Germany - Saxony - Chemnitz

Chemnitz from 1953 to 1990 : Karl-Marx-Stadt is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden.

Sent by Silvia from Chemnitz, Germany.

Chemnitz (German: [ˈkɛmnɪts]; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt [kaʁlˈmaʁksˌʃtat] (lit. 'Karl Marx City'); Upper Sorbian: Kamjenica [ˈkamʲɛnʲit͡sa]; Czech: Saská Kamenice) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden, and the fourth-largest city in the area of the former East Germany after (East) Berlin, Leipzig, and Dresden.

The city lies in the middle of a string of cities sitting in the densely populated northern foreland of the Elster and Ore Mountains, stretching from Plauen in the southwest via Zwickau, Chemnitz and Freiberg to Dresden in the northeast, and is part of the Central German Metropolitan Region. Located in the Ore Mountain Basin, the city is surrounded by the Ore Mountains to the south and the Central Saxon Hill Country to the north. The city stands on the Chemnitz River, which is formed through the confluence of the rivers Zwönitz and Würschnitz in the borough of Altchemnitz.

The name of the city as well as the names of the rivers are of Slavic origin. Chemnitz is the third-largest city in the Thuringian-Upper Saxon dialect area after Leipzig and Dresden. The city's economy is based on the service sector and manufacturing industry. Chemnitz University of Technology has around 10,000 students.

Chemnitz is known for its many industrial age buildings and monuments, and is the European Capital of Culture of 2025 (read more).

Coca Cola Ad Card (11)

Vintage Coca Cola advertisement featuring Santa Claus enjoying an "ice-cold Coca Cola", part of the iconic campaign illustrated by Haddon Sundblom.

Sent by Sandy from Arizona, USA.

Belgium - Brussels - Jubelpark / Parc du Cinquantenair

BRUSSELS - JUBELPARK

Sent by Kathleen from Flanders, Belgium.

The Parc du Cinquantenaire (pronounced [paʁk dy sɛ̃kɑ̃t(ə)nɛːʁ]; French for 'Park of the Fiftieth Anniversary') or Jubelpark (pronounced [ˈjybəlˌpɑr(ə)k]; Dutch for 'Jubilee Park') is a large public, urban park of 30 ha (74 acres) in the easternmost part of the European Quarter in Brussels, Belgium.

Most buildings of the U-shaped complex that dominate the park were commissioned by the Belgian Government under the patronage of King Leopold II for the 1880 National Exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Belgian Revolution. During successive exhibitions, more structures were added to the site. The centrepiece memorial arch, known as the Cinquantenaire Arch (French: Arc du Cinquantenaire; Dutch: Triomfboog van het Jubelpark), was erected in 1905, replacing a previous temporary version of the arcade by Gédéon Bordiau. The surrounding 30 ha (74 acres) park esplanade was full of picturesque gardens, ponds and waterfalls. It housed several trade fairs, exhibitions and festivals at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1930, the government decided to reserve the Cinquantenaire for use as a leisure park.

The Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History has been the sole tenant of the northern half of the complex since 1880. The southern half has been occupied by the Art & History Museum (formerly the Cinquantenaire Museum) since 1889, and Autoworld automobile museum since 1986. The Temple of Human Passions by Victor Horta, a remainder from 1896, the Monument to the Belgian Pioneers in Congo from 1921, and the Great Mosque of Brussels from 1978, are located in the north-western corner of the park.

Lines 1 and 5 of the Brussels Metro and the Belliard Tunnel from the Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat pass underneath the park, the latter partly in an open section in front of the arch. The nearest metro stations are Schuman to the west of the park, and Merode immediately to the east (read more).

USA - Tennessee - State Capitol Building

Tennessee State Capitol Building

Nashville, Tennessee.

Sent by Adrienne from Nashville in Tennessee, USA.

The Tennessee State Capitol stands today much as it did when it first opened in 1859, and is a magnificent tribute to the people of Tennessee. This graceful structure was designed by noted architect William Strickland who considered it his crowning achievement. When Strickland died suddenly during construction in 1854, he was buried in the north facade of the Capitol.

