World's one and only Floating Postoffice

You might have heard about floating markets, floating houseboats, floating hotels, and floating gardens. But what about the "Floating Post office"?

When you go to the Dal Lake, in Kashmir, you will come across many shikaras.  If you keenly see, one of the Shikara belongs to the India post, which serves as the one and only floating post office, not only in India but also in the world. This 200-year-old British-era post office had a facelift in 2011, to attract more visitors.

This post office offers regular postal services along with banking services.  The floating market vendors don't have to step out of their shikara to deposit their money or to connect with their loved ones.  The Postman hires a shikhara and delivers the letter to shikaras/houseboats.  This also serves as a Postal Museum, unfortunately, it was worst affected by the flood in 2014.  The letters posted here will carry a special pictorial cancellation of a man rowing a shikara, as shown below.

Thanks a lot, Muthu Krishna Kumar for this nice cancellation.

12th May : International Nurses Day

Nurses are professionals who care for the general well-being of patients.  The ongoing pandemic has made us realize that nursing is one of the biggest healthcare professions in the world.

The practice of Modern Nursing was founded by Florence Nightingale. She was a social reformer and statistician. She is better known as "The Lady with the Lamp". She was born on 12th May 1820 and her birthday is remembered as International Nurses Day.

Though Dorothy Sutherland, an official in the US Department of Health, had proposed Nurses Day in 1953, the first Nurses Day was celebrated only in 1965.  And in 1974, May 12th was chosen as International Nurses Day.

The above stamp was issued by Indonesia in the year 1994 to commemorate the Sixth Five-year plan for Indonesia's development strategy. The stamp depicts a nurse weighing a baby using a hand-held machine. 

The above stamp was issued by India in 2009 and shows the "Lifeline Express" (Jeevan Rekha). It shows the mobile hospital train that started operating in 1991. Since the Indian Railway network is the largest in the world, this allows Jeevan Rekha to reach the most remote areas of India and provide medical care.

Trained Nurses Association of India was founded in 1905. A stamp commemorating it was issued by India in 2011. 

A stamp issued by Spain of unknown vintage shows a nurse tending to a baby. This stamp was for commemorating the National Anti-tuberculosis Campaign. The red emblem is the 'Cross of Lorraine'.

A stamp issued by Laos in 1982 for child healthcare, shows a nurse using a stethoscope to check on a child. The occasion was the 7th republic day of Laos.

Permanent Pictorial Cancellation : Udupi

 Permanent Pictorial Cancellation: Udupi

Udupi is a town in southwest Karnataka. It is a pilgrimage center.  Though it has a lot of temples, it is notable for the Krishna Mutt Temple. It is the native place of the Vaishnavite saint Shri Madhvacharya who founded the Krishna Mutt in the 13th century.

India Post commemorated Sri Krishna temple - Krishna, by introducing a permanent pictorial cancellation on 23rd January 1985.  

The unique feature of the Sri Krishna Mutt temple is that the Lord is worshiped only through a window with nine holes called the Navagraha Kitiki (9 planets window).  The window is exquisitely carved and silver–plated.

Navagraha Kitiki

Udupi lends its name to the popular Udupi cuisine.  If you are visiting Karnataka and you are a pure vegetarian, then it is very likely that you have eaten at one of the many Udupi restaurants across the globe.