CZ-541130 & CZ-539250

Czech officials from Jablonec nad Nisou and Studenec.  

 © Atelier brí Pikousu

CZ-541130, sent by Martin.
Jablonec nad Nisou is a town in northern Bohemia, the second largest town of the Liberec Region. 

On the card: Church of the Holy Trinity in Msene; Church of St. Anne; Church of Lord's Most Sacred Heart; Protestant Dr. Frasky Church; Old Town Hall; Holy Trinity Church in Rynovice; a dam; New Town Hall; a lookout tower; Hotel Petrin and Exaltation of the Holy Cross Church.

Foto © F + F Touchmanovi

CZ-539250, sent by Janca.

Studenec is a village and municipality in Třebíč District in the Vysočina Region. 

The card shows images of the village and its surroundings. 

Isle of Wight - England

The Isle of Wight is the largest island of England. Is located in the English Channel, less than 2 hours from London via the Isle of Wight Ferry.  

This card was sent by Laerke who visited the island a few weeks ago. 

Printed and published by J. Salmon Ltd, Sevenoaks, Kent

These are some images of the Isle of Wight: Freshwater, Mottistone Manor, Wolvertor Manor, Bembridge Mill, Appulducombe House and Osborne House. 

NL-2749737, NL-2743280 & NL-2745125

Officials from the Netherlands. 

NL-2749737, sent by Hans.

Veere is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands, on Walcheren island in the province of Zeeland. 

On the card there's the Town Hall building. It was built in 1474 and it has a 48-bell carillon. 

Art Unlimited.Com * Photo: © 2006 Gerry Hurkmans

NL-2743280, sent by Anoeska.
A bridge somewhere in the Netherlands... or maybe not!

© Hannah Anthonysz-Nesselaar

NL-2745125, sent by Nadja.

De Hef (which means lever) is a steel railroad bridge that connects the Noordereiland Island in the river Maas with the Southern district Feyenoord in Rotterdam. The Hef bridge Rotterdam was built in 1877 as a moving swing bridge to connect railroad traffic in the North of the Netherlands with the South. De Hef was part of a long railroad bridge that ran straight through the city of Rotterdam. 

In 1918, a German steamship ran into the swing bridge and destroyed it. The original lift bridge was replaced by a movable swing bridge which was completed in 1927. De Hef Rotterdam was the first rail bridge of its kind in Western Europe. De Hef is operated by two 60 meter high towers with huge concrete counterweights to lift the bridge deck. This construction allows big ships to pass under the bridge.

In 1993, the Willems railroad tunnel was opened to replace De Hef in Rotterdam and other railroad bridges. Nowadys trains pass the river Maas underwater and a big part of the city of Rotterdam underground. Nowadays De Hef is not in use anymore, but you can still see the railroad tracks at the bridge. The Hef bridge in Rotterdam is always open for visitors and is a Dutch national heritage site. - in: http://www.cityguiderotterdam.com/things-to-do/sights/de-hef-rotterdam/

NL-2737996 & DE-2817917

Foxes from the Netherlands and Germany. 

Cardselect Publishers

NL-2737996, sent by Madcy.

The fox is a scavenger carnivours dog, generally found in urban city areas in the northern Hemisphere. The fox is a nocturnal mammal, meaning that the fox only goes out a night to hunt for prey.

Wild foxes tend live for around 6-7 years, but some foxes have been known to be older than 13 in captivity. The wild fox hunts for the mouse and other small mammals and birds, but foxes appear to enjoy all species of insect.

Author: Sonata Kuncaité

DE-2817917, sent by Verena.

A fox is generally smaller than other members of the dog family like wolves, jackals and domestic dogs. Foxes can be a pest in the cities as foxes are often seen tearing into rubbish. 

There are around 12 different species of fox found around the world, which include the urban fox or red fox, the beautifully white Arctic fox, the sand fox which is a light-coloured fox found in desert regions and the tiny yet big eared fennec fox. - in: http://a-z-animals.com/animals/fox/

DE-3644029 & DE-3494248

Officials from different parts of Germany. 

© Werbeverlag R.

DE-3644029, sent by Heike.

Bad Endorf is a municipality in the district of Rosenheim in Bavaria in Germany. The relatively small town is located about 15 km outside of Rosenheim and is in close proximity to the Chiemsee lake and its larger shore towns, Prien, Gstadt, and Seebruck. - in: wikipedia

Foto by Michael Pasdzior

DE-3494248, sent by Bettina.

Bunthäuser Spitze light was built in 1914 and has been inactive since 1977. The  hexagonal pyramidal wood tower is 7 m (23 ft) high with lantern and gallery; an external stairway provides access to the gallery. The tower painted green, the lantern is red and the gallery railing is white. 

