October 31, 2015

2002 UNITED STATES (Tennessee) - Shiloh National Military Park


Shiloh National Military Park preserves the American Civil War Shiloh and Corinth battlefields. Its main section is in the town of Shiloh, about 14km south of  Savannah, Tennessee, with an additional area located in the city of Corinth, Mississippi, 37km southwest of Shiloh. The Log Cabin from the postcard is the only house on the reservation that was there at the time of the battle. Bullet holes are still noticeable in the logs.

2001 GERMANY (Hamburg) - Krameramtsstuben


The Krameramtsstuben (Grocers' Apartments) are historic buildings on Krayenkamp, near St. Michaelis Church in the Neustadt district, at the time just included within the fortified ramparts of Hamburg. Formerly homes for widows of members of the Grocers’ Institute (Krameramtswohnungen), the 1620 to 1700 built, timber-framed buildings form the last of the 17th century enclosed courtyards of Hamburg.

October 30, 2015

2000 FRANCE (TAAF) - Kerguelen shags gazing at the vessel Marion Dufresne from the coast of Grande Terre (Kerguelen Islands)


The Kerguelen Islands, also known as the Desolation Islands, are a group of islands in the southern Indian Ocean which is part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (French: Territoire des Terres australes et antarctiques françaises - TAAF). It is among the most isolated places on Earth, being located at more than 3,300km away from the nearest populated location. The main island, Grande Terre, is surrounded by a further 300 smaller islands and islets, forming an archipelago slightly smaller than Puerto Rico.

1999 CANADA (Quebec) - The Olympic Stadium in Montreal



Built in the mid-1970s as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics, the Olympic Stadium in Montreal is nicknamed "The Big O", a reference to both its name and to the doughnut-shape of the permanent component of the stadium's roof. It is also called "The Big Owe" to reference the astronomical cost of the stadium and the 1976 Olympics as a whole. After the Olympics, artificial turf was installed and it became the home of Montreal's professional baseball and football teams.

1998 ROMANIA (Olt) - The Park Constantin Poroineanu in Caracal


Located in Oltenia, on the plains between the lower reaches of the Jiu and Olt rivers, about 40km north of the Danube River, Caracal is typical for the lowland towns. Among the most interesting objectives of the city is the Park Constantin Poroineanu, one of the most beautiful natural parks in Romania, the third largest natural park in Europe. Its name comes from the landowner who donated to the town a pond in 1893, in order to build a park, compensating also the landowners in the area. Later, he donated his entire fortune to the town.

October 29, 2015

1997 SPAIN (Navarre) - Running of the bulls in Pamplona


Located in the middle of Navarre in a rounded valley, known as the Basin of Pamplona, that links the mountainous North with the Ebro valley, Pamplona or Iruña is the historical capital city of Navarre, and of the former Kingdom of Navarre. The city is famous worldwide for the running of the bulls (el encierro) during the San Fermín festival, which is held annually from July 6 to 14. This festival was brought to literary renown with the 1926 publication of Ernest Hemingway's novel The Sun Also Rises.

1996 GUERNSEY (Sark) - Sark Island


The third largest of the islands that form the Bailiwick of Guernsey, Sark has an area of 5.44 sq. km and consists of two main parts, Greater Sark and Little Sark, connected by a isthmus called La Coupée. It also exercises jurisdiction over the island of Brecqhou, only a few hundred meters west of Greater Sark. It is a private island, but it has recently been opened to some visitors.

October 28, 2015

1993 FRANCE (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) - Funiculaire de Saint-Hilaire du Touvet


Saint-Hilaire du Touvet is a commune situated on the Plateau des Petites Roches, a natural balcony above the valley of the Isère River, on the east side of the Massif de la Chartreuse and overlooked by the peak of the Dent de Crolles. It is linked to Montfort, situated on the road between Grenoble and Chambéry in the valley below, by a funiculaire. Until this was opened in 1924, the village was accessible only on foot, or by mule.

1992 UNITED STATES (Kentucky) - Kentucky map


Bordered by West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, Kentucky is situated in the Upland South. Its northern border is formed by the Ohio River and its western border by the Mississippi River. Originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 Kentucky became the 15th state to join the Union. It is known as the "Bluegrass State", a nickname based on the bluegrass found in many of its pastures due to fertile soil. One of the major regions in Kentucky is the Bluegrass region in central Kentucky which houses two of its major cities, Louisville and Lexington, and also the capital city, Frankfort.

October 27, 2015

1991 CZECH REPUBLIC - The gray wolf


The gray wolf (Canis lupus) is a canid native to the wilderness and remote areas of North America and Eurasia, which is distinguished from other Canis species by its larger size. Its winter fur is long and bushy, and predominantly a mottled gray in color, although nearly pure white, red, or brown to black also occur. It is a social animal, travelling in nuclear families consisting of a mated pair, accompanied by the pair's adult offspring.

