Lake Manasarovar - Tibet

Remember that my friend Vitória sent a portuguese card and also a card from Tibet just a few days before Christmas? The portuguese card was posted a few weeks ago and here it is the card from Tibet. The card is showing the sacred lake of Manasarovar with the abode of Lord Shiva, Mt. Kailash, in the background. 

Lake Manasarovar situated about 2000 kms from Lhasa is world’s highest freshwater lake.

The lake is located at the southern foot of Mount Kailash, stretching up to 55miles (88kms) in perimeter it goes 330 feet deep and about 120 sq mi of total area. Lake Manasarovar has exceptional beauty that varies from crystal clear blue water near the shores and a deep emerald green colour at the center. There are a few monasteries on the shore of the lake and most striking of all is the ancient Chiu Gompa Monastery, which has been built right onto a steep hill.   

© Himalayan MapHouse (P) Ldt * Photo: Kami Tshering Sherpa

This holy lake is one of the important pilgrimages for Hindus and Buddhists. It attracts thousands of tourists and religious people towards itself every year from various parts of the world, but mainly from India, Tibet and its neighboring countries. The best to visit the lake is during springs as it is during this time the lake melts and allows people to bathe in its holy water. As believed by bathing and drinking this water one becomes fortunate and clears all his sins. Many travel agencies have annual pilgrimage group tours to this place and are often known as “Manasarovar Yatra”.    

As per the Hindu mythology it is believed, Lake Manasarovar was formed by Lord Brahma, who is the creator god. He found it to be an appropriate place for religious rituals. Hid 12 sons, who were also holy men performed rituals and austerities on the dry land at the site. And to give them a more appropriate place to earn value, Lord Brahma created a wonderful lake which today is known as - Lake Manasarovar. And as per Buddhist religion, theyrelate Manasarovar with Anotatta Lake. It is said that Lord Buddha was conceived at this very lake, as stated in the legends Lord Buddha's mother was brought on the lake by the gods and as she bathed in the sacred waters of Manasarovar her body was purified. Later she saw a white elephant running to her from Mount Kailash and Lord Buddha entered her womb. - in: http://www.kailash-yatra.org/about-mansarovar-lake.html

BG-52147 & BG-52154

I don't get officials from Bulgaria that often but I've got these two in the same week. I believe they were written by the same person because the handwriting is the same even tought the cards came from different accounts and different users. Its probably the case of a family doing postcrossing because the cards were sent from the same city.

 UNICART

BG-52147, sent by Tsvetomir.

These are beautiful bulgarian nature views, unfortunately there's no identification of the images. 

Bulgaria is a country with beautiful landscape and pleasant continental climate. The relief is varied and features mountains and valleys, rivers and plains, lakes and sea.

Some ancient water and volcanic activities have lead to the creation of beautiful rock and cave formations and incredible scenery. The natural wonders of Bulgaria act as an inspirational reminder of the amazing natural diversity of our planet. - in: http://www.mydestination.com/bulgaria/attractions/314848/natural-wonders

UNICART

BG-52154, sent by Viktoria. 

A mix of nature, cultural and architecture bulgarian views: Belogradchik Rocks; Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia; Etar; Black Sea; Stone Forest in Varna; Plovdiv; Nesebar; Thracian Tomb of Sveshtarid; Rila Monastery; Pirin Mountain; Folk and Koprivshtitsa.

BY-1499772

Irina sent me a beautiful card, one in my favs wall but she forgot to write the ID. Fortunately the postcrossing team was able to find it. 

© Photo by A. Kolb

BY-1499772, sent by Irina.

This is the Memorial Church in honor of the Archangel Michael in Byaroza, built in memory of the soldiers-internationalists killed in Afghanistan. 

LV-174169

The ID of this card is latvian but the card is from Estonia, showing Haapsalu bishop’s castle, established in the 13th century. It is one of the best preserved Medieval fortresses. 

© Antre Inforeklaam

LV-174169, sent by Agnese.

The oldest part of the castle is a square castel, a so-called small fort, which is made up of a dome church and a convent building.

