Finally, a statue with pigeons pre-installed

This postcard from Julia in Munich features a bronze statue of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and the environment.  Almost invariably, he is portrayed with animals, usually doves.  I suppose I have seen hundreds of statues of St. Francis, placed everywhere from gardens to animal shelters, and they always delight me.

The name of the statue seems to translate as “Francis as Peace Offerings,” which I’m sure is an accurate transcription, but it isn’t getting the idea across to me.  The only story I know about St. Francis as a peacemaker is the episode involving the Wolf of Gubbio, but I don’t see a specific reference to that story in the statue.

This statue was created by Martin Mayer and is located in Munich on the Sonnenstrasse, which Julia describes as a “touristic pedestrian” area.  She also passed on her favorite quote, which I leave with you as your thought for the day: “Freundlichkeit ist eine sprache die Taube hören und Blinde sehen können (Kindness is a language which the deaf hear and the blind can see).”

Souvenir de Mannekin-Pis, Bruxelles

This postcard is a souvenir of the famous Manneken Pis statue in Brussels, Belgium. It probably dates back to the 1910s and is printed on some very heavy stock. The back also indicates that it was manufactured in Brussels. It’s somewhat yellowed now — with age, people, not with anything that might have come out of the statue.

It’s my understanding that they do occasionally hook the statue up to a supply of beer and hand out cups of what comes out of the statue to passersby. I’m not sure I would be drinking anything yellow and foamy that came out that way.

Efes (Ephesus)

This card depicts what is presumed to be the final home of the Blessed Virgin Mary, where Catholic tradition holds that she died.

I sent this card to my Aunt Brenda, who at that time was the keeper of the collection, in an envelope along with several other postcards. I was in Turkey courtesy of Uncle Sam, and was still in awe over the favorable exchange rates.

Personal message to Aunt Brenda, from me in Ephesus

The notation in the lower left — “her hakki mahfuzdur” — translates roughly as “every genuine(ness) looked after”, presumably the same sentiment as “all rights reserved”. The Turkish language is not for the squeamish. (Also of note: the word is correctly spelled “hakiki”, but the publisher has spelled it as it is actually pronounced.)

Efes is also the name of a pretty good Turkish beer, which sponsors a fairly mediocre basketball team, which has some really hot cheerleaders.

(Now how did I digress from the Virgin Mary to hot cheerleaders?)