Dormition Cathedral - Moscow

A new favorite from Russia with another great cathedral, the Cathedral of the Dormition in Moscow. This beautiful card was sent by Olya "reddew".

"The Cathedral of the Assumption or Cathedral of the Dormition is one of several churches in Moscow's Kremlin. It was built between 1475 and 1479 AD by the Italian architect Aristotele Fioravanti. In the 14th century, Metropolitan Peter persuaded Ivan I (Ivan Kalita) that he should build a cathedral to the Holy Virgin in Moscow like the Cathedral of the Assumption in the capital city Vladimir. Construction of the cathedral began on August 4, 1326. In the following year, Moscow became the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal' principality, and later of all Rus.

By the end of the 15th century the old cathedral had become dilapidated, and in 1472 the Pskov architects Kryvtsov and Myshkin began construction of a new cathedral. Two years later, the building was nearing completion when it suddenly collapsed because of an earthquake — an extremely rare event in Moscow.

Ivan III then invited Aristotele Fioravanti, a celebrated architect and engineer from Bologna, Italy, to come to Moscow and entrusted him with the task of building the cathedral from scratch in the traditions of Russian architecture. The cathedral in Vladimir was once again taken as a model for the building, and so Fioravanti travelled to Vladimir in order to study Russian methods of building. He designed a light and spacious masterpiece that combined the spirit of the Renaissance with Russian traditions.

The foundation for the new cathedral was laid in 1475, and in 1479 the new cathedral was consecrated by Metropolitan Geronty. The interior was painted with frescoes and adorned with many holy images, including Our Lady of Vladimir and the Blachernitissa.

In 1547 the coronation of the first Russian Tsar, Ivan the Terrible, took place in this cathedral, while from 1721 it was the scene of the coronation of the Russian emperors. The ritual installation of metropolitans and patriarchs of the Orthodox Church also took place in this cathedral, and their tombs are also to be found here. The patriarchate was abolished by Peter the Great and only restored after February Revolution of 1917.

According to legend, in the winter of 1941, when the Nazis had reached the threshold of Moscow, Joseph Stalin secretly ordered a service to be held in the Assumption Cathedral to pray for the country's salvation from the invading Germans. In 1990 the Assumption Cathedral was returned to the Church, although a museum still operates within it." - in: http://www.sacred-destinations.com/russia/moscow-cathedral-of-assumption.htm

Novi Sad - Serbia

After a Unesco trade, i've traded again with Judit "helgamano". This time i've chosen two cards from her city, Novi Sad, Serbia's second largest city.

The cards show the Town Hall and the Name of Mary Church, both located in the Liberty Square, the largest central city square, built in the 18th century.

"The Town Hall was built in 1895th in Neo-Renaissance style, designed by architect George Molnar. The facade of the building is a striking Ionic and Corinthian columns. Facade stands out along the 16 Algerian figures that symbolize the various human activities and they are work of Julie Annika. At the top of the building is a tall tower in which there is a bell of St. Florian, patron of the city. Bell was called Matilda, by the name of the benefactress which donated the bell to the fire volunteer squad. Long time ago it served to announce by the number of hits ringtones, the position of the fire outbreak in the city." - in: http://www.visitnovisad.rs/Novi_Sad-guide.html

"The Name of Mary Church is a Roman Catholic Church named after Virgin Mary. The church was built on the foundation of an old Roman Catholic church, which was damaged during Revoluion of 1848. This church was not restored correctly, so Catholics from Novi Sad decided to build a new church. It was finished in the end of the 19th century, in 1894 by architect Georg Molnar. The church is a three-nave building, with gothic arches. The altar is made of carved wood from Tyrol, the windows with stained glass from Budapest and the roof tiles were made of Zsolnay ceramics. It is the highest church in Backa region and dominates the city center of Novi Sad." - in: wikipedia

Humburg PC Meeting

I've been packing this afternoon. Tomorrow, by this time, i'll been in Lisbon ready for a mini-portuguese meeting. And then, next day, friday morning, i'll fly to Germany for the Köln meeting. This meeting will take place exactly one week after the Hamburg meeting.

This meeting card arrived yesterday and was sent by Claus.

The postcrossers at this meeting were: zimtschnecke, elbe, hexentrio, zeronic, Prodigy, optimistic, paola26, Graefin_Zahl, mecki, mondfalke, angie276, sarai_joana, steffilie, orcaighsidh, Nouveaulist, mipema, koschka, pne, maleen and Juneau78.

German cards

I've got these cards after a private trade with Juliane "lucyp21". She requested 2 of my cards and in return she sent a third card, the Bremen Musicians card, as an extra.

Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony.

Hannover's New City Hall, is a city hall and was opened on July 20, 1913, after having been under construction for 12 years. It is a magnificent, castle-like building of the era of William II in eclectic style at the southern edge of the inner city (outside of the historic city center of Hannover). The building is embedded in the 10 hectare Maschpark.

Wolfsburg is another city in Lower Saxony.

