For all officials to the 25th Asian Philatelic Exhibition, a FREE Metro Pass for unlimited rides valid from 4-12 August, 2010, What a hospitality provided by the Organiser!

For all officials of the 25th Asian Philatelic Exhibition, 2 compliment Metro Passes for unlimited ride valid from 4-12 August,2010 were provided , one for the spouse or accompanying persons. The Metro station is a doorstep away from the Hotel Dusit Thani. I can have the FREE metro pass to travel round to hunt for postcards now. Perhaps I will exit at every Metro stations for a stroll at all the shops.

Philatelic Exhibition is due open in 2 hours, there are ONLY two maximaphily exhibits in the competitive category. I will have a close look at the 2 and will report later on this.

The Princess HRH Maha  Chakri Sirindhorn will grace the exhibition @ 4.00 pm.

Ya, Bangkok is as peaceful as before, there are no signs of cops or peace keepers around the city.

• A complimentary METRO pass valid from 4-12 August, 2010

Check in Hotel Dusit Thani, Bangkok on 3.8.10, Ready to go Asian Philatelic Exhibition commences on 4th August 2010.

Hotel Dusit Thani, Bangkok Electronic Room Key

25th Asian Philatelic Exhibition begins on 4th August - Is Bangkok city still patrolled by these Peace Keepers ?

Will be leaving this morning to Bangkok for the 25th Asian Philatelic Exhibition opening  on 4th August 2010 @ Queen Sirikit Convention Centre. The news reported 2 bombing incidents happened in the city centre of Bangkok in the last few days. My goodness, Bangkok is still in an unrest situation ?  Is the exhibition going to be as quiet ? Well, I will ONLY know when I get there. Perhaps, the public places in Bangkok are still patrolled by these Peace Keepers.

•  A maximum card realised with "Brave Warrior" stamp issued on 31st July, 2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Seremban

GPO door closed @ 3 pm on 31.7.10, I was late ! My enthusiasm in Maximaphily with persuasion moved one of the staffs to allow me in to complete the cancellation for my MCs

It was a Saturday - 31st. July, 2010, Normally Philatelic Bureaux throughout the country are closed for the weekend. It had been a long time that new stamps were NOT for sale on Saturdays. This "Brave Warrior" stamp issue set an experimental platform for the Post to gauge on the response from the public on the sales of  new stamps on Saturdays. As this is the "first" time Post was selling  new stamp on a Saturday, it neglected to announce to the public on the business  hour of the day. I am from a different city, I would have to get  the  GPO FDI pictorial postmark on my maximum cards. I thought GPO would close as usual at 5 pm. When I showed up at the GPO at 3.30 pm, the staffs were about to pack to go home. I was told that the business for the day had been closed at 3.00 pm. My God, I rushed all the way to GPO to get a "Kuala Lumpur" Postmark on my maximum cards, the bad news was really a great disappointment to me. I persuaded one of the staffs to stay for a little longer to allow me to have my maximum cards cancelled, with my explanation elaborating with Maximaphily, I managed to move the staff to allow me in to complete my mission. I did  most of my maximum cards at my home town earlier in the morning, however, I needed the "Kuala Lumpur" postmark for some of my other maximum cards. Why do I need "Kuala Lumpur" cancellation, I will elaborate  in my subsequent blogs.

• A maximum card realised with "Brave Warrior" stamp issued on 31st July, 2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuala Lumpur

I Do NOT have any typical Malaysian Army PCs, hence, Imported PCs used for the Maximum Card

I could not find any typical Malaysia Warriors postcards, hence, I am using the postcards from the foreign which depict the Army for the realisation of the Maximum cards for the Malaysian Brave Warriors new stamps.

• A maximum card realised with "Brave Warriors" stamp issued on 31.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Seremban

White Lotus ?

White Lotus ?

A FUN Card - Symbolic Dead Fish 没鱼,虾也好

It is difficult to find a card depicting a pool of dead fish as concordant to the image on the stamp. As the Chinese Hokkien Idiom goes " Without fish, Prawn is OK too!  没鱼,虾也好!", hence, I have this fun card with symbolic fishes to create a cinderella MC.