The cornerstone for the building was laid on July 4, 1845, and construction finished in 1859. The grounds of the State Capitol contain statues honoring Sam Davis, Sgt. Alvin York, and Presidents Andrew Jackson and Andrew Johnson. The tombs of President and Mrs. James K. Polk are also located on the Capitol grounds (read more).

China - Beijing - Fayuan Temple

The Buddha statue of the Pilu Hall in the Fayuan Temple.

Sent by Nic from China.

Fayuan Temple (Temple of the Origin of the Dharma) is situated in the south of Jiaozi Hutong, Xicheng District of Beijing. With a long history of more than 1,300 years, it is the oldest Buddhist temple in Beijing. In addition, the Buddhist Academy of China and Buddhist Library and Museum of China are located inside, making it an important place to study the Buddhist culture and cultivate young monks. With its time-honored history, distinctive cultural significance as well as the rich historical relics displayed, the temple is greatly appreciated by visitors. In 2000, the Taiwanese writer Li Ao published a novel, "Martyrs' Shrine: the Story of the Reform Movement of 1898 in China" (another name is Beijing Fayuan Si), set right in this temple, which made the temple even more famous. Since then, more and more Buddhist believers as well as tourists come to visit it year after year.

Fayuan Temple was originally built to mourn the dead soldiers by Emperor Taizong (598-649) of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). When finished in 696, Empress Wu Zetian (624-705) gave it the name Minzhong Temple, which means a temple to mourn the late loyal people. However, due to flood, earthquake, war and other damages, the temple has been destroyed, rebuilt, and renamed several times. It was not until the Emperor Yongzheng's throne in the Qing Dynasty (1636-1912) that it was greatly repaired and then renamed as Fayuan Temple, which has been retained to the present day. In fact, since the temple was first built to recall the dead soldiers, there were several loyal people who were associated to it in different dynasties. During the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Xie Fangde (1226-1289), official of the fallen former Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), starved himself to death in the temple as he would not surrender to the new rulers. In the late Qing Dynasty, after the leaders of the Reform Movement in 1898 had been killed, their coffins were stored in this temple for some time. For more than a thousand years, the temple has witnessed the change of history (read more).

LZ 129 Hindenburg

A moment featuring the German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the LZ 129 Hindenburg, during its operational period in the mid-1930s.

Sent by Kerstin from Bavaria, Germany.

LZ 129 Hindenburg (Luftschiff Zeppelin #129; registration: D-LZ 129) was a German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the lead ship of its class, the longest class of flying machine and the largest airship by envelope volume. It was designed and built by the Zeppelin Company (Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH) on the shores of Lake Constance in Friedrichshafen, Germany, and was operated by the German Zeppelin Airline Company (Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei). It was named after Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, who was President of Germany from 1925 until his death in 1934.

The airship first flew from March 1936 as a Nazi propaganda vessel until it burst into flames 14 months later on May 6, 1937, while attempting to land at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in Manchester Township, New Jersey, at the end of the first North American transatlantic journey of its second season of service. This was the last of the great airship disasters; it was preceded by the crashes of the British R38, the US airship Roma, the French Dixmude, the USS Shenandoah, the British R101, and the USS Akron (read more).

Germany - Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - Schwerin

Views of beautiful Schwerin.

Sent by Ann-Kathrin from Schwerin, Germany.

Schwerin (German: [ʃveˈʁiːn]) is the capital and second-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern as well as of the region of Mecklenburg, after Rostock. It has around 96,000 inhabitants, and is thus the least populous of all German state capitals.

Schwerin is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Schwerin (Schweriner See), the second-largest lake of the Mecklenburg Lake Plateau after the Müritz, and there are eleven other lakes within Schwerin's city limits. The city is surrounded by the district of Northwestern Mecklenburg to the north, and the district of Ludwigslust-Parchim to the south. Schwerin and the two surrounding districts form the eastern outskirts of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. The name of the city is of Slavic origin, deriving from the root "zvěŕ" (wild animal) or "zvěŕin" (game reserve, animal garden, stud farm).

