Hello lovely peeps,
Today I have a very special postcard to show you. It comes all the way from Western Australia!
And perhaps you can guess who sent it..... yes, none other than Iris! Thank you so much Iris! I am absolutely thrilled! I like it because you went through the effort of buying, writing and sending me the card, I like it because it has a map on it (and I love maps) and of course I like that there is some info on the card:
Of course there are some places that Iris has visited and writes about in her blog. Also I have read a book set in Broome (One of the Seven Sisters series).
The stamp is beautiful:
The Sydney Opera House was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II, on 20 October 1973. Acclaimed throughout the world and recognised as a masterpiece of creative genius, this extraordinary building was designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon (1918–2008), who was awarded the project in 1957 following an international design competition. With its prominent location on Bennelong Point, the Opera House is a fitting response to its spectacular harbour setting.
I never realized the opera house was made of wood.
Now for a quick change of location:
Last week (or was it the week before?) our pastor, another couple and I had been to Huescar, which is an hour and a half drive from here to visit a lady from our congregation who hadn't been well. After visiting her we went for a walk through the little town.
The small town of Huescar is known as "Cuidad de la Paz" (City of Peace). It sits at an altitude of 953 metres and has a population of less than 8500.
It has some beautiful buildings. We started in the main square:
Which has a beautiful band stand:
I discovered a fun fact about Huescar: Huescar has been at war with Denmark for 172 years!
When Spain allied with the United Kingdom against Napoleon during the Peninsular War, Spanish troops in French-aligned Denmark–Norway suddenly found themselves in enemy territory. While many were evacuated by the UK or escaped by other means, some 5,000 Spanish soldiers were imprisoned in Denmark.
Spain cut off relations with Denmark in response. Upon receiving this news, the City Council of Huéscar decided to declare war on Denmark. Huéscar, being a small village with only eight municipal guards at the time, did not send any troops to fight against Denmark, and neither did Denmark engage in hostilities against Huéscar. By the time of Napoleon's defeat, the declaration of war had been forgotten, and Huéscar forgot to declare peace.
In 1981, a local historian rediscovered the declaration of war. This led to a ceremony and celebration on 11 November 1981, wherein the city mayor and the Ambassador of Denmark ratified a peace treaty. Some representatives of Denmark attended wearing Viking costumes, while Spaniards erected signs in Danish jokingly warning against entering enemy territory. During the intervening 172 years, no conflict or injury occurred between the two parties.
I came upon the modernist house all of a sudden:
This most beautiful house is the Casa de los Penalves.
This Gaudi style house is situated in El Paseo del Santo Cristo, where it stands out in all its beauty. The Catalan modernist design is both unusual and yet blends in perfectly amongst the Huescar architecture.
We did not visit the inside of this house but I found some photos on the Internet:
The skylight of the central patio
The rooms are stunning and reminiscent of the Alhambra. Now I'm trying to find out if it is open to the public. I'd love to visit it.
I think I'll leave it at that, but before I go I'd like to show you two photos taken on Saturday when I had a birthday. I organised a little party and of course I had a cake (a Sachertorte), kindly gifted to me by my friend Dian:
Someone had cheekily reversed the candles on the cake. So I'm pretending to be 37!
Sorry about the dark photo, I only had party lights on and we didn't want to flash.
Of course it is T for Tuesday hosted by Bluebeard and Elizabeth, so I need to have a drink. Luckily in the above two photos there are some drinks in the background.
That is it from me my lovelies,
take care,
Hugs,
Lisca
9 comments:
Happy belated birthday Lisca. It looks like you had a lovely celebration. And wow, that house is very Gaudi-like. I bet it was fantastic to see, and I bet the inside would amazing to see also. And nice postcard from Iris also. I hope you have a great T day and week ahead. hugs-Erika
Your birthday celebration looks wonderful -- I wish you many happy returns of the day! Thank you for the amusing and interesting lesson on the history of the "hostilities" between Denmark and the lovely little Spanish town. I'm glad that peace is finally in place.
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Happy birthday Lisca! We have a lot of March birthdays in our family including mine. You look great, perhaps 73 is the new 37! The cake also looks delicious. Those buildings are beautiful and it's so nice to see the sun. How cool to get a postcard from Iris on holiday! Happy T Day! Elle/EOTC xx
:-) I thought you might like that card - after all I pop in here regularly.
Aha, the Opera house - the postie found none from Perth?
I wanted to see "Phantom of the Opera" in 1999 there. Ingo said, "when we´re back (we traveled 6 months) - they had another piece playing and hence I never went...
That really is a beautiful band stand and the skylight is wonderful, too.
Oh!! Happy belated 37th Birthday, to a great new year in your life, with loads of travel, friends and fun! Oh, and good food and drink, health!
Hugs and Happy T-Day!
A very nice post. Happy belated birthday. It looks like you had fun at your party. Also so much beauty, and history in Cuidad de la Paz. Yes and the wonderful card from Australia. Have a very nice day today.
Happy belated 37th birthday :) Sachertorte for your birthday, now that's a real treat! How sweet of Iris to send you a card from Western Australia. Beautiful stamps as well. Interesting, quirky history fact about the "Ciudad de la Paz" and Denmark. Happy T day! Hugs - Carola
I really enjoyed the story of Huescar and the war with Denmark. How fun to finally call a truce after all this time and in such a fun way, too. Happy T Day and Happy Birthday. You don't look a day over 37!
So fun that Iris sent you a card from Australia. I have gotten some great stamps and cards from my friend in Australia. Happy belated 37th birthday, Lisca. :)
Huescar looks beautiful and that house is spectacular! Belated Happy Birthday! I would love to have a slice of Sachertorte ! Belated Happy T Day too, hugs, Chrisx
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