Last officials of the month

I got these 2 official cards today.

This is my 1st official card from Finland this year.
FI-509474, sent by "minicape". This the room in late Empire inside Turku's Castle.

And this is my 1st official card from Japan.

JP-61855, a beautiful winter landscape in Nagano sent by "paper".

"Nagano is located in the northern part of the prefecture near the confluence of the Chikuma and the Sai rivers, on the main Japanese island of Honshū.
In 1998, Nagano hosted the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, the second Winter Olympics ever held in Japan and the first since 1972 when the Winter Games were held in Sapporo, also the site of the first Winter Olympics ever held in Asia." - in: wikipedia

Rock Garden - Japan

I've finally uploaded all the cards i received last week. After a week with lots and lots of card, today i got none but i guess i can't complain about it.

Last friday i've received another card from Elisabete "moonwoolf". The 1st time we traded she sent me an austrian card and now she sent me a japanese card.

This is the famous Rock Garden of Ryōan-ji, a Zen temple located in northwest Kyoto. The temple is one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

"The garden is 30 meters long from east to west and 10 meters from north to south. There are no trees, just 15 irregularly shaped rocks of varying sizes, some surrounded by moss, arranged in a bed of white gravel/sand that is raked every day.
The rocks of various sizes are arranged on small white pebbles in five groups, each comprising five, two, three, two, and three rocks. The garden contains 15 rocks arranged on the surface of white pebbles in such a manner that visitors can see only 14 of them at once, from whichever angle the garden is viewed." - in: wikipedia

Mauro's cards

Mauro found my blog once and he sends me cards every now and then. Last friday i got another envelope from him. This time he sent me 2 cards from Teresina, the capital city of the Piauí state in the northeastern region of Brazil, and a photo card from Japan.

This cards features a bridge that accesses João XXIII Avenue.

And now a partial view of the Poti river and Antonino Freire Avenue.

The NHK Broadcasting Center, headquarters of NHK, is located in Jinnan, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It includes studios and offices, as well as shops and the popular Studio Park, which is a popular attraction for schoolchildren and tourists.

Europe RR + tag

I got the last 3 Europe RR cards from Sabine "bine" and she also sent me 3 other cards from a tag. All the cards are great but i already 2 of them, that's why there's only 4 here. These 4 are all unesco.

"The Holstentor ("Holsten Gate") is a late Brick Gothic city gate, the only still existing one beside the Burgtor and part of the medieval fortifications of Lübeck in Germany. It consists of two round towers at the north and the south side with an arched entranceway between them. The building is four stories high. Today it is considered a major landmark of Lübeck. Together with the Altstadt of Lübeck it is an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987." - in: wikipedia

Several views of Stralsund.

Ruins of the Roman Baths in Trier.

"Sanssouci Palace was built for Prussian emperor Frederick II as his summer retreat, and its name, which literally means ‘no worries’ in French, reflects the fact that he intended this as an escape from the pressures of Berlin and married life. The real showpiece of Sanssouci, however, is the park. Visitors can wander through a series of beautifully landscaped gardens, including the Sizilianischer Garten (Sicilian Garden), which is filled with subtropical plants. A series of fountains and terraces leads to other structures within the park, such as the Neue Orangerie (New Orangery) and the Bildergalerie (Picture Gallery), which holds paintings by Renaissance artists, including Caravaggio, Rubens and Van Dyck." - in: http://www.worldtravelguide.net/attraction/401/attraction_guide/Europe/Sanssouci-Palace-Schloss-Sanssouci.html

Mulu National Park - Malaysia

I've received a lot of cards this week but i've busy and tired to upload all the cards. I just got home from a wedding and my eyes are closing....i'll try to write a few posts before going to bed.

I got this malaysian unesco card last wednesday or thursday. Is my 1st unesco from there and it was sent my Ilyani "imajica" a new and dear friend from the GTKY gang :P

"Gunung Mulu National Park near Miri, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses incredible caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting. The park is famous for its caves and the expeditions that have been mounted to explore them and their surrounding rainforest, most notably the Royal Geographical Society Expedition of 1977 - 1978, which saw over 100 scientists in the field for 15 months.
Within Gunung Mulu National Park is the world's biggest natural enclosed space - Sarawak chamber, found in Gua Nasib Bagus. It is 2,300 feet (700 m) long, 1,300 feet (396 m) wide and at least 230 feet (70 m) high; according to the guides it is big enough to fit St. Peter's Basilica or several jumbojets inside. Other notable caves are Benarat Cavern, Deer Cave, Wind Cave, and Clearwater Cave, which exposes parts of a long underground river going through the park." - in: wikipedia

DE-310268

This is the official card i've received thursday. We can hardly see but this is a view of the Pegasus Fountain at the Luisium Palace's park in Dessau.

