Category: Art

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Friday/ stamps, mailed from India 🇮🇳

Happy Friday The Thirteenth.
The postage stamps I had bought from an Ebay seller in Mumbai, India, made it into the mailbox on my porch this morning.

Here are some of my favorite ones.

Sixth series of South African Railway parcel stamps
Issued 1929 | Perf. 14 | Size 18×22½ mm | Afrikaans or English inscriptions | Background 14 vertically aligned rows of text | No watermark
PS 6.2 | 2d Pale mauve | Afrikaans text
Overprinted PMB (code for Pietermaritzburg, Natal railway station)
Postmarked Sept. 6, 1932
[Source: Railway Stamps of South Africa, 1985, by H.S. Hagen and S.P.Naylor]
German inflation stamps from circa 1923, primarily from the Weimar Republic era.
These represent a period of hyperinflation where postage costs skyrocketed from 20 marks to 50 billion marks in less than a year.
(Confession: I don’t have a collection of stamps from Germany, but I love the elaborate numeral designs on these, and added them into my purchase).

Brittania, QE II
Issued by Royal Mail, Great Britain, Mar. 2, 1993 | Perf. 14 | Design B. Craddock | Lithography | Printer: House of Questa | Silver die-stamped w. Braille symbol for “10” embossed | Paper contains fluorescent colored fibers which, together with the ink on the shield, react under U.V. light
1658 1088| £10 Greenish grey, rosine, yellow, new blue, reddish violet, vermilion, violet, bright green and silver
[Source: Stanley Gibbons stamp catalogue Part 1, British Commonwealth 1997, Vol.1]
Royal Mail Postage Labels, 1984
These imperforate labels, printed in red on phosphorized paper with grey-green background design, were issued on 1 May 1984 as an experiment by the Post Office. Special microprocessor controlled machines were installed at post offices in Cambridge, London, Shirley, (Southampton) and Windsor to provide an after-hours sales service to the public. The machines printed and dispensed the labels according to the coins inserted and the buttons operated by the customer. Values were initially available in ip steps to 16p and in addition, the labels were sold at philatelic counters in two packs containing either 3 values (31, 12), 16р) or 32 values (½p to 16p).
[Source: Stanley Gibbons stamp catalogue Part 1, British Commonwealth 1997, Vol.1] From 28 August 1984 the machines were adjusted to provide values up to 17p. After 31 December 1984 labels including ep values were with-drawn. The machines were withdrawn from service on 30 April 1985.

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Saturday/ stamps for the Olympics 🎿

It is a time-honored tradition for countries and postal agencies over the world to issue postage stamps to commemorate the Olympic Games.

The Unites States Postal Service has not issued stamps for the 2026 Games, though.
Here is host country Italy’s stamps.
Very abstract— compared to say, the issue from Japan for the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo.

From olympics.com:
Sapporo 1972 was significant for both Japanese and Asian winter sport.
As the first Winter Games held in Asia, they inspired people across the continent to watch, and take up, snow and ice disciplines.
The success of the Japanese ski jumpers– known as the Hinomaru Squadron– created national heroes and showed that Asian winter sports athletes could compete with the best from Europe and North America.

The 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games XXV, Milano Cortina, Italy
Issued by Poste Italiane, Jan. 21, 2026
Miniature sheet of 2 stamps | Perf. 11 Die Cut | Engraving by I.P.Z.S. S.p.A. – Roma | Self-adhesive | No watermark
4877 FLV | €3.35 Multi-colored shades of green, yellow-green | Milano Cortina 2026 “Futura” emblem
4878 FLW | €3.35 Multi-colored shades of dark blue, purple, violet | Milano Cortina 2026 “Futura” emblem
[Sources: stampworld.com, Google AI Overview]
The 1972 Winter Olympic Games XI, Sapporo, Japan
Issued by Japan Post, Feb. 3, 1972
Miniature sheet of 3 stamps | Perf. 13¼ | Photolithography | No watermark
1103 A730 | 20 yen Ultramarine & multi-colored |Downhill Skiing
1104 A730 | 20 yen Ultramarine & multi-colored |Bobsledding
1105 A730 | 50 yen Ultramarine & multi-colored |Figure skating, pairs and Makomanai Indoor Skating Rink (now known as the Makomanai Sekisui Heim Ice Arena)
[Sources: 2021 Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue Vol. 4A, stampworld.com]

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Monday/ lacquer art 🖼️

Here is the traditional Vietnamese lacquer artwork (called sơn mài) that I had bought in Ho Chi Minh City.

