From Ukraine



Received on: 6 Aug, 2013

Distance: 1,445 km (898 miles)

Travel time: 7 days

My very first postcrossing Beatles  came from Nina, great add for my collection. Thank you Nina!

Kiev



Received on: 21 Jun, 2013

Distance: 1,891 km (1,175 miles)

Travel time: 14 days

Katya from Kiev sent this card showing the beautiful church of St. Andrew in its old and new look



The church of St. Andrew was designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli and built in the mid-18th century.

St. Andrew's Church is regarded as one of the most beautiful buildings in Kiev and an important landmark.

Next two weeks I'm on holiday.
You'll soon find out where :)

Cheetah, South Africa

Received on: 25 Jun, 2013

Distance: 9,860 km (6,127 miles)

Travel time: 93 days

Cheetah cubs (Acinonyx Jubatus)

My very first card from South-Africa. Thank you Antoinette for this super cute card!

These young cheetah will grow to be the fastest of all land animals. Two or three cubs in a litter is considered the norm.



St. Petersburg and Moscow, Russia

St. Petersburg

Received on: 20 Jul, 2013
Distance: 1,216 km (756 miles)
Travel time: 31 days

Katya lives near Moscow and she picked her card from my favourite list, a card of Emperor Nicholas II,  Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and children Grand duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia and Tsesarevich Alexis.
OTMA in the card was the autograph of Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. As OTMA, they jointly gave gifts and signed their correspondence.

Received on: 17 Jul, 2013
Distance: 2,106 km (1,309 miles)
Travel time: 31 days
Emperor Nicholas II and his family members in front of Winter Palace in 1906.

Julia is a student from Ufa but now she lives in St. Petersburg and she likes her town very much because it has wonderful museums, parks, roofs it is just amazing.

 Moscow

Received on: 6 Aug, 2013

Distance: 520 km (323 miles)

Travel time: 15 days

Lubyanka Square and Chapel of St. Panteleimon.

Olga sent this old card of Lubyanka square which is better known for former KGB- building.

Received on: 8 May, 2013
Distance: 1,155 km (718 miles)
Travel time: 16 days
Kremlin,  late 19th  and early  20th century

Alina Lives in Moscow and she sent this old view card of Kremlin.
Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow.
Over the centuries, the Kremlin had become the center of Russian state, political and spiritual life. By the late 19th - early 20th century Kremlin was a shining monument to Russia’s history, statehood and culture, and the symbol of Moscow as the first capital of the Russian empire.

Netherlands

Received on: 21 Jun, 2013

Distance: 1,512 km (940 miles)

Travel time: 8 days

In June Yvon sent greetings from Netherlands. It was still cold and rainy and she thought the spring forgot to come.  I hope she enjoyed  the sun and summer heat later.

Received on: 26 Jul, 2013

Distance: 1,478 km (918 miles)

Travel time: 4 days

Bert lives in Holland near German boarder and on his way to German he often sees this beautiful Irsee church, former Benedictine abbey church, now the parish church of Virgin Mary and St. Peter and Paul.



Received on: 27 Jun, 2013
Distance: 1,501 km (933 miles)
Travel time: 4 days

Hennie lives in a small town  called Olst.  I think it was getting warmer in Netherlands because Hennie offers refreshing cool drink, perhaps ice tea. Thank you Hennie, I like it! 

Vilnius, Lithuania


Received on: 24 Jul, 2013
Distance: 899 km (559 miles)
Travel time: 7 days
A bird's-eye view of the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania Dailininke

Egle lives in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. The card is showing the Palace of the Grand Dukes. painted by Vilija Maciulyte (2008).  In July, 2013 the palace opened its south and east wings to the public and it is definitely worth a visit.

Riga, Latvia

The House of Blackheads in Riga 1925

Received on: 30 Jul, 2013

Distance: 638 km (396 miles)

Travel time: 8 days

Madara from Riga sent this old city view from old town Riga. 

The original building was erected during the first third of the 14th century for the Brotherhood of Blackheads, a guild for unmarried German merchants in Riga. Major works were done in the years 1580 and 1886, adding most of the ornaments.  It was destroyed in 1941 and its ruins were completely demolished by the Soviets in 1948, but it finally rose from the ashes in the late 1990s.

