26 April 2010

UK 2010 Classic Album Cover - Space Girl & Bird

The sheetlet selvage features a girl wearing a deep sea diving helmet, with a yellow bird perching on her hand. This figure is actually a spray painting on steel, by an elusive artist known as Banksy, entitled "Space Girl and Bird", that was auctioned off for £288,000 at Bonhams 25 April 2007. This piece of expensive art was part of a series of designs commissioned by pop band, Blur, for the cover of their Think Tank album and featured on Blur’s 5-track CD cover. The remaining artwork mostly feature people wearing the same type of diving helmets. The sheetlet shown above is found only in the prestige booklet of the Classic Albums Cover issue released on 7 January 2010 by the Royal Mail.

19 April 2010

Jordan 2007 Scuba Diving in Aqaba

This stamp with a scuba diver, is part of an issue on tourism in Aqaba, Jordan, released 16 July 2007. Aqaba is located on the Gulf of Aqaba, at the northern end of the Red Sea, not too far from the more famous Red Sea dive destinaton, Eilat (in Israel). These 2 destinations, Aqaba and Eilat are the gateways to the Red Sea Marine Peace Park, which was formed after the signing of the peace treaty between Jordan and Israel.

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06 April 2010

Philippines 2008 Tourism - scuba diving destinations

This is the picture side of a pre-paid postcard issued on 3rd November 2008 featuring a favourite scuba diving destination in the Visayas - Bohol. There are 10 postcards in this set featuring popular tourism sites.

This is the reverse side of the postcard, with the photo of a clownfish peeping from its anemone home.

A set of 7 stamps were also issued on the same day on the same theme of tourism. This one features Tubbataha Reef, a UNESCO heritage site and a top scuba diving destination located in the middle of the Sulu Sea. Scuba diving here is done from a live-on-board that sets out from Puerto Princesa City, capital city of Palawan Island. This is one of my must go destinations.

05 April 2010

Saudi Arabia 2008 Red Sea Diving

This block of 4 celebrates the 75th Anniversary of Saudi Aramco in 2008. It was on 29 May 1933 that the original oil concession agreement was signed between Saudi Arabia and Standard Oil of California, that will lead to today's Saudi Aramco. The stamp with the scuba diver probably features recreation in the Red Sea.