zondag 30 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap - Spain

I got these two cards in a swap with Loly. The cards are straight but due to my digital camera, they aren't when I publice them on my blog.

#1 Works of Antoni Gaudi


Seven properties built by the architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926) in or near Barcelona testify to Gaudí’s exceptional creative contribution to the development of architecture and building technology in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These monuments represent an eclectic, as well as a very personal, style which was given free reign in the design of gardens, sculpture and all decorative arts, as well as architecture. The seven buildings are: Casa Vicens; Gaudí’s work on the Nativity façade and Crypt of La Sagrada Familia; Casa Batlló; Crypt in Colonia Güell.

#2 Historic Center of Toledo




Successively a Roman municipium, the capital of the Visigothic Kingdom, a fortress of the Emirate of Cordoba, an outpost of the Christian kingdoms fighting the Moors and, in the 16th century, the temporary seat of supreme power under Charles V, Toledo is the repository of more than 2,000 years of history. Its masterpieces are the product of heterogeneous civilizations in an environment where the existence of three major religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – was a major factor.

19 August 2009 - DE - 397040 - Willemshaven

This great viewcard was send by an user from Germany . It has travelled a distance of 258 kms in 6 days. I really like the pictures on this viewcard!


Netherlands RR - Group 79 - Brazil

I received a great UNESCO site via the Netherlands RR - Group 79 from vbforming. It shows us the Pantanal Conservation area, which has the worlds richest collection of flora and fauna.



The Pantanal Conservation Complex consists of a cluster of four protected areas with a total area of 187,818 ha. Located in western central Brazil at the south-west corner of the State of Mato Grosso, the site represents 1.3% of Brazil's Pantanal region, one of the world's largest freshwater wetland ecosystems. The headwaters of the region's two major river systems, the Cuiabá and the Paraguay rivers, are located here, and the abundance and diversity of its vegetation and animal life are spectacular.

19 Augustus 2009 - FI - 588662 -

I received my first vintage card last week. This comes from Finland and has travelled a distance of 2040 kms in 41 days. I'm wondering why it has to took so long before it arrived! The card shows us a girl on the countryside of Finland during the summer.

zondag 23 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap - Spain/Germany/Austria

I received a view UNESCO cards from LaLune. They show us different UNESCO sites of Europe. I got two sites from Germany, one from Italy and one from Austria.

#1
Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands (Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto)



The Ligurian coast between Cinque Terre and Portovenere is a cultural landscape of great scenic and cultural value. The layout and disposition of the small towns and the shaping of the surrounding landscape, overcoming the disadvantages of a steep, uneven terrain, encapsulate the continuous history of human settlement in this region over the past millennium.

#2 Palace and Gardens of Schönbrunn




From the 18th century to 1918, Schönbrunn was the residence of the Habsburg emperors. It was designed by the architects Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Nicolaus Pacassi and is full of outstanding examples of decorative art. Together with its gardens, the site of the world’s first zoo in 1752, it is a remarkable Baroque ensemble and a perfect example of Gesamtkunstwerk.

#3 Town Hall and Roland on the Marketplace of Bremen



The Town Hall and the statue of Roland on the marketplace of Bremen in north-west Germany are outstanding representations of civic autonomy and sovereignty, as these developed in the Holy Roman Empire in Europe. The old town hall was built in the Gothic style in the early 15th century, after Bremen joined the Hanseatic League. The building was renovated in the so-called Weser Renaissance style in the early 17th century. A new town hall was built next to the old one in the early 20th century as part of an ensemble that survived bombardment during the Second World War. The statue stands 5.5 m tall and dates back to 1404.

#4 Museumsinsel (Museum Island), Berlin

I will visit Berlin in November and I hope I will be able to see this one in real! It is number 10 in my Germany UNESCO collection as well :)




The museum as a social phenomenon owes its origins to the Age of Enlightenment in the 18th century. The five museums on the Museumsinsel in Berlin, built between 1824 and 1930, are the realization of a visionary project and show the evolution of approaches to museum design over the course of the 20th century. Each museum was designed so as to establish an organic connection with the art it houses. The importance of the museum's collections – which trace the development of civilizations throughout the ages – is enhanced by the urban and architectural quality of the buildings.

19 August 2009 - CA - 71513 - Kamloops

I received this card from Canada . It shows the Canadian flag. It has travelled a distance of 7,514 Kms in 8 days! It has a great Vancouver 2010 on the back!

zaterdag 22 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap - Germany

I received almost two weeks ago three very nice cards from Elbe from Germany. The cards are from two UNESCO sites in Germany and one in Egypt.

#1 Collegiate Church, Castle, and Old Town of Quedlinburg



Quedlinburg, in the Land of Sachsen-Anhalt, was a capital of the East Franconian German Empire at the time of the Saxonian-Ottonian ruling dynasty. It has been a prosperous trading town since the Middle Ages. The number and high quality of the timber-framed buildings make Quedlinburg an exceptional example of a medieval European town. The Collegiate Church of St Servatius is one of the masterpieces of Romanesque architecture.