I love the bright colors and the gold background.

By the way: the Vietnamese have a long tradition of holding their wealth in gold. Vietnamese savers are estimated to have collectively socked away around 400 tons of gold items at home.

So what also happens is that a person building a home or starting a business, would borrow money from a relative in the form of gold— rather than taking out a loan at a bank.

The meteoric rise of the gold price has made a world of trouble for these borrowers, because they have to pay back their debts in gold, as well. They now have to buy it back at almost double what it was say, a year ago. The gold price has tumbled by 10% these last two trading days, but is still up by about 90% over the last 12 months.

Water buffalo are called con trâu in Vietnamese. They are a deeply symbolic animal in Vietnam, often referred to as a “living tractor of the East” due to their role in agriculture. The boy with the kite, and the people on the bridge are all wearing their nón lá (the traditional Vietnamese leaf hat).
Works of sơn mài art done can be very meticulously crafted and time-intensive.
It is a traditional, 800-year-old technique.
I don’t know how much time went into making this piece. The price was US$45. (The minimum hourly wage in Viet Nam is the equivalent of about US $1.00). 
It is possible that the gold background in the artwork was done with gold leaf. 
The artist also used a little bit of mother-of-pearl eggshell— in the flower baskets and above the thatched roof.
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Friday/ finals weekend at the AO 🎾

Happy Friday.
It’s finals weekend at the 2026 Australian Open.

World No 1 Carlos Alcaraz (22, 🇪🇸) survived his marathon 5½ hour 5-setter semifinal match against Alexander Zverev (28, 🇩🇪) 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), 6-7 (4-7), 7-5.
He will meet Novak Djokovic (38, 🇷🇸) in the final.
Djokovic was not supposed to beat world No 2 Jannik Sinner (24, 🇮🇹) in the semis, but he did: 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

In the women’s final Aryna Sabalenka (27) will meet Elena Rybakina (26, 🇰🇿).

P.S. There are AI-animated versions of the matches posted on espn.com in addition to the real ones. Why? Just for fun, I guess. Alcaraz is in green.
The animated players play with an oversized tennis ball. The AI engine is still a work-in-progress when it comes to the finer detail, though— such as showing the hands of the players gripping the racquets.

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Tuesday/ gold on a tear ⭐

Every time I look, the gold price is up by hundreds of dollars.
Is there an impending upheaval that buyers of gold expect and that the rest of us are unaware of?

Last year some traders predicted the gold price will cross $5,000 in 2026, and they were right.
It’s only January and it already sits at $5,313.30.
That was +192.70 today.

The stamp from Japan is just for fun.
Even the goldfish looks shocked 😲.

From the Definitive Series 1967-69: Fauna, Flora and Japanese Motifs
Issued by Japan Post, 1967
Perf. 13½ | Photolitho. | National Printing Bureau
913 A564 | 7 yen | bright yellow-green & deep orange | Goldfish
[Sources: 2021 Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue Vol. 4A, stampworld.com]
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Friday/ Japanese postmarks 🗾

Happy Friday.
It is a major sports weekend for Seattle— the Seahawks face the Los Angeles Rams this Sunday for the NFC Championship and a spot in Super Bowl LX.

I spent a lot of time this week sorting the hundreds of loose stamps I had bought in Tokyo, by year.  Here are some ones with nice postmarks and a sports theme.

International Table Tennis Championships, Tokyo
Issued by Japan Post, Apr. 2, 1956
Perf. 13¼ x 13½ |Litho. |National Printing Bureau
618 A369 |10 yen |red-brown |Table tennis players
Postmarked 31.4.5 which means 1956 April 5.
The 31 refers to the 31st year of Emperor Hirohito’s reign (1925 + 31 = 1956).
Softball at 33rd National Athletic Meet, Nagano Prefecture
Issued by Japan Post, Oct. 14, 1978
Perf. 12¾ x 13 |Litho. |National Printing Bureau
1348 A938 |20 yen |multi-colored |Softball Players and Mt Yari
Postmarked 59.7.3 (let’s say) which means 1984 July 3.
The 59 refers to the 59th year of Emperor Hirohito’s reign (1925 + 59 = 1984).
Badminton at 36th National Athletic Meet, Nagano Prefecture
Issued by Japan Post, Oct. 13, 1981
Perf. 12¾ x 13 |Litho. |National Printing Bureau
1485 A1064 | 40 yen |multi-colored |Badminton player and Lake Biwa
Postmarked 86.2.6 8-12 which means 1986 Feb. 6 8am-12 noon
The 86 now refers to the Gregorian calendar year 1986.
Handball at 40th National Athletic Meet, Tottori City Sports Arena
Issued by Japan Post, Oct. 19, 1985
1665 A1233 | 40 yen |multi-colored |Handball Player and Mt Daisen
Postmarked 89.6.21 12-18 which means 1989 Jun.21 12 noon- 6pm (Chofu is a city in Tokyo prefecture)
The 89 now refers to the Gregorian calendar year 1989.
[Sources: 2021 Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue Vol. 4A, stampworld.com]
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Wednesday/ a few souvenirs 🐘

