Postcard from USA.

Postcard from Ukraine.

Postcard from Germany

Postcard from Russia.

Monastery of Geghard and the Upper Azat Valley, Armenia.

The monastery of Geghard contains a number of churches and tombs, most of them cut into the rock, which illustrate the very peak of Armenian medieval architecture. The complex of medieval buildings is set into a landscape of great natural beauty, surrounded by towering cliffs at the entrance to the Azat Valley.Cristina from Italy sent this  classy post card.Thank you very much Cristina.      Ref: 960              

My Son Sanctuary,Vietnam.

 

Between the 4th and 13th centuries a unique culture which owed its spiritual origins to Indian Hinduism developed on the coast of contemporary Viet Nam. This is graphically illustrated by the remains of a series of impressive tower-temples located in a dramatic site that was the religious and political capital of the Champa Kingdom for most of its existence.Received this divine card from Heidi in Germany.       Ref: 949      

Naval Port of Karlskrona, Sweden.

Karlskrona is an outstanding example of a late-17th-century European planned naval city. The original plan and many of the buildings have survived intact, along with installations that illustrate its subsequent development up to the present day. MJ in Sweden sent this beautiful card.        Ref: 871

Laponian Area, Sweden

The Arctic Circle region of northern Sweden is the home of the Saami, or Lapp people. It is the largest area in the world (and one of the last) with an ancestral way of life based on the seasonal movement of livestock. Every summer, the Saami lead their huge herds of reindeer towards the mountains through a natural landscape hitherto preserved.This scenic card was sent by MJ in Sweden and thanks for the beautiful stamp of Ingrid Bergman.           Ref: 774

Old Town of Segovia and its Aqueduct,Spain.

The Roman aqueduct of Segovia, probably built c. A.D. 50, is remarkably well preserved. This impressive construction, with its two tiers of arches, forms part of the setting of the magnificent historic city of Segovia. Other important monuments include the Alcázar, begun around the 11th century, and the 16th-century Gothic cathedral.Segovia is symbolic of a complex, historical reality. Its neighbourhoods, streets, and houses are laid out in accordance with a social structure in which hierarchy was organized and dominated by belonging to one of the different cultural communities. Moors, Christians, and Jews coexisted for a long period of time in the medieval city and worked together during the 16th century manufacturing boom. Belen in Spain sent this   fascinating site card.Thank you for the card and beautiful stamp on Pierre de Coubertin.                    Ref: 311bis

Tower of Hercules,Spain

The Tower of Hercules has served as a lighthouse and landmark at the entrance of La Coruña harbour in north-western Spain since the late 1st century A.D. when the Romans built the Farum Brigantium. The Tower, built on a 57 metre high rock, rises a further 55 metres, of which 34 metres correspond to the Roman masonry and 21 meters to the restoration directed by architect Eustaquio Giannini in the 18th century, who augmented the Roman core with two octagonal forms. Immediately adjacent to the base of the Tower, is a small rectangular Roman building. The site also features a sculpture park, the Monte dos Bicos rock carvings from the Iron Age and a Muslim cemetery. The Roman foundations of the building were revealed in excavations conducted in the 1990s. Many legends from the Middle Ages to the 19th century surround the Tower of Hercules, which is unique as it is the only lighthouse of Greco-Roman antiquity to have retained a measure of structural integrity and functional continuity. This magnificent  card was sent by Belen in Spain.                           Ref: 1312

Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary,Philippines

Forming a mountain ridge running north-south along the Pujada Peninsula in the south-eastern part of the Eastern Mindanao Biodiversity Corridor, the Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary has an elevation range of 75–1,637 m above sea level and provides critical habitat for a range of plant and animal species. The property showcases terrestrial and aquatic habitats at different elevations, and includes threatened and endemic flora and fauna species, eight of which are found only at Mount Hamiguitan. These include critically endangered trees, plants and the iconic Philippine eagle and Philippine cockatoo.   Received this beautiful card from Jan to complete my Philippines UNESCO site collection .      Ref: 1403rev

Postcard from Latvia.

Postcard from Brazil.

                 What a coincidence! Received same UNESCO card from same member in 2015.

Postcard from Russia.

                                                     Tsar "Alexis the most Meek" Russia.

Postcard from Ireland.

                               Thank you Marta for the beautiful card.

Postcard from Czech Republic.

                           Many thanks to Nikki for this beautiful UNESCO heritage site card

Post card from Russia.