The Dome Church is the heart of the castle. It it is one of the largest one aisled churches in the Baltic region and the Nordic countries. The interior is simple as the Cistercian monastic standards required. The baptizing chapel with its round floor is quite unusual in the world and similar ones can be found only in Italy. In all likelihood, this chapel, dedicated to the Virgin Mary was built in the second half of the 14th century.   Because of the placement of the chapel’s windows you can see a figure of a women appear on the middle window during full moon nights (in August and February). Every year during the White Lady Festival, the unforgettable story of the maiden is performed as an open air theatre play. The acoustics in the church are very good, the echo lasting up to 11 seconds, is a serious challenge for the performers and offers the listeners a unique experiences. - in: http://www.westestonia.ee/en/magnets/object/a/haapsalu-piiskoplinnus-ja-toomkirik/ 

Bath - England

One month after Christmas I'm still posting Christmas cards, in this case, a card sent as Xmas card. 

Last year when I started to plan my trip to England, Bath was in my initial plans but due to lack of time, I've only been to London and Greenwich. On my next visit to UK I won't miss Bath. 

This card was sent by Miguel.

Photography by Jane / Koji Sakai

The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England. Founded in the 7th century, Bath Abbey was reorganised in the 10th century and rebuilt in the 12th and 16th centuries; major restoration work was carried out by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the 1860s. It is one of the largest examples of Perpendicular Gothic architecture in the West Country.

The church is cruciform in plan, and is able to seat 1200. An active place of worship, with hundreds of congregation members and hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, it is used for religious services, secular civic ceremonies, concerts and lectures. The choir performs in the abbey and elsewhere. There is a heritage museum in the vaults.

The abbey is a Grade I listed building, particularly noted for its fan vaulting. It contains war memorials for the local population and monuments to several notable people, in the form of wall and floor plaques and commemorative stained glass. The church has two organs and a peal of ten bells. The west front includes sculptures of angels climbing to heaven on two stone ladders. - in: wikipedia

NL-2823382

After a travel I start to think about the next one. My options for 2015 1st trip were initially Estonia and Scotland but now I'm seriously considering the Netherlands. I already know which cities I want to visit but Utrecht is not one of them though. 

The card shows the Oudegracht, the 'old canal' in central Utrecht on the left and the Papal House on the right. 

NL-2823382, sent by Corno.

Utrecht is one of the Netherlands' oldest cities, with a compact medieval centre set out around canals unique to the Netherlands. 

Utrecht's ancient city centre features many buildings and structures several dating as far back as the Early Middle Ages. It has been the religious centre of the Netherlands since the 8th century.

Another landmark is the old centre and the canal structure in the inner city. The Oudegracht is a curved canal, partly following the ancient main branch of the Rhine. It is lined with the unique wharf-basement structures that create a two-level street along the canals. - in: wikipedia

Paushuize is the second oldest historic building located in the city centre of Utrecht and made in commence of the only Dutch Pope Adrianus VI.

Pope Adrianus VI had the house built before he became a Pope, when he was attached to the court of Charles in Spain. He hoped to return to Utrecht someday. In 1522, he was elected Pope and died one year later in Rome, so he never got to live in his house in Utrecht. Paushuize has a magnificent interior which proves it once functioned as a palace.

In the 19th century, the building became the residence of the Royal Commissioner. Today, parts of the building can be hired for events. - in: http://www.visit-utrecht.com/en/event/papal-house

DE-3834645

An official from Germany with some of the most famous landmarks in Berlin. 

© Schöning GmbH & Co. KG

DE-3834645, sent by Anika.

Clockwise:  Brandenburg Gate; Kurfürstendamm avenue; Nikolaiviertel; Palace of the Republic and Berlin's Cathedral; Berlin's TV Tower; Potsdamer Square; Red City Hall of Berlin; Reichstag building; Gendarmenmarkt Square and Berlin Victory Column. 

La Monse Chapel - Switzerland

Another card sent by Óscar. 

© Photographer: Marcus Gyger

This is La Monse Church, in the Gruyére Pays d'Enhaut Nature Park, near Charmey in Fribourg's Canton.

Oradour-sur-Glane - France

Since I've visited Auschwitz, I've got even more interrested in the World Wars, especially WW II. I like to read books and watch movies about these wars and I like to get cards too. I've never heard about this french town, twenty kilometers north-west of Limoges, but this card sent by Damien let me know a dark and very sad episode in the french history. 

France’s free zone had by then been occupied  by the Germans since 1942 and on June 10, 1944, when Oradour-sur-Glane became a martyr village. 

Editions du Lys

On June 10, members of the Milice, a paramilitary force created on January 30, 1943 by the Vichy Regime, informed the SS that the Sturmbannfhürer Helmut Kämpfe, the commander of the 2nd SS Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion, had been captured by maquisarts the previous night near Nieul, a village in the vicinity of Oradour-sur-Glane. The maquisarts executed Kämpfe on June 10, triggering the tragic reprisals that led to the massacre of the inhabitants of Oradour-sur-Glane!

