Iceland

I had such a lovely surprise in my mailbox this summer! My French friend Tiphaine and her boyfriend took their mothers to Iceland as a surprise gift for them, and Tiphaine was sweet enough to send me a postcard from there. I had no idea she was going to Iceland! Another friend of mine went there earlier this summer, too - I want to go as well!! :P

Doesn't Iceland look amazing?! The picture in the top left corner shows a church in Skagafjörður in northern Iceland, while the picture in the top right corner is a view from the Þingvellir National Park, which is also a Unesco site. The picture underneath it shows Víti crater by lake Askja, and the one next to it shows the Látrabjarg cliffs. The picture in the bottom left corner shows the Jökulsárlón lagoon, and the one on top of it is the Skógafoss waterfall.

Lofoten, Norway

It's always a treat to receive postcards from Norway, it's SUCH a beautiful country! This card arrived through a swap earlier this year. Thank you so much, Grethe!

Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude. It is well known for its natural beauty within Norway.

Lofoten encompasses the municipalities of Vågan, Vestvågøy, Flakstad, Moskenes, Værøy and Røst. The total land area amounts to 1,227 km², and the population totals 24,500. Many will argue that Hinnøya, the northern part of Austvågøy and several hundred smaller islands, skerries and rocks to the east of Austvågøy are also part of the Lofoten complex. Historically the territorial definition of Lofoten has changed significantly. Between the mainland and the Lofoten archipelago lies the vast, open Vestfjorden, and to the north is Vesterålen. The principal towns in Lofoten are Leknes in Vestvågøy and Svolvær in Vågan. The Lofoten Islands are characterised by their mountains and peaks, sheltered inlets, stretches of seashore and large virgin areas. The highest mountain in Lofoten is Higravstinden (1,161 m) in Austvågøy; the Møysalen National Park just northeast of Lofoten has mountains reaching 1,262 m. The famous Moskstraumen (Malstrøm) system of tidal eddies is located in western Lofoten, and is indeed the root of the term maelstrom.

Jabiru stork, Belize

A lovely postcard from Belize I received last year. This was actually my first received written and stamped postcard from Belize, too! Thank you so much, Debbie!

Jabiru stork (Jabiru mycteria). Standing nearly five feet tall and with a 9-12 foot wingspan, the jabiru is the largest stork in Americas.

social media in China

I'm not usually too fond of ad cards as a lot of them are so tacky and boring and well, just seem like adverts for a product or something else I'm not interested in. There are exceptions, however, and this official from China is a great example.

  CN-689072
This card shows the most popular websites in China and the numbers of members they have. I have to confess I hadn't ever heard of most of these websites so I found this really interesting and informative.

Uglegorsk, Sakhalin Oblast, Russia

My collection of postcards from different regions of Russia keeps growing. :) A while ago I received three gorgeous postcards from the Sakhalin Oblast, this one is probably my favourite.

Uglegorsk District is located on the western coast of Sakhalin. Uglegorsk City is the administrative centre of the district with a population of about 27,200 people. Cape Lamonon is located in this district, too. Sakhalin Oblast is a federal subject of Russia comprising the island of Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. The oblast has an area of 87,100 square kilometers. Its administrative center and the largest city is Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Population: 497,973 (2010 Census). Some territories of Sakhalin Oblast (four islands, the southern ones of the Kuril archipelago) are claimed by Japan.

Ukraine

This card makes me hungry! ..and I really like the colours here, and definitely wouldn't say 'no' to one of those embroidered towels. So pretty!

In the first picture you can see borsch in the pot, in the second picture berries of snowball tree. In the third picture you can see pretty embroidered towels, and in the fourth picture vareniks, stuffed cabbage fritters. The sender, Anna tells me there are potato vareniks as well. Mmmmmm...! They look a bit like the Polish pierogi (which I still haven't tried even though they're sold in lots of places here as there are a lot of Poles living in this area).

Kraków, Poland

A wonderful official I received from Poland earlier this year. This card was in my favourites, too! It's always nice when people look at the favourites wall. I always do that, too, but don't always have anything from some people's favourites :(

  PL-379104
On this card you can see Tram No. 15 on its way to the Cichy Kącik estate in Kraków. I just love the atmosphere here, so mysterious! ...and I love trams, they have so much more character than buses or trains I think.

bicycle, the Netherlands

The Netherlands seems to have an endless supply of bicycle postcards... which suits me just fine as I love them! :) This one is from a favourites tag on the Postcrossing forum this summer.

