Monday, July 14, 2025

Panama - Panama Canal

Panama Canal.

Sent by Isabelle of Belgium who got this postcard stamped and pre-cancelled in Panama City. As there i no outgoing international mail from Panama, Isabelle had the postcard sent in an envelope from Germany. Thanks Isabelle.

The Panama Canal (Spanish: Canal de Panamá) is an artificial 82-kilometer (51-mile) waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a conduit for maritime trade between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Locks at each end lift ships up to Gatun Lake, an artificial fresh water lake 26 meters (85 ft) above sea level, created by damming the Chagres River and Lake Alajuela to reduce the amount of excavation work required for the canal. Locks then lower the ships at the other end. An average of 200 ML (52,000,000 US gal) of fresh water is used in a single passing of a ship. The canal is threatened by low water levels during droughts.

The Panama Canal shortcut greatly reduces the time for ships to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, enabling them to avoid the lengthy, hazardous route around the southernmost tip of South America via the Drake Passage, the Strait of Magellan or the Beagle Channel. Its construction was one of the largest and most difficult engineering projects ever undertaken. Since its inauguration on 15 August 1914, the canal has succeeded in shortening maritime communication in time and distance, invigorating maritime and economic transportation by providing a short and relatively inexpensive transit route between the two oceans, decisively influencing global trade patterns, boosting economic growth in developed and developing countries, as well as providing the basic impetus for economic expansion in many remote regions of the world (read more).

Iraq - Basra

Basra

Shanashil: A Sustainable Element to Balance Light.

Sent by Essam from Basra, Iraq.

Basra (Arabic: ٱلْبَصْرَة, romanized: al-Baṣrah) or Basrah is a port city in southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq border at the north-easternmost extent of the Arabian Peninsula, the city is situated along the banks of the Shatt al-Arab that empties into the Persian Gulf. It is consistently one of the hottest cities in Iraq, with summer temperatures regularly exceeding 50 °C (122 °F).

Built in 636 as a military camp, Basra played an important role as a regional hub of knowledge, trade and commerce during the Islamic Golden Age and is home to the first mosque built outside the Arabian Peninsula. It was a center of the slave trade in Mesopotamia, until the Zanj rebellion in 871. Historically, Basra is one of the ports from which the fictional Sinbad the Sailor embarked on his journeys. It has experienced numerous ruling shifts. In 1258, the city was sacked by the Mongols. Basra came under Portuguese control in 1526 and was later occupied by the Safavids in 1697. It subsequently fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire as part of the Basra Vilayet. During World War I, British forces captured Basra in 1917. It was incorporated into Mandatory Iraq, under the framework Mandate for Mesopotamia after 1921, which later became the independent Kingdom of Iraq in 1932 (read more).

China - Gansu Province - Mogao Caves

Motifs of the craftsmanship of Sui Dynasty (581-618) in Cave No. 107.

Sent by Han Tong from P.R. China.

Carved into the cliffs above the Dachuan River, the Mogao Caves south-east of the Dunhuang oasis, Gansu Province, comprise the largest, most richly endowed, and longest used treasure house of Buddhist art in the world. It was first constructed in 366AD and represents the great achievement of Buddhist art from the 4th to the 14th century. 492 caves are presently preserved, housing about 45,000 square meters of murals and more than 2,000 painted sculptures. Cave 302 of the Sui dynasty contains one of the oldest and most vivid scenes of cultural exchanges along the Silk Road, depicting a camel pulling a cart typical of trade missions of that period. Caves 23 and 156 of the Tang dynasty show workers in the fields and a line of warriors respectively and in the Song dynasty Cave 61, the celebrated landscape of Mount Wutai is an early example of artistic Chinese cartography, where nothing has been left out – mountains, rivers, cities, temples, roads and caravans are all depicted (read more).

China - Chongqing Province - Dazu Rock Carvings

Partial view of a group of stones sculptures Mount Baoding.

Sent by Han Tong from P.R. China.

The steep hillsides in the Dazu area near Chongqing, contain an exceptional series of five clusters of rock carvings dating from the 9th to 13th centuries. The largest cluster at Beishan contains two groups along a cliff face 7-10m high stretching for around 300m. There are more than 10,000 carvings dating from the late 9th to the mid-12th century which depict themes of Tantric Buddhism and Taoism. Inscriptions give insight to the history, religious beliefs, dating and the identification of historical figures. The late 11thcentury Song dynasty carvings at Shizhuanshan extend over 130m and depict Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian images in a rare tripartite arrangement. The Song dynasty carvings at Shimenshan dating from the first half of the 12th century extend along 72m and integrate Buddhist and Taoist subjects. At Nanshan the Song dynasty carvings of the 12th century extend over a length of 86m and depict mostly Taoist subjects. The culmination in terms of expression of Tantric Buddhism is found in the U shaped gorge at Baodingshan which contains two groups of carvings dating from the late 12th to the mid-13th century near the Holy Longevity Monastery. The very large group to the west stretches for about 500 metres and comprises 31 groups of carved figures depicting themes from Tantric Buddhism as well scenes of herdsmen and ordinary life (read more).