Two armoured columns commanded by the Sturmbannführer Adolf Diekmann left Saint-Junien around 1.30pm and progressed towards Oradour-sur-Glane.

At 1.45pm the village was fully surrounded by the SS and the villagers were gathered on the fairground. 

Those possessing weapons were ordered to make themselves known. In the absence of reaction, the mayor was ordered to designate 30 hostages, but refused as there was no hidden weapon in Oradour-sur-Glane!

Around 3pm the women and children were locked in the church, and the men gathered in six buildings scattered in the village. The massacre began around 4.pm.

The SS had already installed machine guns, and shot the men in the legs before setting fire to the stacked bodies. They set fire to the church and fired on all those who tried to escape through the windows and doors.

247 women and 205 children were burned alive in the church of Oradour-sur-Glane. Only one woman, 47-year-old Marguerite Rouffanche, managed to escape and hid in a row of peas located at the back of the church, where she stayed crouched overnight.

Only 6 out of the 180 men survived this tragedy. Some 30 inhabitants of Oradour-sur-Glane managed to hide during the massacre or were able to escape before the arrival of the SS.

A total of 642 inhabitants of Oradour-sur-Glane were massacred on June 10, 1944.

The Germans looted and burned the village to the ground, and according to outside eyewitnesses, by 6pm Oradour-sur-Glane was a huge inferno.

The SS didn’t leave the village before 10.30pm.

A few days later, the survivors were permitted to bury the dead.

Diekmann and most of his men were killed in action in the weeks that followed.

The memory of the people of Oradour-sur-Glane who died in such atrocious conditions on June 10, 1944 had to be kept alive! General de Gaulle ruled that the martyr village shouldn’t be rebuild, but turned into a place of memory, an open-air memorial to the dead.

A new village was rebuilt after the war to the northwest of the site. - in: http://www.travelfranceonline.com/oradour-sur-glane-massacre-wwii-limousin/

Ponteareas - Spain

Another spanish card sent as Christmas card. It was sent by Vanesa and it shows Ponteareas Church. 

Ponteareas is town in the province of Pontevedra, in Galicia. 

® Ediciones Paris 2

The Parish Church of San Miguel was built at the end of the 19th century according to the design of Don Faustino Florez Llamas, when Ponteareas began to experience a remarkable urban growth. Made in neo-Gothic style, the style of the time, it preserves in its main façade a tympanum of most ancient chronology. The arches are a clear example of ogival style. The main façade is distributed into two bodies, with bell tower of octagonal structure in the central axis. The interior boasts the altarpiece that presides over the altar of neo-Gothic style.

Cuervo River source - Spain

I've told a few days ago that I've got a few touristic cards as Christmas cards and I really don't mind that. This one was sent by Joana, it shows the source of river Cuervo in Cuenca, Spain. 

The River Cuervo, which was declared a National Monument in 1999, rises in a place of mossy waterfalls and crystal clear ponds, where water and greenery abound.

® Ediciones Sicilia

Going up with the river on the left and lush pines on the right, in ten minutes you will reach the tobácea waterfall. This is the highlight of the location for all visitors, who take photos and toss coins for luck, despite the fact that this natural park is not the Trevi Fountain and this custom is prohibited.

A tobácea waterfall is one that originates from water falling over many centuries on limestone rock and that thanks to the water and calcium carbonate it carries, forms grades, ledges and flaps like stalactites which, covered with moss, look like a giant green sponge from which threads of water come out. Or in other words, a prodigious unfinished and unfinishable sculpture whose rock is continuously being made, adopting capricious volumes where the river runs and crumbling into hundreds of threads, like an artist completely immersed in the creative process. This combination of telluric elements and forces owes its primordial beauty to the waterfall which the River Cuervo becomes practically where it rises. - in: http://www.guiarepsol.com/en/tourism/destinations/the-best-spot/source-of-the-river-cuervo/

Lisbon - Portugal

A few days before Christmas I've received an huge package sent by Vitória. She sent a couple of Christmas gifs including a card from Tibet and this one from Alfama, Lisbon's most emblematc quarter and one of the most rewarding for walkers and photgraphers. 