I don't have much to say about this card expect that I really, really like it. The Anne Frank graffit is brilliant!

Istra, Croatia

I'm trying to catch up with this blog a little so it's time for another update. This lovely map card is from a swap with Adi in Croatia earlier this year. I love the shape! :D

Istra is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner. It is shared by three countries: Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy.

Tea Pickers, West Java, Indonesia

This is a really old postcard, received back in 1997 from Terhi who used to be my penpal way back then. She moved to Indonesia for a couple of years as her dad got a job there, and she sent me some postcards from there which I still have (I probably have all her letters still somewhere, too, as I don't like throwing mail away). I don't think I used email too much back then as Terhi sent me this card to let me know of her new address...

I don't have much to say about the card itself, and the text on the card pretty much says it all. I'm not sure if I've ever had tea from Indonesia, btw... I'm going to need some extra cups of the stuff this weekend as I've managed to catch a cold, ugh. :/

Petra, Jordan

A WONDERFUL card I received from a swap recently. Thank you so much for this treat, Luca! This is also my first received written and stamped viewcard from Jordan - I did already have a postcard sent from Jordan (thanks to dear Astrid) and I really like it, too.

Petra is a historical and archaeological city in the Jordanian governorate of Ma'an that is famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system. Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans, it is a symbol of Jordan as well as its most visited tourist attraction. It lies on the slope of Mount Hor in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Petra has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

Muir Woods National Monument, USA

Moving on to North America. This gorgeous card is from a swap with Katie in the USA earlier this year. The main point of this card was actually the cherry blossom stamps, but I really like the card itself, too.

Muir Woods National Monument is a unit of the National Park Service on the Pacific coast of southwestern Marin County, California, 19 km north of San Francisco and part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. It protects 224 ha, of which 97 ha are old growth Coast Redwood forests, one of a few such stands remaining in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Uros islands, Lake Titicaca, Peru

Another postcard from South America, this time from Peru, thanks to dear Jane.

These are the Uros islands, on Lake Titicaca, located between Peru and Bolivia. The islands were built by the Uros people, hence the name, and are inhabited by them to date. They are constructed of reeds, which the Uros people also use to build their homes and boats.

The islands float, and can be moved if necessary (they were originally build like this in case they came under attack).

Avenida 9 de Julio, Buenos Aires, Argentina

I *still* haven't received any officials from Argentina, but at least I have some postcards from there thanks to swaps, like this one I received last year.

Avenida 9 de Julio is the widest avenue in the world. It is located in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Its name honors Argentina's Independence Day, July 9, 1816.

The avenue runs roughly 1 kilometre to the west of the Río de la Plata waterfront, from the Retiro district in the north to Constitución station in the south. The avenue has up to seven lanes in each direction and is flanked on either side by parallel streets of two lanes each.

Le Mont Saint-Michel, France

I've been looking for a postcard of Le Mont Saint-Michel for ages. I finally got lucky this summer - and the card has a gorgeous Europa stamp on as well which matches this card perfectly as one of the places it shows is Le Mont Saint-Michel! :)

Le Mont Saint-Michel is a rocky tidal island and a commune in Normandy, France. It is located approximately one kilometre off the country's north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches. The population of the island is 44, as of 2009. The island has held strategic fortifications since ancient times, and since the 8th century AD been the seat of the monastery from which it draws its name. The Mont-Saint-Michel and its bay are part of the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

train, Czech Republic

A lovelly official I received from Czech Republic earlier this year.

  CZ-162394   There is some sort of description on the back of the card but it's only in Czech so I have no idea what it says.. does look like a nice area, though!

Kozara National Park, Republika Sprska

I don't have too many written and stamped postcards from Republika Sprska so this was a nice treat to receive, thank you Jasmin!

This is a World War II memorial monument within the Kozara National Park in the Republika Srpska entity of BiH. The park was proclaimed a protected national forest in 1967 by Josip Broz Tito.

National Song and Dance Festival, Estonia

A lovely postcard from dear Rita. I just love the colours here!

This is a picture from the National Song and Dance Festival (Laulu- ja tantsupidu) in Estonia.

