10th PC Anniversary Meeting in Lisbon

4 months after the 10th anniversary of Postcrossing and the meeting in Lisbon, I'm finally posting the cards Ninocas, Vitória and Zé sent me from there. All the cards were also signed by Duarte, Luís and Paula. 

 Portugal Souvenir

This multiview card of the portuguese capital shows images of the Augusta Street Arc; the 25th of April Bridge, Belém Tower, a typical tram, Commerce Square, Monument to the Discoveries and a view to St. Jorge Castle. 

 © Foto: António Henriques

Castle of São Jorge or Saint George Castle can be a magical place to explore. Set on a hilltop high above Lisbon, it was once used as a fortress by the Moors until it fell in 1147. Today a popular tourist destination, this monument to the past was restored to preserve its history, and still allow it to be a very user friendly place to visit. - in: http://www.top10portugal.com/castle-sao-jorge-lisbon

Portugal Souvenir * © Foto: Nuno Trindade

The 25th of April Bridge is the oldest bridge across the Tagus river in Lisbon. The more than two km long suspension bridge opened in 1966 after almost four years of construction.

Churches in Tavira

Ninocas sent me a few churches in Tavira, Algarve.  

 Photography & design © Michael Howard * www.mikehowardphoto.com

Not so long ago Ninocas sent me a card with one of Tavira's churches, now she sent another card with 4 churches: St. Mary of the Castle Church; St. Brás Church; Our Lady of Piety Chapel and Holy Spirit Church.

Portuguese castles

Castles are one of my favorites themes on postcards. This one sent by Sofia shows some beautiful portuguese castles. I've been to all of them except two. 

www.edigpostal.com

Clock wise: Guimarães; Porto de Mós; Montemor-o-Velho; Almourol; Ourém; Marvão; Óbidos; Penela; Pombal; Linhares da Beira; Roman Temple in Évora (not a castle, why is it on the card??); Castelo Rodrigo; Leiria; Celorico da Beira and Santa Maria da Feira. 

Porto Santo - Madeira

My 1st contact with Margarida was a couple of years ago because of our blogs. A few comments later we started to swap cards and we finally met last month. This card from Porto Santo Island arrived before that meeting. 

© Francisco Ribeiro

Ana Ferreira Peak is situated 280 meters above sea level. It is the highest point on the west side of Porto Santo Island.

At its peak it sprouts into a spectacular organ-pipe array of pentagonal rock columns, caused by volcanic activity millions of years ago.

Old couple - Portugal

In the last 2, 3 months I've received a lot of cards from my portuguese friends, most of them from their holidays. Vitória was recently on holidays and she sent me a couple of cards. She knows how much I like old people cards and sent me this lovely one.  

© Edição Vistal * Foto: P. S. Vierow

I don't know exactly where the card is from but in this case it doesn't matter, the card is lovely anyway!!

Monthly Favorite Surprise RR * September '15

This afternoon I've been choosing and writing card for October's Monthly Favorite Surprise RR. Three of them will be sent tomorrow and then I need to find the 4th card. But for now, I'm sharing the 4 cards I got last month. This time they came from Austria, Netherlands, Lithuania and Russia.

www.tkv.at

The beautiful Austrian province of Tirol is one of the best skiing areas in winter. In summer it offers fantastic hiking paths and stunning views of lakes and valleys. In addition, Tiroleans love their traditions and food. It’s a great place to get an insight into the Austrian culture. - in: http://www.austria.info/uk/where-to-go/provinces/tirol

The card was sent by Gudrun. 

© Uitgeverij van der Meulen bv Sneek

Nanda sent me this card with the Noordwijk Lighthouse. It dates from 1921 but a wooden light has already been built here in the 19th century. The tower has 6 floors and a staircase with 108 steps. Is not possible to climb the tower. 

Foto: © Antanas Varanka

In August's RR Ausra sent me a card with some churches in Vilnius and in September Ieva sent me this card with St. John's Church, one of the churches in Ausra's card. I didn't get to see this one. 

One of the picturesque parts of the Vilnius University building is the Church of Sts. Johns and its bell tower. The full name of the church is the Church of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist.

The construction of this church lasted for almost 40 years and was completed in 1426. At that time it was a Gothic building. In 1571 the church was transferred to the Order of Jesuits and became a part of the university complexes.

