Finland - Finland Proper - Turku (2)

Images of Turku.

Sent by Kati, a postcrosser from Finland.

This is from Wikipedia : Turku (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈturku]; Swedish: Åbo [ˈoːbu] is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River.It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland. Turku quickly became the most important city in Finland and retained that status for hundreds of years until Finland became part of the Russian Empire in 1809 and the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland was transferred to Helsinki in 1812. After that Turku continued to be the most populous city in Finland until the end of the 1840s. Today Turku remains a regional capital and is an important location for business and culture.

Because of its long history it has been the site of many important historical events and has extensively influenced Finnish history. For the year 2011, Turku has been designated to be the European Capital of Culture together with Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia. In 1996 it was declared the official Christmas City of Finland.

Due to its location, Turku is a notable commercial and passenger seaport city with over three million passengers travelling through Port of Turku each year to Stockholm and Mariehamn.

As of 31 January 2011, Turku’s population was 177,430, which makes it the fifth largest city in Finland by population. As of 31 August 2008 there were 303,492 inhabitants living in the Turku sub-region, which makes it the third largest urban area in Finland after the Greater Helsinki area and Tampere sub-region. The city is officially bilingual as 5.2 percent of its population identify as speaking Swedish as a mother-tongue.

Transnistria - Rybnitsa

View of Rybnitsa city in Northern Transnistria.

Sent by Jaroslav from Rybnitsa, Transnistria.

This is from Wikipedia : Rîbniţa, also spelled Râbniţa (Romanian: Rîbniţa, Râbniţa, Ukrainian: Рибниця, Russian: Рыбница, Rybnitsa) is a city in Transnistria, Moldova. According to the 2004 Census in Transnistria, it has a population of 53,648. Rîbniţa is situated in the northern half of Transnistria, on the left bank of the Dniester, and separated from the river by a concrete dam. The city is the seat of the Rîbniţa sub-district.

Rîbniţa was founded in 1628 as a Moldavian village. As early as 1657, Rîbniţa was mentioned in documents as an important town, at the time part of the Kingdom of Poland. Strong Western European influences can be seen in this formerly Polish town. In 1793, Rîbniţa passed from Poland to Russia.

Rîbniţa is home to Transnistria's largest company, a steel plant which produces more than $500 million worth of exports a year and traditionally has accounted for between 40% to 50% of Transnistria's GDP. Other industries are also present in Rîbniţa, including the oldest sugar plant in Transnistria (founded in 1898), an alcohol distillery, and a cement factory. The city has a large railway station and a river port, as well as a supermarket, "Sheriff".

Canada - Esplanade Riel, Winnipeg

The Esplanade Riel consists of paired bridges that strengthen the connection between The Forks and the St. Boniface French Quarter, as well as a symbolic gateway between two of Winnipeg's most historically significant communities.

Sent by Hillary from Manitoba, Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : The Esplanade Riel is a pedestrian bridge located in Winnipeg, Manitoba designed by Colin Douglas Stewart of Wardrop Engineering and Étienne Gaboury, Architect and completed in 2003. It spans the Red River connecting downtown Winnipeg with St. Boniface. It is paired with a vehicular bridge, Provencher Bridge. The bridge is only one of a few in the world in that it has a restaurant (Salisbury House) on it, giving patrons an excellent view of the river and the bridge's structure. The Esplanade Riel has become a landmark and is used in many promotional materials. The bridge itself is a side-spar cable-stayed bridge. The original drawing, stamped by Colin Douglas Stewart, rests in the Engineering building of the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.

Kleiner Rabe

Kleiner Rabe (little raven). Mouse ask him "Do we change?"

Sent by Ute, a postcrosser from Kiel in Germany.

Macedonia - Mother Theresa

Skopje 1910 - 1997 Calcutta
100 Years After Her Birth

Sent by Ana from Skopje, Macedonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Mother Teresa (26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu (pronounced [aɡˈnɛs ˈɡɔndʒa bɔjaˈdʒiu]), was a Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India in 1950. For over 45 years she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying, while guiding the Missionaries of Charity's expansion, first throughout India and then in other countries. Following her death she was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.

Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu (gonxha meaning "rosebud" or "little flower" in Albanian) was born on 26 August 1910, in Üsküb, Ottoman Empire (now Skopje, capital of the Republic of Macedonia). Although she was born on 26 August, she considered 27 August, the day she was baptized, to be her "true birthday." She was the youngest of the children of a family from Shkodër, Albania, born to Nikollë and Drana Bojaxhiu. Her father, who was involved in Albanian politics, died in 1919 when she was eight years old. After her father's death, her mother raised her as a Roman Catholic. Her father, Nikollë Bojaxhiu (his name means 'painter') was of Kosovar Albanian origin possibly stemming from Prizren, Kosovo while her mother's origin was possibly from a village near Đakovica, Kosovo.

Macedonia - Skopje (3)

Images of Skopje.

Sent by Ana from Skopje, Macedonia.

Macedonia - Skopje (2)

Images of Skopje.

Sent by Ana from Skopje, Macedonia.

Macedonia - Skopje (1)

Images of Skopje.

Sent by Ana from Skopje, Macedonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Skopje (Macedonian: Скопје, [ˈskɔpjɛ]) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. It was known in the Roman period under the name Scupi.

The territory of modern Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC; remains of Neolithic settlements have been found within the old Kale Fortress that overlooks the modern city centre. The settlement appears to have been founded around then by the Paionians, a people that inhabited the region. In 148 BC the city became part of the Roman province of Macedonia, established in 146 BC. When the Roman Empire was divided into eastern and western halves in 395 AD, Skupi came under Byzantine rule from Constantinople. During much of the early medieval period, the town was contested between the Byzantines and the Bulgarian Empire. From 1189 the town was part of the Serbian realm and its capital city since 1346. In 1392 the city was conquered by the Ottoman Turks and they named the town Üsküp. The town stayed under Ottoman control over 500 years. At that time the city was famous for its oriental architecture. In 1912 city was conquered by the Kingdom of Serbia during the Balkan Wars and after the First World War the city became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Kingdom of Yugoslavia). In the Second World War the city was conquered by the Bulgarian Army, which was part of Axis powers. In 1944 it became the capital city of Democratic Macedonia (later Socialist Republic of Macedonia), which was a federal state, part of Democratic Federal Yugoslavia (later Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). The city developed rapidly after World War II, but this trend was interrupted in 1963 when it was hit by a disastrous earthquake. In 1991 it became the capital centre of independent Macedonia.

Skopje is located on the upper course of the Vardar River and is located on a major north-south Balkan route between Belgrade and Athens. According to the 2006 official estimate, it has 668,518 inhabitants and is a center for metal-processing, chemical, timber, textile, leather, and printing industries. Industrial development of the city has been accompanied by development of the trade, logistics, and banking sectors, as well as an emphasis on the fields of culture and sport.

Macedonia - Natural and Cultural Heritage of the Ohrid region

Saint Panteleimon in Ohrid. It is within the area of Ohrid region, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Ana from Skopje, Macedonia.

Writing, education and Slavonic culture - all spread out from Ohrid in the 7th to 19th centuries. It is a cultural centre of great importance for the history not only of this part of the Balkan Peninsula, but also for all nations of the Slavonic tongue and for world history and literature, with precious manuscripts and other rarities. This city and its historic-cultural region are located in a natural setting of exceptional beauty, while its architecture represents the best preserved and most complete ensemble of ancient urban architecture of the Slavic lands.

Ohrid is one of the most ancient human settlements in Europe, containing as it does Neolithic archaeological sites and others from the Bronze Age and the Hellenistic period. With its numerous prehistoric sites and its traces of the material culture of more than 5,000 years ago, Ohrid is indeed an archaeological treasury and the surroundings of the lake can be styled a magical land of archaeology. More than 250 archaeological sites with material remains dating from between the Neolithic period and the late Middle Ages have been excavated.

Within the very heart of the present city of Ohrid lies the antique city of Lichnid, significant and rich, as is its successor. The metamorphosis of ancient Lichnid into medieval Ohrid took from the 6th to the 9th century, creating one of the most significant medieval cities in the Balkans. The Ohrid saga reveals memories of the birth of Slavic literacy and culture in the works of St Clement and St Naum; St Clement is worshipped as a patron of the city: his three decades of work in the city (886-916) initiated the foundation of the Clement Slavic University.

In the old part of the town lying on the hillside below the double ridge of Lake Ohrid, which came into existence in a remote geological period as a result of tectonic shifts, are to be found remains of ancient temples and basilicas as well as numerous churches and chapels, built from the 9th to the 14th centuries.

