Antigua and Barbuda - Island of Antigua

 

Antigua, West Indies.

The larger island of the nation of Antigua and Barbuda, Antigua boasts 365 beautiful beaches, one for each day of the year. It lies roughly 17 degrees north of the equator in the middle of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean. It is about 14 miles long and 11 miles wide (108 sq. miles). The capital is St. John's.

Sent by Jay from Antigua.

This is from Wikipedia : Antigua, also known as Wadadli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la Antigua — St. Mary of the Old Cathedral. The name Wadadli, comes from the original Amerindian inhabitants, and means approximately "our own". The island's circumference is roughly 87 km (54 mi) and its area 281 km² (108 sq mi). Its population was 80,161 (at the 2011 Census). The economy is mainly reliant on tourism, with the agricultural sector serving the domestic market.

Over 31,000 people live in the capital city, St. John's, at 17°6′N 61°45′W. The capital is situated in the north-west and has a deep harbour which is able to accommodate large cruise ships. Other leading population settlements are All Saints (3,412) and Liberta(2,239), according to the 2001 census.

English Harbour on the south-eastern coast is famed for its protected shelter during violent storms. It is the site of a restored British colonial naval station called "Nelson's Dockyard" after Captain Horatio Nelson. Today English Harbour and the neighbouring village of Falmouth are internationally famous as a yachting and sailing destination and provisioning centre. During Antigua Sailing Week, at the end of April and beginning of May, the annual world-class regatta brings many sailing vessels and sailors to the island to play sports.

 

China - Temple of Heaven : an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing

 

Temple of Heaven (which lists into WCI in 1998).
Locates at Chongwen District, Beijing, the place for Ming and Qing emperor to offer a sacrifice to heaven and pray for harvest.

Sent by Zhang, a postcrosser from Nanjing, China.

This is from UNESCO : The Temple of Heaven is a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world's great civilizations. Its symbolic layout and design had a profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East over many centuries. Furthermore, the legitimacy of the feudal dynasties that for more than 2,000 years ruled over China is symbolized by the design and layout of the Temple of Heaven.

The Altar of Heaven and Earth, together with the wall surrounding the garden, was completed in 1420, the 18th year of the reign of the Ming Emperor Yongle. The central building was a large rectangular sacrificial hall, where sacrifices were offered to heaven and earth, with the Fasting Palace to the south-west. Pines were planted in the precinct of the Temple to emphasize the relationship between humankind and nature. In the ninth year of the reign of Emperor Jiajing (1530) the decision was taken to offer separate sacrifices to heaven and to earth, and so the Circular Mound Altar was built to the south of the main hall, for sacrifices to heaven. The Altar of Heaven and Earth was renamed the Temple of Heaven.

In 1749, the fourteenth year of the reign of the Qing Emperor Qianlong, the Circular Mound was enlarged, the original blue-glazed tiles being replaced with white marble. Two years later renovation work took place at the Hall of Daxiang, and it was given the new name of the Hall of Prayers for Abundant Harvests. This was the heyday of the Temple of Heaven, when it covered 273ha. Ceremonial sacrifices to heaven were banned by the government of the Republic of China in 1911. By that date, 490 years after its foundation, the Temple of Heaven had witnessed 654 acts of worship to heaven by 22 emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was opened as a public park in 1918 and has been so ever since.

The Temple of Heaven was built on a site 3.5 km south-east of the Zhengyang Gate of Beijing. The area that it occupies is almost square, the two southern corners being right-angled and those on the north rounded. This symbolizes the ancient Chinese belief that Heaven is round and the Earth square. It is a spatial representation of Chinese cosmogony on which the political power and legitimacy of the imperial dynasties was based for more than two millennia.

The three principal cult structures are disposed in a line on the central north-south axis. The sacrificial buildings are mainly in the Inner Altar, which is subdivided into two by a wall running east-west, the southern sector, known as the Circular Mound Altar, and the northern, the Altar of the God of Grain. The two altars are connected by an elevated brick path 360 m long, known as the Red Stairway Bridge. The main Temple of Heaven, the Circular Mound, repeats the symbolism of the walls, as the central round feature (Heaven) is inside a square enclosure (Earth). It consists of three circular platforms of white marble, decreasing in diameter, surrounded by balustrades in the same material. Entry to the enclosure is effected by means of a series of monumental gates. There are 360 pillars in the balustrades, representing the 360 days of the ancient Chinese lunar year. The imperial throne would have been set up in the centre of the uppermost platform, symbolizing the role of the Emperor as the Son of Heaven and hence the link between Heaven and Earth. To the north of the Circular Mound is the Imperial Vault of Heaven. It was here that the emperor made offerings before retiring to the Fasting Palace (Palace of Abstinence).

