Goslar, Germany

Germany is an awfully underrepresented country in this blog. One of the biggest reasons for that is that I don't get as many postcards from there as I used to, and then most of those are multiviews that I don't generally find too inspiring. This one, on the other hand, is very pretty.


DE-695086

Goslar is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. The Old Town of Goslar and the Mines of Rammelsberg are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Goslar has a rich history stretching from the Neolithic via the ancient Saxon times, the Holy Roman German empire, Reformation, Enlightenment, German Nationalism, Emancipation, Militarism, German Imperialism, Democratisation, the National Socialist Dictatorship including Racism & Genocide, the Iron Curtain, up to German reunification. In addition Goslar can field an exciting industrial history.

Salian Emperor Henry I founded the town in the 10th century after the discovery of silver deposits in the nearby Rammelsberg. The wealth derived from silver mining brought Goslar the status of an Imperial City, which attracted the interest of the Holy Roman Emperor.

The Mediæval Imperial Palace of Goslar (Kaiserpfalz) was built in the 11th century and became a summer residence for the emperors, especially Henry III of Germany who visited his favourite palace about twenty times. Henry is buried in Goslar.

Goslar's Mediæval cathedral was built at the same time as the Mediæval Imperial Palace, but only the porch survived; the dome itself was torn down in 1820. Other sights are the town hall (16th century) and the ancient mines of the Rammelsberg, which houses now a mining museum.



I couldn't find any info on the stamp (!!) and I only know a few words of German so all I know is that this stamp was issued in 2008 and commemorates of the 150 years of ... um... zoological work in Frankfurt?

The Forbidden Corner, England

A couple more postcards I got from Amanda... They show The Forbidden Corner in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire. I have to admit I'd never heard of this place before, and I only knew about Wensleydale because there's a cheese with that name. :P



The Forbidden Corner is a folly-filled garden open to the public in the grounds of the Tupgill Park Estate near Leyburn in North Yorkshire, England. Developed in the 1980s by Colin Armstrong, the owner of Tupgill Park, in association with the architect Malcolm Temptest the gardens were originally conceived as a private pleasure garden. They were subsequently expanded and opened to the public. The gardens were built and opened without the necessary planning permission and were threatened with closure by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority in 2001, a decision that was overturned on appeal. The gardens are now a very successful and popular attraction, and have been voted the best European folly of the 20th century by the Folly Fellowship and best children's attraction in Yorkshire.

The Forbidden Corner consists of a number of follies, woodlands, walled gardens, tunnels and grottoes furnished with statues, installations and other works of art, architecture, animated models and various oddities largely drawn from the European classical tradition, along with particular fancies of the proprietor and architect. As a whole these are arranged to create a maze for the visitor to explore. No map of the gardens is provided. There is instead an illustrated checklist of items to be found, completion of which will confirm complete exploration of the gardens.

It sounds like SUCH a cool place, I'd love to visit it some day!



Here's another card from the Forbidden Corner, this one shows The Green Knight.

Whitby Abbey, England

One sign of autumn being here is universities starting. It was the Freshers Fayre yesterday at the university where I go to aikido classes. Our club was there, too, trying to recruit new people. I'm pretty useless at advertising our club but luckily the others are a lot better. It was good to see some old friends who had been away for the summer. I was particularly happy to see Amanda again. She did come over in July for the summer school in Birmingham, but she's such a lovely person and I've been missing her. Anyway. She surprised me by giving me some postcards! I guess more and more people are aware of my little obsession. :P The cards I got from her include a few of Whitby Abbey.





The first monastery here was founded in AD 657 by King Oswy of Northumbria. An Anglo-Saxon style 'double monastery' for men and women, its first ruler was the formidable royal princess Abbess Hild. Here, Caedmon the cowherd was miraculously transformed into an inspired poet; here, the future of the English church was decided by the Synod of Whitby in 664; and here the relics of Northumbrian kings and saints were enshrined.

Though many intriguing excavated finds from it are displayed in the visitor centre, nothing survives above ground of this Anglo-Saxon monastery. The imposing ruins belong to the church of the Benedictine abbey refounded on its site by the Normans. Begun in about 1220 in the Early English style of Gothic, the pinnacled east end and north transept still stand high, richly carved with characteristic 'dog's tooth' embellishment. Time, war and nature have left their marks. Parts of the church collapsed during storms, its west front was hit by German naval shelling in 1914, and centuries of wind and rain have added their own etched and pitted decoration.