• A cinderella MC created with "threatened habitat - dead fishes" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Jerantut.

There must be abundance of Turtles at the Turtle Islands Park, Malaysia

Malaysia is a beautiful place to visit nor only for the international tourists, so much so, turtles  are flocking to the coastlines of the country too. There exists a Turtle Islands Park in the East Malaysia, there must be abundance of turtles coming ashore the beach at the Park. It is an Utopia for these creatures from the ocean, some may have traveled thousands of miles just to visit the place and to breed their future generations. Just to share with you a maximum card depicting a scene from the Malaysia Turtle Islands Park.

• A maximum card realised with "threatened habitat - green turtle", FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuantan

Confusion over Lotus and Water lily 荷花与莲花-冯京当马凉

There are too many things and facts to learn in life. In the past, I will NOT take seriously to differentiate a lotus from a water lily. It is Maximaphily that made me to make  "study" on these flowers as I need to create a best concordant maximum card . However, no matter how careful I am, the selection of a postcard does slip at times.  I had picked a water lily postcard to realise an MCwith a stamp of a lotus - I was misled by the description written on the rear of the postcard which indicated  the flower is a lotus. Now by Further reading on the subject,  I know the easiest way to differentiate a water lily from a lotus - Leaves of water lily float on water surface, leaves of the lotus grow beyond the water surface.  However, be careful when the pond is grown with both water lily and lotus, the differentiation by the leaves of the plants will NOT work, so the differentiation has to come from the flowers themselves of which I will NOT elaborate here. Anyway, maximaphily makes me learn, and it is the mistake that I made on the creation of a card that keeps me remembering on the subject.  Ha, the above MC is definitely a LOTUS, there is no doubt about it !

• A maximum card created with "Garden Flowers - Lotus" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

How I wish I could have this Maximum Card postmarked at Semporna post office ..

Sipadan Island is a well known underwater paradise for the sea divers. How I wish I could have this maximum card postmarked at a post office near to this paradise resort. There is no post office  on the island, and the nearest post office is located at Semporna on the mainland Sabah. I could send this maximum card to  Semporna post office to request for a relevant postmark, however, due to the many incidents of cards lost in the mail, I had given up sending cards to individual post offices requesting for a postmark cancellation.

• A maximum card realised with "threatened habitat - green turtle" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuantan, Pahang

Rantau Abang's fame is gone with the Non-return of LeatherBack turtles, Now, it is the Green turtle that dominates the coast of Malaysia

Rantau Abang coast @ Kuala Trengganu used to be a popular spot for the Giant Leatherback Turtles to land, however, due to the constant disturbance from the human activities, these giant creatures are disappearing from sight. Government is aware of the need of the conservation of such creatures that frequent the Malaysian Coast, and now Green Turtles become the common visitors on the various conservation sites along the Malaysian Coast. Just before these creatures disappear from the Malaysian Scene, I will better to capture them on Maximum Cards.

• A maximum card realised with "Threatened Habitat - green turtle" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuantan

It is a "NOKIA" Ad Card, I covered the "KIA", leaving the "NO" - Hence, A message "NO to Rubbish Dump!"

This advertisement postcard with an otter came ashore hunting for food bore a large advertiser name "NOKIA" on the basket. In order to disguise the large lettering word of "NOKIA", I had affixed the stamp over the "KIA", leaving behind a "NO" - The message on the card can then be interpreted as " NO to Rubbish Dump". An Ad Card immediately turns into a meaningful postcard. You can make wonder in Maximaphily. Enjoy !

If I cover "NO", leaving "KIA" , it becomes the name of the  Korean Car Manufacturer- KIA Motors.
I believe KIA workers in Korea will NOT use "NOKIA" brand handphones, for it says " NO KIA ". It's Fun with the words.

• A maximum card realised with "Threatened Habitat - otter" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Jerantut.

I am NOT a diver, I missThe many Exotic Sea lives of Malaysia BUT I do dive in a virtual world via Maximaphily

There are many exotic sea lives harbouring at the coast of  the many islands in the  East and West Malaysia  which are ideal paradises for the divers e.g the World famous Sipadan Island , Layang-layang Island etc. These islands attract millions of visitors from all over the world to Malaysia. I am Not a diver, of course , I miss the opportunity of diving to see the exotic undersea world, however, I do dive in a virtual world of the Maximaphily, I do see the many exotic sea lives via these beautiful maximum cards.