"Wolfsburg was founded in 1937 as Stadt des KdF-Wagens (City of the KdF Car), a planned town around the village of Fallersleben in order to house the workers of the newly opened Volkswagen factories, which were built to assemble the Volkswagen Beetle "people's car" and remain there today, although Beetle production finished there in 1978.

In 1945, the city was renamed Wolfsburg after the castle of the same name located in the city, which was founded about 1300 on the bank of the Aller river. Today, there is another castle at the place, which was built after 1600." - in: wikipedia

The Bremen Musicians bronze statue by Gerhard Marcks, was erected in 1953. Touching the front hooves is said to make wishes come true.

"The Town Musicians of Bremen is a folktale recorded by the Brothers Grimm.

In the story a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster, all past their prime years in life and usefulness on their respective farms, were soon to be discarded or mistreated by their masters. One by one they leave their homes and set out together. They decide to go to Bremen, known for its freedom, to live without owners and become musicians there.

On the way to Bremen, they see a lighted cottage; they look inside and see four robbers enjoying their ill-gotten gains. Standing on each other's backs, they decide to perform for the men in hope of gaining food. Their 'music' has an unanticipated effect; the men run for their lives, not knowing what the strange sound is. The animals take possession of the house, eat a good meal, and settle in for the evening.

Later that night, the robbers return and send one of their members in to investigate. It is dark and he sees the eyes of the Cat shining in the darkness. He reaches over to light his candle, thinking he sees the coals of the fire. Things happen in quick succession; the Cat swipes his face with her claws, the Dog bites him on the leg, the Donkey kicks him and the Rooster crows and chases him out the door, screaming. He tells his companions that he was beset by a horrible witch who scratched him with her long fingers (the Cat), an ogre with a knife (the Dog), a giant who had hit him with his club (the Donkey), and worst of all, the dragon who screamed in his voice from the rooftop (the Rooster). The robbers abandon the cottage to the strange creatures who have taken it, where the animals live happily for the rest of their days." - in: wikipedia

DE-872772

The back of this Bremen card is fully written :) This was the 2nd card i've received from Bremen this week and it shows the Schlachte, the medieval harbour of Bremen and today a riverside boulevard with pubs and bars aligned on one side and the banks of Weser on the other.

DE-872772, sent by Florian.

"Bremen's seafaring traditions are still alive and well today and have a big part to play in its unique appeal. The Schlachte Embankment along the River Weser is a magnet for locals and tourists: there are always people milling around by the water, especially when the sun is out. Something very special is happening in Bremen's Überseestadt district, one of the largest urban regeneration projects in Europe: the old city docks on the eastern banks of the Weser are being transformed into a vibrant community for the 21st century – in an area five times the size of the city centre. Flowing through the heart of Bremen is the Weser river: an old trading route that was the driving force behind the city's emergence as a proud Hanseatic centre. When the sun shines down on Bremen, locals and visitors to the city head to the Schlachte Embankment on the banks of the Weser river. The terraces, gardens, restaurants and pavement cafés offer wonderful views of the water. Just as easy on the eye are the old-fashioned boats and their modern counterparts on the quayside. St. Martin's quay is where the river tours depart: every day in summer, the boats take passengers up and down the Weser on short trips or long cruises. Bremen's seafaring traditions are especially well preserved in the Vegesack district with its captains' houses, buzzing harbour, maritime festivals and charter cruises on the Weser and Lesum rivers." - in: http://www.bremen-tourismus.de/btz/english/k1-rubrik_unter.cfm?index=1372

NL-596738

I'm bored today!! I've no reasons to go outside, i guess i'll stay home and write some cards and letters! Cards always cheer me up.... i hope it works today.

And now an official mapcard from Netherlands with 4 lighthouses in South Holland province.

NL-596738, sent by Tiffany.

The card shows Noordwijk (1921-1922) and Scheveningen (1875), both still active. The Katwijk (1605) and Hoek van Holland (1893) lighthouses have been deactiveted, the Katwijk in 1913 and the Hoek van Holland in 1974.

Zuiderkerk - Amsterdam

Last update of the night, a favorite from the Netherlands. The card shows the Zuiderkerk, South Church, in Amsterdam and it was sent by Sandra "sisi".

"The Zuiderkerk was built between 1603 and 1611 by the great Dutch architect Hendrick de Keyser. It was one of the earliest churches in Amsterdam to be built in the Renaissance style and was the first in the city to be built for the Dutch Reformed Church.

Legend has it this church greatly impressed the great British architect Sir Christopher Wren (builder of London's St. Paul's Cathedral and other churches). Centuries later, Monet painted the Zuiderkerk. In another artistic connection, three of Rembrandt's children were buried in the Zuiderkerk.

On a less happy note, the church floor was used to store the surplus of corpses during the Hunger Winter of 1945.

Like many of Amsterdam's churches, there are no longer enough worshippers to keep the South Church in business. Today it houses a permanent exhibit on Amsterdam's future building plans sponsored by the City Planning Office.

The church tower is one of the most beautiful structures in Amsterdam." - in: http://www.sacred-destinations.com/netherlands/amsterdam-zuiderkerk.htm