Vietnam's Traditional Hat

 How lovely is this card?! Diana has been to Vietnam a few months ago and brought me this card for my old people collection. Love it!!

The cute old lady is making a Non La, a cone-shaped hat made mainly from palm leaves, latanier leaves, or bamboo leaves. Its frame is crafted from thin bamboo or rattan, creating a light and durable structure. Each hat includes around 16 to 20 bamboo rings, all hand-stitched with great care and precision.

 

It usually takes 4 - 8 hours to complete one Non La, depending on the detail and craftsmanship. For farmers, the Non La is an essential tool used daily to shield them from the sun and rain. It is also used by women when going to the market, or as a hand fan to create a breeze during rest breaks in the fields. When worn with the graceful ao dai, it highlights the gentle and modest charm of Vietnamese women. You can see the Non La everywhere, from countryside fields to city streets, and even at cultural festivals and fashion shows.

Its simple and rustic beauty reflects the soul of the Vietnamese people.
Beyond its daily use, the Non La is a meaningful souvenir. Many visitors buy it as a special gift for loved ones or as a keepsake from Vietnam. It also holds deep meaning, appearing in poetry, music, and art, and living on through generations as a symbol of Vietnamese identity. - in: https://www.vietnamairlines.com

US-11759741

 This month I've received a few official cards from the USA but half of them were actually from other countries. This one here is from China. 

He Garden, or Heyuan Garden, located in Xuningmen Street in Jiangsu Yangzhou City, is known as "the first garden in late Qing Dynasty". The once private garden has now become a national 4A-rated tourist site, and attracted many ancient architecture lovers.

 

US-11759741, sent by Helen.

The garden was the private residential yard of the He Family, a notable family and great clan in Yangzhou. It was built by He Zhidao, an official of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty. He resigned in 1883 and set up business in Yangzhou. He then bought the ancient site of Wu’s Sliced Stone Mountain Villa, and enlarged it into a big garden for his family. Construction lasted 13 years. - in: https://www.travelchinaguide.com

The He Garden is the representative work of Yangzhou gardens in the late Qing Dynasty, and is the embodiment of Yangzhou's garden characteristics. It makes full use of the gallery building function and charm; the 1500 meters complex road corridors here is unique wonderful landscapein China's gardens.
The scale of this garden is huge, covering an area of more than 14000 square meters; and the building area has reached more than 7000 square meters, accounting for more than 50% of the total area; reflecting the late Qing Dynasty garden architecture characteristics. The whole garden is divided into the east garden, west garden, garden countyard, slice of stone and hills room, with two layer series floor and compound corridor connecting with the house. - in: https://www.topchinatravel.com

Slender West Lake - China

 Yangzhou is without a doubt a top tourist city in China, with fascinating beauty. With a long history of over two thousand years, the city has accumulated numerous culture assets. It also possesses rich tourist resources such as endless water scenes, tastefully landscaped gardens as well as a varied architecture, in both magnificent and simple delicate styles. - in: http://www.travelchinaguide.com

One of the city's attrations is Slender West Lake, also known as Thin West Lake. 

 

Although I've had these postcards for years, I've just found out that this lake and the city's historic center are on UNESCO's Tentative List.

    

Slender West Lake was originally a wide river course and gradually became a famous scenic area with continuous constructions. In Sui and Tang dynasties, some gardens were built on the bank; and afterwards in Qing Dynasty, many wealthy salt dealers had the gardens built along the lake for self-pleasure (...).

Slender West Lake is famous for its natural charming sights, while it is also a place with plenty human cultures. Many politicians, litterateurs, painters and artists of past dynasties were attracted by the landscape and have left numerous poems, essays, paintings, calligraphies and music as well as their legends and stories. 

The whole lake is divided by bridges, isles and banks, which make this slender lake well-bedded in zigs and zags. 

 

  CN-2766806, sent by Brian.

One of the attractions of the lake is the Five Pavilion Bridge, which is also the symbol of Yangzhou. Built in Qing Dynasty with a history of more than 200 years, the five pavilions are just like five lotuses on the lake. Five-Pavilion Bridge is in southern style and was praised as a bridge with great artistic beauty by Chinese famous bridge expert Mao Yisheng. There are 15 arch holes in the bridge; and a special view can be enjoyed on full moon nights as "15 moons" will be reflected on the lake. - in: http://www.visitourchina.com/yangzhou/attraction/shou-xi-hu-slender-west-lake.html

Palmyra - Syria

 I've heard about Palmyra not only because it is a Syrian UNESCO site but mostly because it was all over the news when the extremist group ISIL took control of Palmyra and destroyed large parts of the ancient city, ten years ago. These two temples, as seen on the cards, don't exist anymore, they've both been partially destroyed. The city was recaptured by the Syrian Free Army, after the fall of the Assad government in December 2024 and hopefully something will be done to preserve what is left. 

I've also found the 1st of these cards in Brescia. It was written and stamped from Latakia, the principal port city of Syria, in 1989.

An oasis in the Syrian desert, north-east of Damascus, Palmyra contains the monumental ruins of a great city that was one of the most important cultural centres of the ancient world. From the 1st to the 2nd century, the art and architecture of Palmyra, standing at the crossroads of several civilizations, married Graeco-Roman techniques with local traditions and Persian influences. - in: https://whc.unesco.org 

The structure of the Baalshamin temple dates to the Roman era. It was erected in the first century AD and further enlarged by Roman emperor Hadrian. The temple is one of the most important and best preserved buildings in Palmyra. 