• A maximum card realised with "threatened habitat - sea lives" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuantan

A cutie Otter card purchased from a school fair

This is a maximum card realised with a cutie postcard which I bought from a School Fair years ago. The seller had several animal postcards putting up for sales, 5 in a pack for RM 1 , buyers were NOT allowed to select  individual card from the pack. Various animals were available ranging from cat, dog, zebra, lion, bear, giraffe, otter - how I wish the publisher could cover the whole range of the animals in the Kingdom of the Wild and Tame. Since the last time I saw the seller, I have NOT met him again. These cutie cards are aimed at school children, nice and affordable by the students. I like all these cutie cards, they are simply superb for Maximum cards.

• A maximum card realised with "threatened habitat-otter" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Jerantut

A Green Turtle in the Visit Malaysia Year 2007 postcard pack issued FREE by the Tourist Promotion Board

This is a maximum card created from a postcard issued by the Malaysian Tourist Promotion Board for the Visit Malaysia Year 2007 campaign.  The pack of postcards was distributed FREE at the nationwide Tourist Information Centre from 2007. I was at the Kuala Selangor Town few months back, walked pass a bookshop and saw these postcards displayed on racks, I thought they were FREE for pick up, BUT the shopkeeper was selling  @ 50 sen each. The glossy finished postcard is really a beautiful medium for the creation of the above maximum card depicting a Green Turtle.

• A maximum card created with "threatened habitat - green turtle" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Kuantan

Small claw otters from the Singapore Night Safari Zoo

Here is a Maximum Card realised with a postcard acquired from the Singapore Night Safari Zoo featuring a group of small claw otters. The card is detached from a postcard booklet published by the Singapore Zoo. which was available from the Park's souvenir shop. There are 2 volumes available - one each for the Day and Night Parks.

• A maximum card realised with "threatened habitat - otter" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Jerantut

A "save our seas" advertisement card for MC

I like this advertisement card on "save our seas" with a little green turtle struggling to swim in a polluted environment.

• A maximum card realised with a "Threatened habitat - Green turtle", FDI pictorial Cancel @ Kuantan.

God created the wonderful animals, I created the maximum cards

 An Adult Tapir

A Baby Tapir

God created this wonderful world with all kinds of animals to live with us, look at this MALAYAN TAPIR , can you tell the young from the adult, what a difference ! I do NOT know how GOD had made a mistake in creating this creature, the body pattern of the 2 tapirs are so different. Anyway, God created the nature, I put them in maximum cards. Enjoy ! Oh, do not forget that GOD created Trees to produce paper and postcards so that I am able to create more maximum cards. Thanks GOD !

• Maximum Card with "Threatened Habitat with tapir" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Jerantut

Is the hobby Maximaphily contradicting to the appeal for SAVING OUR EARTH campaign?

Maximaphily's principal medium , the postcard is made from paper , the source of which is from the TREES. The more maximum cards you create, the more postcards you demand, and hence the more trees to cut down . Is this hobby contradicting to the SAVE OUR EARTH appeal ?  Above is a maximum card realised with a WWF Save the Earth appeal postcard.  Appealing NOT to cut down trees and yet producing more  papers, are they contradicting to each other ?

• A maximum card realised with "Cut no trees" stamp issued on 15.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ JERANTUT

I can paint it if I want to! There is no rules saying that you can't paint a printed postcard.

FIP rules restrict the use of drawn postcards for maximum cards, however, there is no rules restricting one from putting on colors on a plain printed postcards - In fact there are fully PLAIN postcards like the above available in the market for the kids to paint colors on them, lawfully, they are real postcards and perfectly valid for making into maximum cards. I have the above Morning Glory maximum card and I have NOT decided whether to paint them in colors. If I do it, I will post it again here for sharing - Do NOT tell me FIP does NOT permit that, there is no rule pertaining to this in FIP ! 

