Snail-mailers around the globe: Poland

For this interview we have Aleksandra from Poland, she answered to my call for volunteers on the fb postcrossing group and she was nice enough to answer this super quickly, she has really special and cool postcard to show as well as some interesting facts about tarsiers... Keep on reading to find out a bit more!

In what snail-mailing activities do you take part?

Right now I’m doing only private swaps of postcards and also characteristic souvenir keychains from all around the world.

How did you became a snail-mailer? 
Well as far as I remember I have always been a snail-mailer :) It was kind of a tradition to send a postcards from holidays or even one-day-trips to friends. But now we’re all grownups and many of my friends abandoned this tradition so it was really great to discover Postcrossing and start this great hobby once again.    

For how long have you been doing this? 

Generally – 16 years.

As official Postcrosser – over 3 years. 

Can you show me 3 of your favorite postcards and make a little explanation on why you like them? 

This card is really special for me because it shows the huge enigmatic stone faces of Bayon temple in Cambodia. It’s one of the ‘must see’ places on my list. And what’s makes this postcard more special is the fact that it’s stamped exactly 12.12.12.

Another of my favourities postcards shows Zulu Prince. A descendat of the family of the legendary warrior Shaka, Prince Galenga, who wears the traditional Zulu furs and skins of a man of superior rank. I really love this beautiful portrait!

And the last one is from Martinique. You can see a great painting with vivid colors made by local artist Catherine Gallian Satin-Clair. This style of painting reminds me of the paintings and drawings I made when I was a little girl. That’s why this postcard makes me a bit sentimental. 

How much does it cost to send a postcard in your country? 

Prices depend on weight so it doesn’t matter if you’re sending just one postcard or a few cards inside an envelope, you just have to pay attention to the weight.

1 USD=3,16 PLN
For example:
Stamps to Poland (prices in PLN) 
1-350g – 1,60/3,75(bigger size) normal stamp
1-350g – 2,35/5,10(bigger size) priority stamp

Stamps to other countries (prices in PLN):
1-50g – 4,60 normal stamp
1-50g – 5 priority stamp
51-100g – 9 normal stamp
51-100g – 11,50 priority stamp
101-350g – 10 normal stamp
101-350g – 13 priority stamp

Do you have any themed collections? If you do, why are you collecting them? 

I have one complete themed collection, it’s a set of 48 illustrated postcards issued for Expo 2010 in Shanghai. I wanted this postcards really bad and I’ve been collecting them for more than a year. And why? Well, I’m an art history student and the topic of my Bachelor’s thesis was connected to pavilions at this Expo so I thought it will be amazing to have this set.

Besides that I’m collecting postcards with paintings made by Paul Giovanopoulos and cards with indigenous people or people in national clothes.

If you are into pen-paling, from which countries do you have pen-pals from? 
I have few pen-pals, one is from Thailand, one from India, one from United Arab Emirates and another is from Mali. 

Have you discovered any destination you'd like to travel to thanks to a postcard? 
I've always wanted to see Cambodia but during my adventure with Postcrossing I realized that I also need to see Thailand. I’m totally in love in that country right now! And that’s the main reason I have so many postcards from there :) 

Please share a few facts about other countries you've learned thanks to postcards or letters:

Well I have in my mind a postcard from the Phillipines with a tarsier (click here for a picture) they are beautiful and extremely cute animals, but there's a sad fact about them, tarsiers have suicidal tendencies. When disturbed by loud noises and touching, they tend to bang their heads on hard surfaces until they die :(

A few fun/strange/surprising facts you'd like to share about your country? 

A surprising fact about Poland may be that the pizza here doesn't contain tomato sauce. The waiters bring sauce to the table in a pitcher, and you pour it on top. Sometimes the sauce is just ketchup :)
And one more thing that might be surprising for some people is the fact that in Poland we need to change tires for winter.

In your opinion, what is it that makes sending postcards and letters through snail-mail special?

