A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 12 May 2026 - T for Travel (Photo heavy)

 Hello lovely peeps, 

I'm traveling! I've been looking forward to this trip for about a year and now it's really happening! I'm traveling from London to Istanbul, by train, slowly and stopping on the way.

But first let me show you a postcard:

It's one I bought in Zürich a few days ago.

Let me start from the beginning: I flew to Madrid, where I caught a flight to London. I had arranged to stay at a private address through HomeExchange. The couple who hosted me were really lovely. 

At the end of the street was a pub and I went and had a half pint of cider with my host:

As it is T-Day, hosted by Elizabeth and Bluebeard, my glass of cider will be my 'ticket' to the party.

I had supper with my hosts and we talked until late. 

The next morning I had to be in St Pancras (railway) station at 6:30 to meet the group (8 other people and a tour guide). The tour leader was waiting at the statue of Benjamin Britten. I eventually found it and met my fellow travellers. They seem really nice. 

Traveling on the Underground was also an experience:

We took the Eurostar train to Paris:

In Paris private transport took us to the Gare de Lyon (another station) where we had booked a table at the famous Le Train Blue rstaurant:

A very beautiful restaurant in the station.

It was quite an experience and the food was excellent.

We traveled through the Alps, which was beautiful:

We were all seated together so we could get to know each other a bit. Most are English, apart from and American couple and an Irish lady. The tour guide is Latvian.

After lunch we ended up in Zürich (Switzerland). (Hence the postcard) 

We didn't have time to do sightseeing, but we had the whole evening to explore locally. Me and the Irish lady went for a walk.

We saw buildings with beautiful murals.

The Landesmuseum (I assume that is the municipal museum) was stunning:

Next morning we got a train to Vienna in Austria, and had a guided tour through the city with a local guide.

Vienna has lots of stunning buildings and a chequered history. The guide (an older man) was very funny, especially when he talked about his country's history.

Vienna has also got many beautiful parks.

At some point we ran into the Lippizaner stallions from the riding school being led from their stables to I don't know where:

At the moment I am in Budapest (Hungary), but that will be for another day.

I wish you all a happy T-Day,

I probably won't be able to do much commenting as I we'll be on a train most of the day. (But we'll see.)

Lisca

 

A Postcard A day - Friday 8 May 2026 - Friday Smiles

 

Hello lovely peeps, 

Well, I'm on my way and I've made it to London! Tomorrow morning (Friday) I will be getting on the the Eurostar to Paris and it will truly be Friday Smiles. But you'll have to wait until Tuesday to read about that. 

In the meantime, here is a postcard I prepared earlier:

It comes from Russia and the writing translates as: 'As long as I breathe, I love and believe.'

The stamps are the pretty Russian stamps I always see on Russian cards (They don't seem to have much choice in stamps)

You can tell by the date stamp that this card has been hanging around a bit. It probably wasn't attractive enough. But hey, here it is...

I'm not sure if I will be able to comment tonight (or tomorrow for that matter, but I'll try to comment back on anyone who comments).

Of course there will be some funnies at the end for you to have a giggle at.

Keep smiling!

Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 5 May 2026 - T for Scandinavian design, crosses and al fresco breakfast

 Hello lovely peeps, 

It's time for T! Have you got a drink to show me? I have one and I will show you later. 

First let me show you a postcard I received a little while ago:

Isn't that a pretty drawing/watercolour? The design is by  Søstrene Grene. 

Wikipedia writes: Søstrene Grene is a family-owned Danish multi-category retail chain. It was founded in Aarhus, Denmark in 1973 by married team Inger Grene and Knud Cresten Vaupell Olsen.

'Søstrene Grene' is Danish for 'the Grene sisters'. The Grene family still owns and runs the chain today, with the founders' children Mikkel Grene becoming the CEO and Cresten Grene becoming the creative director in 2012.

        A Søstrene Grene shop in the city of Groningen,                                 Netherlands.

My postcard comes from the Netherlands and I think the sender bought the card in the above shop (looking at the postmark)

Wikipedia writes:

Søstrene Grene stores have a maze layout with a course that carries customers through all their product categories, leading them to return to the checkouts at the front of the store. The stores use strategic spotlighting and dark walls to create a cosy atmosphere and play classical music to create a sense of calm.

