A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 29 September 2026 - T for women having fun, and a glimpse of Krakow

 Hello lovely girls,

I have a most beautiful postcard to show you today (at least I think it is beautiful) and because I'm joining Elizabeth and Bluebeard at the T-Party, I will show you some drinks as I have been out and about again.

But first this lovely postcard:

It is a photo from 1906 by Minna Keene, using the carbon printing process. The Stephen Bulgur Gallery website writes:

Minna Keene, née Bergman, photographer (born 5 April 1861 in Arolsen, Germany; died November 1943 in Oakville, ON). A self-taught photographer, Keene was a member of the London Salon, a society devoted to the promotion of pictorial photography. In 1908, she became the first woman to be admitted as a fellow to the Royal Photographic Society. She immigrated to Canada just before the First World War.

Above is a photo of Minna herself.

The Canadian Encyclopedia adds:  In 1910 Minna exhibited in the Fifty-fifth Annual Exhibition of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, and in each year until 1929. In 1911 her photograph of her daughter Violet, entitled Pomegranates, was awarded Picture of the Year at the London Photographic Salon.

I like this photo because of its atmospheric lighting and the fact that she is carrying pomegranates (the Spanish word for pomegranates is 'granada'. As I live in Granada, that hits the spot.)

Let me show you some drinks as I need a 'ticket' to the T-Party hosted by Bluebeard and Elizabeth.

The local Women's Association held their annual lunch. I am the third from the right. There were 15 tables of ten women.

There were several antipasti and tapas before the first course arrived. I had chosen octopus as my first course. Here it is with my drink in the background. I am drinking alcohol free beer as, again, I was driving.

I forgot to take a picture of the main course, which was a nice cut of pork called 'Iberian pork pluma'. It's a prized little cut of Spanish black-footed pig, very tender and beautifully marbled. I enjoyed it very much. So much so that I forgot to photograph it.

My dessert was Pan de Calatrava:

Spanish Media writes: Pan de calatrava is a traditional dessert from Murcia, although its origin has several theories. It is very similar to the flan but with the addition of using leftovers from the previous day, either bread, cakes or muffins. 

A sort of glorified bread pudding, with bread/sponge drenched in caramel sauce. Yummy.

In between courses I went outside with my friends to chat and take pictures.

We're just having a bit of fun.

The name of the restaurant is Las Conchas (meaning 'the shells'.)

At the moment I am still in Poland (Krakow) with my two friends. We're staying in a delightful apartment in the centre of town:

I'll post more of Krakow when I get home.

In the meantime: 

Happy T-Day!

Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Friday 25 September 2026 - Friday Smiles and Face Off

 Hello lovely peeps, 

Here we are again at the end of another week. Has it been a good week for you? It has for me as I am on holiday in Poland, in the city of Krakow. More of that later. 

But first a postcard:

Some of you know that I love Steampunk. And if this card doesn't make me smile, I don't know what will. (Big smile!)

It was sent to me (via Postcrossing) by Eugenia, who lives in Nizhniy Novgorod in Russia. She is a fire safety engineer.

The small(er) stamp at the bottom features the Main Fair House of the Nizhny Novgorod Fair, an architectural masterpiece completed in 1890. 

Designed by architects Karl Treiman, Alexander von Gauven, and Nikolai Ivanov, this magnificent building was specifically constructed in the Russian Revival style (also known as the neo-Russian or pseudo-Russian style). It was intentionally built to mimic the ornate, fairy-tale look of 17th-century Russian administrative palaces (terems). It served as the grand administrative and commercial headquarters for what was once the largest and most important annual trade fair in the Russian Empire. (I think I got this info from Wikipedia)

Following the Russian Revolution, the Soviet government shut down the fair in 1930, labeling it a "hostile social phenomenon". Most of the fair's 60+ historical trade buildings and streets were demolished to build housing blocks. Miraculously, the Main Fair House survived. Today, it has been fully restored and serves as a premier modern exhibition center hosting the multimedia museum Russia.

The red double stamp at the top represents the Moscow Metropolitan (Underground) , showing carriages from 2024 to 1935 (from left to right).

Now what am I up to? Tuesday and Wednesday night I stayed at my sister's in Marbella. 

Here I am in between my sister and my brother-in-law. (Faces for the FaceOff)

I boarded a flight at Malaga airport and I arrived in Krakow on Thursday afternoon.:

You can just about see the pink plane through the glass. It's an airline called WizzAir and as far as I know it's an Hungarian budget airline. Anyway, it was fine. Very relaxed, on time and a pleasant flight.

I arrived at Katowice airport, which is an hour away from Krakow. That was to avoid a crazy-o'clock early flight direct to Krakow, which would have been the alternative. There are buses from the Katowice airport to Krakow (an hour by road) and I got to Krakow bus station in good time. A short walk to our apartment and then fiddle with entry codes etc but I'm here now and the apartment is very nice.

My friends from the UK are arriving later tonight (I'm writing this on Thursday evening), so I've had the evening to myself. I went out for a meal and had an Indian curry at a place called Indian Flame

I had a prawn mango korma and it was the best I've ever had.

I ate the lot! 

That is all from me today. Of course there will be some funnies at the end.

Enjoy your weekend!

Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 22 September 2026 - T for Germany, rain and fish lunch

Hello lovely peeps,

Today is tuesday and when you read this I will be on a bus to Malaga. (I have written this on Monday). I will be spending the night at my sisters' in Marbella. We have a lot to catch up, so I don't know if I have time for comments. But I will try on Wednesday.

My postcard for today comes from Germany and was sent (through Postcrossing) by Denise, who lives with her husband in the Harz mountains in the middle of Germany.

The the photo shows a real life scene in what is clearly Eastern Germany (Former DDR). I can tell by the cars. They were known as 'Renn pappe'. They were made of pressed cardboard coated with resin. I remember those although I didn't live in the DDR, they were also exported (can you believe!). 

The stamps are colourful and fun:

Especially the Mickey Mouse stamp at the top which celebrates 100 years of Disney films.

What has been happening here in Granada? Well we have had some much needed rain last week:

We could see it coming from afar.

Saturday my friend Antonia and I went to my cave house, which used to be our weekend bolt hole. Since my husband died I have hardly been there, but as it is in the middle of the countryside, I do have to occasionally check the place over. So we went there and cut the knee-high weeds as they are a fire hazard. Indoors I swept the place and put new mouse poison in every room. When that was done we decided to go for lunch.

We drove back into town and found a bar/restaurant. I drank an alcohol free beer as I was driving.

And we had a plate of 'cazón' (dog fish) to share:

And a plate of smoked fish:

My drink is visible in two photos and that will qualify me for the T-Party hosted by Elizabeth and Bluebeard.

Happy T-Day all!

Lisca

 

 

A Postcard A Day - Friday 18 September 2026 - Friday Smiles and Face Off

Hello lovely girls!

I have a lovely postcard for you today, with some gorgeous stamps. Further along I will show you some photos of a bring-and-share lunch we had at a friend's pool house. I will also talk about three books that I read this summer. And at the end there will be some funnies.

I will also try to find faces for the Face-Off.

But first the postcard:

It comes from China and it was sent (through Postcrossing) by Jiahiang. He writes (in Spanish) that what you see on the card is a traditional Chinese paper cutting and it represents fishing and hunting by early human beings.

The stamps are impressive:

The first stamp, "Century-Old Bank of China," features the historic former Bank of China building at 3 Hankou Road, Shanghai, built during the Republic of China era.

The left side of the design incorporates the original 1912 announcement of the Bank of China's establishment, while the right side features an early Nanjing banknote issued by the Bank of China, tracing the origins of the bank and commemorating its century-long financial legacy, representing the beginnings of modern Chinese finance.

It was issued in 2012 commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Bank of China.

The building still exists:

This stamp from 2008 celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the Founding of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

 The above two stamps (from the same series) were issued in 1998 and feature Shennongjia.

Shennongjia consists of a group of mountains and hills in the western part of Hubei Province and between the Yangtze River and the Hanshui River. Shennongjia is famous for its high mountains.

I couldn't find info on the stamp on the left, but I'm pretty sure I recognise the 

Zhangjiajie National Forest Park: 

Located in Hunan Province, over 3,000 towering quartzite sandstone pillars rise through the mist. This dramatic landscape inspired the floating Hallelujah Mountains in the movie Avatar. 

Now for some faces for Nicole's Face Off:

We had a bring-and-share lunch (and Bible study) last Saturday. You can see rosé wine, orange juice and Aquarius, as well as bottled water .

The food was excellent as you can see on the above photo.

I had lots of different things on my plate. I had already started eating when I remembered to take a picture.

Now for my books. Earlier this year I read The Frozen River:

It's a gripping historical mystery inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, a renowned 18th-century midwife who investigates a shocking murder that unhinges her small community.

It is set in Maine in 1789 and the protagonist is a midwife. Oh I loved this plucky woman! She is intelligent and wise but the villagers don't see her like that. She is 'just a woman'. She boldly gives her opinion about the dead body that was found in the frozen river. I also loved her sweet relationship with her husband. Although the book is based on a real diary, the story around it is imagined as the real diary only mentions the births and deaths. It gives an interesting  insight about how people lived in that era.

I gave it 5 stars (couldn't put it down).

The next book is another Robert Goddard thriller. 

It is set in 1923 and the protagonist is a rather flawed character who 20 years earlier betrayed the love of his life and has regretted that ever since. When he reads in a newspaper article that she is being held on suspicion of murder, he decides he needs to help her and the story/mystery unfolds. Like other Robert Goddard books there are so many plot twists and turns. I listened to this as an audio book and I was listening to it everywhere. I went shopping with earphones in! Unputdownable!

Needless to say I loved it and gave it 5 stars.

Next up is The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson:

The blurb reads: Cornwall, 1730: A young girl known only as Red travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient Cornish method of the Square of Sevens. Shortly before he dies, her father entrusts Red’s care to a gentleman scholar, along with a document containing the secret of the Square of Sevens technique.

That sounded quite exciting and just the sort of book I like. Add to that, that it's set in Bath (I used to live just outside Bath and know it well) so I though I would love it.

The plot was convoluted and had too many characters to keep track of and remember who was related to whom. It was confusing and I was bored with it. It was 20 hours of audio and it felt never ending. I didn't finish it but searched online just to know how the story ended.

2 stars.

If you've made it this far you will be rewarded with some funnies at the end.

Have a great weekend,

Lisca