The Bunthäuser Spitze is a narrow point of land dividing the Norderelbe and Süderelbe, the northern and southern branches of the Elbe, on the southeast side of Hamburg. The lighthouse marked this point for boats bound downstream. The tower now houses equipment used for monitoring the flow rate of the river. The building was restored in 1989 as part of the celebration of the 800th anniversary of Hamburg harbor, and it was repainted and repaired in 2007. - in: http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/deu2a.htm

Nuremberg - Germany

Last month Ara sent 3 days in Nuremberg and she said the city is lovely. I must agree and I've to put it on my must visit list. Actually, I've just checked the map to see exactly where the city is located and not only the city itself is very interresting but there's also another worth to visit places nearby. Humm... now I'm thinking I should go to Germany again soon ;) 

 © Schöning GmbH & Co. KG  * Foto: s. Gödecke

Weinstadel half-timbered building set along the River Pegnitz.

The building was erected 1446/48 to house lepers who were allowed into the city for three days at Easter, during which time they received food and clothing and medical attention.

After ca 1571, the building was used to store wine - hence the name. It later served as workhouse and spinnery and to lodge poor families. In 1950 it was turned into student housing, whereby the internal structural substance was virtually obliterated. - in: http://tourismus.nuernberg.de/en/sightseeing/places-of-interest/further-places-of-interest/d/weinstadel.html

5th International Bielefeld Meeting

The 5th International Postcarossing Meeting in Bielefeld took place almost a month ago. Like in the previous years, many postcrossers, from many countries, joined the meeting and had lots of fun. This year I've received this 2 cards, the 1st sent by Paula and the 2nd by Grace. 

 © Schöning GmbH & Co. KG 

On this card is possible to see the Old Town Hall, the Old Market Square, Marien Church, Linen Weaver Statue, Sparrenburg castle and two other constructions that I can't identify.

Foto: Andreas Lechtape

Münster is also a city in North Rhine-Westphalia.

St. Paul's Cathedral was built in the 13th century in a mixture of late Romanesque and early Gothic styles. It was completely restored after World War II. It includes an astronomical clock of 1540, adorned with hand-painted zodiac symbols, which traces the movement of the planets, and plays a Glockenspiel tune every noon. - in: wikipedia
The tall, dark tower belongs to St Lambert's Church (1375). 

La Gruyère Lake - Switzerland

Last month I complained I wasn't getting enough cards and just because of that, Óscar sent me this one!! That was very kind of him and I trully liked the card.

Edition G. Fleury

Lake Gruyère is one of the prettiest artifical lakes in Switzerland. 

Lake Gruyère is a lake in the La Gruyère region of the Canton of Fribourg. 

The reservoir was formed between the cities of Bulle and Fribourg, by building the Rossens Dam on the Sarine river in 1948. 

Colmar - France

Last September Óscar spent a weekend in Colmar with his wife and kid. He said the town is very interresting and the Saint Martin church is worth to visit. 

Éditions VALOIRE - ESTEL - BLOIS

Built between 1235 and 1365 the Saint Martin’s collegiate church is an important example of Gothic architecture in Alsace. Because of a fire in the south tower in 1572 the framework and all the roofs were destroyed. The tower was replaced three years later by the original lantern bulb (a construction on the top of the dome which has the form of a lantern) which gives the Church its characteristic silhouette. The church has been restored several times. In 1982 during the most recent restoration, foundations of a church from the year 1000 and traces of extensions from the 11th and the 12th centuries were found.

The inhabitants of Colmar consider for a long time the Saint Martin’s collegiate church as their cathedral (in German “Münster”). But in fact it was really a cathedral only about ten years, from Civil Constitution of the Clergy (1790) to the Concordat of 1801. The two constitutional bishops who followed one another were not able to assert themselves and to organize a diocese, because it was in the two thirds still devoted to Rome. - in: http://www.ot-colmar.fr/en/architectural-heritage/F235007704_saint-martin-church-colmar

Aix-en-Provence - France

Not so long ago Luzia has been to Provence in France and she  sent me this card from Aix-en-Provence. The city is located in the south of France, in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Photo: Moirenc / Wallis

The church on the card is the Church of Saint-Jean-de-Malte, named after the Knights of Saint-John of Jerusalem.

Built outside the ramparts in the 13th century, this was the first Gothic construction in Provence. It used to contain the graves of the Counts of Provence in its side chapels.

La Grande-Motte - France

One last card sent by Damien. I've never heard about La Grande-Motte before but apparently the city is a very famous resort in France.

La Grande-Motte is a commune in the Hérault département in Languedoc-Roussillon in southern France. It is a popular seaside resort and port, built in the 1960s and 1970s. La Grande-Motte is characterized by homogeneous architecture; many of the prominent buildings are pyramidal in form. - in: wikipedia

Born from the imagination of architect-philosopher, Jean Balladur, La Grande Motte rose from the earth at the end of the 1960s. Its architecture calls to mind both the pre-Columbian pyramids of Teotihuacan in Mexico and the balance between Yin and Yang. It was designed as a ‘global’ city, like Brasilia by the famous Oscar Niemeyer or Chandigarh by the equally famous Le Corbusier.

