Via Airmail

Four Views of Athens

Imagine living in Athens and have this as your view.  Stunning, don't you think?  Of course perhaps to most Athenians this is all 'old hat' and they don't give it a second thought (or look) and mostly just resent all the camera toting tourists who must flood the city every summer?  

That's the Acropolis you see on the far horizon overlooking the city.  And the famous building is the Parthenon, or the Temple of Athena, who is the goddess of wisdom, war, divine intelligence as well as architecture and crafts.   She's the city's patron and gave her name to it.  Athens must just ooze history and culture.

To the Northwest of the Acropolis is the Ancient Agora, which is where this Temple of Hephaestos is located.  The Agora would have been an important meeting place for the people of Athens both politically and socially.  Hephaestus is the patron god of metal working and craftsmanship.  This temple is apparently very well preserved and stands much as it did when it was built.  There is something very awe inspiring to think of the history these stones have observed, particularly since it was built around 449 BC.

I wasn't sure what this building housed as there is no description on the card, but I believe it is the Old Royal Palace and is now the Hellenic Parliament.  By the way--just a little piece of trivia--they  have a unicameral legislature.  I live in Nebraska, which is the only US state that has a unicameral legislature.  Anyway, the building looks sort of small in the postcard, but if you click through the link and look at the Wikipedia photo (click to enlarge it) it is massive building!

And then we must have the requisite picturesque view of whitewashed buildings and perfectly calm, brilliant blue water.  It's only missing a cat, don't you think? 

I'm afraid I'm not going to be any help with the stamps as I can't read the Greek, but they appear to be folk dancers wearing traditional costumes. 

Many thanks to Anna for swapping!

Mount Kinabala, Malaysia

Mount Kinabalu is not only one of the most botanically rich places in the world, but it is also on the UNESCO World Heritage List.  Mt. Kinabalu is located on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia in the country of Malaysia. 

"Mount Kinabalu includes the Kinabalu montane alpine meadows ecoregion in the montane grasslasnds and shrublands biome. The mountain and its surroundings are among the most important biological sites in the world, with over 4500 species of plant, 326 species of birds, and 100 mammalian species identified. Among this rich collection of wildlife are famous species such as the gigantic Rafflesia plants and the orangutan."

The stamp shows the Hydrangea macrophylla, Bunga Tiga Bulan.  You can see the rest of the stamps in the series here.

{MY-105095}

Postcrossing card #63

Polska: Wroclaw

I'm beginning to form a small collection of postcards from Poland.  This is the second I've received from Wroclaw as a matter of fact.  It's kind of fun to be able to form a picture of a place through the images that you see on postcards, and I think I'd like to see Poland very much.  

The postcrosser who sent me the card mentioned that the European Football Championships began June 8 and some of the games are taking place in Wroclaw hence the soccer balls on the postcard along with the views of the city!

More stamps from the Manor House series, and the bottom two are new to me.

{PL-450876}

Postcrossing card #58

Tianjin, China

Another museum card to add to  my collection.  This time it comes from the city of Tianjin, the sixty largest city of China.  The card shows the Tianjin West Bank Art Museum.  The collection contains rare jade pieces as well as porcelain, as well as folk art pieces including paper cutting (which I am very interested in).  Pity there is no view of the intererior, but the building is lovely and not what I typically think of as Chinese architecture.

The stamps include these two exotic fish, and

a flower stamp that was preprinted on the card.  Prestamped cards from China seem to be the norm in my experience.  It's kind of nice when the card comes pre-stamped.  Maybe people would be more inclined to send them if it was made so easy to send them.

{CN-613271}

Postcrossing card #54

Iconic England

I love Agatha Christie, though I came to her relatively late compared to many other readers.  So many people have told me they first read her when they were young.  She is often the first adult author many readers had been exposed to.  Now I am slowly working my way through her mysteries and have been reading Miss Marple in order.  She is one of my reliable comfort reads. 

"Dame Agatha Christie, one of the most famous mystery and crime writers of all time, was born in Torquay in 1890.  She spent holidays on Burgh Island in the 1930s and drew inspiration for some of her plots from local people and places.  The island features as Smugglers' Island in Evil Under the Sun and here, Hercule Poirot, stayed at the Jolly Roger Hotel."

The images (top to bottom, left to right): Greenaway House, Dartmouth and Paignton Railway, Oldway Mansion, Elberry Cove, Burgh Island, Churston Ferrers, Torquay, and Dartmoor.  I shared another Agatha Christie postcard here.

