postcodes

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with love from Orta San Giulio, Italy (2009)

With love from Italy

Dear Hilary & Simon, We’re having a happy time in excellent company. The weather is good & the scenery beautiful. The hotel is grand but a bit haphazard & needs a new stair carpet. Hope all’s well with you all. See you soon. Much love to you all Mum & Dad xxxxxx

This card is from the lakes of northern Italy and features the 16th century decorative town hall of Orta San Guilio on Lake Orta. It is not clear from the text whether Mum & Dad are actually staying in Orta San Guilio; although it would appear that the stair carpet may also date from the 16th century 🙂

The clear postmark reads ‘NOVARA CMP poste 03.10.09 – 16 Italiane’ and the stamp is a 0,65 euro from the definitive series ‘Women in Art‘ issued 2002-2004

An earlier card from my parents, this time with the Mum & Dad moniker.  Taking full advantage of their retirement Mum & Dad travelled extensively, and to some extent continue to do so.  Although these days the cost of insurance is often more than the trip cost, so this is a limiting factor for them. 

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with love from Cumbria (2015)

With love from Keswick (2015)

Tuesday. Bowness by Bus Dear Hilary, Simon, Tallulah & Gus, Another beautiful day & we’ve come by bus to Bowness. It’s lovely with a busy ‘waterfront’ & we are going back to Ambleside later on a big steamer. Can’t remember when I last went on a steamer – on the Thames I guess. Counting my blessings a lot. Hope all is well with you all. Love A&T xxxx

The picture is of Surprise View, probably the most iconic view of the Lake District and A&T are lucky enough to be enjoying some good weather during their visit to the area.

The card is post marked ‘LANCASHIRE 13 OCT 2015’ and also carries the timely reminder to ‘REMEMBER TO USE THE POSTCODE’ – amazingly this is now four decades after postcodes became mandatory in the UK. Do we really still need reminding?

A&T are my parents, but because the card is to all of us and we all call them different things (mum&dad, A&T, Nan&Grandpa) my Mum has chosen the A&T moniker on this occasion.  As a child I enjoyed many family holidays in Cumbria, and this card brings back happy memories: long summer days, camping, sailing, messing about in streams, climbing mountains… As I mentioned last time, I feel very lucky to have both my own parents still alive and my in-laws, healthy and happily married – in both cases for 58 years! 

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with love from Chateaulin, France (1992)

With love from Chateaulin, France 1992

Dear Hilary & Simon, We have come 25 mls up the river to Aulne from Brest to Chateaulin a lovely town – All is well though rather wet. Our wedding at Plougerneau was a shambles! Lots of motoring. Love to you all Mum and Dad

A status update containing a tantalising hint at a much more interesting back story too long to include on the postcard!  There is, however, room for a brief comment on the weather.

The card carries a 2 franc 50 centime stamp and is postmarked ‘CHATEAULIN 18H 24-8-1992 SUD-FINISTERE’.  There is a further postmark promoting the area as a ‘Carrefour Touristique’ or tourist hub and a ‘green holiday resort’. This postmark also includes a map (which could be anywhere) and a picture of the town with its, no doubt famous, bridge. In addition, the postmark mentions the ‘Circuit de l’Aulne’ cycle race as well as ‘Pèche au Saumon’ salmon fishing.  What a wealth of information contained within a space that is 2 inches by 1 inch!

The front of the card is spoiled by the UK postmark which is dated Chard 27th August 1992, presumably the sorting office for mail from France.  The old favourite ‘Be properly addressed’ and ‘POSTCODE IT’ is also there – nearly two decades after postcodes became mandatory!

This ‘Mum and Dad’ are my in-laws, and the card is written by Dad.  Over the years they have enjoyed many holidays in France and have a great number of friends there who they continue to visit regularly. I feel very lucky to have both my in-laws and my own parents still alive, healthy and happily married – in both cases for 58 years! 

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with love from Oakham, Leicestershire (1977)

With love from Oakham

Dear Hilary, hope you’re having a nice holiday – I am! At the moment we are in Rutland and we go home on Friday, hope to see you soon BYE!! Love Ida xx

Post marked ‘Oakham 5.30pm 17 Aug 1977 Leics’ as well as with the old favourite ‘Remember to use the Post Code’ and carrying the 7p stamp which was the cost of posting a small (40g) postcard in 1977

Leicestershire is a county in the middle of the UK with some beautiful market towns of which Oakham is one; close to Rutland Water and about eleven miles from the more famous Melton Mowbray.

The text is a one line status update offering no context, other than it is obviously a trip taken during school summer holidays.

 

This is another card from from Ida, my friend from early school days; I am not in electronic contact with her so I don’t think she has seen the blog yet; I have written her a couple of cards and messages, but it’ll probably be Christmas when I hear back from her – positively I hope!

 

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with love from Scotland (1978)

With love from Scotland

Dear Hiraly,  We are in Scotland and having a brilliant time. We’ve had quite a lot of lousy weather but the last two days have been boiling. The other day we went to Loch Ness it’s really huge  22½ miles by 1½ miles! We didn’t see any sign of monster so we all sat & stared at Neil instead! ow! He just hit me. I hope you had a topping holiday what ho! By the way did I tell you I have definitely & decidedly gone right off Pete. You’re right he is a ugly spotty little weed! I don’t know how I ever could have liked him! Who’s the latest love in your life. I hope you’re luckier than me (that’s right I ain’t got one booked) I’d better go now not much room left. Lots of love Jacq x

PS I will write or phone you up so you can tell me what time you want me to come etc See you soon.

PSS Mum sends best wishes to everyone

Post marked Aberdeen 29th July 1978 and Jackie and I are still writing and apparently visiting each other. Once the status update is dealt with, Jackie gets on with the serious  business of teenage angst about our favourite topic, boys – it seems I was none to complimentary about her recent beau!

The other postmark is a different version of the post code reminder – it states ‘ABERDEEN is mechanised Letter Office PLEASE USE THE POSTCODES’. The whole point of postcodes being that mail could be mechanically, rather than manually, sorted.

Jackie’s brother Neil is mentioned in the card – Neil was the same age as my brother; it worked out really well when they lived right next door! 

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with love from Porlock Weir (1987)

With love from Porlock Weir

Taking a week away in Dunster with such lovely surroundings. Our flat is very satisfactory and well furnished & situated next to a large house & garden, of which we have the use. Taking things quietly & exploring the village My love to you from Auntie Vi

A classic status update from my great aunt. The postmark date is Minehead 5 Oct 1987.   The 13p stamp was the cost of sending a postcard second class in 1987 (this is approximately 34p in 2015).

We were still being reminded to ‘Be properly addressed’ and to ‘POSTCODE IT’ – this is some thirteen years after it became mandatory; by this time most people in the UK seemed to have got the idea!

Porlock Weir is still a popular spot for visitors, it is about 10 miles from Dunster. The yellow dragon in the top left hand corner of the picture is the logo of Somerset County Council.

The eagle eyed amongst you will notice the name change – I’d got married.

Auntie Vi was married to Uncle Wilf who was Grandad‘s brother. They did not have children, hence no grandchildren; they were great fun and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them when I was a young child. We were out one day, us in our car, with Wilf and Vi following behind; there was a crash, Wilf died. With a child’s eye view, the horror was lost on me – he was my Grandad’s brother, therefore ‘old’. I saw Auntie Vi more regularly, she holidayed with us and livened up our birthday parties, but she lived as a widow (seeing me grow up, get married, have my own children) for at least another 20 years. How sad that she was denied spending that time with Wilf.