"Prince Franz dedicated this small and intimate park to his wife Luise, born Princess of Brandenburg-Schwedt (1750-1811). Classical and Neo-Gothic buildings harmonise with the artistically designed landscape and combine to form an ensemble of exquisite quality." - in: http://www.dessau.de/amt41/kulttour/en/garden_realm/luisium_palace_and_park.html

Photo contest cards

More 3 cards from the photo contest. The belgium card was sent by Raquel "ferro", the brazilian by Valéria "vbformig" and the spanish by Mario "marioGV". Thanks, the cards are great :D

This is a night view of the Market Place in Brussels and its flower carpet.
The Grand Place is one of the world's most beautiful squares and every two years is covered with a carpet of 800,000 fresh begonias for a few days in the middle of August.

A beautiful card from Salvador with Itapuã lighthouse, built in 1873.

Another card with a lighthouse, in this case the Fisherman Lighthouse in Santoña, a village in the western coast of the autonomous community of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain.

Vila Nova de Milfontes - Portugal

Américo "valdagua" is my regular postcard pal and these are the last cards he sent me. All these cards are from Vila Nova de Milfontes, a town 115 km south to Lisbon.

These cards show the Mira river. "The river has its sources on the northern slopes of the Serra do Caldeirão and pursues a southeast-northwest course with a generally mild inclination to the Atlantic Ocean, where it discharges through a small calm delta near Vila Nova de Milfontes.

It is one of the two only rivers in Portugal with a chiefly south-north orientation (the other being its neighbour Sado) and one of the few rivers in Europe with this orientation.

Distributary streamlines run perpendicularly along the coastline and discharge directly to the Atlantic Ocean." - in: wikipedia

Unesco tag

A few days ago "Eule" tagged me on the "unesco tag" and today i've received her card.

This is an aerial view of the Museum Island in Berlin, an Unesco whs since 1999.

Portuguese cards

Today i've received 4 cards, 3 of them from Portugal.

This one is another photo contest prize and it was sent by Tiago "MaFiAs". "The Casa dos Bicos is a historical house in the city of Lisbon, in Portugal. The house, built in the early 16th century in the Alfama neighbourhood, has a curious façade of Renaissance and Manueline influence. It has survived the disastrous 1755 Lisbon Earthquake that destroyed much of the city." - in: wikipedia

I also have a postcard blog in portuguese and 1 of the posts is a gigantic wishlist of specific portuguese places and monuments. Joaquim "kosta28" saw that wishlist and sent me these 2 cards. This is the Leça da Palmeira lighthouse, also known as Boa Nova lighthouse.

This is Santo Ildefonso Church in Porto. "The church was constructed from 1709 on since the first church was in ruins. It was concluded in 18 July 1739. The nave is of polygonal type in proto-baroque style. Above the entablature there is a niche with the patron saint. It has steeple towers with dentils on the cornices, topped on each side by fantasy spheres and frontons. The walls are decorated with tiles by Jorge Colaço (1932), depicting scenes from the life of St. Ildefonso and allegories from the Eucharist." - in: http://www.portugalvirtual.pt/_tourism/costaverde/porto/ukcity.html

New Unescos from Japan

I've been received a lot of new unesco cards latelly. If i'm not mistaken, i've cards from 250 unesco world heritage sites world the world.

These are the last unesco cards i've received, 4 new japanese sites sent by Adriana "recadosdri".

Itsukushima Shrine is a Shinto shrine on the island of Itsukushima (popularly known as Miyajima) in the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. "The Unesco decided to reward this shrine, because it is: "the supreme example of this form of religious centre, setting traditional architecture of great artistic and technical merit against a dramatic natural background and thereby creating a work of art of incomparable physical beauty." Since ages, the island is known as a holy place for Shintoism. The first shrines were probably built there in the 6th century. The current one dates from the 13th century. The orange color of the wooden building contrasts beautifully with the green mountains and the blue sea. Most famous part of the shrine is the so-called floating Torii, the photogenic orange-colored gateway which stands in the water in front of the shrine." - in: http://worldheritagesite.org/sites/itsukushimashrine.html

"The Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Genbaku Dome) was the only structure left standing in the area where the first atomic bomb exploded on 6 August 1945. Through the efforts of many people, including those of the city of Hiroshima, it has been preserved in the same state as immediately after the bombing. Not only is it a stark and powerful symbol of the most destructive force ever created by humankind; it also expresses the hope for world peace and the ultimate elimination of all nuclear weapons." - in: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/775

"Yakushi-ji is one of the most famous imperial and ancient Buddhist temples in Japan, located in Nara. The temple is the headquarters of the Hossō school of Japanese Buddhism. Yakushi-ji is one of the sites that are collectively inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, under the name of "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara."
The original Yakushi-ji was built in Fujiwara-kyō, Japan's capital in the Asuka period, commissioned by Emperor Temmu in 680 to pray for recovery from illness for his consort, who succeeded him as Empress Jitō. This act of building temples in devotion to Buddhist figures was a common practice among Japanese nobility when Buddhism was first imported from China and Korea. Emperor Temmu had died by the time Empress Jitō completed the complex around 698; and it was disassembled and moved to Nara eight years after the Imperial Court settled in what was then the new capital." - in: wikipedia

