Wednesday, February 15, 2023

Monthly Fav. Surprise RR - January 23

I really like this RR and I'll continue joining it this year. Last month I've received cards from Finland, Japan, Greece and Netherlands.

Photo/Valokuva: Minna Kääriäinen, Minor Postcards

 A lighthouse in the Aland islands, sent by Heli.
In the Åland, you can find Sälskär lighthouse on the northern part of Hammarland on a small islet. It was built in 1868 and was the first lighthouse in Finland to be automated in 1949. It is made of bricks and the foundation is granite. The total height from the sea level is 44,5 m. Measured from the ground, it stands around 30 meters tall. - in: https://minorpostcards.fi

In January I've sent a card to Yuka and she sent me one too. 
Not so long ago I dedicated a post to Shirakawa-go, widely known as one of the most scenic places in Japan. It is surrounded by pine tree covered mountains, and it is located along the picturesque Shokawa River. Besides the beautiful scenery, the unique Japanese thatched-roof farmhouses are the center of attraction. There are approximately 180 thatched farmhouses, sheds, and barns, and most of them were built about 200-300 years ago. - in: https://www.japaneseguesthouses.com
 

All these cards are nice but this one made me super happy. Vicky sent me this beautiful card of the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian on the Greek island of Patmos, one of my missing UNESCO sites from Greece.
The small island of Patmos, part of the Dodecanese complex in the central Aegean, is known, above all, as the location where John the Apostle received his visions and recorded them in the Book of Revelation, the final book of the New Testament. An impressive monastic complex, dedicated to him, was founded there in the early 11th century.
The monastery stands on the site where Saint John is believed to have written his Gospel, including the Book of Revelation (also known as the Apocalypse); it is also located near the grotto where the apostle is said to have received his Revelation, hence called the Cave of the Apocalypse. Both the Monastery and the Cave, along with the rest of the historic centre of the island’s Chora (main town) have been declared a joint World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999 as an "exceptional example of a traditional Greek Orthodox pilgrimage centre of outstanding architectural interest". - in: https://www.greeknewsagenda.gr

www.papersiters.de

Just one day before getting this card sent by Annerie, I've received the exact same card as an official from Germany. Coincidences!!
When it comes to New Year's traditions, we Portuguese, like to have a lot of food on the table, and it commonly includes a range of meat and seafood dishes.  To toast at midnight, sparkling wine (espumante) tends to be the preferred drink of choice.
When the clock strikes midnight, you are supposed to eat 12 raisins and, as you put each grape inside your mouth, whisper to yourself a wish for the new year. If you are a superstitious person, you wear blue underwear on this night, and make sure you also keep a bill in your pocket if one of your wishes involves a desire for more material wealth. After midnight, in some localities, folks go out (or at least out to their balconies) and hit on pots and pans to make noise and commemorate the new year. The loud noise is also supposed to be a way to scare off the evils and bad energy from the previous year. - in:
https://www.tasteoflisboa.com

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