Schwerin was first mentioned in 1018 as Zuarina and was granted city rights in 1160 by Henry the Lion, thus it is the oldest city of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. As main residence of the House of Mecklenburg, a dynasty with Slavic roots also known as the Obotrites or Niklotides, Schwerin was the capital of the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1379 to 1815, of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (after the duke was elevated to the title of a grand duke) from 1815 to 1918, of the Free State of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1918 to 1934, of the State of Mecklenburg (after it was merged with the Free State of Mecklenburg-Strelitz) from 1934 to 1952, and of the District of Schwerin from 1952 to 1990 (read more).

Austria - Graz - Hauptplatz

A view of the Hauptplatz in Graz, Austria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Margret from Admont, Austria.

The Hauptplatz (Main Square) and the town hall are the heart of the city. At the centre of the Hauptplatz stands the Archduke Johann fountain.

In brilliant white the bride steps into the square before Rathaus town hall in a cascade of flowers and rice. Just across, a lively hip-hop show. The market stalls offer juices and sausages with mustard – scenes from the heart of the city, the Hauptplatz of Graz, cradled among magnificent buildings crowned by the town hall of Graz. It’s an impressive backdrop for the city’s colourful bustle and focal point for visitors and residents alike. From here you can reach all of the attraction otf Graz in a jiffy (read more). attractio

Austria - Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg

SALZBURG - SALIBURGO - SALZBOURG

A scenic view of Salzburg, Austria with the historic Hohensalzburg Fotress towering above the city's Baroque architecture.

Sent by Flo Salzburg, Austria.

Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Alps mountains.

The town occupies the site of the Roman settlement of Iuvavum. Founded as an episcopal see in 696, it became a seat of the archbishop in 798. Its main sources of income were salt extraction, trade, as well as gold mining. The fortress of Hohensalzburg, one of the largest medieval fortresses in Europe, dates from the 11th century. In the 17th century, Salzburg became a centre of the Counter-Reformation, with monasteries and numerous Baroque churches built. Salzburg has an extensive cultural and educational history, being the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and being home to three universities and a large student population. Today, along with Vienna and the Tyrol, Salzburg is one of Austria's most popular tourist destinations.

Salzburg's historic center (German: Altstadt) is renowned for its Baroque architecture and is one of the best-preserved city centres north of the Alps. The historic center was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996 (read more).

Marilyn Monroe (4) - The Seven Year Itch (1955)

French-release movie poster for the film The Seven Year Itch. It prominently features the iconic image of Marilyn Monroe in a white dress, with the French title "7 ans de réflexion.

Sent by Paige from Maine, USA.

The Seven Year Itch is an American comedy film by Billy Wilder , released in 1955 .

In a style dear to the director, the film begins with a sequence among the Algonquin Indians who gave the name Manhattan to this famous island of New York a few hundred years ago: the warriors bid farewell to their wives and children who are leaving for cooler regions during the great summer heat, and immediately afterwards fall under the spell of young and charming squaws...

Richard Sherman, an executive at a small publishing house specializing in cheap (re)editions with enticing covers, accompanied his wife Helen and son Ricky to the train station for the same reason: they were leaving the New York heat for Maine , much more welcoming in the summer. Barely separated, sensual temptations were already present and menacing, but Richard vowed never to succumb to them, just as he would never succumb to alcohol or cigarettes, following the advice of his wife and doctor (read more).

Remarkable Women #8 - Elizabeth Blackwell

Elizabeth Blackwell - Doctor

Sent by Maddie from Salt LAke City in Utah, USA.

Elizabeth Blackwell (3 February 1821 – 31 May 1910) was an English-American physician, notable as the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Kingdom. Blackwell played an important role in both the United States and the United Kingdom as a social reformer, and was a pioneer in promoting education for women in medicine. Her contributions remain celebrated with the Elizabeth Blackwell Medal, awarded annually to a woman who has made a significant contribution to the promotion of women in medicine.

Blackwell was not initially interested in a career in medicine. She became a schoolteacher in order to support her family. This occupation was seen as suitable for women during the 1800s; however, she soon found it unsuitable for her. Blackwell's interest in medicine was sparked after a friend fell ill and remarked that, had a female doctor cared for her, she might not have suffered so much. Blackwell began applying to medical schools and immediately began to endure the prejudice against her sex that would persist throughout her career. She was rejected from each medical school she applied to, except Geneva Medical College in New York, in which the male students voted in favor of Blackwell's acceptance, albeit as a joke. Thus, in 1847, Blackwell became the first woman to attend medical school in the United States (read more).