"The Historic Villages of Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama are one of Japan's UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
These villages are well known for their houses constructed in architectural style known as gasshō-zukuri. The Gassho-zukuri, "prayer-hands construction" style is characterized by a thatched and steeply slanting roof resembling two hands joined in prayer. The design is exceptionally strong and, in combination with the unique properties of the thatching, allow the houses to withstand and shed the weight of the region's heavy snowfalls in winter.
The houses are large, with three to four stories encompassed between the low eaves, and intended, historically, to house large extended families and an highly-efficient space for a variety of industries. The densely-forested mountains of the region still occupy 96% of all land in the area, and prior to the introduction of heavy earth-moving machinery, the narrow bands of flat lands running the length of the river valley limited the area available for agriculture and homestead development. The upper stories of the gassho houses were usually set aside for sericulture, while the areas below the first floor were often used for the production of nitre, one of the raw materials needed for the production of gunpowder." - in: wikipedia

Rietveld Schröder House - Netherlands

It's been a while since i've received a card from Netherlands. This is a new unesco card, sent by Jetske as a prize for beeing the winner of the photo contest on the portuguese commmunity.

"The Rietveld Schröder House in Utrecht was commissioned by Ms Truus Schröder-Schräder, designed by the architect Gerrit Thomas Rietveld, and built in 1924. This small family house, with its interior, the flexible spatial arrangement, and the visual and formal qualities, was a manifesto of the ideals of the De Stijl group of artists and architects in the Netherlands in the 1920s, and has since been considered one of the icons of the Modern Movement in architecture.
The Rietveld Schröderhuis in Utrecht is an icon of the Modern Movement in architecture and an outstanding expression of human creative genius in its purity of ideas and concepts as developed by the De Stijl movement. With its radical approach to design and the use of space, the Rietveld Schröderhuis occupies a seminal position in the development of architecture in the modern age." - in: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/965

TW-39210

I've been receiving a lot of official cards from Taiwan these last days, and i've received another one today. This is the Taroko National Park and the card was sent by Chen.

"Taroko National Park is one of the seven national parks in Taiwan and was named after the Taroko Gorge, the landmark gorge of the park.
The park was originally established as the Tsugitaka-Taroko National Park by the Governor-General of Taiwan on December 12, 1937 when Taiwan was part of the Empire of Japan. After the Empire of Japan's defeat in World War II, the Republic of China assumed control of Taiwan. The ROC government subsequently abolished the park on August 15, 1945. It was not until November 28, 1986 that the park was reestablished." - in: wikipedia

New Unesco cards

This week started with 2 unesco whs cards, one from Austria and the other from China.

The Schönbrunn Palace card was sent from Portugal by Elisabete "moonwoolf" and the chinese is an official card - CN-58945 - sent by "DJK" showing the Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area.

"Schönbrunn, the former summer residence of the imperial family, is considered one of the most beautiful baroque palaces in Europe. The Habsburgs resided here the better part of the year in numerous rooms for the large imperial family in addition to representational rooms. Emperor Franz Joseph, who later married the enchanting Sisi and reigned from 1848 to 1916, was born here in 1830. The monarch spent his last years entirely in the palace, which became the property of the new Republic of Austria only two years after his death. Today, the palace is part of UNESCO’s cultural heritage due to its historic importance, its unique grounds and its splendid furnishings." - in: http://www.wien.info/article.asp?IDArticle=3098

"Wulingyuan is a scenic and historic interest area in Hunan Province, China, famous for its approximately 3,100 tall quartzite sandstone pillars, some over 800 meters in height, which are a kind of karst formation. It is part of Zhangjiajie city, about 270km from the capital of Hunan Province, Changsha. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. Wulingyuan forms part of the Wuling Range." - in: wikipedia

Europe RR - England

This was a great week with lost of great cards and today i've received more 3 beautiful ones, also from the Europe RR and sent by Keeley "kikistarz".

"Big Ben is the nickname for the great bell of the clock at the north-eastern end of the Palace of Westminster in London. The nickname is often also used to refer to the clock and the clock tower. This is the world's largest four-faced, chiming clock and the third largest free-standing clock tower in the world. It celebrates its 150th birthday in 2009, during which celebratory events are planned." - in: wikipedia

"Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality, and a major tourist attraction. It has been a rallying point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis.
Originally known as Buckingham House, the building which forms the core of today's palace was a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 and acquired by George III in 1761 as a private residence, known as "The Queen's House". Buckingham Palace finally became the official royal palace of the British monarch on the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837.
The state rooms form the nucleus of the working Palace and are used regularly by Queen Elizabeth II and members of the royal family for official and state entertaining. Buckingham Palace is one of the world's most familiar buildings and more than 50,000 people visit the palace each year as guests to banquets, lunches, dinners, receptions and the royal garden parties." - in: wikipedia

Tower Bridge; Buckhingham Palace; Big Ben; River Thames; Oxford Street.