Social Club in Havana, Cuba

The Asociacion de Dependientes del Comercio is one of the oldest and most important social clubs in Havana.  From my limited understanding of Spanish, it seems that the Asociacion de Dependientes del Comercio was the birthplace of the Cuba Fencing Federation.

Most of us have heard of the Buena Vista Social Club, but members-only social clubs have been a long-standing tradition in Cuba. They were cultural and social centers, where members could go to hear music and dance...and maybe gamble too. Social clubs were often segregated by social class and race or ethnicity.

Gerardo sent his regards to Miss Debbie Maris of Wilmington, Delaware.

Here's another view of Cuba. The writer of the card seems to have been called away on urgent business before even finishing the address. This was back in the days when U.S. citizens could visit Cuba without any restrictions. It's not impossible now, but it's a little more difficult.

Cottbus, Germany

This card is a bit of a mystery. Walter Kahl sent this from Cottbus to Francis H. Sweet, Company E 15th Infantry in the Philippines in 1913. Cottbus is a city in northern Germany, located about 78 miles southeast of Berlin. The card has the stamp on the front, which was fairly typical in France, but unusual in Germany.

The message itself is also unusual.  Well, actually there isn't a message, just a name and address and "Hedwig" below that. Hedwig is a female name in German. So, whether it's a code name of some kind or another way of relaying a message, I can't say for sure. In any case, the card has many date stamps, starting with the cancellation date on October 3rd, 1913 and ending with a received stamp of November 14th, 1913. There are several other handwritten notations on the card.  It's all very mysterious.

Logging Camp Cookhouse

This looks like a logging camp kitchen to me. Although there's quite a bit of detail, I'd love to see more. This is not the clearest picture, but the perspective is very interesting.

Here are a few close-ups. You can see another person in the background bending over something.

And boxes of biscuit flour on the shelf...

Here's the back of the card. The stamp box imprint indicates that the card was printed between 1905 and 1920.  Too bad there weren't any tales of life at the camp written on the back. Her's a link to another logging camp cookhouse image.