Foto: W. Müller * © Edição Vistal

This quaint medieval district (once the Moorish and Jewish quarter before it became a fishing community) is the oldest neighborhood in Europe after El Pópulo in Cadiz. It's like a small village, standing as a time capsule to the years before Lisbon was destroyed by the 1755 earthquake, as it remained standing thanks to its rock-solid foundations. 

Put away your map and wander aimlessly through its "becos" (alleys) and "largos" (small squares), allowing your senses to be the guides. You'll see magnificent river views and laundry out to dry from balconies, smell fish being grilled in a corner, hear the sounds of Fado coming out of a restaurant, taste authentic traditional meals, and touch some dazzling tilework. Set in a visually stunning hill that extends to the neighborhood of Graça, this is Lisbon at its most picturesque and the very soul of the city. 

Life here continues much as it has for centuries, but walk down towards the river and you're once again in modern times: old warehouses have been renovated and turned into some of the city's coolest hotspots. in: http://www.lisbonlux.com/lisbon/alfama.html

DE-3834635

When a new year starts, I'm always anxious and curious to know where my 1st official of the year will be. This year the 1st official came from Germany but the card is actually showing the portuguese Felgueiras Lighthouse, in Porto. 

Photo by Zacarias da Mata

DE-3834635, sent by Patricia.

This is the lighthouse which signals the entrance in the mouth of river Douro. It lies at the end of a quay which in the past protected the mouth from the Atlantic waves. Today a longer and parallel new quay has been built. 

Neoclassical lighthouse with a hexagonal format, ten meters high, dated from 1886. It has a red balcony and lantern and a small annex building with plastered walls painted white. The name "Felgueiras Quay" was given because it was built facing the stone of Felgueiras, to the West. It was modernised in 1945 and automated in 1979, and was controlled from a distance from the Leça lighthouse. It underwent conservation works in the 90's. Before being deactivated in 2009, the light has a range of 9 nautical miles, issuing a red light every 5 seconds. It currently only has the sound signal. - in: http://www.photofolia.net/frame/14208/felgueiras-lighthouse/

Graciosa & Stª Maria Islands - Portugal

Besides de Christmas card, Lurdes also sent me these cards from Graciosa and Santa Maria islands, both part of the Azores archipelago. 

 © Fotografia: J. A. R. / Publiçor

This is a view of  Santa Cruz da Graciosa, a town on the island of Graciosa. The town occupies the northeastern corner of the island and is the home of the municipal seat, as well as economic center concentrating most municipal services. 

© Fotografia: J. A. R. / Publiçor

A typical windmill in Vila do Porto, on Santa Maria island. Vila do Porto is the oldest town in the archipelago. 

Christmas Cards

Christmas is gone but I'll keep these beautiful cards forever! These are all Christmas cards but I've also got a few touristic cards as Xmas cards, all show those in future posts. 

Thank you all!! Margarida from Portugal; Marie from Canada; Kati and Heidi from Finland; Grace from Switzerland; Hazel from England; Heidi from Germany; Luzia from Brazil; Vitória from Portugal; Nova from USA; Tessa from the Netherlands; Ines from Germany; Lurdes and Sofia from Portugal; Bianca from Germany; Justina from Australia; Mara from USA and Stasa from Slovenia. 

3 IN 1 RR - Special Surprise * group 01

To celebrate Christmas, Staša created this special surprise group. In this group we had to send 10 surprise cards to one person but we couldn't mention to whom. I've received this cards from Staša but my envelope is still travelling and I'm getting worried about it. I hope it arrives in the next days. 

Photo © Bernie Jungkind/Woods Bros., 1989

The Ozark Mountains are a physiographic and geologic highland region of the central United States. It covers much of the southern half of Missouri and an extensive portion of northwestern and north central Arkansas. The region also extends westward into northeastern Oklahoma and extreme southeastern Kansas. - in: wikipedia

www.tkv.at

View from Bergisel stadium towards the Nordkette. 

The Nordkette is a range of mountains just north of the city of Innsbruck in Austria. It is the southernmost of the four great mountain chains in the Karwendel. - in: wkipedia

Copyright und Verlag: Studio Tanner

Breitachklamm gorge, in Bavaria, Germany, is the deepest and one of the most impressive rocky gorges in middle Europe. 

Formation of the Breitachklamm started approximately 10,000 years ago when the melting Breitach glacier began to saw its way through the chalk of the Engenkopf and the water slowly eroded the stone.