After 30 years of hard work and an enthusiasm which never flagged, Jean Balladur managed to convince the authorities to accept his plans to make La Grande Motte a sustainable town where the architecture has been designed for people. The town was awarded the title of “20th Century Heritage Site” by the Ministry of Culture in 2010, the ultimate accolade for the quality of his work. - in: http://www.lagrandemotte.com/eng/Accueil/Menu/Discover/Exceptional-architecture

Limoges - France

Limoges is Damien's hometown. This is my 1st card from this french city in the Limousin region, in west-central France, known for its medieval enamels (Limoges enamels) on copper, for its 19th-century porcelain (Limoges porcelain) and for its oak barrels which are used for Cognac production.

If you'd like to visit Limoges and travel by train, you'll be surprised by the beauty of the local train station. Bénédictins Station is one of the most beautiful in Europe. Its belfry and cupola shimmer like a lighthouse in a storm, while the interior is decorated with neoclassical sculptures and Art Deco stained glass windows.

Editions René

Limoges-Bénédictins is named Bénédictins due to the presence of a Benedictine monastery closed during the French Revolution.

The CF du PO opened the first railway line in the city in the 1850s. The first station, built of wood, opened on 16 June 1856. The first stone-built station opened in 1860.

On 21 November 1918, the Limoges city council and CF du PO signed an agreement regarding the construction of a new station. Work lasted from 1924 and 1929. The station was inaugurated on 2 July 1929.

The station was listed on 15 January 1975 and work to restore the Great Hall ended in 1979.

Bénédictins station was designed by architect Roger Gonthier. A particularity of the station is that it was built over the ten railway lines as opposed to next to them. A large 90 by 78 metre platform was built over the line to support the station building.

The building is made of a concrete bone structure, filled in with limestone. The dome which covers the passenger concourse is made of a metallic framework, covered in copper.

On the Southwest corner is a 60 metre tall clock tower composed of twelve levels. It is mounted by a dome itself mounted by a five metre tall vase. Below these are four four metre wide clocks. - in: wikipedia

La Camargue - France

Damien keeps sending me cards every now and then, this one is from the Camargue. One of the best known images of this region is the Camargue Horse.

The Camargue is a natural region located south of Arles, France, between the Mediterranean Sea and the two arms of the Rhône River delta. The eastern arm is called the Grand Rhône; the western one is the Petit Rhône.

The Camargue horse is an ancient breed of horse indigenous to the Camargue area in southern France. Its origins remain relatively unknown, although it is generally considered one of the oldest breeds of horses in the world. For centuries, possibly thousands of years, these small horses have lived wild in the harsh environment of the Camargue marshes and wetlands of the Rhône delta, which covers part of the départements of Gard and Bouches-du-Rhône. There they developed the stamina, hardiness and agility for which they are known today. Traditionally, they live in semi-feral conditions in the marshy land of the region. The Camargue horse is the traditional mount of the gardians, the Camargue "cowboys" who herd the black Camargue bulls used in bullfighting in southern France. - in: wikipedia

PL-948618

The ID of this card is polish but the card is from Timanfaya National Park in Lanzarote, on the spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands. 

Tullio Gatti Photo Gallery

PL-948618, sent by Anna.

The Montañas de Fuego (Fire Mountains) or Timanfaya form part of a broad area affected by volcanic eruptions that struck Lanzarote between 1730 and 1736, with subsequents eruptions in 1824. This long eruption preocess, one of the most significant and spectacular of the historic volcanism on Earth, drastically changed the morphology of the Island, leaving a quarter of it almost completely buried under a thick layer of lava and ash. - in: http://www.turismolanzarote.com/en/detalle_centros.jsp?DS19.PROID=5464

Vall de Boí - Spain

Sant Climent de Taüll is one of the nine Early Romanesque churches declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO and located in the Vall de Boí, in Catalonia, Spain.

This card was sent by Malgosia. 

Ediciones Sicilia S. A.

Sant Climent de Taüll was consecrated on the 10th of December 1123 by Ramon Guillem, bishop of Roda-Barbastro, the church of Sant Climent was built on an earlier church dating from the 11th century. It is a prototype for basilical plan Romanesque churches, with three naves separated by columns and covered with a wooden gable roof, the top of the church with three apses and a bell-tower.

The Pantocrator of Sant Climent de Taüll has been the most frequently used emblematic image to represent Catalan Romanesque art. The original is kept in the National Museum of Catalan Art but the church contains a copy, together with other fragments from the original painting, of particular note being the scene with Cain and Abel.