These little souvenirs out of my suitcase are doing duty on in the kitchen window for a week or two.
They will join the many others I already have, in the display cabinet.

From left to right:
Glass ‘Merlion’ from Chinatown, Singapore;
Encased postage stamp from Singapore General Post Office;
Miniature pyramid depicting Independence Palace, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from the museum store there;
Gilded elephant from gift store at Ream Boutique Hotel, Cambodia;
Miniature Year of The Horse wood carving from a pop-up store inside Takashimaya department store, Tokyo;
Miniature paper weight of Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur, bought at Port Klang Cruise Terminal, Malaysia.
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Monday/ Kabukicho Tower and Ginza 🌇

On Monday I went up to the 17th-floor observation deck of the Kabukicho Tower. It offers a nice view of the trains running into and out of Shinjuku station.

The other photos are from Ginza shopping district around sunset.
Everything in Ginza is art— the buildings, the lamp posts, the manhole covers in the pavement, all the way down to the metro stations below ground.
The clocks are from inside the Wako Building, owned by Seiko watch corporation.

I took the Marounochi Line back to Shinjuku just before the onset of rush hour (rush hour starts at around 5.30 pm).

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Sunday 🌞

Sunday was bright and mild (57 °F/ 14 °C) here in Shinjuku.
The streets around Shinjuku station were closed for traffic all day.

A little parade of sorts came by, featuring bands and groups for firefighter and disaster support, and little league baseball teams. Elsewhere there was a protest for the war in Ukraine (offering support for Ukraine).

There are a Teslas on the streets, but not many. In the picture with the black Tesla, the hotel is on the left.
The beautiful building with the wavy top is Tokyu Kabukicho Towerー 48-story skyscraper completed in 2023. It was designed by Yuko Nagayama & Associates and developed by Shimizu Corporation. [Wikipedia]

At Shinjuku Station’s East Exit, the giant 3D cat is still there, entertaining crowds near the crosswalk for Studio Alta.

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Friday/ arrival in Tokyo 🗼

There’s a thundering (digital) waterfall in the check-in and departures area at Singapore’s Changi airport.
And watch out for the 3-D jaguar inside the secure area that will pounce on you!

Changi airport’s layout feels different than the standard airport floor layout.
There are no check-in counters, and I had to look around to find out where to take my tagged luggage for check-in.
(It is handled by fully automated stations with conveyor belts that swallow your bags.)

The security check is done right at the gate with its dedicated waiting area.
So no bottled water or other large liquids can be carried onto the plane. There are no toilets right by the gate’s waiting area as you wait to board.
(So what happens if it turns out there is a 30 min or 1 hr delay with the boarding process? Can you go out and come back in through the security check?)

All went according to schedule, though, and off we were on the 6 hr 16 min flight to Tokyo’s Haneda airport.
We were northeast bound with a flight path that had Viet Nam to the west, and going between Taiwan to the north and the Philippines to the south.

It was still Friday night rush hour on Tokyo’s trains upon my arrival, and I would have had to navigate my way out of Shinjuku station with bags in tow, the busiest of them all. (A station that handles 3.6 million passengers every day).
So Go Taxi it was, and the US $55 fare that brought me right to the entrance of the hotel was totally worth it.

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Thursday/ out and about 🤗

Today was my last day here on the tip of the Malay peninsula. I will travel to Tokyo in the morning.

I ran out to the Singapore main post office and a Singapore Mint store— for a souvenir or two in the form of stamps and coins, of course.
(Will post what I got, later. I bought a lot of stamps! )

The lunar new year (the Year Of The Horse) is coming, so several Singapore Mint coins with horse motifs on were on offer.
I liked the shiny golden Merlion better— made of an one-ounce 999 (99.9%) fine silver proof ingot that is clad with pure gold.

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Wednesday/ Chinatown, Singapore 🏫

Singapore has one of the oldest Chinatowns in the world.
The area around Pagoda Street has been a hub for the Chinese immigrants in Singapore since 1330.
To this day it has traditional shophouses, but also modern stores and busy street markets.