The ancient Slavonic St Clement's Monastery of St Panteleimon at Plaosnik was resanctified on 11 August 2002 when, after many years, the remains of St Clement of Ohrid, the first Slavic Bishop (893) and founder of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, were returned to this temple.

Archaeological excavations of the cathedral church of St Sophia, which is situated at the foot of the hilly part of Ohrid and close to the lake, show that it was built on the foundations of an early Christian basilica and was reconstructed at the time of Archbishop Leo (1037-56). The name of Theoranius, one of the most important painters of the 14th century, has been discovered on the archangel's sword in the 'Repentance of David' fresco on the first floor in the Church of St Sophia and on painted frescoes and icons for the other churches of Ohrid. The frescoes of St Clement's Church of the Holy Mother of God are primarily distinguished by the artists' obvious tendency towards individual characterization of the portraits and a marked effort to move away from iconographic stereotypes.

On the pillars in the narthex of St Naum two inscriptions are to be found: made by priests, they are valuable documentary evidence of the development of the Glagolitic and Cyrillic scripts in the Ohrid region. The monumental Early Christian Episcopal Church lies in the hilly part of Ohrid. The Church of St John the Evangelist (or Theologian) at Kaneo, built and decorated towards the end of the 13th century, is of great relevance to a study of Ohrid's medieval monuments as it is a highly successful combination of Byzantine and Armenian elements. The other monuments of Ohrid are Samuel's Fortress, with its enceinte of medieval ramparts, and the classical theatre built about 2,000 years ago, either in the late Hellenistic period or shortly after the Roman occupation. The town's architecture represents, with its old typical streets and houses and its particular atmosphere around old squares, the best preserved and most complete ensemble of ancient urban architecture of this part of Europe. (Source)

USA - New York - United Nations - Security Council Chamber

UNITED NATIONS
Security Council Chamber

Sent by Matt, a postcrosser from Chicago, USA.

This is from Wikipedia : The designated Security Council Chamber in the United Nations Conference Building, designed by the Norwegian architect Arnstein Arneberg, was the specific gift of Norway. The mural painted by the Norwegian artist Per Krohg depicts a phoenix rising from its ashes, symbolic of the world reborn after World War II. In the blue and gold silk tapestry on the walls and in the draperies of the windows overlooking the East River appear the anchor of faith, the wheat stems of hope, and the heart of charity.[

Canada - Green Gables House

Green Gables House and the surrounding lands set the scene for the fictional novel Anne of Green Gables, by Canada's celebrated author and local islander Lucy Maud Montgomery. Every year thousands of visitors flock to this quaint Victorian farmhouse to experience what inspired the world famous story.

Sent by Heather from Prince Edward Island, Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : Green Gables is the name of a circa-19th century farm that is located in Cavendish, Prince Edward Island, and is one of the most notable literary landmarks in Canada. The Green Gables farm and its surroundings are the setting for the popular Anne of Green Gables novels by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The site is also known as Green Gables Heritage Centre. A national historic site in its own right, it lies within Prince Edward Island National Park.

The Green Gables farm was owned by the Macneill family, who were cousins of author Lucy Maud Montgomery. The farm's name is derived from the rich dark green paint of the gables on the farmhouse. The main exterior walls of the farmhouse are painted white.

Montgomery visited the farm as a young girl and based her best-selling Anne of Green Gables series of books on the Green Gables farm. She drew romantic inspiration from the house, as well as the surrounding area, including the "Haunted Woods", "Lovers Lane", and "Balsam Hollow."

Upon Montgomery's death, her wake was conducted from the living room of the Green Gables farmhouse for several days prior to her funeral at the local Presbyterian church and burial in the nearby Cavendish Community Cemetery.

Indonesia - Legong Dance's Girl

Dance is a highly developed art form in Bali. Balinese girl in traditional costume is going to perform Legong Dance.

Sent by Shinta from Semarang, Indonesia.

This is from Wikipedia : Legong is a form of Balinese dance. It is a refined dance form characterized by intricate finger movements, complicated footwork, and expressive gestures and facial expressions.

Legong probably originated in the 19th century as royal entertainment. Legend has it that a prince of Sukwati fell ill and had a vivid dream in which two maidens danced to gamelan music. When he recovered, he arranged for such dances to be performed in reality. Others believe that the Legong originated with the sanghyang dedari, a ceremony involving voluntary possession of two little girls by beneficent spirits. Legong is also danced at public festivals. Excerpts from Legong dance dramas are put on for tourists.

