Friday 28 July 2023

A Postcard A Day - Friday 28 July 2023 - Friday Smiles

 Hello lovely ladies,

Here we are again on a Friday to think back on all those smiles of the past week. And there have been many. Although I have to live without my soul mate and best friend, and I still miss my husband terribly, life is good and I am healthy (Praise the Lord). I'm enjoying life and have much to smile about.

But most of you know that my first smile is always for my postcard. I received it this week from my friend Maggie who was on holiday in Italy. Yes, we were there at the same time, but it's a big country and we didn't meet.


She was on the Amalfi coast. On the map you can just about see Naples in the top left corner. The town is called Paestum.

Paestum (or the Archaeological Park of Paestum) has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1998. It is in CampaniaItaly, and is a once thriving ancient Greek (then Lucanian, later Roman) settlement, with the best preserved Greek doric temples worldwide. It is surrounded by a Roman city wall, and is 40 km south of the city of Salerno. It was originally named after the sea god Poseidon, it came under roman rule in 273 BC. 
As the Roman Empire began to crumble, Paestum slowly fell from history being hit by Malaria, pillaging and savage raids. Paestum lay abandoned.
The ruins of Paestum are famous for their three ancient Greek temples in the Doric order, dating from about 550 to 450 BC, which are in an excellent state of preservation. Wikipedia

Some of the temples are visible on the card. You also see images of the walls of the tomb of the diver. (Tomba del Tuffatore).

The Tomb of the Diver, located in Paestum, is known for the mysterious subject matter of the frescos adorning the walls. 

The origin of this tomb is somewhat mysterious as well. There has been scholarly debate about whether the tomb was built by a Greek settlement occupying 
Poseidonia or by an ancient Italic tribe from a more southern region of Italy. The tomb was built with five large stone slabs, each hosting a fresco attributed one of two artists. The four walls are decorated with scenery of a symposium which is uncommon for a funerary context. 

The ceiling is a true mystery and the namesake of the tomb: a lone diver leaping into a pool of water. This figure is unique to this tomb, no other ancient Mediterranean artworks have imagery comparable to the diver.(Wikipedia)

There are some interesting articles, of which this is one of them. Have a look if you like to know more.

The stamp is simple and celebrated Padova being proclaimed as Capital of Volunteers.

On December 5th 2018, in the city of Aahrus, Denmark, Padua was officially proclaimed the European Volunteering Capital for 2020.
The challenge is to transform Padua into a laboratory-city, to attract ideas, to activate projects, and to initiate activities aimed at stimulating collaborative actions among all the local social components.


There will be positive effects for the city of Padua, the Veneto region, Italy and Europe. The previous European Volunteering capitals were: Barcelona (2014), Lisbon (2015), London (2016), Sligo, Ireland (2017), Arhus, Denmark (2018) and Kosice, Slovakia (2019).


So..... what have I been doing? I have joined a Pilates class in Baza, the nearby town. I do Pilates two mornings and one morning I do Yoga. 

I have now done one week and I'm loving it. I used to do Pilates when I lived in the UK. It makes me feel so much better. It's difficult to explain.

Because they have a parquet floor, I sometimes slip with my feet. It's hot and I probably sweat a bit. So I have bought some non-slip yoga socks which have silicon dots on the bottom.


It has toes! We had a bit of a giggle with me 

trying to put them on:

But they work very well, so I'm glad I got them.

And yes, I managed to get a haircut (very much needed).


I've also been out for dinner with my friends David and Patricia.

The text on the wall translates: Cooking with love feeds your soul.

That is all from me today. I'm going to join Annie at A Stitch In Time.

Of course I have funnies for you at the end.
Enjoy your weekend and don't forget to smile!



Hugs
Lisca










In case you can't read it: It reads: In case of 

accident Bring cheese & crackers. Lots and lots of 

cheese and crackers.



































6 comments:

Iris Flavia said...

Interesting facts to the card again, thank you!
My neighbor even has shoes with toes. Crazy sight in the cold months...
Well, yes. I should resume yoga as well...
Fun times eating out, and I like that sign, too.
Love "Xavier"! And the Dutch supermarket-idea. My parents always took their time for their elderly customers, too.
How unfair they themselves were not allowed to grow old.
Clever cooking help!
Oh, free wives... didn´t know such a market exists!
To smiles (and cheese and crackers, but no accidents, please)

My name is Erika. said...

Interesting postcard today Lisca. And I love those socks. I remember toes socks from my youth, so long ago. I don't think I liked them then. What do you think now? Have a super rest of the week and weekend. hugs-Erika

Annie said...

Oh Lisca I had such a giggle at your funnies today. I love to hear how you are getting out and about and filling some of the empty spaces that Graham left....well done you.
Hugs,
Annie x
ps Buffalo wings are chicken wings cooked in a sticky sauce.

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

That's a lovely postcard with lots going on. I know you like the ones that have maps on them.

Those are some adorable and cute yoga socks. Very functional indeed. Sounds like you go more now than you did when Graham was alive. And eating out more, too (grin).

Some of your funnies were laughable. Loved the last two. Of course, I'm a huge fan of Pink Floyd, so had to smile at that. Have a super rest of Friday and a great weekend, dear Lisca.

BTW, I got an envelope from you yesterday. Thanks in advance, dear.

Felix the Crafty Cat said...

Hi Lisca, sorry I'm a bit late. I've got a busy weekend so been trying to get jobs done today. I love the new socks, great idea. I was surprised to see that you don't have a link to the blog over at Annies but I used an older one to get here. Take care and have a lovely weekend. Hugs, Angela xXx

Rostrose said...

Dear Lisca, I'm glad there was a lot to smile about, even if you miss your husband. (I can understand that so well. My mother felt the same way after almost 60 years of marriage, and my husband and I are most of the time soulmates and best friends, too...) By the way, your smile is very beautiful, as you can see on your sock photos 😊.
The map from Italy is great - and the tomb of the diver looks very interesting! I think it's good that you do Pilates and yoga if it's good for you. (I've only tried yoga so far, but I'm probably a different type of gymnastics. I have two special training programs that I alternate - sometimes more strength training, sometimes more endurance...) Nice that you met your friends and had a fine dinner.
Thanks also for the funnies at the end. I think the idea of the Dutch Supermarket is brilliant!
All the best
Traude
🌸🌿❤️🌿🌸