Japan

 



Received on: 24 Jul, 2013

Distance: 7,738 km (4,808 miles)

Travel time: 7 days

This card is from Tomoko, Japan showing a lovely lady in traditional Japanase dress, kimono. The kimono is the most popular of the traditional clothes.  There are different types of kimono for different occasions and seasons, including those worn by men. Other than those worn daily by some older people or performers of traditional arts, kimono are a much less common sight these days but are still widely worn on special occasions such as weddings and graduation ceremonies.

Mount Merapi, Indonesia

Received on: 17 Jul, 2013

Distance: 10,441 km (6,488 miles)

Travel time: 24 days

I received this card from Anggara who lives in Bandung, Indonesia. 

The card is showing a dangerous volcano in Central-Java. 

Literally "Mountain of Fire", Mount Merapi is the most active volcano in all Indonesia and it has erupted at least 68 times since 1548. Thousands of people live on the flanks of the volcano, with villages as high as 1,700 meters (5,600 ft) above sea level. Smoke can be seen emerging from the mountaintop at least 300 days a year, and several eruptions have caused fatalities. Its last major eruption in 2010 killed 347 people. 

The volcano is part of the Pacific 'Ring of Fire,' an area of the Pacific known for the deadly underground forces responsible for natural disasters such as volcanoes and tsunamis.

Qutub Minar, Delhi, India

Received on: 24 Jul, 2013

Distance: 6,183 km (3,842 miles)

Travel time: 7 days

My very first card from India! Thank you Aayushi!

Aayushi lives in Mumbai, she likes to read and write poetry. She sent to me this great  card showing the tallest brick minaret in the world.   The tower has 379 stairs,  is 72.5 meters (237.8 ft) high  and has a base diameter of 14.3 meters.  Construction was started in 1192.  Qutub Minar along with its surrounding buildings and monuments are listed in UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The Algonquin hotel, New Brunswick, Canada

Received on: 27 Jun, 2013

Distance: 6,831 km (4,245 miles)

Travel time: 12 days

Penny sent to me this nice card of Algonquin hotel in the town of St. Andrew-By-The-Sea. The Algonquin hotel characterized by its luxurious tudor-style opened in 1899. The resort is renowned for its magnificent landscaping and superb golf course.
To me it looks a little like a castle with towers in the facade. I believe it must be really luxurious inside.

Sugar Loaf, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Received on: 21 May, 2013

Distance: 9,875 km (6,136 miles)

Travel time: 18 days

My first card from Brazil!

Burges lives in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He sent this great, old view of Sugar Loaf  which  is the most famous peak in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is located at the mouth of Guanabara Bay and rises 396 metres (1,299 ft) above the harbor.

The belfry of Bruges, Belgium

Received on: 30 Apr, 2013

Distance: 1,635 km (1,016 miles)

Travel time: 5 days

I received this real vintage card of Bruges from Nicole. She writes : "The card is showing the Belfort  which was very important for the city because it gave the city " city rights". Many tourists visit this city every year."  

The belfry is one of the city's most prominent symbols, it formerly housed a treasury and the municipal archives, and served as an observation post for spotting fires and other danger.

Belarus

Received on: 22 May, 2013
Distance: 1,017 km (632 miles)
Travel time: 6 days

Olia from Minsk sent this postcard which shows two famous Belarusian people - Ragneda and Izyaslav. According to chronicles, Zaslawye was founded in 985 by Vladimir the Great who sent his wife Rogneda  to live here with their son Izyaslav of Polotsk. The town's current name derives from Izyaslav's name.

Received on: 27 Jun, 2013
Distance: 1,017 km (632 miles)
Travel time: 9 days
Dasha also lives in Minsk and her card is showing panorama of the upper town and the river Svisloch. Dasha likes her beautiful, clean and green city very much.

 Received on: 7 Aug, 2013

Distance: 867 km (539 miles)
Travel time: 8 days

From Anastasia I received this beautiful art card. The Belarusian painter Apalinary Harauski ( 1833 - 1900 ) painted  Repentant Mary Magdalene in 1861.  The painting is to be seen in National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus.