The building was blown up in August 2015. Its cella, or inner area, was severely damaged, and followed by the collapse of the surrounding columns. - in: https://whc.unesco.org

The tetrapylon was a monument marking a major road intersection along the colonnaded street of Palmyra. It was a testimony to the grandeur of the era around 270 AD, during which Queen Zenobia had reached the height of her power. - in: https://whc.unesco.org

ISIL also destroyed the Tetrapylon. Only four pillars of the original 16 still standing, while the other 12 have been heavily damaged and are scattered around the base of the monument.

Baalbek - Lebanon

I've got my 1st card of Baalbek more than 10 years ago and a few days ago, I found another one in Brescia. Written, stamped with beautiful stamps and sent in 1973. When I saw it I immediately knew if was from a UNESCO site in Lebanon. Good find!

Baalbek is a town in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman period, when Baalbek, then known as Heliopolis was one of the largest sanctuaries in the empire. It is Lebanon's greatest Roman treasure, and it can be counted among the wonders of the ancient world, containing some of the largest and best preserved Roman ruins.

Towering high above the Beqaa plain, their monumental proportions proclaimed the power and wealth of Imperial Rome. The gods worshiped there, the triad of Jupiter, Venus and Bacchus, were grafted onto the indigenous deities of Hadad, Atargatis and a young male god of fertility.

The Temple of Bacchus was one of the three main temples at a large complex in classical antiquity, at Baalbek. The temple was dedicated to Bacchus (also known as Dionysus), the Roman god of wine, but was traditionally referred to by Neoclassical visitors as the "Temple of the Sun". It is considered one of the best preserved Roman temples in the world. It is larger than the Parthenon in Greece, though much less famous.

Vitacolor

The temple was commissioned by Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius and designed by an unknown architect c. 150 AD, and built close to the courtyard in front of the larger temple of Jupiter-Baal. When the temple complex fell into disrepair, the Temple of Bacchus was protected by the rubble of the rest of the site's ruins. The temple is 66m long, 35m wide, and 31m high. Its walls are adorned by forty-two unfluted Corinthian columns, nineteen of which remain upright in position standing 19 m high. The columns support a richly carved entablature. Inside, the cella is decorated with Corinthian half-columns flanking two levels of niches on each side, containing scenes from the birth and life of Bacchus. The adyton (inner shrine) stands above a flight of steps. - in: wikipedia

Hebron - Palestine

 When I found this card in the box of the book fair in Brescia I liked it because it was from a place I didn't have cards from, the building was interresting but when I got home I had reasons to like it even more. I googled about Hebron and found out that the Old City of Hebron is classified as UNESCO WHS. So, I found 2 cards from 2 missing UNESCO sites from Palestine in the last book fairs I've been to. How nice is that?

This is a written and stamped card sent from Nazareth to Brescia in 1976.  

The use of a local limestone shaped the construction of the old town of Hebron/Al-Khalil during the Mamluk period between 1250 and 1517. The centre of interest of the town was the site of Al-Ibrahimi Mosque/The tomb of the Patriarchs whose buildings are in a compound built in the 1st century AD to protect the tombs of the patriarch Abraham/Ibrahim and his family. This place became a site of pilgrimage for the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The town was sited at the crossroads of trade routes for caravans travelling between southern Palestine, Sinai, Eastern Jordan and the north of the Arabian Peninsula. - in: https://whc.unesco.org

The Tombs of the Patriarchs (...) is the burial place of three biblical couples — Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob and Leah.
The second holiest site in Judaism (after the Western Wall in Jerusalem), it is also sacred to the other two Abrahamic faiths, Christianity and Islam.
It was the patriarch Abraham who bought the property when his wife Sarah died, around 2000 years before Christ was born. Genesis 23 tells how Abraham, then living nearby at Mamre, bought the land containing the Cave of Machpelah to use as a burial place. He paid Ephron the Hittite the full market price — 400 shekels of silver.
Today the site is the dominant feature of central Hebron, thanks to the fortress-like wall Herod the Great built around it in the same style of ashlar masonry that he used for the Temple Mount enclosure in Jerusalem. - in: https://www.seetheholyland.net

Heeswijk Castle - Netherlands

The Netherlands isn't just about windmills; there are also beautiful castles. During my travels, I've only visited one, but I hope to visit more in the future. This one is near Heeswijk, in the province of North Brabant.

Marina sent me the first postcard 10 years ago, and the other arrived this week.

 

© The online postcard shop

The castle was originally constructed during the 11th century and was later restored in 2005. A motte was first erected in 1080, but would be reduced over the next few centuries. A castle would eventually be built in its place.
Heeswijk Castle was an integral part of the history of the Netherlands. Prince Mauritis failed twice to take over Heeswijk in 1600. His half-brother Frederick Henry, however, did succeed in 1629. This allowed him to attack ‘s-Hertogenbosch.
In 1649, the castle was transformed into a baroque residence and lost its defensive features. In 1672, Louis XIV stayed at Heeswijk while campaigning against the Dutch Republic. King Charles II of England as well as the bishops of Munster and Cologne visited the castle to sign the Treaty of Heeswijk.

NL-6096795, sent by Bea.

General Pichegru, who was under Napolean’s command, used the castle as a headquarters in the late 18th century. In the early 1800s, the castle was purchased by Andre Baron van den Bogaerde van Terbrugge. However, by this time, the castle had already fallen into a state of disrepair. Reconstruction began and the castle was then expanded to include an armory. The “Iron Tower” was also constructed and served as a place to store his son’s collection of art and curiosa.
Surprisingly, the castle only suffered minimal damage during World War II. In 1944, the parachutists of the 101st Airborne Division actually landed around Heeswijk Castle. - in: http://www.netherlands-tourism.com