#2 Hanseatic City of Lübeck

Lübeck – the former capital and Queen City of the Hanseatic League – was founded in the 12th century and prospered until the 16th century as the major trading centre for northern Europe. It has remained a centre for maritime commerce to this day, particularly with the Nordic countries. Despite the damage it suffered during the Second World War, the basic structure of the old city, consisting mainly of 15th- and 16th-century patrician residences, public monuments (the famous Holstentor brick gate), churches and salt storehouses, remains unaltered.

#3 Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur




The capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt has some extraordinary funerary monuments, including rock tombs, ornate mastabas, temples and pyramids. In ancient times, the site was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

vrijdag 21 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap - Poland

I receive this great card from a Dutch postcrossing member, Carolien25. She send me this great multiview card from Kraków. A place I would love to visit at one time. I have plans to do this next year so hopefully my dreams come true :P




The historic centre of Cracow, the former capital of Poland, is situated at the foot of the Royal Wawel Castle. The 13th-century merchants' town has Europe's largest market square and numerous historical houses, palaces and churches with their magnificent interiors. Further evidence of the town's fascinating history is provided by the remnants of the 14th-century fortifications and the medieval site of Kazimierz with its ancient synagogues in the southern part of town, Jagellonian University and the Gothic cathedral where the kings of Poland were buried.

UNESCO Swap - Portugal

I received these two great cards from two UNESCO monastries from Martinhe from Portugal . I like those old monsatries, they are beautiful! It shows us the monastry of Batalha and the monastry of Alcobaca.

#1 Monastry of Batalha



The Monastery of the Dominicans of Batalha was built to commemorate the victory of the Portuguese over the Castilians at the battle of Aljubarrota in 1385. It was to be the Portuguese monarchy's main building project for the next two centuries. Here a highly original, national Gothic style evolved, profoundly influenced by Manueline art, as demonstrated by its masterpiece, the Royal Cloister.

#2 Monastry of Alcobaca




The Monastery of Santa Maria d'Alcobaça, north of Lisbon, was founded in the 12th century by King Alfonso I. Its size, the purity of its architectural style, the beauty of the materials and the care with which it was built make this a masterpiece of Cistercian Gothic art.

15 August 2009 - FI - 612505 - Nastola

I didn't received any officials for one week so I was happy when I saw this one in my mailbox! It is an official from Finland . Although it is the number one postcrossing country, I do not receive many cards from Finland. I send almost everytime when I request addresses one to this country but I don't found them often in my mailbox. It has travelled a distance of 1604 kms in 5 days.

UNESCO Swap UK

I received this nice card from UNESCO site Greenwich from chiarandino from Italy. It shows the national maritime museum.



The ensemble of buildings at Greenwich, an outlying district of London, and the park in which they are set, symbolize English artistic and scientific endeavour in the 17th and 18th centuries. The Queen's House (by Inigo Jones) was the first Palladian building in England, while the complex that was until recently the Royal Naval College was designed by Christopher Wren. The park, laid out on the basis of an original design by André Le Nôtre, contains the Old Royal Observatory, the work of Wren and the scientist Robert Hooke.

donderdag 20 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap Italy

I received my first UNESCO cards from Italy with a private swap with Red.Panda.. I have only been to Rome but these cards shows a lot of beautiful sites Italy has to offer!

#1 Venice and its Lagoon




Founded in the 5th century and spread over 118 small islands, Venice became a major maritime power in the 10th century. The whole city is an extraordinary architectural masterpiece in which even the smallest building contains works by some of the world's greatest artists such as Giorgione, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese and others.

#2 City of Verona



The historic city of Verona was founded in the 1st century B.C. It particularly flourished under the rule of the Scaliger family in the 13th and 14th centuries and as part of the Republic of Venice from the 15th to 18th centuries. Verona has preserved a remarkable number of monuments from antiquity, the medieval and Renaissance periods, and represents an outstanding example of a military stronghold.

#3 Orto Botanica, Padua



The world's first botanical garden was created in Padua in 1545. It still preserves its original layout – a circular central plot, symbolizing the world, surrounded by a ring of water. Other elements were added later, some architectural (ornamental entrances and balustrades) and some practical (pumping installations and greenhouses). It continues to serve its original purpose as a centre for scientific research.

UNESCO Tag - Malaysia

I received two UNESCO sites in one when I got this card from Slliew from Malaysia . It shows George Town and the Taman Kinabulu in Kinabalu park. There is only one UNESCO site of Malaysia left.




Kinabalu Park, in the State of Sabah on the northern end of the island of Borneo, is dominated by Mount Kinabalu (4,095 m), the highest mountain between the Himalayas and New Guinea. It has a very wide range of habitats, from rich tropical lowland and hill rainforest to tropical mountain forest, sub-alpine forest and scrub on the higher elevations. It has been designated as a Centre of Plant Diversity for Southeast Asia and is exceptionally rich in species with examples of flora from the Himalayas, China, Australia, Malaysia, as well as pan-tropical flora.