The stamps on the back include two 2op Queen stamps and a 56p Edward VII Ludlow Box stamp--these are always attached to buildings and never free standing and have the initials of the reigning monarch at the time the box was made.   This particular box is found at Bodiam in East Sussex.

Another iconic image-the famous red telephone box paired with another postbox.  This one is the Bridgnorth station, Shropshire. 

And the card has a matching stamp (and a matching 'puff' sticker--all very cool).  This time the card had a 90p (increased international postage?) Elizabeth II Type A Wall Box stamp.    

Many thanks to Scriptorsenex for these great cards and matching stamps--not only wonderful images but a bit of history as well.

Museums of Odessa, Ukraine

This postcard from Odessa, Ukraine shows the interiors of three different museums.  Museums are one of my very favorite places to visit, so I am always pleased to get a peek at an international museum.  Clockwise from top left: Literature Museum (top two photos), Private Collections Museum and the Navy Museum.  I'd be particularly interested in seeing the Literary Museum.  It is located in a 19th century palace using 24 halls.  A few of the writers I recognize who are represented there: Alexander Pushkin, Nikolai Gogol, and Maxim Gorky.

There were a variety of stamps on this card.  I especially like the stamp of the metro train.

{UA-280025}

Postcrossing card #53

Minsk Theaters and Museums

I love seeing cultural buildings.  This postcard is from Minsk, Belarus and shows theaters and museumd.  From top to bottom and left to right: The National Art Gallery of the Republic of Belarus, The Yanka Kupala Drama Theatre, The Belarus State Theatre of Opera and Ballet, The State Museum of History and The Gorky State Academic Drama Theatre. 

The stamp is the standard red "M" stamp I shared here.

{BY-463418}

Postcrossing card #51

The Great Wall of China

I think this is a pretty amazing postcard.  It shows an unusual view of The Great Wall of China.  The actual wall stretches  more than 3,800 miles!  The actual spot is the Jia Yu Fort, which is the westernmost part of the wall in the Central Asian desert (Gansu Province).   It is also on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

I'm very fortunate as a Postcrosser living in China was interested in swapping cards of Nebraska for cards in China.  I'm still thrilled at getting such beautiful and interesting postcards in my mailbox and excited when I find someone who wants to swap cards of my area.  It's such a cool way to get a peek at places I am probably not likely to ever see in person (though I should never say never, right?).

The stamps are gorgeous as well.  I especially like the two birds sitting on a branch.

I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but if you happen across this blog and are interested in swapping a postcard or two, I am always happy to swap.  Just leave me a comment or send an email.

Nysa, Poland

You probably won't be able to tell  by the scan, but this gorgeous postcard is actually very oversized.  It was lovely to find it in my mailbox this past week.  It is from the city of Nysa in the southwestern part of Poland.  The postcard shows St. Jacob and Agnes Church.

"The church was consecrated in 1198, however it reached its present form in 1401-1430. This 71-meter high building is surrounded by 19 chapels located between buttresses. In its gothic interior 22 pillars support the ceiling. Numerous bishops’ tombstones deserve mentioning, with the tombstone of Balthazar von Pronto being the greatest. The church burnt down in 1945 and was rebuilt between the years 1947-58. Colloquially it is referred to as a cathedral."

I love the details shown of the interior and exterior of the church.

Once again there is no stamp on the flip side of the card, only a red meter stamp made by a machine.

{PL-433166}

Postcrossing card #43

Paris: Harmonie des blancs

A friend in the Netherlands who I do direct swaps with regularly was in Paris last week on vacation and she sent this marvelous postcard of images in white.  I am very visual and think this is a stunning card, and love it when they follow color themes like this.  A nice image to end the work week with!

She mailed the card when she returned home, so the stamps are Dutch, but I thought I'd give you a peek as they are pretty cool and all new to me.   Not sure what the two on the left signify, but they are certinaly colorful!

Per Catharina a bit on the story behind the two stamps on the left:

"Since 1924 with exception of the war years 1942-1944 in The Netherlands each year so called Children's Stamps are issued. These are stamps sold by children for charity causes for children in october each year. Every year there is a different design. The one at the left is from 1992 and is by Flemish illustrator and designer Ever Meulen, the second one is from 1987 by author and painter Charlotte Mutsaers."