Cakes

 See Ir On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is in search of sweets or deserts...

A postcard of one of a series of posters commissioned by London Transport around the 'Simply' theme so that taking the tube or bus could lead one to the simple pleasures of the city.  'Simply Appetising was  the subject for artist Michael Forbes who came up these sweet treats as "A Little Bit of What You Fancy", I'm picking the eclair which I am sure, to complete the idiom, 'will do me good'.

2016 PHQ Card -  Aardman Animations

Is it tea time? No its Timmy Time. No cake stays hidden for long.  As well as appearing with Shaun the Sheep little Timmy  has mini adventures of his own and tries (not always successfully) to stay out of trouble. The series of short 10 minute animations are called 'Timmy Time'.

Long and Curvy

 See It on A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt looking for long and curvy bridges

PHQ Card - 2015: Bridges

The Peace Bridge curves and snakes over the River Foyle joining the two communities of Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland and opened in 2011.  The Protestant Unionists on the east bank will refer to the city as Londonderry and the Catholic nationalists on the west side as Derry.  The BBC gets around this problem in their news broadcasts by always referring to it as Derry/Londonderry.  The bridge however has been a great success, becoming a beloved part of the city and it features in New Year and numerous other celebrations. Even the Dalai Lama has visited and walked across it.

Now travelling by postcard over the water to the city that is sometimes jokingly called 'the second capital of Ireland', Liverpool. Many of those emigrants from Ireland may have worked on the building of  its Overhead Railway and definitely worked in the docks.

Liverpool Overhead Railway Poster

As well as carrying millions of passengers Liverpool's overhead railway was a tourist attraction, this poster from the the 1930s invites a visit for "unrivaled views of Dockland Shipping"

Originally opened in 1893 it was the first overhead railway in the world to be operated by electricity. Rather ironically one of the factors of its eventually decline was due to the corrosion of the corrugated iron decking caused by the steam operated Docks Railway plying its trade underneath some of the sections.  The cost of repair was too much and it closed in 1956.  Once known as the  'Dockers Umbrella' its 7 miles (11km) was demolished in 1957/8.  I have two photo cards of the railway but only this one has a postbox. Spot it near the link bridge.

Angels and Penguin

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is looking for Public Art or murals...

2011: UK A-Z

The Angel of the North over time has become a symbol of North East region of England.  It stands on a hill (the site of an old mine) near two main roads and the East Coast Main railway line. Like all Anthony Gormley's sculptures the body is based on his own, although they are all more life sized than this enormous sentinel.  The ribbed wings break the strength of the wind.

St John's Garden (Sculptor - Thomas Brock)

An angel sits at the bottom of a statue to William Gladstone (19th Century prime minister) as a symbol of Justice.

Evel Penguivel at the Chinese Arch, China Town, Liverpool (Artist - Harry Harris)

Penguins appeared all over Liverpool in 2009 as the finale to their Year of the Environment and the effects of climate change.  Called 'Go Penguin' there were over 200 of them, all different, this one is dressed as daredevil Evel Knieval.  At the end of the event they were sold off for charity so some can still be seen around the area such as the the four Merseybeaks at the ferry terminal and Superpenguin at Lime Street underground station dressed in yellow Mersey rail colours.

Riverside

 The Thursday Postcard Hunt destination this week is the river and I travel to the banks

An Out of Doors Study by John Singer Sargent (1889)

and what pleasanter place could there be to take ones paints and canvas.  This is John Singer Sargent's lifelong friend Paul Helleu and his young wife Alice who Helleu had met when employed to paint her portrait and instantly fell in love. He painted her for the rest of his life.  The trio were staying in Fladbury Worcestershire in the summer of 1889 so this will be the River Avon.  I picked up this card at a fascinating 2015 National Portrait Gallery exhibition "Sargent: portraits of artists and friends" which spanned his time in London, Paris, Boston and New York as well as his travels in the Italian and English countryside.  I wonder if he ever took a trip on a riverboat

1989 PHQ Card "Traditional Mail Delivery" by Mark Hess

A card of one of the stamps that were issued when the 20th UPU Congress was held in Washington.  This is the US Mail Packet Chesapeak loaded with mail. Keep an eye on that cart for something larger would send the Chesapeak to her doom in 1887 when she sunk after a runaway wagon holed her hull.

The banks of The Rance

I have always thought it would be a fine thing to walk a river from source to sea, not a thought I have put into action!  The Rance would provide lots of interest, the Barage de la Rance has the oldest tidal power station in the world and this card shows all the beautiful places to visit on the journey.
 

Hold on to Your Hats

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is in search of hats..

"When the Heart is young"

 

A breezy day on the beach and one person is making sure that her hat will not blow off.  She should have used hat pins. I have one of my grandmother's long hat pins and it looks as though it could also double as a lethal weapon.   The postcard was sent from the seaside resort of Blackpool in August 1909 from Amy to her friend Miss A Bodkin and tells her that they were enjoying themselves immensely as is this happy crowd.

"He doesn't see me yet"

I was sent a set of these cards published by Atkinson Bros in Toronto featuring a lot of hats and poses mainly worn by this young women playing peek-a-boo.

PHQ 2011: Centenary of the First UK Aerial Post "Gustav Hamel receives first mailbag"

Of course I have to feature a postman's hat and there would be postcards in his bag for this test flight from Hendon Airfield to Windsor carried commemorative cards and envelopes.

Windmills

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt is in search of Windmills so where to start...

 
of course it has to be the Netherlands and the Kinderdijk with its 19 windmills.

2017: PHQ Card series - Windmills and Watermills

 

Head over the channel to Kent and Woodchurch windmill which has a view over Walland Marsh, land that was reclaimed into farmland many centuries ago.

Aland Exhibition Card for Taipei 2015 (30th Asian Int Stamp Exhibition)

Taiwan has huge offshore windfarms but it seems also a traditional windmill.  I like the light in this card, it reminds me of Greece.   The artist Tord Nygren painted an attractive set of Exhibition Cards around the theme of windmills for Aland Post, here is another one under rather stormier skies,

Christmas Trees

 Time for a See It On A Postcard Thursday Postcard Hunt this week and its Christmas Trees. All sizes still available from the garden centre near me but

Inge Löök's grannies have already decorated theirs and have decamped with all the essentials for Christmas  to the coast.  They have thought of everything, including an inflatable igloo.

PHQ Card - 2018: Christmas (Illustration - Andrew Davidson)

Meanwhile the posties will still be working until Christmas Eve for the post must get through.  This is one of the big city postboxes with lots of room for Christmas cards and London always has lots of Christmas trees of every size and interpretation. David Hockney's 'Bigger Christmas Trees' may be the most eye catching this year for lovers of lights.

Sheep Gathering

 The See It on a Postcard Thursday Postcard Hunt this week is a search for Working Animals

"Sheep Gathering in the Skidadalur valley Ljosmyndari"

and here are the  hardy Icelandic horses. Iceland's sheep spend the long summer days in the mountains but come September/October Icelandic farmers head to the mountains to gather the sheep in before the long cold dark winter arrives. The sheep roundup is called the Réttir and starts with search parties riding horses and quad-bikes to locate the roaming sheep.

2016: PHQ Card "40 Year of Aardman Animation"

No horses live at Mossy Bottom Farm but the farmer has his sheep dog Bitzer (who is always seen wearing the blue knitted hat the farmer gave him as a puppy).  Bitzer is never completely in control of Shaun the Sheep or the The Flock but life would be dull without them.