Mobile Post office near the canal at Brimscombe on its weekly visit

I wasn’t expecting to come across this mobile post office after  a walk along the canal tow path,  but when we reached Brimscombe we found this one  parked near The Ship Inn  on its weekly visit. Since the closure of many village post offices this service has become a vital link for many people. On Thursdays, it starts at Kingscote, 9-10, Shipton Moyne 10.30-11.30,  Chalford 12.30-1.30, Brimscombe 1.45-3.15,  Whitminster 3.45-4.45. Avening, and Duntisbourne among many others.  The post van vists other areas on four days of the week. 
Wearing my face mask, as was the counter assistant, I boarded the van and bought a few stamps! 

Sorry, no postcards sent from Guatemala

I found a post office while I was in Antigua,  Guatemala, but there were no stamps for sale, and  no way to send postcards, due to a long dispute between the Government and the Postal Service. I had heard about this from a friend in Guatemala, but wanted to double check that nothing had changed, which sadly, it hadn't. There are private couriers and methods of sending mail, but I'm not sure how reliable these are. There was  only one member of staff in this reasonably sized Post Office, and I was the only customer.  I was told the only place to  buy stamps is Guatemala City but we weren't able to go there this time.
I do have some  beautiful old Guatemalan stamps from a collection which was my dad's and these seem  even more precious now that we've visited this wonderful country!  More about the stamps  and locations  we visited coming soo

This  Guatemalan postbox  hasn't been used for a while!

Packed like sardines .. from the Post Office??

I went in  the Post Office on Camoes square in Lisbon, Portugal, to buy a few stamps for my postcards. The lady behind the counter asked me if I would like to buy a can of sardines instead and get the same amount of stamps included in the price.At least that's what I thought she said!   It sounded like a good deal so I purchased the little can only to find that it actually contained six stamps but not sardines after all! I really need to learn Portuguese next time I go!!

 These stamps were issued in November 2016, celebrating the  Fish canning industry in Portugal and they show the different processes as well as the various types of fish, including Sardines, Eel and Tuna, which you can find attractively packaged in colourful cans in food stores and souvenir shops everywhere in Lisbon!I spotted this display shown below on the left, and another shop in the city centre has been selling canned eel exclusively since 1942.  I was offered a sample to taste, which I did, somewhat reluctantly, but have to say that it was quite delicious!

I used just one of my stamps from the Limited edition stamp can (above)   .. and now I wish I hadn't as the intact tin will surely be a future collector's item! But it's certainly a talking point!  And I came back from my holiday with several brightly coloured tins of real sardines as well!!

I've since made a colourful collage  incorporating the lid of the opened can as well as the lid from a real can of Sardines, alongside other bits and pieces collected while in Lisbon.

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