PT RR - Surprise Group * August '24

 These cards arrived quite fast, even the uruguaian card.

 

 

On the list of architects with works classified as a World Heritage Sites, one will find the name of Eladio Dieste (1917-2000), an Uruguayan engineer and architect who made his reputation by building silos, factories, markets and churches, considered as a top name of Latin American architecture. 

St Peter's Church of Durazno is one of his works but not the church on the UNESCO list. The Church of Atlántida is one of his most recognized works in Uruguay and was added to the WHS list in 2021.

Looking at other works of Dieste, and looking at this facade, I would say that this church has nothing to do with his style. This is explained because Dieste was responsible for the church rebuilding project after being destroyed by a fire in 1967. Although several neo-Romanic and neo-renaissance elements of the original architecture were recovered, the interior of the church as well as its ceiling, had to be rebuilt. For this reconstruction then the Engineer Eladio Dieste would then be invited. This project provided for the maintenance of the original outer facade, but the total reconstruction of its interior and ceiling in reinforced brick, a constructive technique developed by the Dieste itself. 

The postcard was sent by Atalí.

 

I was pretty sure about Boticas location but still had to confirm it. Boticas is a town in northern Portugal and that's pretty much all I know about it. The old stone houses on the card are the tourim office, the perfect place to learn more about the town. 

The card was sent by Eric.

Tiago sent me a card depicting a long-lost  profession, water carrier. Before the advent of centralized water supply systems, water carriers collected water from a source (a river, a well, water pumps, etc.) and transported or carried containers with water to people's homes. After the construction of pipe networks, the profession of water carrier became unnecessary and disappeared.

PT RR - Suprise Group * July '24

 Cards written in Portuguese, all from different countries.

 

© concept by Postcardsmarket.com

Atalí is a regular visitor of the Portuguese speaking corner of the PC forum. Even though she speaks Spanish, she tries to communicate with us in Portuguese. 

Uruguay has an area of 176.215 km², a population of 3.444.006 and its capital is Monteviedo.
Unique:
* Cows outnumber people 4 to 1 - Uruguay is a nation of 12 million cattle but just 3 million people;  
* Renamed many of its catholic holidays - Christmas is called Family Day and Holy Week is called Tourism Week;  
Famous:  
* Outside of the tropics - the only country in Latin America which is entirely outside of the tropics;
* One of the world's highest literacy rates - with 98.1% for adults, it is largely thanks to the Uruguayans' access to free and compulsory education;
History: 

* Name origin - the name Uruguay comes from the Uruguay river which means "river of the painted birds" in the Guaranini language:

* Free laptop & Wifi access - in 2009 Uruguay became the 1st country in the world to provide them to every schoolchild.

 

Editado por Danieli Dagnoni - Valdenio Vieira

This isn't my 1st card of the Brazilian Serra da Capivara National Park but it is the 1st I'm posting here. It was sent by Maria Eliza.

Serra da Capivara National Park, a treasure trove of prehistoric art and natural beauty, is located in the northeastern state of Piauí, Brazil. Spanning over 129,000 hectares (319,000 acres), the park is a remarkable blend of geological wonders, archaeological significance, and unique biodiversity. Established in 1979, the park's primary goal is to protect its prehistoric artifacts and rock paintings, some dating back tens of thousands of years. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, Serra da Capivara is a testament to ancient human ingenuity and a vital sanctuary for the diverse flora and fauna of the Caatinga biome.

Serra da Capivara is renowned for its extensive collection of prehistoric rock art. Over 300 archaeological sites have been discovered within the park, featuring rock and wall paintings dating from 50,000 to 30,000 years ago. These paintings offer a window into the lives of ancient hunter-gatherer communities and later ceramic-farming societies. - in: https://lacgeo.com

Fotos: Matos Simões

A shepherd and his sheep in the Portuguese South West Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park.

Card sent by Tiago.

Monthly Fav. Surprise RR * July '24

 One card from June is still missing but July's cards have safely arrived to my mailbox. These are from Belarus, Russia, Aland Islands and Madagascar.