Austria - Vienna - United Nations

UNO City / Vienna

Planning : Architects Johann Stadler.

Sent by Ilona from Vienna, Austria.

This is my second postcard of United Nations Office of Vienna. The first one is here.

Austria - Vienna (3)

VIENNA

Schönbrunn Palace,

Belvedere Palace,

Michaelerplatz,

Hofburg.

Sent by Ilona from Vienna, Austria.

My other postcards of Vienna are here and here.

Germany - Bavaria - Nymphenburg

MUNICH

Nymphenburg Palace and Park

Palace Park. Stone Hall. Cascades.

Mymphenburg Palace. Marstallmuseum.

Amalienburg. Gallery of Beauties

Sent by Nathalie of United Kingdom from her holiday in Munich.

The Nymphenburg Palace (German: Schloss Nymphenburg, Palace of the Nymphs) is a Baroque palace situated in Munich's western district Neuhausen-Nymphenburg, in Bavaria, southern Germany. The Nymphenburg served as the main summer residence for the former rulers of Bavaria of the House of Wittelsbach. Combined with the adjacent Nymphenburg Palace Park it constitutes one of the premier royal palaces of Europe. Its frontal width of 632 m (2,073 ft) (north–south axis) even surpasses Versailles.

The palace was commissioned by the electoral couple Ferdinand Maria and Henriette Adelaide of Savoy to the designs of the Italian architect Agostino Barelli in 1664 after the birth of their son Maximilian II Emanuel. During its construction Barelli was again replaced (1674) by Enrico Zuccalli. The concept for the mythological decorative programme was supplied by the scholar Emanuele Tesauro of Turin; the ceiling paintings were by Antonio Triva and Antonio Zanchi. The central pavilion was completed in 1675. As a building material, it utilised limestone from Kelheim. The palace was gradually expanded and transformed over the years. It then quickly replaced the nearby Blutenburg Castle as major hunting lodge of the court and competed to Schleissheim Palace (read more).

Spain - Castile and León - Zamora

Multiview of Zamora.

Sent by Puri from Spain.

Zamora (Spanish: [θaˈmoɾa]) is a city and municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital of the province of Zamora. The city straddles the Duero river. With its 24 characteristic Romanesque style churches of the 12th and 13th centuries it has been called a "museum of Romanesque art". Zamora is the city with the most Romanesque churches in all of Europe. The most important celebration in Zamora is Holy Week.

Zamora is part of the natural comarca of Tierra del Pan and it is the head of the judicial district of Zamora (read more).

Hong Kong - Choi Hung Estate

Choi Hung Estate is one of the earliest public housing estates in Hong Kong. Despite its long history, its colours have never faded, andits beauty remains.

Sent by Stacey from Sai Wan Ho, Hong Kong.

Choi Hung Estate (Chinese: 彩虹邨; lit. 'rainbow estate') is a public housing estate in Ngau Chi Wan, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was built by the former Hong Kong Housing Authority (屋宇建設委員會) and is now managed by the current Hong Kong Housing Authority. It received a Silver Medal at the 1965 Hong Kong Institute of Architects Annual Awards.

Choi Hung Estate is located in Ngau Chi Wan and is surrounded by several of eastern Kowloon Peninsula's major roads. To the north is Lung Cheung Road; to the south Prince Edward Road East; to the west Kwun Tong Bypass and to the east Clear Water Bay Road.

The Hong Kong government granted the land to the Hong Kong Housing Authority to build a large housing estate in 1958. The blocks of the estate were completed between 1962 and 1964. An opening ceremony was held in 1963 with the presence of then Hong Kong Governor, Sir Robert Brown Black. A signboard commemorating the ceremony is located in the estate's Lam Chung Avenue (read more).

Japan - Shizuoka Prefecture - Sunpu Castle

Sunpu Castle (Higashi-mikado Gate and Tatsumi Tower).

Sent by Maya from Fuefuki City in Japan.

Sunpu Castle (駿府城, Sunpu-jō) is a Japanese castle in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan. The sobriquet of this feudal fortress was the "Castle of the Floating Isle". It was also referred to as Fuchu Castle (府中城, Fuchū-jō) or Shizuoka Castle (静岡城, Shizuoka-jō).