I sipped my coffee outside the Starbucks on Smith Street, while listening to a beautiful song in a language I will never understand or learn 😢, as the smell of freshly cut durian from a nearby vendor wafted through the air.

The mosque is Masjid Jamae (built in 1820), and the Hindu temple is Sri Mariamman. These are the sources of strange sounds—very, very strange to the Western ear— the calls to prayer from the mosque, and clanging and chants from the inside the Hindu temple.

The last two pictures are is of the main plaza in Chinatown.
I love the public space with the old-timers that are there just to shoot the breeze, or to play a game of checkers.

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Tuesday/ back in Singapore 🛳️

The Diamond Princess was back at Singapore’s Marina Bay Cruise Center at 7 am this morning.

Right then, a choreographed process of getting some 3,000 passengers and their luggage off the ship, through passport control and customs, and on their way to the airport or elsewhere, started.

Grab is the Uber in Singapore* and we hopped into Grab cabs that we had reserved the night before to take us to the hotel. (My family heads out in the morning and I will stay in Singapore for a few days before making my way back to Seattle via Tokyo.)

*Grab acquired Uber’s Southeast Asian operations in 2018. Uber still has a 27.5% share as part of the deal.

The wall poster is from the metro’s new brown line, the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL). The benches down on the platforms are benches, and works of art, as well.

What a nice find in the grocery store: Valencia oranges from South Africa, for only SGD 3.20 (US$2.50) for five. Sweet and seedless.
Right next to them were pairs of Amakusa oranges, ever so slightly larger, advertised as ‘Air Flown’ from Japan, for SGD 28.80 a pair, which comes to $11 for an orange. Eek 😱.

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Monday/ Port Klang, Malaysia 🇲🇾

The Diamond Princess made it into her final port of call for this voyage this morning, arriving at Port Klang at 8 am.

I was well enough to take the shuttle bus to the AEON Bukit Tinggi Mall, 20 minutes away. That was a consolation prize, since I had cancelled my excursion into Kuala Lumpur, and the Petronas Towers 😢, two days before (not sure I would be well enough to do the whole-day excursion).

That ship in the distance, all the way across from our own terminal, sails under her new name Star Voyager, operated by StarCruises.
From Wikipedia:
She was built in 1997 and previously known as Dawn Princess and Pacific Explorer, having previously been operated by Princess Cruises and P&O Cruises Australia. In 2001, while operating in Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park, Dawn Princess struck and killed a humpback whale while travelling too fast through the protected waters. Princess Cruises was later charged and found guilty in United States federal court and paid a fine and restitution totalling US$750,000.

Looking at my mall pictures, I now regret I did not buy the little gold wafer with the Petronas Towers on.

Oppo is a Chinese tech company, known for its innovative Android smart phone designs, with strong camera features (often with Hasselblad tech), fast charging and competitive pricing.

And the book? I should have bought that as well, but Amazon may be able to help me mend my mistake.
Google AI:
Antanom (Ontoros bin Endoi) was a renowned Murut hero from Sabah, Malaysia, who led an uprising against the British in Rundum in the early 1900s due to taxation and oppression. He is known as a great hero for his charisma, spiritual power, and ability to unite the warring Murut tribes against the colonizers, and he died in battle. His story has been immortalized in books and documentaries, solidifying his title as a hero of the Murut people.

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Sunday/ Penang, Malaysia 🇲🇾

The Diamond Princess arrived at the island of Penang on Sunday, but I was too ill-disposed to venture out of my stateroom all day. 😢

Here is my collection of pictures of the plaques that commemorate the Diamond Princess’s ports of call that are on display on the Promenade Deck, though.
She has certainly spent a lot of time in the Far East, it seems.

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Friday/ Phuket, Thailand 🇹🇭

The Diamond Princess arrived at Phuket at 9 am this morning, as scheduled.

Phuket is Thailand’s largest island, and the cruise ship was anchored by the bustling Patong Beach*. The tender boat trip to the Patong Jetty was only 15 minutes: not bad at all.

*Patong Beach was hit particularly hard by the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami. The waves reached heights of 3–6 m (9.8–19.7 ft) along the west coast of Phuket island.

Thaweewong Road runs at the back of Patong Beach. It is lined with anything a tourist might want, and might need: ATMs, markets, beach clubs with swimming pools, bars, pharmacies, restaurants, food stands, pot shops (legal but no smoking in public allowed), massage parlors, taxi stands and scooters.

