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With love from Lagos, Portugal (1991)

With love from Algarve

Dear Hilary & Simon It’s really lovely here, and although we waited a long time – the holiday was worth waiting for! We are off to Lisbon tomorrow for two days – really looking forward to that. Hope all is well with, and look forward to seeing you on the 25th. Take care. Love Doreen & Jimmy x

This long anticipated trip to the Algarve is meeting expectations!

Carrying a 60 escudos stamp from the Portuguese Navigators series issued in March 1991 and featuring an aerial shot of Lagos, the card is postmarked 2-10-1991

Doreen used to work with my husband, Simon. They stayed in touch after Simon left the company and we used to see Doreen & Jimmy quite regularly. We have not seen them for some time as we no longer live so close, but we still exchange Christmas cards and news once a year 🙂

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With love from California (2017)

with love from California

Hi Hilary! my health continues to decline. i have Achile’s tendonitis that started many months i finally had to get a big boot and go to physical therapy. i put all my art supplies [away] during the holidays [and] desperately wanted to paint, so i started bring stuff up from the garage, yay! as you can tell nothing happens in my life! Love C 1/17

The photo does not do justice to the depth of colour and texture that C has achieved in this hand made card.  She’s mainly used oil pastels on this one, I think, and I love the colour combinations 🙂  You can see more of her work here

It’s a great status update, from earlier this year (2017), about the minutiae of a life that is lived dealing with debilitating health issues,  and food for thought for those of us lucky enough to be currently enjoying good health and a full life – make the most of it and be nice!

C and I have been exchanging postcards for over a year now!  Hers are always her own artwork, while mine to her are a mix of hand made and commercial ones that I pick up when I’m and about and think of her.

 

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With love from Eastbourne (circa 1983)

with-love-from-eastbourne

Dear Hilary, thanks very much indeed for your postcard. Are you living in London now? Hope your course is going well. I am doing SRN and am into my last  year now (3rd), I will remember your b.day this yr! love to your family, love Ida xxx

Another perfect little status update from Ida, who appears to have settled in Eastbourne.

The postmark reads ‘SUSSEX COAST 1 OCT 198_’ and I am guessing it’s early eighties.

My ‘course’ and the fact that Ida thinks I might have been living in London are both confusing – I cannot recall the course and I have never lived in London!

Ida and I remain intermittently in touch but we have not met for many years.

 

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With love from California (2017)

with-love-from-california-2017

Hi Hilary! It’s raining here for a week which gives me terrible.  Christmas week was nice: did a lot of decorations and sat looking at the Christmas trees and listening to Christmas music. How was your Xmas? Happy New Year

Another original design created by crazyruthie in postcard format; it must have taken ages to colour all those little shapes!

The postmark is barely visible, you can just make out the number 7 on the right which, along with the text, indicates that this card was received early in 2017 (this year).

The stamp is that Global universal stamp which, it occurs to me, may soon include the head and shoulders of the president! (Anything is possible).

Another card from CBC who I have become postcard pals with since starting this blog 🙂

 

 

 

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With love from Costa Brava, Spain (1979)

with-love-from-spain

Dear Hiraly, we are in beautiful sunny Spain and having a great time. We’re staying in the place on the front of the postcard. I’ve put a dot & a cross where I think our villa is. It’s a bit hard to distinguish one from another at that distance but never mind! So far I haven’t had time to write postcards but I’ve got a headache at the moment which really throbs so I haven’t been swimming. Too much sun I expect! I’m convinced I’ve got sunstroke though! I’ve bought myself some snorkelling stuff (very cheap here) and we (me, Neil, Ally, Paula, our friends) went snorkelling off the rocks. It was great fun. We saw shoals of fish, black very spiky sea urchins which I so cleverly got stuck in her big toe despite wearing plastic sandals. Luckily we managed to get most of it out. Trust me. I’d better go there’s not much space left as you can see. Hope to see you at end of summer love Jackie xxx PS Neil saw an octopus. I’ve never got of the sea so fast.

Another card from Jackie with her distinctive method of writing all around the edge and back across the top! Despite feeling under the weather she’s managed to pack a lot of news and anecdotes into the space.  The cross she refers to is just visible to the right of the trunk and on the wooded area in the distance; the dot is just below it.

The postmark date is 16 06 1979 and the stamp is one of a set of three encouraging us all to save energy.

Porta de la Selva is featured on the front and still looks much the same although that tree might have gone now!

Jackie was seemingly quite a prolific card writer and enjoyed many holidays with her family.

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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 😦

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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 🙂

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With love from Fallingbostel (1979)

With love from Fallingbostel 1979

Dear Hilary! I wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a lucky New Year 1980. I’m always totally stressed before Christmas, so I send you only this card with the hope that we can continue our correspondence also 1980. Anyway have a nice holiday, many Christmas presents and perhaps a party at Christmas Eve. Yours Claudia

This card features another Christmas Greeting from Germany – the cards are very similar and sent just a year apart.  The German text roughly translates as ‘A merry Christmas and a happy new Year’.

The postmark is clearly visible and is dated ‘FALLINGBOSTEL 21.12.79’  There is another postmark promoting the town of Fallingbostel with its Kneipp Spa and Luftkurort.

Schloss Rheydt, featured on the 60 pfennig stamp, is a Renaissance palace in Rheydt, Mönchengladbach. The stamp is part of the definitive series issued in 1977 featuring strongholds and castles.

Another card from Claudia who was not ‘stressed’ at all when I met her in London on Sunday! Having not communicated for some 20 years we have now managed to meet up In Real Life twice within the space of twelve months!  Happy Days 🙂

 

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With love from Market Harborough (1097)

with-love-from-canals

Weather OK so far – scenery very changeable. Went through Leicester yesterday but are back in the countryside today.  Been through 77 locks so far – only another 120 to go! Glad I’m the Galley Slave! John’s the Captain. Regards Jo & John

The picture shows the famous and challenging Foxton Locks in Leicestershire (UK), which continue to be a popular destination for canal users and onlookers today.

Clearly postmarked ‘LOUGHBOROUGH 17 SEP 1987’ the card also carries another postmark reminding us to ‘Pass on your postcode’ – it was now more than 10 years since postcodes became a requirement on UK mail and we still needed reminding!

Jo & John again, who, as I recall, went on several canal boat holidays and were so enthusiastic about them that Simon and I decided to try it one year 🙂 

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With love from Romsey (1982)

with-love-from-romsey

Dear Guess, A picture taken by the bloody Argies whilst on a strafing raid against Romsey. Our Home-guard shot him down with ground-to-air oaths & curses & then forced the pilot to capitulate by the internationally dreaded “Romsey-Torture” which involves prawn-cocktail crisps stuffed up his rear & then being force to quick-march whilst carrying a union jack. Cracked up under the strain, you know DAM

Postmarked ‘SOUTHAMPTON 24th May 1982’ this card features a completely fictional narrative based on the Falklands Conflict which was taking place at the time.

The stamp is 19½p equivalent to 48p in 2016

The card was sent to me in Norway where I did not get to hear much British news; this message probably did little to further my understanding of the events taking place in the South Atlantic.

Another of DAM‘s black and white cards featuring Romsey and the surrounding area, together with more of his imaginative reflections.  I received many of these random notes from him during this period and they still make me smile, although I have no idea why he often addressed me by my surname!