Their product selections include homeware (such as furniture, kitchenware, lighting, bathroom accessories), crafts, gardening, gifting supplies, stationery, travel accessories, children's games and toys, and snacks. New products are released weekly and available for a short time creating an experience of discovery and uniqueness. Products have a focus on Scandinavian design, many with floral elements, and are priced very affordably. All products are exclusive to Søstrene Grene with the exception of some snacks and online-only exclusive items.

The stamp on the card is this one:

Sorry it's not a good image (unfocused). But you get the gist. We've had herrings last week and now a windmill. All things typically Dutch.

What have I been doing here in Spain? I'm packing my suitcase, photocopying my credit cards and documents. Pouring lotions and potions in small travel bottles. Writing instructions for my house sitters. Nothing exciting really. 

This past weekend was a long weekend here. Because of the fact that the first of May, which is a public holiday, fell on a Friday. Our village had also declared the Thursday a day off so Happy Days! 

It is also the festival of the May Crosses where people decorate crosses and display them in their patio/garden or shop window or public place. 

Below is one of the crosses in the little hermitage in the village:

In this case the cross is decorated with bread and the display is of artisanally (is that a word?) made copper articles. Most of them antique.

Today is T for Tuesday so I need a drink. Let me think....

Saturday I was invited to a breakfast (on her terrace) organised by my friend Antonia's daughter who lives not far from me.

She had laid out lots of stuff on the terrace: sausages, bread, cheese, salamis, sweet breads, broad beans. Also drinks including wine. 

Here she is carrying her youngest daughter:

Below is Serafin (another neighbour) cooking some belly pork on the fire

There were all sorts of fowl running around:

They even have a turkey called Paco.

I had never seen a live turkey before so that was special. I just had to touch those strange 'blobs'! I hope I get invited when they eat him...

That is all from me.

Happy T-Day all,

Lisca

A Postcard A day - Friday - 1 May 2026 - Friday Smiles

 

Hello lovely peeps. Are you all ready for the weekend? I am, although I have nothing really exciting planned.

But first, let me show you a postcard. 

Unfortunately it is damaged, where it probably stuck to another piece of mail. We have had wet weather so that could be the reason.

The card depicts a painting by Giuseppe Falchetti (1843-1919) and is entitled Herbstprodukte (autumn produce) painted in 1881 on wood.

Wikipedia writes about him:

Giuseppe Falchetti was an Italian still life and landscape painter, particularly known for his vivid depictions of wine and grapes. Born in Turin, Italy on June 18, 1843 to a modest artisan family, Falchetti joined Giuseppe Camino’s studio at the age of 12. Though originally trained in landscape painting at Camino’s studio, after numerous visits to the Sabauda Gallery of Turin, Falchetti began to take an interest in the genre of still life, and was further influenced by the study of Flemish painting. Falchetti was respected by the noble families of Turin and was often commissioned for his wide-horizon landscapes populated by minute figures, as well as his still life paintings featuring bottles of wine, fruit, small game, and grapes. His proficiency at depicting this last subject led him to be commissioned by the Italian government to paint representations of the national viticulture in 1876. Falchetti died on November 6, 1918 in Turin, Italy.

The stamp is the run-of-the-mill German stamp with the paper castle. Even so it's quite pretty.

How was my week? It has rained a lot this week. This is good for the land but it makes the sky dull and grey. 

The village is preparing for the Festival of Crosses. 

The village is celebrating the May Crosses this week, where people decorate a large cross and surround it with traditional artifacts. The town hall has published which houses are open to view the crosses. And of course public places and some shops and restaurants have one too. I might go and see some this weekend and write a blog about it.

Yesterday I went to meet a Dutch lady who put a message out on Facebook, asking if there were other Dutch people in my village. I responded and we decided to meet. She is 83 and we got along fine. 

We'll meet again after I come back from holiday.

I'm slowly getting ready for my big trip. My friend Andy helped me get the right apps on my phone, like Airalo, a virtual sim card to be able to use my phone in lots of different countries,. We also checked if my Uber app was still patent.

My house sitters are on their way (already in Spain) and I prepared their room this afternoon and made up the bed although they are not coming until next week.

That's all from me this Friday. Of course I will show you some funnies at the end. 

Enjoy your weekend,

Lisca