 

A unique monument of neo-gothic architecture of the 19th century is situated in the Belarusian town of Kossovo. The Palace of the Puslovskys, or Kossovo Castle, consists of the central two-storied building and two wings. Because of the rectangular merlons at the top of the towers the palace is often called a mini-castle. Each tower symbolizes one month of the year, with four highest towers in the center standing for May, June, July and August when harvest is reaped. It's construction started in 1838.

The palace boasts over 100 rooms with no walk-through rooms. Thanks to a system of corridors and a special location of the windows every year one of the palace’s rooms was flooded with sunlight for two and a half days. This was the time when the owners of the palace celebrated the Day of the Room adorning it and spending there most of the time.
During the Second World War the palace suffered the worst damage. For many days a fire blazed through its rooms in 1944 and destroyed the decoration of the chambers and left only the magnificent walls.
Despite the destruction, Kossovo Palace still impresses and attracts tourists. It had been restored to it's former glory and beauty and it is now a social, cultural and tourism center. 

Card sent by Kate.

Trinity-Sergius Lavra is probably one of the places / monuments in Russia that I've the most cards from. 

The card was sent by Nadezhda.

An Åland card, with an Åland flag stamp, sent from the Åland by Zaara. 

The Jan Karlsgården open-air museum shows the visitors how life may have been at a farm on Åland in the late 1800s – how people lived and worked there. Various activities are also arranged here all the year round.
The museum was founded in the 1930s and got its name from the farm Jan Karls in Finström, from where the main building was also moved. All buildings at Jan Karlsgården have been brought here from various parts of the Åland islands. Jan Karlsgården provides the visitor with a comprehensive view of the life and building traditions that once existed here. - in: https://book.visitaland.com

 

I've tagged and swapped with Nancy in the past and in July I "met" her again on this RR. We always sent UNESCO cards to each other and this time was no different. She sent me this UNESCO card from Madagascar, still missing in my collection.Tsingy de Bemaraha is one Madagascar’s Andrefana Dry Forests classified as UNESCO WHS in 1990.

Tsingy de Bemaraha Reserve is located in the drier eastern side of Madagascar and supports a quite distinct fauna and flora in a dramatic karst landscape.  The limestone plateau has been carved into an impressive forest of pinnacles (tsingys) and caves, with deep gorges filled with forest. The undisturbed forests are the habitat of many rare and endangered species with highly restricted ranges including lemurs, chamealeons, and other taxa. - in: https://www.africanworldheritagesites.org

Monthly Fav. Surprise RR * May '24

Lets go back to May with these cards. I must say I'm quite happy with all of them.

 

www.papersisters.de

 Edith is a chocolate lover but as strange as it might be, I don't like chocolate that much. I don't totally dislike it but I'm not really crazy about it. I only eat milk chocolate with nuts and that's it.

NPS Photo / Tom Engberg

This card was a wonderful surprise and also a mistery. I realized immediately that this was a card from a missing UNESCO site but had no idea who sent it. Julia forgot to write her username and to mention that this was a MFS RR card. 

Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks was the only site I was still missing from USA!! This is Ohio’s first World Heritage Site and the 25th World Heritage Listing in the United States.  

This property is a series of eight monumental earthen enclosure complexes built between 2,000 and 1,600 years ago along the central tributaries of the Ohio River. They are the most representative surviving expressions of the Indigenous tradition now referred to as the Hopewell culture. Their scale and complexity are evidenced in precise geometric figures as well as hilltops sculpted to enclose vast, level plazas. There are alignments with the cycles of the Sun and the far more complex cycles of the Moon. These earthworks served as ceremonial centres and the sites have yielded finely crafted ritual objects fashioned from exotic raw materials obtained from distant places. - in: https://whc.unesco.org

Look how beautiful these stamps are!! Joli Lin sent this card from China but this stupa is located in Sri Lanka. 

Thuparamaya stupa, in ancient city of Anuradhapura, is the first Buddhist temple to be built in the country, after the introduction of Buddhism to Sri Lanka.  It dates back to the 247-207 BC.

