with several – unfortunately I cannot be sure which Sue has written, and the accompanying Chris is a confusion… I have lost touch with this Sue!