Melaka and George Town, historic cities of the Straits of Malacca have developed over 500 years of trading and cultural exchanges between East and West in the Straits of Malacca. The influences of Asia and Europe have endowed the towns with a specific multicultural heritage that is both tangible and intangible. With its government buildings, churches, squares and fortifications, Melaka demonstrates the early stages of this history originating in the 15th-century Malay sultanate and the Portuguese and Dutch periods beginning in the early 16th century. Featuring residential and commercial buildings, George Town represents the British era from the end of the 18th century. The two towns constitute a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia.

UNESCO Tag - China

Sometimes I like to tag in the UNESCO tag to receive some new UNESCO sites. I receive not as many unesco site via the officials as I thought. This time Dengbin from China tagged me back and send me this great card from the unesco site three parallel rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas. This is one of the three rivers.



Consisting of eight geographical clusters of protected areas within the boundaries of the Three Parallel Rivers National Park, in the mountainous north-west of Yunnan Province, the 1.7 million hectare site features sections of the upper reaches of three of the great rivers of Asia: the Yangtze (Jinsha), Mekong and Salween run roughly parallel, north to south, through steep gorges which, in places, are 3,000 m deep and are bordered by glaciated peaks more than 6,000 m high. The site is an epicentre of Chinese biodiversity. It is also one of the richest temperate regions of the world in terms of biodiversity.

zondag 16 augustus 2009

7 August 2009 - TW - 72370 -

Last week I found a new country in my mailbox! This time...Taiwan! . I have send one of my first cards to this country but never received any untill now. The cards has travelled a distance of 9,506 Kms in 13 days and shows us two girls. It is a very nice portrait.


6 August 2009 - FR - 59289 - Paris

More than one week ago, I received a card from France . It is my second card from Paris and this card shows the Seine and the Notre Dame. I have visited Paris three times and everytime I have seen the inside of the Notre Dame as well! The card has travelled 410 kms in 6 days. The banks of the Seine is an UNESCO site.





From the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower, from the Place de la Concorde to the Grand and Petit Palais, the evolution of Paris and its history can be seen from the River Seine. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame and the Sainte Chapelle are architectural masterpieces while Haussmann's wide squares and boulevards influenced late 19th- and 20th-century town planning the world over.

vrijdag 14 augustus 2009

UNESCO Swap Finland/Estonia

Here are some great UNESCO cards of a private swap with aj-person from Finland. I received two beautiful cards from UNESCO sites in Estonia. I have completed one country already :) The third card is a beautiful one from Finland. Thanks for swapping with me.

#1 Struve Geodetic Arc (Estonia)



The Struve Arc is a chain of survey triangulations stretching from Hammerfest in Norway to the Black Sea, through 10 countries and over 2,820 km. These are points of a survey, carried out between 1816 and 1855 by the astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve, which represented the first accurate measuring of a long segment of a meridian. This helped to establish the exact size and shape of the planet and marked an important step in the development of earth sciences and topographic mapping. It is an extraordinary example of scientific collaboration among scientists from different countries, and of collaboration between monarchs for a scientific cause. The original arc consisted of 258 main triangles with 265 main station points. The listed site includes 34 of the original station points, with different markings, i.e. a drilled hole in rock, iron cross, cairns, or built obelisks.

#2 Historic Center of Tallin




The origins of Tallinn date back to the 13th century, when a castle was built there by the crusading knights of the Teutonic Order. It developed as a major centre of the Hanseatic League, and its wealth is demonstrated by the opulence of the public buildings (the churches in particular) and the domestic architecture of the merchants' houses, which have survived to a remarkable degree despite the ravages of fire and war in the intervening centuries.

#3 Fortress of Suomenlinna

Built in the second half of the 18th century by Sweden on a group of islands located at the entrance of Helsinki's harbour, this fortress is an especially interesting example of European military architecture of the time.

donderdag 13 augustus 2009

Netherlands RR - Group 68 = Vietnam

Via the Netherlands RR I received my first card from Vietnam ! It was send by Russianruby and shows an unesco site as well! The Ancient City of Hoi An.


Hoi An Ancient Town is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. Its buildings and its street plan reflect the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site.

6 August 2009 - RU -58173 - St Petersburg

Last week I received this great night view of the palace bridge in St Petersburg in Russia . It has travelled a distance of 1,781 Kms in 18 days.

6 August 2009 - CZ-31643 - Veselice

I received this nice card from the Czech Republic , last week. It has travelled a distance of 876 Kms in 4 days. If anyone knows what the cards shows, let me know!

dinsdag 11 augustus 2009

Netherlands RR - Group 53 - Russia

I received this card a few weeks ago from Russia but I was so busy that I forgot to show this beautiful card! It was send by Ananasik via the Netherlands Round Robin. It shows the city of Omsk.

Netherlands RR - Group 68 - Belarus

I received this card from Belarus via the Netherlands RR. It was send by smooth. It shows the Troitsky Suburb and upper town of Misnk, the capital city of Belarus. It is a great nightview during the winter!

maandag 10 augustus 2009

5 August 2009 - FI - 605580 - Uusikaupunki

I found this mysterious view in my mailbox 5 days ago. It shows the harbour of Naantali in the early morning. It was send from Finland and has travelled a distance of 1,389 Kms in 4 days.