• A maximum card realised with a "Morning Glory" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

Another piece of artwork PC for my maximum card - I just couldn't avoid having artwork cards in my collection

Before photography was invented, pictures were illustrated by artworks hence, many of the early postcards were printed from  artwork - Many of the natural created Maximum cards of the early 19th centuries depicting the pyramids and sphinx too were artwork cards. In reality, there are artwork cards produced everywhere and these cards are perfect material for the creation of maximum cards. Don't be surprised by someone commenting on the invalidity of an artwork card by quoting the FIP rules. FIP rules do NOT say so ,But the someone still insists to believe so ! Perhaps, I shall request "Octopus Paolo" to make a selection on "Yes" or "No" to the use of artwork card for a maximum card, "Octopus Paolo"'s decision may be more convincing than the FIP rules.

• A maximum card realised with a "morning glory" stamp, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

It is the discrepancy in Chinese Translation of the FIP rules that defies the use of Artwork postcard for MCs

FIP rules state that "Drawings" cannot be used for maximum cards, and I came to the understanding that the key word "drawings" has been interpreted as artworks 绘画 in Chinese hence any postcard printed with artwork of a subject  is deemed to violate  the FIP rules. Well, Chinese in general refrain from taking any card of this nature, I will welcome them to part these cards to me if they do NOT want them. The "drawings" as mentioned in the FIP rule refers to the actual drawings drawn by pens and brushes, it is nothing related to printed drawings. What a misled interpretation that is planted deeply in the brains of the collectors. I like artwork cards and will like to present here with another famous water painting artwork Maximum Card of a Lotus Flower.

• A maximum card realised with "Lotus" stamp issued on 1/7/2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Seremban.

Some says Artwork postcards are NOT suitable for realisation of Maximum Cards

Some says Artwork postcards are NOT suitable for realisation of Maximum Cards, this statement is generally wide spread in the maximum card collecting community in China. Collectors will stay away from the printed postcards featuring images of any artwork on subjects. These collectors will prefer photographic images on the postcards. I do NOT see what is wrong with these artwork images on postcards, they are beautiful and representing works of an artist, what's wrong of making them into maximum cards ?  Above is a postcard featuring an artwork of a LOTUS by a famous Chinese Artist Mr. Tian Shi Guang 田世光.

• A maximum card realised with "Lotus" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

"Am I too late to come into the hobby of maximaphily?" - A friend asked.

"Am I too late to come into the hobby of maximaphily?" - A friend asked.  My friend regretted that he had missed to realise maximum cards for  hundreds of Malaysian new stamp issues since he first started collecting stamps 20 years ago.  For maximaphily, it is NOT the matter of Late or NOT late in joining in the fun of collecting maximum cards. For new stamp issues, a collector can easily create a fresh MC for himself, for the past stamp issues, a collector can acquire through other collectors or stamp dealers if there are willing sellers around. Maximaphily is a perpetual hobby, anyone can come into the hobby at any time and at any juncture, everyone enjoys the similar thrill, enjoyment and excitement at all times. Anyone can create a unique MC which ONLY he/she owns - this is something rather unique for the hobby.

• A maximum card created with "Yellow Beauty" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Seremban.

Malaysian Artist - Loke Hung Tho 陆杏桃 's LOTUS art piece as MC

Very few local artists paint good LOTUS paintings and rarely these paintings are made into postcards. I saw this set of beautiful LOTUs art pieces postcard of the work by a Malaysian artist Loke Hung Tho 陆杏桃 and realise them into maximum cards.

• A maximum card realised with a "Lotus" stamp issued on 1.07.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

A Generic Card which suits all colors for a subject

We were talking about the difficulty in finding a Yellow hibiscus postcard , however, I can be "Ah Q" ( A Chinese Term, if you don't know what it means, kindly google to find out , I will not explain here.) by having this generic hibiscus card to realise a Yellow Hibiscus Maximum card.  In fact the card is applicable to all colors of hibiscus, be it red, pink, yellow, white or orange. If I like, I will paint the hibiscus with the colors I want to suit the subject.

• A maximum card realised with a "Yellow Hibiscus" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

A nostalgic card for a vintage 20 Class train

B & W (Black and White) card is best to depict a subject of the past, it gives a nostalgic look. Here it is a popular 20 Class train in the 60s of the Malayan Railway History. Enjoy.