Legong dancers are always girls who have not yet reached puberty. They begin rigorous training at about the age of five. These dancers are regarded highly in the society and usually becomes wives of royal personages or wealthy merchants.

Classical Legong enacts several traditional stories. The most common is the tale of the King of Lasem from the Malat, a collection of heroic romances. He is at war with another king, the father (or brother) of Princess Ranjasari. Lasem wants to marry the girl, but she detests him and tries to run away. Becoming lost in the forest, she is captured by Lasem, who imprisons her and goes out for a final assault against her family. He is attacked by a monstrous raven, which foretells his death.

The dramatics are enacted in elaborate and stylized pantomime. The two little actresses are accompanied by a third dancer called a tjondong or attendant. She sets the scene, presents the dancers with their fans and later plays the part of the raven.

Indonesia - Bali (1)

Elaborate offering are brought to the temple of festival days.

Sent by Shinta from Semarang, Indonesia.

USA - Louisiana - New Orleans Cemetery (Cities of The Dead)

CITIES OF THE DEAD
New Orleans, Louisiana.
Often called "Cities of the Dead", these unusual and unique burial vaults are all built above ground to escape intrusion by the high water table in this area.

Sent by Arthur, a postcrosser from New Orleans, USA.

France - Metz Cathedral

METZ
Metz Cathedral or St. Stephen's Cathedral or Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Metz.

Sent by Sylvie, a postcrosser from Metz in France.

This is from Wikipedia : Metz Cathedral or St. Stephen's Cathedral in Metz (Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Metz) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Metz, in the département of Moselle, France. It is the seat of the Bishop of Metz. It was formed in the 14th century by joining together two churches: the nave of Saint-Etienne, built in the 13th century, was attached to the north side of an older Romanesque church. It is sited in the heart of the city, on the Place d'Armes, where it provides a focal point for the city centre.

In the 15th century, a transept and a choir were added. This nave, at 41.41 meters, is the third highest in France. Only Beauvais Cathedral and Amiens Cathedral have higher naves.

France - Canal Saint-Martin

PARIS AND ITS WONDERS
Saint-Martin Canal.

sent by lmc, a postcrosser from Paris, France.

This is from Wikipedia : Canal Saint-Martin is a 4.5 km long canal in Paris. It connects the Canal de l'Ourcq to the river Seine.

The entrance of the canal is a double lock near Place de Stalingrad. Then, towards the river Seine, the canal is bordered by the quai de Valmy on one side and the quai de Jemmapes on the other. The canal continues to the Seine via the Port de l'Arsenal.

Construction of the canal was ordered by Napoleon I in 1802, in order to create an artificial waterway for supplying Paris with fresh water to support a growing population and to help avoid diseases such as dysentery and cholera.

Gaspard de Chabrol, prefect of Paris, proposed to build a canal from the river Ourcq (starting 100 km northeast of Paris). The canal was dug from 1802 to 1825, funded by a new tax on wine. The canal was also used to supply Paris with food (grain), building materials, and other goods, carried on canal boats. Two ports were created in Paris on the canal to unload boats: Port de l'Arsenal and Bassin de la Villette.

By the 1960s, traffic had dwindled to a trickle and the canal narrowly escaped being filled in and paved over for a highway. Today, the canal is covered from Rue du Faubourg du Temple to the Place de la Bastille.

In late December 2006, 350 tents were put on the Canal Saint-Martin by the NGO Les Enfants de Don Quichotte, in support of the "right to lodging" (Droit au logement). The NGO invited well-lodged people to sleep a night in the tent, alongside homeless people. The NGO Médecins du monde (MDM) had taken the initiative, in 2005, to give tents to all homeless people in Paris, in order to provide them with minimal privacy and to make misery visible. But the prefecture of police, under orders of Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, was progressively expelling homeless people camping in Paris. Thus, the Enfants de Don Quichotte's action attracted attention to this expulsion. In the context of the 2007 presidential election, Jacques Chirac announced that the "opposable right to lodging" would be enacted into law before the end of his term.

Russia - Historic and Architectural Complex of the Kazan Kremlin

The sight of the Kazan Kremlin (Kul Sharif Mosque in front). It is part of Historic and Architectural Complex of the Kazan Kremlin, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Meriam from Russia.