Yekaterinburg- Sevastyanov’s House.-Russia.
This building is definitely the most beautiful structure in the city. It is Sevastyanov’s House. Nikolay Sevastyanov was a successful businessman. He made a fortune during Gold Rush in Yekaterinburg at the beginning of 18th century. Just like other merchants of provincial Yekaterinburg, Sevastyanov felt envious of his counterparts from Moscow and St. Petersburg. The Ural oligarchs might have more money but they didn’t have fame and nobility the Muscovites enjoyed. I should add here that Yekaterinburg residents have inherited the competitive spirit and still live with it. For example, Yekaterinburgers have a firm belief they live in the third major city in Russia (after Moscow and St. Petersburg of course). Despite the fact that Kazan officially patented the name of ‘Russia Third Capital’ in 2009, we still tend to call Yekaterinburg the third capital or at least the Capital of the Urals.
Another interesting fact: the owner had never lived in his house. Sevastyanov rented it to rich visitors. He himself preferred a modest life-style and had a small wooden house behind the mansion. However, every day he would sit outside on a bench facing the big green house and watching passersby who would inevitably stop and gaze at his creation. Neither Sevastyanov nor the bench is no longer here but passersby continue gazing at the house with admiration.Thank you Tata for this magnificent card.

Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey,UK.

Situated in North Yorkshire, the 18th century designed landscape of Studley Royal water garden and pleasure grounds, including the ruins of Fountains Abbey, is one harmonious whole of buildings, gardens and landscapes. This landscape of exceptional merit and beauty represents over 800 years of human ambition, design and achievement.This magnificent card was sent by Julia.Thank you very much.
Ref: 372bis

Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape,UK.

The landscapes of Cornwall and west Devon were radically reshaped during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by deep mining for predominantly copper and tin. The remains of mines, engines houses, smallholdings, ports, harbours, canals, railways, tramroads, and industries allied to mining, along with new towns and villages reflect an extended period of industrial expansion and prolific innovation. Together these are testimony, in an inter-linked and highly legible way, to the sophistication and success of early, large-scale, industrialised non-ferrous hard-rock mining. The technology and infrastructure developed at Cornish and west Devon mines enabled these to dominate copper, tin and later arsenic production worldwide, and to greatly influence nineteenth century mining practice internationally.Thank you Julia for this superb card and stamp.
Ref: 1215

Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz,Germany.

The Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz, located in Saxony-Anhalt in the Middle Elbe Region, is an exceptional example of landscape design and planning from the Age of the Enlightenment in the 18th century. Its diverse components – the outstanding buildings, English-style landscaped parks and gardens, and subtly modified expanses of agricultural land – served aesthetic, educational, and economic purposes in an exemplary manner.Claus in Germany sent this nice card.            Ref: 534rev            

Pirin National Park,Bulgaria.

This World Heritage property covers an area of around 40,000 ha in the Pirin Mountains, southwest Bulgaria, and overlaps with the undeveloped areas of Pirin National Park. The diverse limestone mountain landscapes of the property include over 70 glacial lakes and a range of glacial landforms, with many waterfalls, rocky screes and caves. Forests are dominated by conifers, and the higher areas harbour alpine meadows below the summits. The property includes a range of endemic and relict species that are representative of the Balkan Pleistocene flora.It was added to the World Heritage List in 1983.Thanks to Daniela for this Postcrossig card with captivating scene and nice M/S of stamp.
Ref: 225bis

The Trulli of Alberobello,Italy.

The trulli , limestone dwellings found in the southern region of Puglia, are remarkable examples of drywall (mortarless) construction, a prehistoric building technique still in use in this region. The trulli are made of roughly worked limestone boulders collected from neighbouring fields. Characteristically, they feature pyramidal, domed or conical roofs built up of corbelled limestone slabs.Thank you Alessandro for the beautiful card.                                                       Ref: 787

Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge in Višegrad,Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The universal value of the bridge at Višegrad is unquestionable for all the historical reasons and in view of the architectural values it has. It represents a major stage in the history of civil engineering and bridge architecture, erected by one of the most celebrated builders of the Ottoman Empire.
The bridge particularly bears witness to the transmission and adaptation of techniques in the course of a long historical process. It also bears witness to important cultural exchanges between areas of different civilizations. It is an exceptional representative of Ottoman architecture and civil engineering at its classical apogee. Extremely thankful to Sabina for the awesome card.      Ref: 1260

Routes of Santiago de Compostela:Camino Frances and Routes of Northern Spain.

The Route of Santiago de Compostela (Camino de Santiago) is a narrow route through the north of the Iberian Peninsula extending over 800 km from the Spanish-French border to the city of Santiago de Compostela, passing through five different Autonomous Communities and over one hundred inhabited towns.
Pilgrimages were an essential part of European cultural and spiritual life during the Middle Ages and along the route, pilgrims were provided with what they needed to ensure their physical and spiritual well-being.Thank you Belen for the nice card and beautiful stamp on TAJ MAHAL.Second time lucky.to have it.
Ref: 669bis