• A maximum card realised with "Railway" stamp issued on 22.06.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Kuala Lumpur

It is simply a beautiful flower - the LOTUS 荷花

It is simply a beautiful flower - the Lotus ! Surprisingly, there is a professionally photographed local Malaysian postcard on the beautiful flower. I just can't resist to realise an MC for this.

• A maximum card realised with "Lotus" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ seremban

I know this flower by its common name - "Yellow Beauty" 黄花美人 : Garden flower series issued 1.7.2010

I used to know this flower as a "Yellow Beauty " 黄花美人 and this common name was given as it describes a beautiful yellow flower. The scientific name Canna Orientalis is alien to me, I can remember once BUT I will not keep in my brain next, still the common name is the easiest to remember. 

• A maximum card realised with a "Yellow Beauty" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

The Red hibiscus is seen everywhere in Malaysia, But NOT this - the Yellow Hibiscus

The RED hibiscus is the National Flower of Malaysia, it is a common garden flower found everywhere in Malaysia. The YELLOW hibiscus is NOT as common so does a postcard featuring the flower. The RED Hibiscus is crowned as the National Flower, BUT not the YELLOW Hibiscus. I do NOT how to differentiate these 2 flowers in Chinese, I have learnt and heard of "Da Hong Hua" (大红花), but I have NOT heard of "Da Huang Hua" (大黄花), really, how to name this flower in Chinese ?

• A maximum card realised with a "Yellow Hibiscus" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban.

Can't Find a relevant postcard for maximum card ? - Garden Flowers 1.7.2010

I had used up most of my postcards on "bougainvilla" for maximum cards during the last issue of the State Definitive Series in 2007. I thought I would give up creating maximum cards on this flower series since I had done enough MCs for the last time and I did NOT have anymore specific "bougainvilla" postcards around. Whilst going through my stocks of postcards, I realised this garden flower has a prominent place in many of the local postcards - it is really a common flower found in Malaysia and in Malaysian postcards too! Sometimes I do grumble for non availability of postcards and non knowing that in fact these postcards are around without my notice. Did you manage to find these postcards for your maximum cards too ?

• A maximum card realised with "Garden Flower - bougainvilla" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

Do you notice Bougainvilla appears on many postcards - take a look at this MC realised on 1.7.2010

Bougainvilla is a common flower seen everywhere in Malaysia, similarly, the flower appears as part of the  view in many of the  local postcards. The flowers may NOT be the key subject of the postcard, however, they are prominent as  supporting decorations to the main subject of the postcards. I have to go through all the postcards in order to identify these flowers on the cards. Have you found any to realise a maximum card for the "Garden Flower" stamps issued on 1.7.2010 ?

• A maximum card realised with "Garden Flowers -bougainvilla" stamp issued on 1.7.2010, FDI Pictorial Cancel @ Seremban

Morning Glory is known as Trumpet Flower in Chinese, and it is a "trumpet" on this MC

In Chinese, The Morning Glory Flower (牵牛花) is commonly known as the Trumpet Flower (喇叭花). During my childhood days, I only knew Trumpet Flower for its shape like a trumpet. Well, there existed an Advertisement postcard which symbolizes the Morning Glory Flower as a Trumpet.

• A maximum card realised with Malaysia new definitive stamp "Garden Flowers" issued on 1.7.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Seremban.

Unattractive Postcard Can be Excellent material for Maximum Cards

I would say this is an unattractive postcard , in fact I had discarded it aside thinking that it would NOT have a chance of becoming a Maximum Card. It was when I was flipping through the junk box that I discovered that it could be utilised to realise an excellent Maximum card. Yes, you never know, an unattractive postcard can be an excellent material for a maximum card. Keep all your cards, they can be useful one day.

