Malaysia 2013 Snorkelling among turtles on SetemKu stamp

Malaysia Pos released on 18 January the last of a series of 5 SetemKu, that can be translated literally as MyStamp, sheets with the theme based on a pair of home-produced animated characters, Upin & Ipin. The picture on the image label of one of the stamp-label pair in the SetemKu sheet features a snorkeller swimming underwater among turtles.

Uganda 2010 Boy Scouts of America - Aquatic Activities

This stamp features aquatic activities as one of the adventurous undertakings of the boy scouts of America. The stamp is one of the 3 found in a souvenir sheet released for Uganda in 2010 to celebrate the centenary scouting. The stamp features the silhouette of a skin diver.

Mayotte 2011 101st Department of France

Mayotte issued on 19 September 2011 a single stamp celebrating the island as the 101st Department of France (or administrative division of France). The stamp design consists of a child drawing of the map of the island of Mayotte surrounded by the ocean filled with marine fauna; and swimming among the marine creatures, that include seahorse, octopus, ray, turtles, fish, whales, is a man in wetsuit and snorkelling gear.

French Polynesia 2011 Spearfishing

French Polynesia is releasing on 22 June 2011 a set of 2 stamps on the theme of fishing. The stamp shown above features spearfishing with a sling spear, donning only snorkelling gear, as it should be for spearfishing sport. The other stamp, not shown here, features fishing with a rod in a boat.

Perhyn 2011 Pearls

Perhyn, or the northern atoll of the Cook Islands, has issued 2 souvenir sheets on 5 May 2011 featuring the pearl industry. Much of the manual work in maintaining the pearl farms are done by men donning snorkelling gear as depicted in the souvenir sheets. The main creature featured in this issue is the pearl oyster (Pinctada margaritifera).

Vanautu 2010 Smile With Us - Underwater Post Office

This is one of the 10 stamps released on 15 December 2010 by Vanuatu, in a set entitled "Smile With Us", to celebrate being listed as one of the ten happiest places on earth in 2010 by Lonely Planets. The place is happy because the inhabitants are happy going about their daily lives. This particularly stamp features a snorkeller sending a water-proof postcard at an underwater post office, manned by a postal worker in scuba gear! Postcards posted at this post office are cancelled by an embossing device, instead of an ordinary inking stamp.

Vanuatu 2010 Shanghai Expo

For the World Expo Shanghai 2010, Vanuatu Post issued a self-adhesive souvenir sheet with 4 stamps on 30 April. The 40 vatu stamp featuring the dugongs of Epi has a snorkel diver in the background, probably a tourist who has come to enjoy the close proximity with the dugong.

Belgium 2008 Smurf Duostamp

This is from a set of Belgium Duostamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Smurf or Schtroumpf as known in francophone countries, in 2008 (issue date: 18 May). This one shows Gargamel, the evil sorcerer, in snorkelling gear, trying to catch a Smurf in water; with him is his equally evil cat, Azrael. The actual stamp is the reddish perforated label on the right, the left label is for the illustration - the basis of the Duostamp in Belgium.

Niue 2009 Snorkelling in the Limu Pools

Niue released a new set of 11 definitive stamps on 14 September, amongst them, the $2.00 stamp features snorkellers reveling in the Limu Pools of the island. The set of stamps were also issued as a set of 2 souvenir sheets, one with 6 stamps, the other with 5, the snorkelling stamp is found in the sheet with 5 stamps.

Limu Pools, Nieu. View Larger Map

Mystery Island at Vanuatu

This miniature sheet was issued 28 March to introduce Mystery Island to would-be visitors. Known correctly as Inyeug, this tiny island measures only a few hundred metres wide and about 1km long and is the airstrip for Aneityum, Vanuatu’s southernmost island. Air Vanuatu services the island from Port Vila and Tanna and this service plus the many cruise ships that visit during the season, have seen Mystery Island’s location become less of a mystery. During World War II, this small, uninhabited island was used as a landing strip for the allied forces. US troops built the runway for their air force in the 1940s as World War II raged throughout the South Pacific. The “mystery” is said to have derived from the fact that the air strip is impossible to see from the sea and therefore it took some time for the Japanese to determine where all the planes were coming from.
Today Mystery Island’s guardians welcome tourists as friends and these locals from nearby Aneityum enjoy the attention and the income from travellers who arrive by plane and ship. They provide string band music and lots of stalls selling souvenirs, handicrafts and food as well as the more unusual things like story telling and hair braiding. Visitors that want more than markets, can snorkel in turquoise waters, photograph the unusual flora and fauna or just stroll amongst the palm trees while enjoying the surf breaking on the surrounding reef.

Mystery Island, Vanuatu. View Larger Map

Romantic Vanuatu

Issued 28 January, this heart-shape self-adhesive stamp is part of a 5-stamp set featuring "Romantic Vanuatu". This stamp shows a couple relaxing on the white sands after a snorkelling session (the 2 pair of fins at their side).