The complex of the Kazan Kremlin and its key monuments represents exceptional testimony of historical continuity and cultural diversity over a long period, resulting in an important interchange of values generated by the different cultures. It is exceptional testimony of the khanate and is the only surviving Tatar fortress with traces of the original town-planning conception. It is, furthermore, an outstanding example of a synthesis of Tatar and Russian influences in architecture, integrating different cultures (Bulgar, Golden Horde, Tatar, Italian and Russian), as well as showing the impact of Islam and Christianity.

Kremlin Hill was a fortified trading settlement surrounded by moats, embankments, and a stockade. A stone fortress was built in the 12th century and the town developed as an outpost on the northern border of Volga Bulgaria. It was demolished by the Mongols and a citadel was built as the seat of the Prince of Kazan. By the 15th century, the town had become the capital of the Muslim Principality of Bulgaria, with administrative, military, and trading functions. The inner space of the Kremlin is a medieval fortress containing buildings dating from the 16th-19th centuries

The fortifications, in stone and brick, were built in stages. In 1556-62 the masters of Pskov, headed by Postnik Yakovlev and Ivan Shiryai, generally replicated the earlier Tatar fortifications. There were originally 13 fortress towers, but some were pulled down in the 19th century.

The Governor's Palace complex, on the site of the Kazan Khan's palace, was built in 1845-48 to the design of the architect of the Church of Christ the Saviour and the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow. It comprises the brick two-storey main block and a low semicircle of outhouses. The symmetrical facade has motifs of late Russian Classicism, also found in the interior decoration. The 17th century Palace Church was refurbished and rededicated to the Descent of the Holy Spirit in 1852. Syuyumbeki's Tower is the architectural symbol of the city: its name goes back to a Tatar tsarina, wife of the last two khans of Kazan.

The Annunciation Cathedral complex evolved from the 16th century as the centre of the Orthodox Church administration. The cathedral is the largest construction of the Kremlin, built in 1561-62 as a five-dome, six-pillar, three-apse church with two chapels connected by a porch. In the 1930s the bell tower, the west porch and the domes were pulled down. The Bishop's House was built in 1829.

The Public Offices complex, including the three-storey Guard House, is situated in the south-eastern part of the Kremlin and has evolved historically as an administrative centre. The facades were rebuilt in the 1840s. The facades have sparse ornamentation, large windows, and a low-pitched roof. Comprehensive renovation work was carried out in 1998.

The Saviour-Transfiguration Monastery complex is situated next to the Spasskaya Tower, and the construction started in 1557. It was the centre of missionary work and the burial grounds for prelates, respected citizens, and nobility of Kazan. The cathedral in the centre of the area was built in 1595-1601 and demolished in the 1920s. The church of St Nicholas the Thaumaturgist and its refectory was rebuilt in 1815. The ground floor is in white stone.

The Cadets' School complex, built in the 19th century on the site of a mosque and a monastery, consists of two schools and the former barracks. It was originally two storeys high but a third floor was added in the Soviet period. The Riding School was erected in the 1880s, with a suspended ceiling.

The Artillery Cannon Foundry was built on the site of a military depot and the building of the khan's guards. The main building was rebuilt to correspond with the new orientation of the Great Street, following the 1768 plan. The cannon works was one of the largest in Russia: it was constructed to the design of the engineer Bétancourt. From 1825 to 1837 the former arsenal and foundry were refurbished as a school. (Source)

Desire and Gratification (The Appeasing)

Desire and Gratification (The Appeasing), 1893
Jan Toorop (Dutch, 1858 - 1928)
Oil on canvas, 30 x 35-1/2 in.
Musée d'Orsay, Paris, RF 36166.

Sent by Sarah, a postcrosser from Massachusetts, USA.

This is from Wikipedia : Jean Theodoor Toorop (20 December 1858 – 3 March 1928), better known as Jan Toorop, was an Indo (Javanese Dutch) painter, whose works straddle the space between the Symbolist painters and Art Nouveau.

Jean Theodoor Toorop was born on 20 December 1858 in Purworejo, Java, Dutch East Indies. In 1872, he moved with his family to the Netherlands, where he studied in Delft and Amsterdam. In 1880 he became a student at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam. From 1882 to 1886 he lived in Brussels, where he joined Les XX (Les Vingts), a group of artists centred around James Ensor. Toorop worked in various different styles during these years, such as Realism, Impressionism Neo-Impressionism and Post-Impressionism.

After his marriage to an English woman, Annie Hall, in 1886, Toorop alternated his time between The Hague, England and Brussels, and after 1890 also the Dutch seaside town of Katwijk aan Zee. During this period he developed his own unique Symbolist style, with dynamic, unpredictable lines based on Javanese motifs, highly stylised willowy figures, and curvilinear designs.