New York, New York

 The United Nations and Midtown South, 1989

 The Central Park Reservoir, 1982

Central Park, Autumn, 1981 

 57th Street looking East, 1981

The Chrysler Building and East 42nd Street, 1981

Saint Patrick's  Cathedral, 1981

I want to wake up in that city
That doesn't sleep
And find I'm king of the hill
Top of the heap

Have a nice weekend!
Next two weeks it is time for my official PC cards :)

Arkansas

Paul lives in a small town in Arkansas and he sent me this beautiful scene of the past showing a rusty old hay rake. I love old houses, old rusty farm equiptments, old rusty bicycles old rusty fences, but they also make me sad.

David Francey

Torn Screen Door

"Came across an old farmhouse,

 Standing broken and bare.

It used to be someone's home,

Now no one lives there anymore. 

There's a red barn standing,

Held together with nails and dust,

And a tired old Massey-Harris,

All wires and rust

Weed overgrown in a garden

sown with care

It used to someone's home

Now no one lives there"

Palm Beach and Key West, Florida

 Florida palms silhouetted in a brilliant colored sunset 

In 1993 we got a card from Palm Beach, Florida. Our son's friend Antti was on a vacation in USA with his family. He writes shortly: Here is at least 35 degrees and  we're doing well. G. A. Th.

Key West, Art Deco houses and lighthouse

Earlier in the same year my sister- in- law and her boyfriend made a trip to Fort Lauderdale. From there they drove to Key West. She sent us this card full of small text. Here is a a shorter version:  Here we are on the other side of Atlantic Ocean. The flight took 11 hours but it went surprisingly well. Yesterday we visited Key West and tomorrow we  will go to Cape Kennedy. The weather has been a little bad but it doesn't matter there is so much to see.

Greetings M. and T.

Purcell Mountains, Idaho

 

I got this beautiful card from Hollie, who lives in Idaho Falls on a volcanic plain which is surrouned by 11,000 ft. mountains. Her home region is world famous potatoe country. 

 

The scenery with  wide open fields looks a little like my home region except we don't have such high mountains just fields and forests.  My home region is also famous for its potatoes:)

 

Star Peak, Colorado

Star Peak rises 11, 761 ft. above the Colorado plains near Aspen.

I received this great mountain card from Nancy. Nancy lives near Denver and loves mountains but she is happy the snow has melted. I also love mountains, although sometimes driving on a winding mountain road or climbing up a steep path is a little too much for me :)

Tucson, Arizona

Tucson is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and is surrounded by 5 different mountain ranges. Tucson has average year-round temperature of 82 degrees. It possesses the culture of a collage town and the university of a major metropolitan area. 

I received this card from Alyssa. She  lives in Oro Valley, Arizona -  the Grand Canyon State. Tucson is the second-largest populated city in Arizona  behind Phoenix. The card is showing the central area of her town, with many historical sites but also quite a bit of interesting multicultural shops :) 

Iditarod, Alaska

Alaska Dog Team

 Jesse lives in  Anchorage Alaska and he sent me this great card of  Iditarod dog team mushing the famous race. I like it very much because we had three Samoyed dogs and we took part in few mushing races but not  nearly as hard as Iditarod .  Iditarod is the toughest and longest race on earth and it starts on the first Saturday in March every year in Anchorage and ends about 1,200 miles away in Nome.

Ohio

Columbus celebrates the Fouth of July with a spectacular annual fireworks display.

 

In 2009 we went to Ohio to visit our son and his family in Columbus. We were supposed to visit some Amish regions also, but unfortunately our little granddaughter got fever and flu so we had to forget the plan and leave it for another day. Fortunately, she recovered quickly and we had a lot of fun in Columbus.

 

A few years later I was really happy to receive this Amish Country card from Tanya.

Wheat shocks dot the landscape on an Amish farm near Winesburg, Holmes county, Ohio.

 

 

Tanya lives in Cleveland an she can drive only an hour or two out of the city to visit Amish county and buy their great products and she loves cheese.

 

California

 In 1993 our friends Hemppa and Imppu traveled for a month by car through USA from Niagara to California. They had to change cars three times and 10.7. 1993 it was time to come home.

Our daughter received this card from Lillian also in 1993.  Lillian had been on holiday for two months. She had been in Queensland all November, then Hawaii and LA in December and from there she was going to Las Vegas.  Unfortunately after that she had to go home and start to study :(

Yesterday, after twenty years I received  two cards from California. Kimberly sent greetings from her sunny state. She has lived in California over 20 years but is originally from Texas. She lives about an hour south of LA and about 15 min from the beach!