Sarasin Bridge to the north connects the island to Phang Nga province, but we were a little deflated after a few hours in the hot sun and headed back to Patong Jetty to catch a tender boat to the Princess.

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Monday/ Ream National Park, Cambodia 🇰🇭

The Diamond Princess arrived at Preah Sihanouk (Sihanoukville) at 7 am this morning.

The tour bus that took us to Ream National Park and the beaches on the Gulf of Thailand first made its way through Sihanoukville, with a stop at the ‘love monument’.  The love monument is a a massive copper sculpture depicting the legendary Khmer couple Prince Preah Thong and Naga Princess Neang Neak, symbolizing the origin of Khmer civilization and culture, located at a major roundabout facing the sea. 

There were a lot of abandoned buildings lining the streets Sihanoukville: many of them projects by Chinese investors and entrepreneurs that were abandoned after the Covid pandemic had forced the stoppage of work on them.

The next stop was at a Buddhist compound with several temples, and Buddhas. (Theravada Buddhism is practiced by over 90% of the population).

After that it was off to the beaches of Sampounch Island, and the national park. We did a little motor boat cruise through the mangroves and walked on an elevated plank walkway through the forest. There was not a single bird in sight, but we ran into a few long-tailed macaques right at the end of the walk.

The other beach pictures and the crab, the gecko, the snake and the giant tree are near the beach at the Ream Boutique Hotel. We had lunch there, and a dip in the lukewarm waters of the Gulf of Thailand.

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Saturday/ Ho Chi Minh City 🇻🇳

The Diamond Princess arrived at the deep-water port of Phú Mỹ at 8 am on Saturday morning.

It’s almost a 2-hour drive from Phú Mỹ to the sprawling city of Ho Chi Minh.  Our tour bus ran alongside and across the rivers of the Mekong Delta*, and the route included a segment of National Route 1 with toll plazas. It is the beginning of the rice planting season. Rice is a staple food in Viet Nam.

*Home to the endangered Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas), known for reaching nearly 10 feet and over 600 pounds.

As we approached the city, we saw tall apartment buildings (what we would call condominiums in the States). These go for a fortune in Vietnamese Dong— 5 billion, about US$200,000— and are strictly for rich people. The supertall skyscraper in the pictures is that of the 81-story Landmark 81 tower (completed 2018).

Our first stop in Saigon* was at an art studio and gallery with Vietnamese lacquer art, or Sơn Mài.  *The central part of Ho Chi Minh City still goes by the name of Saigon.

The next stop was at Ho Chi Minh City History Museum with its lovely water lily pond and displays of the forces that occupied the territory of what is known as Viet Nam today.

I asked Google AI Overview for a summary:
Vietnam’s history is marked by occupation and resistance, starting with over a millennium of Chinese rule (c. 111 BCE–938 CE), followed by internal dynasties and expansion south. French colonization from the 1880s led to French Indochina, briefly interrupted by Japanese occupation during WWII, sparking the Viet Minh independence movement. After WWII, France tried to reclaim control, leading to the First Indochina War (1946-1954), ending with French defeat and Vietnam’s division, ultimately leading to the Vietnam War (US involvement) and communist unification in 1975.

Next was the Saigon Central Post Office with a portrait of Ho Chi Minh inside. (Ho Chi Minh was the man that led a long and ultimately successful campaign to make Vietnam independent. He was president of North Vietnam from 1945 to 1969.)

Look for my picture of the Pittman Apartments building from which people were airlifted from during the Fall of Saigon in April 1975 (famously captured in Hubert van Es’s iconic photo). It’s painted yellow and light brown and has several antennas attached to it.

We made a quick stop at a Buddhist Temple, and then went to the swank Windsor Plaza Hotel for lunch. I loved the dragon on my little can of Bia Saigon Special beer.

The next stop was at the Independence Palace (also called Reunification Palace) , a building that played a central role in the Viet Nam war. It was designed by architect Ngô Viết Thụ. Construction started in 1962 and it was completed by 1966.  It was the home and workplace of the president of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam).

The final stop for the day was at Ben Thanh market.
It has some 1,500 booths inside and it was crowded, so I went outside and took a few pictures instead.

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Friday/ Nha Trang, Viet Nam 🇻🇳

The Diamond Princess arrived at the pier in Cam Ranh at 7 am this morning.

My coach bus excursion to Nha Trang was a whirlwind tour consisting of a visit to Po Nagar Temple, a short cruise on Cai River, and visits to an ancient house built from ebony wood, a mat weaving shop and an arts & crafts market.