Bukhara, Uzbekistan

One more card for today.. I have a few postcards of Uzbekistan but this is my first written and stamped one actually mailed from there. ...and it's a Unesco site, too! :)

Bukhara (Buxoro in Uzbek) is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 (2009 census estimate). The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time. Located on the Silk Road, the city has long been a center of trade, scholarship, culture, and religion. The historic center of Bukhara, which contains numerous mosques and madrassas, has been listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Ethnic Uzbek may constitute the largest element in Bukhara, with the native Tajiks being as numerous. The city long has had a mixed population including Jews and other ethnic minorities.

Nagasaki, Japan

A wonderful view from Nagasaki, Japan! Nagasaki reminds me of the 'Young Samurai' books by Chris Bradford - the main character was trying to reach Nagasaki to get back to England from Japan. The series has now finished but I don't want to spoil it here :P I did really enjoy the last book in the series, even if the whole series is quite cheesy and definitely aimed at readers younger than me. :p

On this postcard you can see Old Glover's Residence in Nagasaki. Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District. It became a center of Portuguese and other European peoples' influence in the 16th through 19th centuries, and the Churches and Christian Sites in Nagasaki have been proposed for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Part of Nagasaki was home to a major Imperial Japanese Navy base during the First Sino-Japanese War and Russo-Japanese War. Its name means "long cape".

During World War II, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki made Nagasaki the second and, to date, last city in the world to experience a nuclear attack.

Monte Carlo, Monaco

My Italian penpal Marta recently visited Monaco and sent me a postcard from there! :) ...I actually started writing a letter to Marta yesterday, I'm hoping to finish it this weekend. I'm currently trying to catch up with penpal letters as I have so much free time at the moment.

I've written about Monaco and Monte Carlo before in this blog so I don't want to repeat myself. I do really like this view, and Monaco looks like a nice place for a day trip. :)

Welsh national costume

A lovely postcard I received earlier this year from the 'British Isles RR' on the Postcrossing forum.

On this card you can see the Welsh national dress. Eunice, who sent me this card, tells me that little girls wear it on Saint David's day, March 1, at school. I don't know if it's worn on other occasions as well, but Matt's mum was born in Wales and she told me that when she went on a school trip to Norway, they all had to wear these dresses. She didn't seem to be too happy about it at the time... ;)

Macedonian food

This AMAZING Macedonian postcard is of course from dear Ana. I simply adore this, and this is one of those cases where I don't mind a multiview at all :) ...although I'm not entirely sure if this should be classed as a multiview..??!

I have no idea what most of these dishes are but they all look really delicious. Mmmmm...!! Ana did give me a recipe for the bread in the second picture: spread some olive oil over the bread, put it in the oven or on the grill for a few minutes, take it out and grate some cheese over. I think I'll have to try it, it sounds really yummy!

steam locomotive, Ukraine

It's funny, back in the day when I had only just joined Postcrossing (almost five years ago now!) postcards from Ukraine used to be pretty rare. Now, on the other hand, I receive lots of them, and the card below I actually have two copies of, received within a short time! I'm mainly posting this one because of the stamps on the back, they are FANTASTIC!

On the card you can see an old Soviet-era steam locomotive. ...but like I said above, the point of this card is the stamps (it's from a RR where you're supposed to fit as many stamps on the card as possible :)).

Ukraine is probably one of my favourite countries now when it comes to stamps (well, some of the older definitives are a bit boring, but the new ones are lovely!). These are simply GORGEOUS!

a railway station in Belarus

The number of Belarusian postcards in this blog is a bit, um, lacking.. ooops. I thought I'd try to change that a big so here's a wonderful card I received from a tag on the Postcrossing forum earlier this year.

Unless I'm very much mistaken, this is the railway station in Luninets, a town and administrative centre for the Luninets district in Brest Province, Belarus. I could be wrong, though, so if anyone can read Belarusian, I would be really grateful if you could translate the text on the card for me ;)

Belgrade, Serbia

Another gorgeous, HUGE postcard of Belgrade! This is from the 'Choose a Country RR' on the Postcrossing forum. Oh, and speaking of that RR, there's a special group open again, yay! :)

Info from the back of the card:

On the plateau of the Upper Town at Kalemegdan there is a statue of the Victor, a symbol of Belgrade. Below, the Sava flows into the Danube.