I  think it’s the sense that someone from far away country, someone who is a total stranger to you is spending their time to find postcard fitting your taste or just to write few words to you. 

Dziękuję Aleksandra!

Toys!

How lovely is this card with some typical toys? I really feel like hugging this card every time I see it! :D I think it might have a little typo and is supposed to say "Classic Charm" still it's too cute! 

Do-jeh! 

**Also I'd like to take the chance to make a quick announcement about the blog**

First of all I want to thank everyone who keeps visiting! Also I really want to apologize about the lack of updates and the fact I've been saying I was going to go back to regular updates and not doing it, I moved to another place and everything was hectic but now I'm all settled and ready to update regularly! (: I have tons of lovely cards to share with you guys.

Also I have great news about "Snail-mailer around the globe" I have lots of new volunteers so we will be able to keep enjoying the interviews for some months! The first new one is coming right after this post so don't miss it and keep an eye on all the ones to come and last but not least I really encourage you all to leave comments! Pretty please I'd appreciate feedback a lot specially on the interviews. 

And well that's all for now, thank you and stay tuned! (:

Ålesund

The photograph is awesome and the stamp goes along very well, too bad it didn't get postmarked (for some reason they put the postmark on the bottom of the card...) 

Ålesund is the largest city in Møre og Romsdal, Western Norway, with about 40.000 inhabitants.

The city is built on a row of islands extending towards the Atlantic. The compact old city centre is surrounded by water, so  Ålesund is a major fisheries harbour.

The old city centre of Ålesund was destroyed by fire in the first years of the 20th century. Much international aid, including personal gifts from Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany who used to holiday there, helped to rebuild in the most modern style, Art Nouveau.

The Atlantic Sea Park (Atlanterhavsparken) at Tueneset is the biggest salt water aquarium in Northern Europe and is built into its stunning environment in the Tueneset conservation area. It offers a range of activities, including diving. After visiting, you can enjoy Tueneset itself which is a nice green area with walkways and a fascinating seemingly endless view of the Atlantic ocean.

From the city there is a beautiful view of the Sunnmøre Alps in the East. 

*Source

Takk!

Luxembourg

My first postcard from Luxembourg along a super nice commemorative stamp from the 2012 Olympics! 

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is a landlocked country in the Benelux bordered by Belgium, France and Germany, lying at the crossroad of Germanic and Latin cultures. It is the only Grand Duchy in the world and is the second-smallest of the European Union member states.

With a successful steel, finance and high technology industry, a strategic location at the heart of Western Europe, more natural beauty than you might expect given its size, and as one of the top three richest countries in the world, Luxembourg enjoys a very high standard of living and has prices to match!

*Source

Merci!

Russian mailbox

I really like this postcard! The shot is quite clever and I love the little color splashes it has, also the back is quite colorful and the person who wrote it recommended me a couple of songs she really likes.

Super nice front and back (: 

Spasibo!

Sárvár

I received this card from my lovely friend Ivet, she was on spa vacation in Hungary and she was nice enough to take a break and send me this postcard!

Sárvár is a town in Vas, Hungary.

The population of the town lying on the banks of the River Rába at Kemeneshát is nearly 16,000. The town has become a tourist centre of international renown.

The most outstanding sights include: the arboretum (a nature reserve), the neo-Classical Lutheran church and the Roman Catholic church, the park forest and the Csónakázó (= Rowing) Lake. A new Thermal and Wellness bath of European standard was opened in 2002 awaiting visitors in pleasant surroundings. 

Through the Nádasdy family, the castle of Sárvár, now called Nádasdy Castle, played a significant role in the progress of Hungarian culture in the 16th and 17th centuries. The first Hungarian book, The New Testament of 1541, was printed here. The knight's hall of the castle is decorated with the battle scenes of Lord Chief Justice Ferenc Nádasdy (married to the notorious Elizabeth Báthory) and with scenes from the Old Testament.

*Source

Dekuju  kočko!