Thereafter he turned to Art Nouveau styles, in which a similar play of lines is used for decorative purposes, without any apparent symbolic meaning. In 1905 he converted to Catholicism and began producing religious works. He also created book illustrations, posters, and stained glass designs.

Throughout his life Toorop also produced portraits, in sketch format and as paintings, which in style range from highly realistic to impressionistic.

Toorop died on 3 March 1928 in The Hague, Netherlands. His daughter Charley Toorop (1891–1955) was also a painter, as was his grandson Edgar Fernhout.

China - Ancient Capital City Xi'an

Ancient Capital City - Xi'an.

Sent by Grace, a postcrosser from Nanjing in China.

This is from Wikipedia : Xi'an (Chinese: 西安; pinyin: Xī'ān) is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty. Xi'an is one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China, having held that position under several of the most important dynasties in Chinese history, including Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang. Xi'an is the eastern terminus of the Silk Road and home to the Terracotta Army.

Since the 1990s, as part of the economic revival of interior China especially for the central and northwest regions, the city of Xi'an has re-emerged as an important cultural, industrial and educational centre of the central-northwest region, with facilities for research and development, national security and China's space exploration program.

The two Chinese characters "西安" in the name Xi'an literally mean "Western Peace", whilst the pronunciation in the local Xi'anese dialect is almost the same as the Standard Mandarin pronunciation based on Hanyu Pinyin. Throughout history the city's name has often changed. At the time of the Zhou Dynasty, from around 1046 BCE it was called "Fenghao" (沣鎬) then renamed Chang'an, meaning "Perpetual Peace", during the Han Dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE). It changed in 581 CE to Daxing (大興) during the Sui Dynasty then again became Chang'an from 618 CE during the Tang Dynasty. During the Yuan Dynasty (1270-1368 CE), the city was first given the name Fengyuan (奉元), followed by Anxi (安西) then Jingzhao (京兆). It finally became Xi'an in the year 1369 CE at the time of the Ming Dynasty. This name remained until 1928, then in 1930 it was renamed Xijing (西京), or "Western Capital". The city's name once again reverted to its Ming-era designation of Xi'an in the year 1943.

Xi'an is abbreviated in Chinese to either Hao or Tang (唐). The former abbreviation is derived from the Zhou Dynasty name Haojing, whilst the latter comes from the name of the Tang Dynasty.

Australia - Darwin

DARWIN
Northern Territory, Australia.
Sunset, Cullen Bay, Aerial, Berry Spring.

Sent by Gloria from Northern Territory, Australia.

This is from Wikipedia : Darwin (pronounced /ˈdɑrwɨn/) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 124,800, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities. It is the smallest and most northerly of the Australian capital cities, and acts as the Top End's regional centre.

Darwin has grown from a pioneer outpost and small port into one of Australia's most modern and multicultural cities. Its proximity to Asia makes it an important Australian gateway to countries such as Indonesia and East Timor. The Stuart Highway begins in Darwin, ending at Port Augusta in South Australia.

The city itself is built on a low bluff overlooking the harbour. Its suburbs spread out over some area, beginning at Lee Point in the north and stretching to Berrimah in the east—past Berrimah, the Stuart Highway goes on to Darwin's satellite city, Palmerston, and its suburbs.

The region, like the rest of the Top End, has a tropical climate, with a wet and a dry season. It receives heavy rainfall during the Wet, and is well-known for its spectacular lightning.

The original inhabitants of the greater Darwin area are the Larrakia people. On 9 September 1839, HMS Beagle sailed into Darwin harbour during its surveying of the area. John Clements Wickham named the region "Port Darwin" in honour of their former shipmate Charles Darwin, who had sailed with them on the ship's previous voyage which had ended in October 1836. The settlement there became the town of Palmerston in 1869, and was renamed Darwin in 1911.

Having been almost entirely rebuilt twice, once due to Japanese air raids during World War II, and again after being devastated by Cyclone Tracy in 1974, the city is one of Australia's most modern capitals.

Netherlands - Kinderen (Children)

Kinderen or children. Two Dutch children wearing national costumes.

Sent by Manfred and Linda from the Netherlands.

Philippines - El Nido, Palawan

EL NIDO, PALAWAN
A perfect tropical gateway; a dream destination for the adventurous tourist.