Three Romanesque carvings complete the furnishings inside the church. - in: http://www.vallboi.cat/en/el-romanic/sant-climent-de-taull

Almudena Cathedral, Madrid - Spain

On May 22, 2004, the marriage of the spanish kings, Felipe VI and Letizia Ortiz, took place at the Almudena Cathedral in Madrid. It was the forst royal wedding in this cathedral. 

The 1st card was sent by Ara and the 2nd by Rita. 

© Del O.K. Corral * Fotografia: Félix Jesus Corral

When the capital of Spain was transferred from Toledo to Madrid in 1561, King Felipe II he wanted a cathedral for his new capital.

Plans were discussed as early as the 16th century to build a cathedral in Madrid dedicated to the Virgin of Almudena, but construction did not begin until 1879. 

The site on which Almudena Cathedral now stands was originally occupied by Madrid's first mosque, then by a church dedicated to one of Madrid's patron saints, Santa María de la Almudena. 

Francisco de Cubas designed and directed the construction in a Gothic revival style. Construction ceased completely during the Spanish Civil War, and the project was abandoned until 1950, when Fernando Chueca adapted the plans of de Cubas to a Baroque exterior. The Cathedral was not completed until 1993, when it was consecrated by Pope John Paul II. 

The Cathedral is 104 m long and 76 m wide. The central dome has a diameter of 20 m. The building is situated adjacent to the Royal Palace, in front of "Plaza de Armas" of the Palace, on the south side. 

The bright interior of Almudena Cathedral is based in the Neo-Gothic style, that it is uniquely modern, with chapels and statues of contemporary artists, in heterogeneous styles, from historical revivals to "pop-art" decor. - in: http://www.madridtourist.info/almudena_cathedral.html

Sobroso Castle - Spain

Vanesa is a very active spanish postcrosser in the portuguese community of the Postcrossing forum. Two months ago she sent me this card of the Sabroso Castle.

Sobroso Castle is a 9th century medieval castle in the village of Vilasobroso in Galicia, Spain. 

Ediciones Arribas

The castle is located in Vilasobroso, a village in the municipality of Mondariz, belonging to the comarca of O Condado. It sits on Landín Hill, overlooking the Condado valley, right up to the Portuguese border. Due to its strategic position, the castle was known as "the key of the Kingdom of Galicia".

The castle currently houses a cultural and ethnographic museum. - in: wikipedia

Alcalá de Guadaíra - Spain

Remember that some time ago I met, Paulo, a postcard collector and he gave me more than 200 cards? These 3 from Alcalá de Guadaíra in Spain, are part of his generous offer. 

Alcalá de Guadaíra is a town located approximately 10 km southeast of Seville. Alcalá used to be known as Alcalá de los Panaderos (Alcalá of the bakers) because it provided most of Seville's bread. The town is located on the banks of the Guadaíra River, and watermills built during the Moorish period of Spain can still be found in the area. - in: wikipedia

 © Plasmatik Design

Alcalá Park next to Guadaíra River.

© Plasmatik Design

Realaje Mill it is one of the most monumental Mill buildings, due to its great central tower of medieval origin.

The building preserves all its industrial rooms: Basement, grinding room with three millstones and store on the top. We highlight the annexed to the mill house of the miller; due to its immediate situation to the main building has also a spillway in case possible floods.

The central tower has square-plan, covered by a great vault that supports the terrace roof. The great weir pipes the Guadaíra at a bend that makes easier the use of the hydraulic power for the process of grinding. - in: http://www.turismoalcaladeguadaira.es/en/tourist-guide/interesting-places/the-mills/realaje-mill

© Plasmatik Design

A stork on a chimney.

Faro - Portugal

I thought that the Bones Chapel in Évora was the only chapel of this kind in Portugal but because of this card sent by Ninocas, now I know there's another one inside this church in Faro. 

© al-garbdistri

The twin-belfried, Baroque Igreja do Carmo in Faro in the Algarve is one of the town's attractive churches with lovely 18th century gilded wood carvings and stain-glass windows inside and with a pleasant white-washed exterior with storks nesting in the towers and a large decorated pavement outside.

The Igreja do Carmo originally dates from 1719 with the money for its construction financed with Brazilian gold from Portugal's colony in South America.

However, the main attraction of the church for many visitors is its macabre Capela dos Ossos, situated in a sacristy and a walled small garden, just behind the main church building.

The bones and skulls that can be seen are those of over 1200 Carmelite monks that were exumed from the nearby church cemetery when the ossuary was built in 1816. The purpose of such Chapels of Bones is to emphasize the brevity of human existence and the need to live a good life to avoid the eternity of hell. A more practical purpose may have been to free up space in the cemeteries!

 An inscription over the entrance reads: "Stop here and consider the fate that will befall you." - in: http://www.portugalvisitor.com/portugal-city-guides/portugal-attractions/igreja-do-carmo