In the north enclosure, the Altar of the God of Grain, the main feature is the Hall of Prayers for Abundant Harvests, which is linked with the Temple of Heaven by the Long Corridor, 440 m long and 25 m wide. In form and materials, the hall repeats the three-tiered circular structure in white marble of the Temple of Heaven. It is surmounted by the hall itself, once again circular in plan, and with three superimposed roofs in blue glazed tiles, from which the emperor offered up prayers for good harvests. It is supported on a massive wooden framework and its interior is richly decorated.

 

Netherlands - Twente

 

Images of Twente.

Sent by Tonny, a postcrosser from Netherlands.

This is from Wikipedia :  Twente (English: Twente or Twenthe, Dutch: Twente, Dutch Low Saxon: Twente or Tweante) is a non-administrative region in the eastern Netherlands. It encompasses the most urbanised and easternmost part of the province of Overijssel. Twente is most likely named after the Tuihanti or Tvihanti, a Germanic tribe that settled in the area and was mentioned by the Roman historian Tacitus.

The region's borders are defined by the Overijssel region of Salland in the northwest and west (the river Regge roughtly defines the western border), the German County of Bentheim in the northeast and east (the river Dinkel roughly defines the eastern border) and theGelderland region of the Achterhoek in the south.

Twente has approximately 620,000 inhabitants, most of whom live in the three largest cities: Almelo, Hengelo and Enschede, the latter being the main city of the region.

Twente comprises fourteen municipalities: Almelo, Borne, Dinkelland, Enschede, Haaksbergen, Hellendoorn, Hengelo, Hof van Twente,Losser, Oldenzaal, Rijssen-Holten, Tubbergen, Twenterand and Wierden.

The whole of Hellendoorn and the western parts of both Rijssen-Holten and Twenterand historically belong to the cultural region ofSalland, but to the city region of Twente.

 

Germany - Free State of Saxony

 

A mapcard of The Free State of Saxony.

Sent by Sven, a postcrosser who lives near Zwickau in Germany.

This is from Wikipedia : The Free State of Saxony (German: Freistaat Sachsen [ˈfʁaɪʃtaːt ˈzaksən]; Upper Sorbian: Swobodny stat Sakska) is a landlockedstate of Germany, bordering Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with (18,413 square kilometres (7,109 sq mi), and the sixth most-populous (4.3 million) of Germany's sixteen states.

Located in the middle of an erstwhile German-speaking part of Europe, the history of the state of Saxony spans more than a millennium. It has been a medieval duchy, an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, a kingdom, a republic from 1918 to 1952 and then again from 1990.

The area of the modern state of Saxony should not be confused with Old Saxony, the area inhabited by Saxons. Old Saxony corresponds approximately to the modern German states of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and the Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia.

 

China - Yunan Province - Shangri-La County

 

Shangri-La County, Yunan Province.

Sent by A-_-Ding, a postcrosser from China.

This is from Wikipedia : Shangri-La (Xamgyi'nyilha) County is a primarily Tibetan county in northwestern Yunnan province, Southwest China and is the location of the seat of the Dêqên Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.

he county was formerly called Zhongdian County (Chinese: 中甸县 Zhōngdiàn Xiàn) but was renamed in 2001 after the fictional land of Shangri-La in the 1933 James Hilton novel Lost Horizon, in an effort to promote tourism in the area. The local Tibetan population previously referred to it by the name Gyalthang, which is the Tibetan name forJiantang Town (建塘镇 Jiàntáng Zhèn), the county seat.


Shangri-La has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dwb), with influences from the monsoon and the high elevation. Winters are chilly but sunny, with nighttime lows often dropping below −15 °C (5 °F), while summers are cool, with daytime highs of around19 °C (66 °F), and feature frequent rain; more than 70% of the annual precipitation is delivered from June to September. Except during the summer, nights are usually sharply cooler than the days. Despite the dryness of the winter, the small amount of precipitation is generally sufficient to cause major transportation dislocations and isolate the area between November and March.