Sent by Godfrey from Sarangani Province in the Philippines.

This is from Wikipedia : El Nido (officially the Municipality of El Nido) is a first class municipality and managed resource protected area in the province of Palawan in the Philippines. It is about 420 kilometres (260 mi) southwest of Manila, and about 238 kilometres (148 mi) northeast of Puerto Princesa, Palawan’s capital.

The municipality, covering a land area of 465.1 square kilometres (179.6 sq mi) in the northernmost tip of mainland Palawan, is bordered by the Linapacan Strait in the north, the Sulu Sea in the east, and the South China Sea in the west. It is composed of 45 islands and islets, each has its own unique geological formations. The highest peak is at Cadlao Island, towering up to 640 metres (2,100 ft) above sea level.

Together with Sulu Archipelago, Sabah, and South China Sea, El Nido, being part of Palawan, is located in the tectonically active and seismically active Sunda Plate, a plate that is entirely separate from the Philippine Mobile Belt to which the rest of the Philippines belongs. The Permian to Paleogene rocks and limestone cliffs of El Nido are similar to those that can be found in Ha Long Bay in Vietnam, Guilin in China, as well as Krabi in Thailand, all of which are part of the Sunda Plate.

Philippines - Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras

BATAD RICE TERRACES
Batad, Banaue, Ifuago
Batad's amphitheater-like terraces was carved by Ifuago's indigenous people more than 2,000 years ago. It is tagged as one of the wonders of the modern world and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Godfrey from Sarangani Province in the Philippines.

The rice terraces of the Philippines Cordilleras are living cultural landscapes devoted to the production of one of the world's most important staple crops, rice. They preserve traditional techniques and forms dating back many centuries, still viable today. At the same time they illustrate a remarkable degree of harmony between humankind and the natural environment of great aesthetic appeal, as well as demonstrating sustainable farming systems in mountainous terrain, based on a careful use of natural resources.

They are the only monuments in the Philippines that show no evidence of having been influenced by colonial cultures. Owing to the difficult terrain, the Cordillera tribes are among the few peoples of the Philippines who have successfully resisted foreign domination and preserved their authentic tribal culture. The history of the terraces is intertwined with that of its people, their culture, and their traditional practices.

The terraces are the only form of stone construction from the pre-colonial period. The Philippines alone among south-east Asian cultures is a wholly wood-based one: unlike Cambodia, Indonesia, or Thailand, in the Philippines both domestic buildings and ritual structures such as temples and shrines were built from wood, a tradition that has survived in the terrace hamlets. Terracing began in the Cordilleras some 2,000 years ago, although scholars disagree about its original purpose. It is evidence of a high level of knowledge of structural and hydraulic engineering on the part of those who built the terraces. The knowledges and practices, supported by rituals, involved in maintaining the terraces are transferred orally from generation to generation, without written records. Taro was the first crop when they began to be used for agriculture, later to be replaced by rice, which is the predominant crop today.

The terraces are situated at altitudes between 700 m and 1,500 m above sea level. There are four clusters of the best preserved terraces in the region, with its basic elements of a buffer ring of private forests (muyong ), terraces, village and sacred grove. Terraced rice fields are not uncommon in Asia. To contain the water needed for rice cultivation within the paddies, even gently rolling terrain must be terraced with stone or mud walls. High-altitude paddies must be kept wet and have to rely upon a man-made water-collecting system. The principal differences between the Philippines terraces and those elsewhere are their higher altitude and the steeper slopes. The high-altitude cultivation is based on the use of a special strain of rice, which germinates under freezing conditions and grows chest-high, with non-shattering panicles, to facilitate harvesting on slopes that are too steep to permit the use of animals or machinery of any kind.

Construction of the terraces is carried out with great care and precision. An underground conduit is placed within the fill for drainage purposes. The groups of terraces blanket the mountainsides, following their contours. Above them, rising to the mountain-tops, is the ring of private woods (muyong ), intensively managed in conformity with traditional practices, which recognize a total ecosystem which assures an adequate water supply to keep the terraces flooded. Water is equitably shared, and no single terrace obstructs the flow on its way down to the next terrace below. There is a complex system, of dams, sluices, channels and bamboo pipes, communally maintained, which drain into a stream at the bottom of the valley.