Church Ensemble at Korovniki, located in the part of Yaroslavl historically known as Korovnitskaya Sloboda, comprises two red-brick churches with green domes similar in style.  It is considered one of the best examples of the Yaroslavl-style of architecture. 

The larger of the two churches is St John Chrysostom’s Church which was built between 1649 and 1654. Attached to each side of the church are two side-altars which are topped with tent-domes. Its window frames are decorated with small ceramic tiles. 

The neighbouring Our Lady of Vladimir Church is smaller in size and serves as a winter church meaning that it is heated and therefore open in winter. It was completed in 1669 and in style it is very similar to St John Chrysostom’s Church but without the two side-altars. In between the two churches is a tent-dome bell tower which was erected in the 1680s. - in: https://rusmania.com

Card sent by Nataliya.

US-10569599

 The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, Missouri, is a major landmark and the oldest building in the entire city.

US-10569599, sent by Hillary.

 Architectural drawings were originally drawn up at the turn of the 20th century by George Barnett. In 1907, construction of the building began, and the basic structure was completed in 1914. Construction of certain parts of the interior continued until 1988. The cathedral is dedicated to St. Louis, King of France and was designated a basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1997.
The temple is known for it's beautiful mosaics, which cover most of the high-up surfaces of the cathedral walls. In fact, this is one of the largest collections of mosaics in the world.

Las Vegas Strip - USA

 Las Vegas is one of the most famous cities in USA but I only have these 2 cards from there. It seems that postcards are not sold in the city's casinos and hotels.These 2 are both located on the Strip, a 6.8 km long stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard, known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos.

 Many of the largest hotel, casino, and resort properties in the world are on the Strip, known for its contemporary architecture, lights, and wide variety of attractions. Its hotels, casinos, restaurants, residential high-rises, entertainment offerings, and skyline have established the Strip as one of the most popular and iconic tourist destinations in the world and is one of the driving forces for Las Vegas's economy. - in: wikipedia

 

Design & Photography: Gunnar Kullenberg / Eurostyle Graphics

US-10575326, sent by Patrick.

The Venetian Las Vegas is a luxury hotel and casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by Apollo Global Management.
The Venetian is themed after Venice during the 1400s and 1500s and it features numerous landmarks from the city. The exterior entrance along the Las Vegas Strip is modeled on the Doge's Palace and includes a recreation of the Rialto Bridge. It also features a 315-foot-high replica of St Mark's Campanile, topped by a statue depicting Gabriel. The Venetian includes a replica of Venice's Grand Canal that goes through the resort's interior and exterior.
The Venetian includes a 120,000 sq ft (11,000 m2) casino and opened with 3,036 suites in a 35-story tower. A 12-story tower, the Venezia, was completed in 2003, bringing the room count to 4,049.

The resort includes its own meeting space, as well as the adjoining Venetian Expo. The property also includes the Grand Canal Shoppes, and was home to the Guggenheim Hermitage Museum from 2001 to 2008. The Venetian has several performance venues, which have hosted entertainment such as the Blue Man Group (2005–2012), Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular (2006–2012), and Human Nature (2013–2020). A sphere-shaped venue and arena, known as simply Sphere, opened in September 2023. - in: wikipedia

 

 © RTSI

 

US-5185955, sent by Juan.
Excalibur Hotel and Casino is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada.
It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts International.
Excalibur, named for the mythical sword of King Arthur, uses the Medieval theme in several ways. Its facade is a stylized image of a castle.
The 100,000-square-foot (9,300 m2) gaming area at Excalibur consists of both table games and over 1,200 slot machines. In addition to casino space, the Excalibur resort includes a renovated pool area, a 13,000-square-foot (1,200 m2) spa and fitness center, eight restaurants and a food court, the Chapel at Excalibur, and the Octane Lounge & The Lounge with live music on the weekends.
Excalibur is home to three permanent shows: the all-male revue Thunder From Down Under, The Australian Bee Gees Show, a tribute to the Bee Gees and the medieval themed dinner show Tournament of Kings. - in: wikipedia