These supremely romantic ruins enjoy panoramic views over the town and coastline, and literary renown as the backdrop to Bram Stoker's Dracula, the Victorian novel which has made Whitby the 'Goth' capital of Britain. More recently the site has inspired Shadowmancer and other best-selling children's novels by ex-vicar, ex-policeman and exorcist GP Taylor. The ruins share the headland with the Cholmley family mansion, begun after Henry VIII's suppression of the abbey. Its impressive Classical façade of 1672 is fronted by a restoration of the 'hard garden' courtyard rediscovered during English Heritage excavations. The courtyard's centrepiece is a specially-commissioned bronze copy of the famous 'Borghese Gladiator' statue. The Roman marble original of this spectacular life-sized statue, now in the Paris Louvre, dates from the 1st century BC: it was found in 1611 in Italy, and bronze casts were made for King Charles I. Copies graced many great English houses and gardens, including the Cholmleys' Whitby mansion, recalling the family's-eventual-Civil War support for the Royalist cause. [source]

Irish Writers

Let's finish with something more cheerful for today.. with one of my favourite topics: books!



I received this postcard from a RR on the postcrossing forum and I really love it. The picture above is quite small but it has quotes from each writer's works below their pictures. You can see a larger scan here if you want to read the quotes.

I must confess I hadn't heard of a couple of these authors. My favourite is Oscar Wilde, I find him very inspirational.

Dublin is now the fourth UNESCO City of Literature. You can read more about its literary achievements here.



To make this postcard even more perfect, it has an Oscar Wilde related stamp on it! It's from a set of two stamps issued earlier this year, Ireland's contribution to this year's Europa stamps series (with the theme Children's Books). The stamp on the left is from a set of 3 definitive stamps issued in 2008, depicting wild flowers of Ireland. This one here is the Thrift. The stamp in the middle is from a set of five stamps, "Irish Wild Flower Definitives II" (I'm not sure about the year of issue). This one here shows the Fly orchid.

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Another postcard from Snjezana...



Sarajevo is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 305,242 people in the four municipalities that make up the city proper. It is also the capital of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity, as well as the center of the Sarajevo Canton. Sarajevo is located in the Sarajevo valley of Bosnia, surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated around the Miljacka river.

The city is famous for its traditional religious diversity, with adherents of Islam, Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Judaism coexisting there for centuries. Due to this long and rich history of religious diversity and coexistence Sarajevo has often been called the "Jerusalem of Europe". Snjezana tells me that the city reflects the old blended with new, and that it's very much like Middle-Eastern city but still it's a modern European city where you can get what you want.

When I hear the name Sarajevo, the first thing that comes to mind is Zlata Filipović and her book Zlata's Diary. I remember reading it when I was young, and it really struck me. That someone so young should live through such horrors, it's not right. I'm very lucky in that I've always lived in such safe countries. No matter how much I dislike some aspects here, at least I don't have to fear for my life or worry about the most basic needs.



And here are the stamps.. the potato one is the same definitive as in the previous post. I couldn't find any info about the top two stamps, so all I know is that they were issued in 2005. EDIT: Ana gave me some more info :) The top stamp is from a set of 4 stamps from 2005, representing the history of BiH and this stamp features the Bosnian ban Kulin.

Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

I'm still trying to catch up on my mail after coming back from Finland a couple of weeks ago. I've written two letters this weekend, one to my new penpal Snjezana in Bosnia & Herzegovina. She's sent me some postcards so I thought I'd post about a couple of them.



Snjezana tells me that Mostar is the most beautiful city in the whole region. It has a history and the Old Bridge. The Bridge used to divide people of different nationalities and how it serves to bring them together.

The bridge was destroyed during the Bosnian war in the 90's, but it has been rebuilt again since then. Other monuments destroyed included a Franciscan monastery, the Catholic cathedral and the bishop's palace (with a library of 50,000 books), a number of secular institutions as well as the Karadžoz-bey mosque, and thirteen other mosques. Snjezana told me that the country hasn't really picked up after the war.. it makes me feel so bad, my heart goes out for people living there. Just thinking what they've had to go through...



The stamp on the right makes me feel pretty awful, too... It was issued in 2005 to commemorate the Srebrenica massacre in 1995. I don't think I'll ever be able to understand how people can be so cruel to each other, it really makes me feel sick. Anyway... The other stamp, unless I'm very much mistaken, was issued in 2006 in a set of 6 definitives representing vegetables, this one here being potato.

Issyk-Kul Lake, Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan is one of those countries I never thought I'd ever receive a postcard from, let alone a written and stamped one. But now I do have one, and a very beautiful one at that, too. Thank you, Rustam!



Issyk Kul is an endorheic lake in the northern Tian Shan mountains in eastern Kyrgyzstan. It is the tenth largest lake in the world by volume and the second largest saline lake after the Caspian Sea. Although it is surrounded by snow-capped peaks, it never freezes; hence its name, which means "hot lake" in the Kyrgyz language. The lake is a Ramsar site of globally significant biodiversity (Ramsar Site RDB Code 2KG001) and forms part of the Issyk-Kul Biosphere Reserve. It is also the site of an ancient metropolis 2500 years ago, and archaeological excavations are ongoing. Doesn't it look gorgeous?!