In 1905, this natural wonder of attractive beauty and dimension became accessible with the help of the priest Johannes Schiebel from Tiefenbach. Today, the Breitachklamm fascinates more than 300,000 visitors per year. - in: http://www.breitachklamm.com/en/history/

Photos, layout, printing and sales FIN©RIGINAL

The Suomenlinna Church in Finland was built as an Eastern Orthodox garrison church for the Russian troops of Suomenlinna sea fortress.

The Orthodox church was converted into an Evangelical Lutheran church during the 1920s.

Today its central dome doubles as a lighthouse making it one of only a few churches in the world that double as a lighthouse. The signal blink is the Morse code for the letter "H" for Helsinki. It is a very popular wedding church and one of the first landmarks for people arriving in Helsinki by sea. - in: wikipedia

Foto: M. Sükrü Denizkuslari

Alanya is a beach resort city and a component district of Antalya Province in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey. 

The Mediterranean climate, natural attractions, and historic heritage makes Alanya a popular destination for tourism, and responsible for nine percent of Turkey's tourism sector and thirty percent of foreign purchases of real estate in Turkey. - in: wikipedia

Ars Una Studio

The Chain Bridge was the first permanent stone-bridge connecting Pest and Buda, and only the second permanent crossing on the whole length of the river Danube. It is one of the symbolic buildings of Budapest, the most widely known bridge of the Hungarian capital. - in: http://www.bridgesofbudapest.com/bridge/chain_bridge

Foto: Dariusz Krakowiak 

The Roman-Catholic Cathedral in Przemyśl was erected in Gothic style in the 15th and 16th centuries and then rebuilt in the 18th century in a Baroque style.

3 in 1 RR – Group 119 * View cards (Solecito)

Staša is the host of this RR and a member of this group. Here are the cards she sent me. 

Sidarta Artcard * Foto: © Franci Horvat

Simonov Zaliv - Simon’s Bay - is a small beach resort near Izola, an old fishing town and a municipality in southwestern Slovenia on the Adriatic coast of the Istrian peninsula. 

Sidarta Artcard * Foto: © Janez Skok

Ajdovska deklica - Heathen Maiden - is a rock formation that resembles a feminine human face. It can be seen in Prisojnik near Kranjska Gora, in the Julian Alps. 

Legend has it that the Ajdovska maidens foretold the people of Kranjska Gora their fortune at birth. They also advised the people when to sow their crops and when to harvest them. One of the maidens foretold the son of a hunter that he would kill the Goldenhorn which inhabited the surrounding mountains. This prophecy angered the other maidens who punished Ajdovska deklica by turning her into rock. - in: http://www.slovenia.info/en/Jewels-of-nature/Buckwheat-girl.htm?naravne_znamenitosti_jame=1370&lng=2

Sidarta Artcard * Foto: © Janez Skok

The Ljubljana dragon is part of the City of Ljubljana’s coat of arms. It symbolises strength, courage and might. It is depicted on the Dragon Bridge and on top of the castle tower on Ljubljana’s coat of arms. - in: http://www.ljubljana.si/en/about-ljubljana/images-of-ljubljana/

2 in 1 RR – Group 119 * View cards (Nordseekrabbe)

1st post of 2015 but with cards received in 2014. I still didn't get any mail this year but I'm sure that I'll get something this next week. 

I've recently joined this 3 in 1 RR, which consists of sending 2 unwritten cards in an envelope to the other members of the group. I've got these from Michèle. 

© Schöning GmbH & Co. KG

Friedrich Building is the building in the finest condition at Heidelberg Castle. Built between 1601 and 1604 and, commissioned by Elector Friedrich IV, the building's facade was seriously damaged in 1693 and the interior was destroyed by a fire approximately sixty-years later.  

It contained residential apartments as well as a chapel in the basement. The chapel in the basement was left undamaged by the fire of 1764 and most of the stonework is original. The exterior is adorned with sculptures of members of the Electoral Palatinate dynasty. During the restoration, the original sculptures were removed and replaced with replicas. The originals can be found throughout the interior of the building. Today, the Friedrich Building holds the castle museum, which gives visitors an idea of how the building was decorated and furnished. - in: http://nookstowersandturrets.blogspot.pt/2011/06/heidelberg-castle.html

© Schöning GmbH & Co. KG

The Rappbode Dam is the largest dam in the Harz region as well as the highest dam in Germany. Together with several other dams and retention basins, it forms the flood protection system for the eastern Harz. - in: wikipedia