Besides masses, the Church of Sts. Johns has also witnessed student protests, theatre performances, and welcoming ceremonies for kings. In Soviet times, it was turned into a warehouse. Later, the University Museum was established here.

Today, the Church of Sts. Johns performs its main functions once again. It was visited by Pope John Paul II in 1993.

The bell tower of the church, which is 68 meters high, is among the highest buildings in the Old Town.

The present facade was designed in the 18th century by the most prominent Vilnius Baroque architect, Jonas Kristupas Glaubicas (Johan Christoph Glaubitz). - in: http://www.vilnius-tourism.lt/en/what-to-see/places-to-visit/churches/church-of-sts-johns/

This was the last card to arrive and it was a wonderful surprise sent by Anna, not only because it is a beautiful card but especially because it is from the only russian UNESCO site I was still missing. I couldn't be happier. Bolgar Historical and Archaeological Complex was added to the WHS list last year.

This property lies on the shores of the Volga River, south of its confluence with the River Kama, and south of the capital of Tatarstan, Kazan. It contains evidence of the medieval city of Bolgar, an early settlement of the civilization of Volga-Bolgars, which existed between the 7th and 15th centuries AD, and was the first capital of the Golden Horde in the 13th century. Bolgar represents the historical cultural exchanges and transformations of Eurasia over several centuries that played a pivotal role in the formation of civilizations, customs and cultural traditions. The property provides remarkable evidence of historic continuity and cultural diversity. It is a symbolic reminder of the acceptance of Islam by the Volga-Bolgars in AD 22 and remains a sacred pilgrimage destination to the Tatar Muslims. - in: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/981

Monthly Favorite Surprise RR - August '15

In August I also got nice cards from this RR. These came from Lithuania, Czech Republic, Indonesia and Ireland. 

Fotos: K. Driskius, R. Paknys, L. Jankauskas

Exactly one month ago (already one month) I was flying to Vilnius. These are some of the many churches in Vilnius, I visited three of these.

These are: St. Anne and the Bernardines Churches; St. Michael's Church; St. John's Church; the Cathedral; St. Theresa Church and Gates of the Basilian Monastery and St. Peter and St. Paul´s Church. 

The card was sent by Ausra. 

© Foto: Zd. Hartinger

Radana sent me this card of the beautiful Byzantine Chapel of St. Cyril and St. Methodius in Radhošť mountain. The building was consecrated in 1898.

Photo © Heritage Collection

The Great Mosque of Sultan Riau is part of the Penyengat Island Palace complex. 

The complex is an interesting blend of Javanese and Dutch architecture, still imbued with an air of dignity, even though it has been abandoned for more than 80 years. Here are tombs and crypts, and a restored fort.

The pride of the island is the Sultan’s Mosque, the Mesjid Raya Sultan Riau Penyengat. Peeping through the palm trees like a fairy tale castle, it is still in use today. Rumour has it that a large part of the mosque was made of eggs, gifts from the Sultan’s loyal subjects on the occasion of his wedding. The egg-white proved to be a strong bonding agent. The mosque has excellent acoustics and even a whisper can carry right across the auditorium. Here is also the beautifully preserved handwritten and illustrated Quran of over 150 years old. - in: http://www.indonesia-tourism.com/forum/showthread.php?1340-The-Great-Mosque-of-Sultan-Riau-Pulau-Penyengat

The card was sent by Jennifer.

Photography reproduced from original artistic work © Liam Blake

In this RR I've received another card from John and like in the July's RR, this card was also from my favorites.

This is a view of the Blasket Islands from Dunquin, Dingle Peninsula, Co. Kerry.

Dunquin or Dún Chaoin is a traditionally Irish speaking Gaeltacht village on the most south westerly tip of the Dingle Peninsula, in the south-west of Ireland. It comprises eleven townlands on the mainland and the Blasket Islands three miles offshore and it is often referred to as "the next parish to America"

Dún Chaoin is renowned for its scenery and its surviving Gaelic culture. The spectacular views of the Blasket islands, the rugged cliffs which make up the coastline, the picturesque, narrow, winding pathway leading to the pier and the splendid sunsets are featured in many calendars, postcards and tourist brochures each year. - in: http://www.dingle-peninsula.ie/dunquin.html