The Netherlands RR - Group 58 UNESCO

Sorry I'm very busy right now so I didn't got the time to update this blog. I received this beautiful card last week from France from MICH29 via The Netherlands RR - Group 58 UNESCO. It is my first UNESCO site from France and it shows the Tower of Vauban. It is a recent addition to the world heritage list because its on the list since 2008. I like the simplicity of this card :)


"Fortifications of Vauban consists of 12 groups of fortified buildings and sites along the western, northern and eastern borders of France. They represent the finest examples of the work of Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban (1633-1707), a military engineer of King Louis XIV. The serial property includes towns built from scratch by Vauban, citadels, urban bastion walls and bastion towers. There are also mountain forts, sea forts, a mountain battery and two mountain communication structures. This property is inscribed as bearing witness to the peak of classic fortifications, typical of western military architecture. Vauban also played a major role in the history of fortification in Europe and on other continents until the mid-19th century."

You can find an update of my UNESCO Cards collection here.

Slavic Countries RR - Group 56

It is always special to receive cards from 'hard to get' countries. Ukraïne is in my opinion 'hard to get' via officials so I was very happy when I found the Slavic Countries Round Robin, organised by Ksenia. Today I received a card from alivemary. A beautiful card of Kyiv, especially the Kyiv Lavra. I used to go the Kyiv in 2007 with my study but unfortunatley it was too expensive and the university didn't give permission :( Instead of Kyiv, we went to Bucharest. I'm happy to see something from Kyiv now. I have read that the Lavra is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site! So it's my first UNESCO site from Ukraïne as well! :D



"Designed to rival Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, Kiev's Saint-Sophia Cathedral symbolizes the 'new Constantinople', capital of the Christian principality of Kiev, which was created in the 11th century in a region evangelized after the baptism of St Vladimir in 988. The spiritual and intellectual influence of Kiev-Pechersk Lavra contributed to the spread of Orthodox thought and the Orthodox faith in the Russian world from the 17th to the 19th century."

15 May 2009 - AU 41718 - Melbourne

I was a little bit surprised when I found this on in my mailbox! I already received more cards than I send and did not expect an official. The official comes from a new country! Australia . It is my 14th country via the official but when I count my Round Robins as well I have to celebrate something because than it is my 15th country. The card has traveled a distance of 16,514 Kms in 11 days. Such a long distance!!!

The card itself is very beautiful! I think Australia has the most beautiful nature of all over the world! I think I have to visit this country at one day but it is very expensive and you really need time to discover this country.

The Netherlands RR - Group 53

Last week I received this nice card from Dawlin via the Netherlands Round Robin. The card comes from the USA and is my second card from the States but from a different state than my first one! And the funniest thing is that again my card is arrived at the same day I receive the card back! The card show us the Roual Street in New Orleans (State: Lousiane). It lies in the French Quater. It must be very beautiful there. To be honest, I have to think always about the damage of 'Katrina' when I see something of New Orleans.

Europe RR - Special Group UNESCO

Today I received my second Round Robin card from the Europe Round Robin - Special Group 3 UNESCO! The card comes from Germany and was send by Appelveichen. Funny that my card arrived in Appelveichens mailbox today as well!It is my second UNESCO from Germany. The card shows us the Neues Palais in Potsdam. I'm very happy with this new addition to my UNESCO collection!


"With 500 ha of parks and 150 buildings constructed between 1730 and 1916, Potsdam's complex of palaces and parks forms an artistic whole, whose eclectic nature reinforces its sense of uniqueness. It extends into the district of Berlin-Zehlendorf, with the palaces and parks lining the banks of the River Havel and Lake Glienicke. Voltaire stayed at the Sans-Souci Palace, built under Frederick II between 1745 and 1747."

13 May 2009 - US-402656 - Tampa

My first card from the United States of America is arrived yesterday!It comes from the city Tampa in the state Florida. It has travelled a distance of 7,447 Kms in 10 days.

12 May 2009 - BR-62249 - Rio de Janeiro

My first official from 'over the sea' on the west side of my country comes from Brasil . It is the 12th country I received via officials. The card has travelled a distance of 9,543 Kms in 9 days. I like it that there was some Dutch on the card! The card is beautiful and shows us the famous Chris statue of Rio de Janeiro.

12 May 2009 - DE - 336627 - Essen

I think 12 May was a little UNESCO day because besides the beautiful UNESCO card from Poland, I received an UNESCO card from Germany . The card has travelled a distance of 141 kms in six days and shows us the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in Essen. In my bachelor programme, we have a very active study-associations which has plannend a trip to this complex but unfortunatley I couldn't join the trip because of my bachelor thesis.




What I really was surprised about was the lovely stamp with UNESCO on it!