During the Muromachi period, the Imagawa clan ruled Suruga Province from their base at Sunpu (modern-day Shizuoka City). It is not certain exactly when an Imagawa Sunpu castle was built on this site (read more).

Singin' In The Rain (1952)

Sent by Kris from USA.

Singin' in the Rain is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds, and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Rita Moreno and Cyd Charisse in supporting roles. It offers a lighthearted depiction of Hollywood in the late 1920s, with the three stars portraying performers caught up in the transition from silent films to "talkies" (read more).

USA - Alaska - Unalaska - Grand Aleutian Hotel

UNALASKA - PORT OF DUTCH HARBOR
Located 800 miles southwest of Anchorage on Unalaska Island, the Grand Aleutian Hotel is reminiscent of a European chalet and offers a combination of rugged beauty and delightful comfort. Spectacular views of Margaret Bay, Ballyhoo Mountain and Unalaska Bay can be seen from our rooms, and our dining facilities feature the freshest local seafood and cuisine, prepared with an international flair.

Sent by Brett from Grand Aleutian Hotel in Port of Dutch Harbor, Unalaska, USA.

Dutch Harbor is a harbor on Amaknak Island in Unalaska, Alaska. It was the location of the Battle of Dutch Harbor in June, 1942 when the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked it just seven months after the attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. To this day, it remains one of the few sites in the United States to be subjected to an aerial bombardment by a foreign power.

Dutch Harbor is now the home of an important fishing industry.

Druzhinin, the commander of the Russian ship Zakharii I Elisaveta, is credited for discovering the deep-water harbor now known as Dutch Harbor.

Dutch Harbor is located within the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, more precisely on Amaknak Island in the Fox Islands. A mile-long spit extending from the northeast end of Amaknak Island makes Dutch Harbor a natural port, protecting ships from the waves and currents of the Bering Sea, although winds off the Bering Sea have tossed shipments from decks of ships. Dutch Harbor is close to some of the richest fishing in the world, and it is ice-free (read more).

USA - Alabama - U.S. Space and Rocket Center

Huntsville, Alabama.

U.S. Space and Rocket Center.

Sent by Edgar from Alabama, USA.

The U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama is a museum operated by the government of Alabama, showcasing rockets, achievements, and artifacts of the U.S. space program. Sometimes billed as "Earth's largest space museum", astronaut Owen Garriott described the place as, "a great way to learn about space in a town that has embraced the space program from the very beginning."

The center opened in 1970, just after the Apollo 12 Moon landing, the second crewed mission to the lunar surface. It showcases Apollo Program hardware, including the Apollo 16 capsule, and also houses interactive science exhibits, Space Shuttle exhibits, and Army rocketry and aircraft. With more than 1,500 permanent rocketry and space exploration artifacts, as well as many rotating rocketry and space-related exhibits, the center occupies land carved out of Redstone Arsenal adjacent to Huntsville Botanical Garden at exit 15 on Interstate 565. The center offers bus tours of nearby NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.

Two camp programs offer visitors the opportunity to stay on the grounds to learn more about spaceflight and aviation. U.S. Space Camp gives an in-depth exposure to the space program through participant use of simulators, lectures, and training exercises. Aviation Challenge offers a taste of military fighter pilot training, including simulations, lectures, and survival exercises. Both camps provide residential and day camp educational programs for children and adults (read more).

USA - California - Santa Barbara

Palm Park is a highlight of the beautiful Santa Barbara waterfront.

Sent by Debra from Los Angeles, California, USA,

Santa Barbara (Spanish: Santa Bárbara, meaning 'Saint Barbara') is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting Alaska, the city lies between the steeply rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Santa Barbara's climate is often described as Mediterranean, and the city has been dubbed "The American Riviera". According to the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 88,665.

In addition to being a popular tourist and resort destination, the city has a diverse economy that includes a large service sector, education, technology, health care, finance, agriculture, manufacturing, and local government. In 2004, the service sector accounted for 35% of local employment.

Area institutions of higher learning include the University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara City College, Westmont College, and Antioch University Santa Barbara. The city is served by Santa Barbara Municipal Airport and train service is provided by Amtrak, which operates the Pacific Surfliner, which runs from San Diego to San Luis Obispo.

The Santa Barbara area is connected via U.S. Highway 101 to Los Angeles 100 mi (160 km) to the southeast and San Francisco 325 mi (525 km) to the northwest. Behind the city, in and beyond the Santa Ynez Mountains, is the Los Padres National Forest, which contains several remote wilderness areas. Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary are located approximately 20 miles (30 km) offshore (read more).

USA - Utah - Mapcard

Sent by Dawn from Salt Lake City, Utah.

Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, and Nevada to the west. In comparison to all the U.S. states and territories, Utah, with a population of just over three million, is the 13th largest by area, the 30th most populous, and the 11th least densely populated. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two regions: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which includes the state capital, Salt Lake City, and is home to roughly two-thirds of the population; and Washington County in the southwest, which has approximately 180,000 residents. Most of the western half of Utah lies in the Great Basin.

Utah has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups, such as the ancient Puebloans, the Navajo, and the Ute. The first Europeans to arrive – in the mid-16th century – were the Spanish. Because of the region's challenging geography and harsh climate, it only became a peripheral part of New Spain (and later of Mexico). Even while it was Mexican territory, many of the Utah region's earliest European settlers were from the United States; notable among these were Mormons who were fleeing marginalization and persecution in the United States and arrived via the so-called Mormon Trail. In 1848, after the Mexican–American War, the region was annexed by the U.S., becoming part of the Utah Territory, which included what later became Colorado and Nevada. Disputes between the dominant Mormon community and the federal government delayed Utah's admission as a state: in 1896, after it agreed to outlaw polygamy, it was admitted as the 45th state (read more).

USA - Texas - Big Bend National Park (2)

The park protects more than 1,200 species of plants, more than 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals. EST. 1944.

Sent by Karla from Alamo in California, USA.

This is my second postcard of Big Bend National Park. The first one is here.

USA - Tennessee - Nashville's Hot Chicken

SPIRIT OF NASHVILLE

Sent by Heather from Nashville in Tennessee, USA.

Hot chicken (or Nashville hot chicken) is a type of fried chicken that is a local specialty of Nashville, Tennessee, in the United States. In its typical preparation, it is a portion of breast, thigh or wing that has been marinated in a water-based blend of seasoning, floured, fried and finally covered in a paste or sauce that has been spiced with cayenne pepper. This method of preparation originates within African American communities in the Southern United States. A richly pigmented seasoning paste gives the fried chicken its reddish hue. Spice blends, preparation methods and heat intensity vary, depending on the recipe and chef.

It is served atop slices of white bread with pickle chips. It is both the application of a spicy paste and the presentation that differentiates it from similar dishes, such as Buffalo wings. It can be viewed in similar context to other foods that have been tweaked to be unique in a regional way, such as the slugburger or the Mississippi Delta tamale (read more).

Russia - Sverdlovsk Oblast - Yekaterinburg

Yekaterinburg Panorama

Sent by Sophie from Yekaterinburg, Russia.

Yekaterinburg (/jɪˈkætərɪnbɜːrɡ/, yih-KAT-ər-in-burg; Russian: Екатеринбург IPA: [jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk]), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk (Свердловск IPA: [svʲɪrˈdlofsk]; 1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The city is located on the Iset River between the Volga-Ural region and Siberia, with a population of roughly 1.5 million residents, up to 2.2 million residents in the urban agglomeration. Yekaterinburg is the fourth-largest city in Russia, the largest city in the Ural Federal District, and one of Russia's main cultural and industrial centres. Yekaterinburg has been dubbed the "Third capital of Russia", as it is ranked third by the size of its economy, culture, transportation and tourism.

Yekaterinburg was founded on 18 November 1723 and named after the Orthodox name of Catherine I (born Marta Helena Skowrońska), the wife of Russian Emperor Peter the Great. The city served as the mining capital of the Russian Empire as well as a strategic connection between Europe and Asia. In 1781, Catherine the Great gave Yekaterinburg the status of a district town of Perm Province, and built the historical Siberian Route through the city. Yekaterinburg became a key city to Siberia, which had rich resources. In the late 19th century, Yekaterinburg became one of the centres of revolutionary movements in the Urals. In 1924, after the Russian SFSR founded the Soviet Union, the city was renamed Sverdlovsk after the Bolshevik leader Yakov Sverdlov. During the Soviet era, Sverdlovsk was turned into an industrial and administrative powerhouse. On 23 September 1991 the city returned to its historical name (read more).

Russia - Khabarovsk Krai - Komsomolskaya Square

Komsomolskaya Square in Khabarovsk, Khabarovsk Krai, Russia.

Sent by Kate from Khabarovsk, Russia.

Khabarovsk (Russian: Хабаровск [xɐˈbarəfsk]) is the largest city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia located 30 kilometers (19 mi) from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about 800 kilometers (500 mi) north of Vladivostok. As of the 2021 Russian census, it had a population of 617,441. It was known as Khabarovka until 1893.

The city was the administrative center of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia from 2002 until December 2018, when the status was given to Vladivostok. As is typical of the interior of the Russian Far East, Khabarovsk has an extreme climate with strong seasonal swings resulting in strong, cold winters and relatively hot and humid summers (read more).