• A maximum card realised with the "necklace" stamp issued in 2009, FDI Cancel @ Taiwan

Maximum Card records the change in Postal Tariff rate

Singapore Local postal rate 23cent last day usage 17.12.2006

Singapore New Local postal rate 25cent first day usage 18.12.2006

A maximum card can be made to record a significant change of a postal tariff rate. Old and New postal tariff rate can be reflected by having 2 MCs created on the last day and the first day of the old and new postal tariff usage. Singpost announced an increase of the Local postal rate from 23cent to 25cent effectively from 18.12.2006, Two MCs were created to reflect the change. 17.12.2006 was a Sunday, hence, the MC was cancelled at the Killiney PostOffice which is opened 365 days in a year.

• Maximum Cards created with the "Merlion" ATM label , CDS cancel @ Singapore

The story of the HEAD and TAIL

When I first created this Maximum Card, I had received numerous comments on the HEAD and TAIL of the Peafowl. One said : The stamp has to be removed from the miniature sheet to realise an MC, the other said : The MS is occupying too much a space on the overall MC, some said : the selvage of the MS cannot form part of the stamp, bla...bla.. bla . 

If I were to remove the stamp from the MS, the phesant is left with the HEAD without the tail, will the bird look like a peafowl anymore ? I feel the most beautiful part of the pheasant is the tail, without the tail, it is no longer a peafowl.

Is the MS really occupying too much space on the MC ? This is so far the smallest MS issued in Malaysia, it is comparable to a large format stamp, what's wrong of having the full MS on the MC, really?

I feel a maximaphilist has to posses an artistic thinking, I feel I have every judgement to support my own creation.

• A maximum card created with "Malaysian Peafowl" stamp issued in 2004, FDI Pictorial Cancel

Blending the stamp with the overall picture of a maximum card

For a quick glance of the maximum card, one may overlook the existence of a stamp within the card for the stamp had been placed  to fit into the overall picture as though it is part of the picture. At times, it is FUN to juggle with the placing of the stamp  so as to achieve a harmonious look of a maximum card. Try it on your next creation of a maximum card.

• A maximum card realised with the "Chinese SEAL" stamp issued in 2005, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Melaka

Dad told me why Train is known as HuoChe 火车? .... The Classic 56 Class locomotive

When we were young, we learnt from our parents that the vehicle running on track with smokes puffing from its locomotive is known as a HuoChe (train) 火车 i.e a "Fire Vehicle", it was easy to relate a HuoChe to a train . A long trail of black smoke was left behind whenever a train passed by and passengers' clothing were often left with specks of smoke dust, that is a typical scenario of the days of the 56 class train. Today's kids will wonder why is train named HuoChe 火车 ?

• A maximum card realised with a "56 class train" stamp issued on 22.06.2010, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Seremban.

I could ONLY find a tiny BLUE TIGER rolling out from the railway station

Blue Tiger is another popular series of the Malayan Train. I can ONLY find this postcard with a BLUE TIGER rolling out from the railway station .. Although a little small of the image, however, I am satisfied with the maximum card. The thrill in maximaphily is the hunting of a relevant postcard and this is always the most difficult part of the hobby. I have introduced the hobby to many friends, the major problem faced by ALL is still the availability of postcards. For an easy way out, one can always use any kind of cards or pictures, however  I do NOT encourage the use of any other form of cards besides postcards for I know by doing so, it is going to kill the specialised hobby. I have to use the word "specialised hobby", as indeed it is a specialised hobby which does NOT permit the use of any other kind of cards in place of postcards. Hobby can be anything, there is no boundary, no rule, no limitation, however, a specialised hobby has to be bound by certain rules. There is a Will, there is a Way ! Enjoy collecting.

• A maximum card realised with a "BLUE TIGER train" stamp issued 22.6.2010, FDI pictorial cancel @ Seremban

They are all trains, however, we do differentiate them by classes - Here it is the Classic 20101 Locomotive

They are trains, they do NOT look alike, they can be differentiated by their classes. In Maximaphily, I am always gearing towards the maximum concordance achievable in realising a maximum card, for trains too, I will try my very best to source for the best match of the class for each of the train for my maximum card. Class 20 Train is a classic Malayan Train , reddish brown finish look with a Head spotlight, had been a popular train series running on the track in the 60s - 80s.

• A maximum card realised with a "Class 20 Locomotive" issued on 22.06.2010, FDI cancel @ Seremban.