The stamp was issued in 2009 and represents the Kyrgyz National Horse Game - Kok-Boru.

Pitsunda, Abkhazia

Here's the second card I received from Yulia, and a bit of a treat, too.



The card shows Pitsunda in Abkhazia. Abkhazia is a bit of a confusing place. It is a political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus whose status is disputed. It considers itself an independent state (the Republic of Abkhazia). This is recognised by Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru, South Ossetia and Transnistria (the last two are entities with a limited recognition).

The Georgian government and the majority of the world's governments consider Abkhazia a part of Georgia's territory. In Georgia's official subdivision it is an autonomous republic, whose government sits in exile in Tbilisi. On 28 August 2008, the Parliament of Georgia passed a resolution declaring Abkhazia a "Russian-occupied territory".

Abkhazia has its own stamps, but they are only valid in Abkhazia.

Sochi, Russia

During the past few months I've noticed that there are more and more Russian members on Postcrossing. I don't mind in the slightest - Russian postcards and stamps are amongst my favourites. This postcard comes from a swap with Yulia.



Here you can see Krasnaya Poliana (Red Glade) in summer - the place where Winter Olympic Games will be held in 2014. Now Red Glade is a winter resort, popular among Russians.

Sochi is a resort city, situated in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, just north of the border of the disputed territory of Abkhazia (largely recognised as part of the Republic of Georgia), and the southern Russian border fronting the Black Sea. It sprawls along the shores of the Black Sea and against the background of the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus Mountains. At 145 km (90 mi), Greater Sochi claims to be the longest city in Europe. As of the 2002 Census, it had a population of 328,809.

On a sidenote, I wish I could understand Russian; most of the back of the card is covered with text but it's all in Russian. :(



The card came in an envelope with another card. The big stamp was issued earlier this year and commemorates the birth centenary of V.S. Grizodubova. The smaller stamps are all various definitives.

Sal Island, Cape Verde

Continuing with the holiday theme... Cape Verde sounds like a pretty interesting destination, and one I wouldn't mind being in right now - according to Wikipedia, this place has on average 350 days of sunshine a year! Gilles of Belgium went there on holiday and sent me this card.



This postcard shows Sal, an island in Cape Verde. It belongs to the northern group of islands, called Barlavento. The island is composed by a single administrative division, the Sal municipality. The island is 30 km long by 12 km wide. It is one of the three sandy eastern islands (Sal, Boa Vista and Maio) of the archipelago, with white sandy beaches and fairly flat. The highest elevation of 406 m is at Monte Grande.



I couldn't find any info on the stamp...

Rab, Croatia

What did I just say about wishing to be somewhere warm? I can't help it, I'd love to go on holidays more often (and not just in Finland). *sigh* I love receiving holiday cards from friends, and this one is one such card. Nives is one lucky person!



The top of this card is cut in shape like the houses and it was a bit awkward to scan. It's such a lovely card, though, and the views are amazing! Ahhh, I'd love to see all those old houses and walk through those old streets and peek from the city walls!

Rab is an island in Croatia and a town of the same name located just off the northern Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.

The island is 22 km long, has an area of 93.6 km² and 9,480 inhabitants (2001). The highest peak is Kamenjak at 408 meters. The northeastern side of the island is mostly barren, karst, while the southwestern side is covered by one of the last oak forests of the Mediterranean.

Ferries connect the island of Rab with the mainland ports of Jablanac and Rijeka, as well as with the neighbouring islands of Krk and Pag.

Minangkabau traditional houses, Indonesia

Another cool card from Shinta's envelope. I also have to say, at the moment I'd love to be somewhere warm like Indonesia.. England is so cold and wet! :(



The Minangkabau ethnic group (also known as Minang or Padang) is indigenous to the highlands of West Sumatra, in Indonesia. Their culture is matrilineal, with property and land passing down from mother to daughter, while religious and political affairs are the province of men (although some women also play important roles in these areas). Today 4 million Minangs live in West Sumatra, while about 3 million more are scattered throughout many Indonesian and Malay peninsula cities and towns.

The Minangkabau are strongly Islamic, but also follow their ethnic traditions, or adat. The Minangkabau adat was derived from animist beliefs before the arrival of Islam, and remnants of animist beliefs still exist even among some practicing Muslims.

Rumah gadang (Minangkabau: 'big house') are the traditional homes of the Minangkabau. The architecture, construction, internal and external decoration, and the functions of the house reflect the culture and values of the Minangkabau. A rumah gadang serves as a residence, a hall for family meetings, and for ceremonial activities. With the Minangkabau society being matrilineal, the rumah gadang is owned by the women of the family who live there - ownership is passed from mother to daughter.

The houses have dramatic curved roof structure with multi-tiered, upswept gables. Shuttered windows are built into walls incised with profuse painted floral carvings. The term rumah gadang usually refers to the larger communal homes, however, smaller single residences share many of its architectural elements.