MS "Moby Dick"

"Moby Dick", a passenger or tour boat operating in Berlin, Germany. It has a distinctive checkered pattern on its side.

Sent by Carola from Berlin, Germany.

The shiny fish skin with black scales and the large silver caudal fin – even from a distance you can recognize our Moby Dick! Named after one of the most famous aquatic animals in the world, our MS “Moby Dick” attracts everyone’s attention. The unusual adventure ship invites you to one boat trip after another (read more).

Swimwear #17

Bill Medcalf - American Pinup

Sent by Leisa from Marshall in Texas, USA.

Coca Cola Ad Card (10)

Vintage Coca Cola Jigsaw Advertisement.

Sent by Cathy from Alabama, USA.

Germany - Bavaria - Dießen am Ammersee

Dießen am Ammersee

Marienmünster

Sent by Mara from Bavaria, Germany.

Dießen am Ammersee (German pronunciation: [ˈdiːsn̩ ʔam ˈʔamɐˌzeː], lit. 'Dießen on the Ammersee'; Southern Bavarian: Diaßn am Ammasä) is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria in Germany. It is located on the shores of the Ammersee.

Situated in the Bavarian Alpine Foreland the town stretches from the shores of the Ammersee to the forested morainic hills of the Saale and Würm glaciation.

The town area consists of the market town of Dießen (with St. Georgen, Wengen, Ziegelstadel, Bischofsried and Seehof) and the former independent boroughs of Rieden (with Riederau, Bierdorf, Lachen, St. Alban and Romenthal), Dettenschwang (with Oberhausen, Unterhausen, Wolfgrub and Abtsried), Dettenhofen (with Pitzeshofen, Engenried, Hübschenried and Ummenhausen) and Obermühlhausen (with Oberbeuern, Unterbeuern and Schlöglhof) (read more).

USA - Colorado - Coors® Brewing Company

Coors® Brewing Company

Golden, Colorado

A summer view of Golden, Colorado, from Lookout Mountain, Coors Brewing Company, established in 1893, is the world's largest single-site brewery. For a free Coors and Company merchandise catalog, call 1-800-443-8242 or visit website at www.coorsandco.com

Sent by Maria from New Jersey, USA.

The Coors Brewing Company is an American brewery and beer company based in Golden, Colorado. Founded in 1873 by Adolph Coors and Jacob Schueler, it is a subsidiary of Molson Coors. The first Coors brewery in Golden is the largest single brewery operating in the world.

In 1873, German immigrants Adolph Coors and Jacob Schueler from Prussia immigrated to the United States and established a brewery in what was then Golden City, Colorado Territory (now Golden, Colorado), after buying a recipe for a Pilsner-style beer from a Czech immigrant, William Silhan. Coors invested $2,000 in the operation, and Schueler invested $18,000 (read more).

Swimwear #16

Pin Up Girl Square by Edward Fielding.

Sent by Diane from New Mexico, USA.

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

China's World Heritage List

Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing

Sent by Mikaela from Zhengzhou, China.

The Temple of Heaven, founded in the first half of the 15th century, is a dignified complex of fine cult buildings set in gardens and surrounded by historic pine woods. In its overall layout and that of its individual buildings, it symbolizes the relationship between earth and heaven – the human world and God's world – which stands at the heart of Chinese cosmogony, and also the special role played by the emperors within that relationship.

The Temple of Heaven is an axial arrangement of Circular Mound Altar to the south open to the sky with the conically roofed Imperial Vault of Heaven immediately to its north. This is linked by a raised sacred way to the circular, three-tiered, conically roofed Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests further to the north. Here at these places the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties as interlocutors between humankind and the celestial realm offered sacrifice to heaven and prayed for bumper harvests. To the west is the Hall of Abstinence where the emperor fasted after making sacrifice. The whole is surrounded by a double-walled, pine-treed enclosure. Between the inner and outer walls to the west are the Divine Music Administration hall and the building that was the Stables for Sacrificial Animals. Within the complex there are a total of 92 ancient buildings with 600 rooms. It is the most complete existing imperial sacrificial building complex in China and the world's largest existing building complex for offering sacrifice to heaven (read more).