I was frequent on the Class20 Locomotive train in the 70s

In the 70s, there was no other better public transport for me living in a remote area in central Johor. KTM (Keretapi Tanah Melayu) was my main mode of transport to get out of my kampong (village) town. I could recall the class 20 locomotive painted in reddish brown was a great sight to see when it approached the railway station. Class 20 locomotive took me for the ride to meet my first love at a distant town, our years of romance was relying on the train service, hours and hours of patient waiting at the railway station at both ends had been wasted for the scheduled meet-ups. Yes, I married my first love - and KTM train  service was really a great memory in my life.

• A maximum card realised with a KTM locomotive Cl.20 stamp issued on 22.6.2010, FDI Cancel @ Seremban

A maximum card with double faces

This is a unique Advertisement Postcard which posseses 2 faces with relevant pictures to realise a maximum card. I can flip-flop the maximum card, no matter which face shows up, it is still a maximum card. What a fun in Maximaphily !

• A maximum card realised with "Year of the Rat" stamp issued in 2008, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Singapore.

The greatest blunder made by a foreign Philatelic Bureau

I wrote in 2005 requesting SINGPOST philatelic bureau for a new stamp affixed on the picture side and had it cancelled with a FDI pictorial cachet for the "Mermaid" stamp issue, however ,the bureau failed with my instruction and had the card nicely done with the stamp affixed on the addresse side and returned to me promptly. I did spell out clearly with an enclosed photocopy of the exact location of the stamp to be pasted on the card, somehow, the blunder still happened. I wrote back to the philatelic bureau to express my great disappointment. I was asked to return the cards back to the department to have the Maximum Cards done correctly to my request. This is the ONLY set of Maximum Cards I have with the same stamps pasted both on the front and back of the card. SINGPOST was learning from the mistakes it made. There are yet many postal administrations around the world which do NOT know what are maximum cards ? There is still a long long way for maximaphily to go.

• A maximum card created with "Mermaid" stamps issued in 2005, FDI pictorial Cancel @ Singapore.

It is a genuine 100 years old Postcard for the "Clover" maximum card

I posted a "greeting" maximum card depicting clover leaves the day before, http://mccraze.blogspot.com/2010/06/used-postcards-are-equally-good-for.html some collectors saw the words "birthday greetings" on the postcard guessing that it is a cut-out card , a greeting card etc., I think I should put a scan of the back of the postcard to show to all that it is a genuine embossed postcard and it is a used postcard mailed 100 years ago i.e 1910. I must say, when I am indulging in Maximaphily, I will observe the minimum 3 in 1 requirement, and I will insist that the card is a POSTCARD.  If I am detouring from the 3 in 1 requirement, I will NOT name it a maximum card, it is simply a cinderella MC to me .. at times I do make it just for FUN.

• Rear view of a maximum card created with "greeting" stamp issued in 2009, CDS cancel @ Taiwan

Today is Duan Wu Jie 端午节, I miss Mum's ZongZi 粽子

Today is the 5th day of the 5th Month of the Lunar Calendar, which is an important Chinese Festival Day known as the "Duan Wu Jie 端午节". On this day, for those chinese families who still observe the traditional custom, Dumplings or ZongZi 粽子 will be prepared at home to celebrate the festival. I particularly like Mum's special ZongZi prepared at home, I am unable to find any commercially sold ZongZis which are comparable to the taste of those ZongZis prepared by Mum. Previous years I would be back home during this festival, and Mum would always let me take with me dozens of the ZongZis on my return trip. Well, the ZongZis prepared by my Mum remain a great memory in my life. I miss those ZongZis really, especially on this festival day.

• The ONLY ZongZi Maximum Card available, CDS postmark cancel , China

Used postcards are equally good for maximum cards

Some collectors insist on using only Mint postcards for realisation of maximum cards. That is purely individual's preference. I am using both Mint and Used postcards for my maximum cards as long as they are concordant in pictures. In fact, there are old subjects featured on stamps that I find difficulty in looking for mint postcards to realise a good maximum card, the only solution is to look for the Used postcards. I would say, used postcards are equally good as mint postcards for the realisation of maximum cards.

• A maximum card realised with the "greetings" stamps issued in 2009, CDS postmark, Taiwan