 

Germany - Bonn (1)

 

Bonn by night.

Sent by Iris, a postcrosser who lives near Bonn, Germany.

This is from Wikipedia : Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the riverRhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999. Starting in 1998, many national government institutions were moved from Bonn toBerlin. Both houses of the German national parliament, the Bundestag and the Bundesrat, were moved along with the Chancellery and the residence of the President of Germany.

Bonn remains a centre of politics and administration, however. Roughly half of all government jobs were retained as many government departments remained in Bonn and numerous sub-ministerial level government agencies relocated to the former capital from Berlin and other parts of Germany. In recognition of this, the former capital now holds the title of Federal City ("Bundesstadt").

Bonn has developed into a hub of international cooperation in particular in the area of environment and sustainable development. In addition to a number of other international organizations and institutions, such as, for instance, the IUCN Environmental Law Center (IUCN ELC) the City currently hosts 17 United Nations institutions. Among these are two of the so-called Rio Conventions, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The number of UN agencies in Bonn, most of which are based at the newly established United Nations Campus in the city's former parliamentary quarter on the banks of the Rhine, continues to grow. The most recent agency was started in 2007 in Bonn as the United Nations Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UN-SPIDER).

Bonn is the seat of some of Germany's largest corporate players, chiefly in the areas of telecommunications and logistics. Simultaneously, Bonn is establishing itself as an important national and international centre of meetings, conventions and conferences, many of which are directly related to the work of the United Nations. A new conference centre capable of hosting thousands of participants is currently under construction in the immediate vicinity of the UN Campus.

From 1597 to 1794, it was the residence of the Archbishops and Prince-electors of Cologne, and is the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven (born 1770).

 

Eastern Pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens)

 

Eastern Pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens).

Sent by Elena, a postcrosser from Minsk, Belarus.

This is from Wikipedia : Pulsatilla patens is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to Europe, Russia, Mongolia, China, Canada and the United States. Common names include Eastern pasqueflower, prairie smoke, prairie crocus, and cutleaf anemone.

Advocates report that the population of Pulsatilla patens is declining, due to the synergy between the prairie crocus and shortgrass prairie ecosystems. Plowing up the prairie causes the crocus to disappear.

 

Red Kite (Milvus Milvus)

 

Red kite (Milvus milvus)

Sent by Ann, a postcrosser from Wales, United Kingdom.

This is from Wikipedia : The Red Kite (Milvus milvus) is a medium-large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards, and harriers. The species is currently endemic to the Western Palearctic region in Europe and northwest Africa, though formerly also occurred just outside in northern Iran. It is a rare species which is resident in the milder parts of its range in western Europe and northwest Africa, but birds from northeastern and central Europe winter further south and west, reaching south to Turkey. Vagrants have reached north to Finland and south to Israel and Libya.


The Red Kite is 60–66 cm (24–26 in) long with a 175–179 cm (69–70 in) wingspan; males have a weight of 800–1,200 g (28–42 oz), and females 1,000–1,300 g (35–46 oz). It is an elegant bird, soaring with long wings held at a dihedral, and long forked tail twisting as it changes direction. The body, upper tail and wing coverts are rufous. The white primary flight feathers contrast with the black wing tips and dark secondaries. Apart from the weight difference, the sexes are similar, but juveniles have a buff breast and belly. The call is a thin piping, similar to but less mewling than the Common Buzzard. There is also a rare white leucistic form which accounts for approximately 1% of hatchlings in the Welsh population but is at a disadvantage in the survival stakes.

 

USA - Ohio - Mapcard (2)

 

OHIO
"Buckeye State" Extending 225 miles from east to west and 215 miles from north to south, Ohio's inland location gives the state a continental climate of warm summers and cool winters. Ohio abounds with state parks, forests and other outdoor recreational areas, as well as resorts, beaches, boating and fishing facilities. From farmlands to bustling metropolitan cities, Ohio provides its travellers with beautiful memories of scenic wonders.
Capital : Columbus.
Flower : Scarlet Carnation
Bird : Cardinal
Tree : Ohio Buckeye

Sent by Marica, a postcrosser from Munroe Falls, Ohio, USA.

 

Animals of the North Sea

Animals of the North Sea.

Sent by Kees, a postcrosser from Netherlands.

Bicycles (21)

 

Sent by Sanderyn, a postcrosser from Netherlands.

