Castilla y Leon - Spain

These two Castilla y Leon cards have also been sent by Paulo. The 1st card is a panoramic view of Zamora and the on the 2nd we can see the San Bartolomé Chapel, in Soria.

Castile and León (Castilla y León), known formally as the Community of Castile and León, is one of the 17 autonumous communities of Spain.

"Zamora is a city in Castile and Léon, Spain. It lies on a rocky hill in the northwest, near the frontier with Portugal and crossed by the Duero river, which is some 50 km downstream as it reaches the Portuguese frontier. With its 24 characteristic Romanesque style churches of the 12th and 13th centuries it has been called a "museum of Romanesque art". Zamora is the city with the most Romanesque churches in all of Europe." - in: wikipedia

In the Parque Natural del Cañon del río Lobos, among a karst landscape with steep cliffs, sits a singular Romanesque building, the San Bartolomé chapel, built in the 8th century. It sits on top of a rock which was sculpted by the current of the Lobos Rivers.

Ceuta - Spain

Last week i've received a generous offer of almost 50 cards. Can you imagine, 50 cards in an envelope as a gift?? It was like a dream :) The cards are from different countries, Portugal, Spain, France, Brazil, Estonia, Angola, Venezuela, Thailand.... and probably 1 or 2 more that i don't remember right now.

This wonderful offer was a gift from Paulo. He also has a postcard blog http://postcardsoftheworld.blogspot.com/ If anyone wants to trade, just contact him.

Almost 50, i think it were 49 cards, are just too many to upload and post here, so i chose a few that i'll try to post in the next days. Lets start with 2 cards from Ceuta.

"Ceuta is a 18.5 square kilometres (7.1 sq mi) autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Starit of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Medeterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish exclave Melilla are the only Spanish territories located in mainland Africa." - in: wikipedia

The Monument to the Heroes of Africa is located in the Africa Square, it was "designed in 1892 by the military engineer José Madrid Ruiz. This monument is a crypt containing the remains of some of the heroes of the 1859-60 African War. It is in the Neo-gothic style and has several bronze reliefs whose moulds are the work of the Sevillian sculptor Antonio Susillo. It is thirteen and a half metres tall and was opened on 4 May, 1895.

The Port Authority Building was built in 1929 following a design by the architect Manuel Latorre Pastor on the site of a palatial building designed by Andrés Galmés Nadal. It is a clear example of Modernist architecture, with machinery aesthetics. Inspired by a boat, with imposing projecting eaves, porthole-shaped windows and spaces resembling funnels, it has been restored on several occasions." - in: http://www.ceuta.es/

NL-541438

A lovely official from the Netherlands with the typical dutch windmills.

NL-541438, sent by Mariska.

"The Netherlands is so closely associated with windmills, that it's often the first fact people recall about the country. The Dutch built windmills for many centuries (and to some extent, the windmills built the country itself, since without them much of the land drainage could not have occured). In that time the mills were developed for corn milling, land drainage, saw milling, and in fact all manner of industrial purposes. Despite this widespread use, Dutch mills are in may ways quite primitive - using canvas sails, and turned to wind by hand (as distinct from the automated mechanisms that were developed for English windmills, including the fantail, and shuttered sails).

There are a very pleasing number of remaining windmills in the Netherlands - the number is about 1150 and rising, in that the Dutch only count complete workable mills, and in the past 10 years especially many extensive rebuilds have occured to add to this number." - in: http://www.windmillworld.com/europe/netherlands.htm

US-980370

An official from the US.

US-980370, sent by Jeff.

On the back of the card: "Picture yourself here with mosquito welts the size of eggs, flies in your food and your friendly neighborhood skunk dropping by for a visit. Then there is the fun of scrubbing soot off pans and the lovely aroma of insect repellent."

DE-825408

A wonderful german official cards. I really like it that it totally match my wishes.
Ettal Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in the village of Ettal in Bavaria.

DE-825408, sent by Bärbel "starrysky".

"The large, castle-like grounds of the monastery are the result of a long historical development and demonstrates one of the main concerns of a Benedictine Abbey: An independent religious community which produces everything needed for life and thus has all the important workshops and undertakings, if possible within the confines of the monastery.

Compared to the large and important monasteries of the Middle Ages in Bavaria Ettal is of relatively recent origin. It owes its foundation to the Duke of Bavaria, at the same time Roman Emperor of the German Nation, Kaiser Louis IVth. The date of the endowment and foundation of Ettal is the 28th of April 1330, and the gift of the emperor for his foundation was the marble statue of the Ettal Madonna on the high altar of the church.

The economic basis of the abbey consists of that which the monks themselves produce and earn as well as of a number of undertakings such as a brewery, the making of liqueur, hotel, and publishing house. Through these activities the large complex of buildings - all of which are used - has to be kept up - for the most part by the monks themselves." - in: http://www.bavaria.by/en/monastary-ettal.html

RU-307151

I wanted to make more updates tonight but i started to watch CSI and Criminal Minds and time flew really fast. Now its almost 1.30 am, this is my 1st update and i still have a lot of cards waiting for the spotlight.

I should start before i get too sleepy.

This is another beautiful church from Russia, located in Saratov.

RU-307151, sent by Olya.

"There are many beautiful churches in Saratov, but a small church “Ease my sorrows”, which is in the historical center of the city touches everyone. Its architecture resembles one of St. Vasilii Cathedral in Moscow. The Church’s design is quite simple. A square one-story base is crowned with a thin faceted drum, on top of which a dome tent with a golden cupola stands. The drum stays on two rows of graceful kokoshniks, and is surrounded by small onion domes like on its Moscow prototype. The church is painted in bright colors: a snow-white façade, green and pink kokoshniks, multicolored domes. All this makes the church look like a birthday cake. The Church-chapel was solemnly founded in 1930. The church is named in honor of the icon “Ease My Sorrows”, a copy of the Moscow miracle-working icon. Its very name is a prayer to the Mother of God for the deliverance from mental and physical diseases and afflictions. On the icon “Ease My Sorrows” Mother of God holds her left hand to her head which is slightly bent to the left like listening to those who pray and ask. She is holding her Divine Child with her right hand." - in: http://www.advantour.com/russia/saratov/church-mother-god-saratov.htm

Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul - Peterhof

This is a wonderful card, i just love it. It was sent by Alena "nastroeniya" and it shows the Catedral of St. Peter and Paul in Peterof.

"The cathedral of St. Peter and paul is an architectural monument in the Russian style. The construction project was ordered by Emperor Alexander III and the construction lasted from 1894 to 1905. The pyramidal building, which is 70 metres tall, is encircled with a covered gallery and crowned with five hip domes, holding 800 people. The walls are faced with dark red and light yellow bricks and embellished with sandstone columns and glazed tiles, and the apse features decorative arches. Earlier the facades had been adorned with icons of saints and patrons of the members of the Imperial family. The hip-roofed belfry and a chapel are located near the entrance. The main altar boasts a five-tier iconostasis made of glazed tiles; the other iconostases are from white marble. In 1938, SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral was closed down. During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45, it was damaged and used as a storehouse. In the 1970s-80s, the Cathedral was restored and in 1989 - returned to the eparchy." - in: http://www.encspb.ru/en/article.php?kod=2804010255