The villages or hamlets are associated with groups of terraces, and consist of groups of single-family tribal dwellings which architecturally reproduce the people's spatial interpretation of their mountain environment. A steeply pitched thatched pyramidal roof covers a wooden one-room dwelling, raised above the ground on four posts and reached by a ladder which is pulled up at night. Clusters of dwellings form small hamlets of interrelated families, with a centrally located ritual rice-field as their focus. This is the first parcel to be planted or harvested; its owners makes all the agricultural decisions for the community, manages its primary ritual property, which includes a granary housing carved wooden gods, and the basket reliquary in which portions of consecrated sacrifices from all agricultural ceremonial rites are kept. A short distance from the cluster of dwellings is the ritual hill, usually marked by a grove of sacred betel trees round a hut or open shed where the holy men live and carry out traditional rites. (Source)

Philippines - Manila City Hall

MANILA CITY HALL
The seat of City's government, built in 1930's, it is one of Manila's most distinctive landmarks.

Sent by Godfrey from Sarangani Province in the Philippines.

This is from Wikipedia : The Manila City Hall is one of the distinct landmarks in the capital city of Manila, in the Philippines. The edifice, with its hexagonal tower with three red-faced clock on three of its facets, received unfavorable reviews in its initial years because of its austere architectural design, lack of entrances and the placement of the clock tower. The building's floor plan had been dismissed as similar in shape to a coffin or, in the other end, like the shield of Knights Templar. Nowadays, many critics praise the design of the City Hall for the same reasons the complex was vilified. The building is located in the center of tourism area where major government buildings and landmarks, are located. The National Museum, Museum of the Filipino People and the Department of Tourism are located just south of the city hall. Rizal Park, the largest city park in the country is just south of the museums. The city hall is also located just outside the oldest and most historic part of the city of Manila - the walled city of Intramuros. .

Designed and planned by Antonio Toledo.

The clock tower has become a trademark for Manila and the city hall. At nighttime, the tower is illuminated with its details highlighted by beautiful lighting. Every hour, the bell is rung three times followed by a melody. It is recognized as the largest clock tower in the Philippines.

Tristan da Cunha - Settlement of Edinburgh

VIEWS OF TDC SETTLEMENT :
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas, Potato Patches, Welcome Sign & 1961 Volcano.

Sent by Tristan da Cunha's Post Office.

This is from Wikipedia : Tristan da Cunha is a remote volcanic group of islands in the south Atlantic Ocean and the main island of that group. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying 2,816 kilometres (1,750 mi) from the nearest land, South Africa, and 3,360 kilometres (2,088 mi) from South America. Tristan da Cunha is said to be the "most remote inhabited location on Earth." The territory consists of the main island of Tristan da Cunha itself, which measures about 11.27 kilometres (7.0 mi) across and has an area of 98 square kilometres (37.8 sq mi), along with the uninhabited Nightingale Islands and the wildlife reserves of Inaccessible Island and Gough Island. It has a permanent population of 275 (2009 figures).

Tristan da Cunha is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which also includes Saint Helena 2,430 kilometres (1,510 mi) to its north, and equatorial Ascension Island even farther removed, grouping the British South Atlantic islands into one far-flung centrally administered aggregate.

Netherlands - Birds of the North Sea

Birds of the North Sea.

Sent by Daisy from the Netherlands.

Germany - Mannheim

MANNHEIM

Sent by Beverley, a postcrosser from Germany.

This is from Wikipedia : Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 311,350 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart.

Mannheim is located at the confluence of the Rhine River and the Neckar River in the northwestern corner of Baden-Württemberg. The Rhine separates Mannheim from the city of Ludwigshafen, just to the west of it in Rhineland-Palatinate. The border of Baden-Württemberg with the Bundesland of Hesse is just north of Mannheim, and Mannheim is just downstream along the Neckar from the city of Heidelberg. Mannheim is the largest city of the Rhine Neckar Area, a metropolitan area with about 2.4 million inhabitants.

Mannheim is rather unusual among German cities in that the streets and avenues of Mannheim's central area are laid out in a grid pattern, just like most North American and Australian cities and towns are. Because of this, the city's nickname is "die Quadratestadt" (the German word for "city of the squares"). One main route through the streets and avenues runs by a large 18th century palace, the Mannheim Palace. This former home of the rulers of the Palatinate now houses part of the University of Mannheim.

The civic symbol of Mannheim is der Wasserturm (the water tower), an old tower that is located just east of the city's center.

Mannheim is also the location of both the start and the finish of Bertha Benz Memorial Route.