 

Martta Wendelin (25)

 

Martta Wendelin

Sent by Liisa, a postcrosser from Mikkeli, Finland.

 

Australia - New South Wales - Terrigal

 

NEW SOUTH WALES

Terrigal - Central Coast.

Sent by Vanessa, a postcrosser from New South Wales, Australia.

This is from Wikipedia :  Terrigal is a major coastal suburb of the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, located 12 kilometres (7 mi) east of Gosford on the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the City of Gosford local government area.

Terrigal was first settled in 1826 by European Settler John Gray, who called his property Tarrygal, after the indigenous^[ Aboriginal place name, signifying 'place of little birds'.

The town's long beach is highly popular with tourists. Of geographical significance are the Terrigal lagoons. There are in fact two lagoons at Terrigal, one of which has been filled in to make way for a traffic oval. A local landmark is "The Skillion", a promontory which provides a view of all Terrigal. In recent years the Skillion has undergone rehabilitation by the local city council.

The Skillion is on a preserved area of land known as "The Haven". The Haven is centered by a popular public oval which is home of the "Terrigal Trojans", a Rugby Union club. Their new club house was provided by Gosford City Council. The Haven also has a popular boat ramp which is partnered by a diving club, and a small number of restaurants and cafes (due to tight development restrictions on the area).

In recent years, Gosford City Council has spent approximately $3 million upgrading Terrigal's CBD with a new multi-level car park, esplanade walkway and new stormwater drainage system. As a result of improved infrastructure and increased developer interest, Terrigal has become substantially more urban since the 1970s, when there was only 1 market, 1 medical centre and orchards in the area.

Terrigals growth as a tourist destination and investment opportunity for wealthy individuals, such as holiday homes and small business, has had both positive and negative effects on the area such as the problem of traffic congestion and parking.

Just outside the CBD lie a number of amenities: a recently re-built hotel (2006), a primary school and high school (separate campuses), Catholic School, basketball stadium (used for training by Olympic athletes in the 2000 Sydney Olympics), and a large multi-purpose oval with 3 fields and year-round sporting activities. Not far from the town centre are large shopping centres and freeway (19 km) linked to Sydney(south) and Newcastle (north). The town itself is serviced by Terrigal Drive (to the west), Scenic Highway (to the south) and Ocean View Drive to the north.

 

New Zealand - Animal and Bird Life

 

New Zealand's Animal and Bird Life
New Zealand has many interesting and rare natural and introduced inhabitants, including the Tuatara, with links to the era of dinosaurs, the Kea, the world's only alpine parrot, the Kiwi, a rare and flightless bird and one of our national icons, the Possum, a marsupial introduced from Australia and now proliferating in its new home, and the sub-Antartic fur seal and yellow eyed penguin.

Sent by Glynnis, a postcrosser from New Zealand.

USA - Oklahoma - Native American

 

OKLAHOMA
Each year many of the Native American tribes in Oklahoma host Pow Wow's featuring traditional dress, dances, customs and food.

Sent by Michael, a postcrosser from Tennessee, USA.

 

Ukraine - Mapcard (1)

 

Map of Ukraine.

Sent by Ivan, a postcrosser from Donetsk, Ukraine.

 

United Kingdom - England - Manchester Town Hall

Manchester Town Hall, Manchester, England.
Manchester's Town Hall was designed by architect Alfred Waterhouse in 1877. His Victorian Gothic revival design was chosen out of 136 other proposals due to its ability to fit into the triangular-shaped space allocated to it.

Sent by Albin from Manchester, England.

This is from Wikipedia : Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments.

Designed by architect Alfred Waterhouse the town hall was completed in 1877. The building occupies a triangular site facing Albert Square and contains offices and grand ceremonial rooms such as the Great Hall which is decorated with the imposing Manchester Murals by Ford Madox Brown illustrating the history of the city. The entrance and Sculpture Hall contain busts and statues of influential figures including Dalton, Joule and Barbirolli. The exterior is dominated by the clock tower which rises to 87 metres (285 feet) and houses Great Abel, the clock bell.

In 1938, a detached Town Hall Extension was completed and is connected by two covered bridges over Lloyd Street. The town hall, which was granted Grade I listed building status on 25 February 1952 is regarded as one of the finest interpretations of neogothic architecture in the United Kingdom.