"The Zollverein industrial complex in Land Nordrhein-Westfalen consists of the complete infrastructure of a historical coal-mining site, with some 20th-century buildings of outstanding architectural merit. It constitutes remarkable material evidence of the evolution and decline of an essential industry over the past 150 years."

Europe RR - Special Group UNESCO

Today I received my first Round Robin card from the Europe Round Robin - Special Group 3 UNESCO! The card comes from Poland and was send by Ksenia . I already have said it but: dziękuję bardzo :) It is nice to receive a card from someone whos blog I read for more than two months now and I'm wondering when my card will be arrived.

The card is my first UNESCO card I received from Poland and shows us the Centennial Hall in Wroclaw. It is built during 1911 - 1933 and an example of the modernism part in the architecture.

The most funniest thing is that I'm interested in Poland since two years because of my speedskating hobby. I'm following the Polish speedskating team and learn some Polish words and now I got the change to learn more about the country by sending and receiving postcards. I like the stamps as well. The stamps in other countries seems always be more beautiful than ours!


"The Centennial Hall, a landmark in the history of reinforced concrete architecture, was erected in 1911-1913 by the architect Max Berg as a multi-purpose recreational building, situated in the Exhibition Grounds. In form it is a symmetrical quatrefoil with a vast circular central space that can seat some 6,000 persons. The 23m-high dome is topped with a lantern in steel and glass. The Centennial Hall is a pioneering work of modern engineering and architecture, which exhibits an important interchange of influences in the early 20th century, becoming a key reference in the later development of reinforced concrete structures."

Unbelievable!

It's unbelievable. A few days ago I wrote on my blog that it is a pity that I have to send many cards to Germany and Finland. Today I requested three addresses and I got Russia , Switzerland and USA !! Maybe because of the fact I have already cards traveling to Finland & Germany. I have already send officials to Switzerland, USA (different state!) and Russia (funny, again to the Moscow Region) but never received from.

My cards for my second Round Robin are on their way too! I participate in a Slavic country & the rest of the world RR and for this group I have to send cards to Brasil, Ukraïne and Slovenia . Three new countries for me, I like those RR! I'm wondering what I will receive back from these 'newbies' (I haven't receive any cards from those countries) :)

9 May 2009 - PT- 81781 - Loures

Yesterday I received my third official from Portugal . It has travelled a distance of 1843 kms in six days. It is my first map card I have received and I like this one because of the nice little pictures on it.It shows a lot different sides of the country.



On the back some stamps I didn't know yet (except the bird then ;))


I updated my received cards map as well. Funniest thing is that I have already three officials from Portugal but I have never send official cards to Portugal.

7 May 2009 - BG 3251 - Razgrad

The card I received today is a little bit different than others. It has an Bulgarian Postcard ID on it but actually, well I'm not sure because there was no information on it, it is sent from the United Kingdom . I decided to see this as a card from Bulgaria because of lack of information. It has travelled a distance of 1855 kms in four days.

The cards shows us the St. Werburgh street in Chester. The funniest thing is that one of my friends is going to do a roundtrip troughout the UK and yesterday I said goodbye to her and today I receive a card from on of her destinations! I have updated my map as well. Click here.

Maps - Update 7 May 2009

The last week, two of my sent cards arrived their destination! One to an 'new' country: Spain! . And I decided to send a new card to the USA and after 44 days, it is registered! I have updated my send cards map. You can find it here.

I have still three official cards travelling, to Finland, Germany and China.

I decided this week to join and try some Round Robins as well because I'm looking for some countries I do not have in my collection yet and especially world heritage sites. Besides that, I'm a little bit tired to send officials to Finland/Germany all the time. I know I said earlier that I have a new approach, not to look at the country but at the places where I have to send but at the moment, this approach wont work ;) So I will wait to send more officials, and will use my amount of six cards travelling at one time when my send/received balance is even. Today I send three cards for the Europe Round Robin. I'm participating in a special group called UNESCO. I have created a list with my UNESCO cards here. When my RR are received, I will add them to my received map with a different colour!

Maps - Update 3 May 2009

I have made some maps with the google maps application of my sent and received cards.

Sent Cards

Click here to see my map of my sent cards. It is funny to see that I have send two times to the same place.

Received cards

Click here to see my map of my received cards. Most of my cards comes from Europe and Germany and Finland are te leaders. I haven't received a card from the same city yet and I neither have received a card from a place to which I send one.

I will try to keep my maps up to date!

Balance

It is a little bit quiet in my mailbox the last days. I'm still sending postcards and hope that I will be soon the next one who will receive a card. This week, my card to Finland and Germany has reached their destinations and I requested two new adresses and quess what... to Finland and Germnay again! I discover that I have already send cards to ten different countries, so my send/received stats are in a good balance! :)