From Wintzfelden and Wintzer Cherry Blossoms

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

This is Wintzfelden, on a map that is an envelope that came today, the last mail delivery in Greece  until the postal service reopens after the Easter-May Day holidays...perhaps not until after May2? We shall see. In any case, A lovely "green" map envelope came from Marie, Cherry Blossom, Wintzer from Japan. Wintzfelden from Wintzer...ancestoral homelands?

I opened the envelope fully to see the entire map. I love maps, intriguing "trips" to places that are unfamiliar yet clearly "mapped-out". 'Had to Google-map the location, and found that it is Alsace in France, and wondering why such a map from someone in Japan?

Beautiful Japanese stamps with tulips, see? From Japan, and a detail of the map circled. Why? Mysterious?

So back to google...just try to google "Buchwald" and all you get is that guy named Art Buchwald (funny man).

Aha! Perhaps it is circle for the great restuarant : Ferme Auberge Buchwald? Must have yummy food!

Well, back to the mail art INSIDE the envelope:

Layers of fine, soft Japanese papers and...CHERRY  BLOSSOMS! Beautiful, real, haptic cherry blossoms!

Absolutely amazing!

Sealed cherry blossoms, and asemic writing overlays: white on white. Subtle. Elegant.

Amazing to handle...difficult to scan, photograph, and blog....but it is a "sensual" delicate piece!

The back of the folded piece with overlays of paper and asemic ...it opens as an envelope.

A note from Marie and her intriguing map-envelope...together with cherry blossoms! Thank you so much,  Marie!

[cheryl penn]

Beautiful :-) - both of you!

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Thank you, Marie. And I am fascinated by maps...have tons here...maybe I should begin to make mail art with them ;-) Fun to receive, fun to investigate! And the cherry blossoms are elegant...and non-toxic ;-) Beautiful!

[Marie Wintzer]

Katerina!! Thanks for ALWAYS putting up such great blogs. I love that you are doing all this research :-))

So, the map, I stole it from my dad last time I went home. I'm from Alsace. He has tons of old maps, all of them from the same place, I don't think he needs that many :-)) And Buchwald, yes, it's a popular destination, I think he is the one who circled it, they sometimes go for a hike and eat there :-)) how funny that you checked it out :-)))

The cherry blossoms were an experiment, I can see they arrived pretty much as they left. I hope they don't look too sad... wow, mail is really fast these days, I'm happy!