Expensively philatelic

Chères nouveautés du monde :
(French play-on-word : cher means an expensive price and is the polite overture of a letter like "Dear")

Dear New Stamps of the world :

Regularly, the USPS renews its stamps for expensive services (registered, express mail, etc.), with a flying illustration from plane to eagle. For 2007, they are the president of the United States' vehicles that are photographed in action : Air Force One and Marine One. The latter is at the cheap price of 16,25 dollars. Cheap because you are sure your urgent parcel is open by your correspondent tomorrow morning (I wished it would be so easily for the normal rate...). Equivalent of 12,08 euros. Insatisfied ? The 20 stamp sheet will please you at only 325 dollars (twice what I eat monthly).

In Belgium, the centenary of Hergé merits a special issue : a 25 stamp sheet reproduces a picture of the artist and a cover of the 24 albums of the Adventures of Tintin, in 24 of the languages it was translated over the years. 25 times 0,46 € = 11,50 euros (15,47 US dollars). But every one of your twenty-five next letters will be different from the others (if you remember to buy two sheets, one for collection he ! ... 23 euros).

So, once out of many times, I admit that on the next July, 2nd, La Poste of France will be quite moderate with mini-sheets at the price of simple definitive booklets. For 5,40 €, you'll remember the lively ambiance of a rugby stadium with the ten stamps by fantastic sport stamp designer Éric Fayolle. Worse of all, you'll have to pay up to 2,16 € to own four monuments of Brussels with four other in the background of the sheet in the European Capitales series, painted this year by talentuous Marc Taraskoff. Pretty mail coming this summer :)