1990 AUSTRIA (Lower Austria) - The life size reproduction of Venus von Willendorf

1990 The life size reproduction
of Venus von Willendorf

The Venus of Willendorf, now known in academia as the Woman of Willendorf, is a 11.1cm high statuette of a female figure estimated to have been made between about 28,000 and 25,000 BCE (in Old Stone Age). It was found in 1908 during excavations conducted by archaeologists Josef Szombathy, Hugo Obermaier and Josef Bayer at a paleolithic site near Willendorf, a hamlet which now is part of Aggsbach, near the town of Krems.

1989 BRUNEI - Zapin Dance


Like neighbouring countries, Brunei is a Malay-dominated country. Many cultural and linguistic differences make Brunei Malays distinct from the larger Malay populations in nearby Malaysia and Indonesia, even though they are ethnically related and share the Muslim religion. The Malay population are known for the Jipin or Zapin dance, performed by six men and women, accompanied by instruments that include the  gambus dan biola, dombak and rebana. Gongs like the Kulintangan (a set of small gongs), duck gongs and other styles are played.

October 26, 2015

1988 CHINA - A Small Southern Town


The concepts of northern and southern China originate from differences in climate, geography, culture, and physical traits; as well as several periods of actual political division in history. For a large part of Chinese history, the North was economically more advanced than the South. The Jurchen and Mongol invasion caused a massive migration to South, and the Emperor shifted the Song Dynasty capital city from Kaifeng to Hangzhou.

1987 MACEDONIA - The Church of St. Panteleimon in Gorno Nerezi


Located near Skopje, at an altitude of 771m, on the wooded slopes of Mt. Vodno, Gorno Nerezi is known for the Church of St. Panteleimon, dedicated to the protector of health. The church was constructed in 1164 by order of Alexius Angelus Comnenus, a member of the imperial family, and its frescoes are famous examples of Comnenian Age Byzantine Art, depicting scenes from the Passion of Christ and various hagiographical illustrations.

1986 FRANCE (Occitania) - Church of Saint Mary Magdalene in Rennes-le-Château


Rennes-le-Château, a small commune located  in southern France, is known internationally as the center of various conspiracy theories, but also as the location of an alleged buried treasure discovered by its 19th-century priest Bérenger Saunière. The village church dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene has an extremely complex history, having been rebuilt several times. The earliest church may date to the 8th century. During the 11th century another church was built upon the site, which survived in poor repair until the 19th century, when it was renovated by the local priest, Bérenger Saunière.

October 25, 2015

1984, 1985 JAPAN (Kyūshū) - Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region (UNESCO WHS)

1984 Ōura Church

Christianity was introduced in Japan by Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier in 1549 and spread rapidly in the western part of the nation. The Jesuits established their mission base in Nagasaki, where a port of foreign trade with Portugal was developed. The city of Nagasaki played an important role as a key base for the missionary work in Japan. Churches and Christian culture flourished here, and the Young Delegates of Tenshō set off from Nagasaki in 1582 for Europe, where they had an audience with the Pope.

1985 Monument of the 26 Martyrs

With the Tokugawa shogunate's anti-Christian policy which banned the religion, Christianity was severely suppressed, resulting in the revolt against the regime in 1637. During the prohibition on Christianity, adherents moved to remote islets and islands where they passed down from generation to generation the traditions of baptism and orasho (the prayers and hymns originally taught by the Jesuit missionaries and passed down orally) and continued in their faith until the ban was lifted in the Meiji period (1868-1912).

1983 BURKINA FASO - A Fula woman


The Fula people (or Fulani or Fulɓe), numbering approximately 20 million people, are one of the most widely dispersed and culturally diverse of the peoples of Africa. They are spread, in larger or smaller proportion, from Sudan to Mauritania, and from Egypt to Central African Republic, being bound together by the common language of Fulfulde, as well as by some basic elements of Fulbe culture, such as the pulaaku, a code of conduct.

October 23, 2015

1982 FRANCE (Saint Martin) - Traveller's tree


Ravenala madagascariensis, commonly known as traveller's tree or traveller's palm, is a species of plant from Madagascar. Actually it isn't a true palm (family Arecaceae) but a member of the bird-of-paradise family, Strelitziaceae. It has been given the name "traveller's palm" because the sheaths of the stems hold rainwater, which supposedly could be used as an emergency drinking supply for needy travellers. However, the water inside the plant is murky, black and smelly and should not be consumed without purification.

October 22, 2015

1981 JAPAN (Kyūshū) - Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum

1981 Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum - A replica of the
Urakami Cathedral side wall after the atomic bombing.

As it is widely known, during WWII, the American  atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki made Nagasaki the second and, to date, last city in the world to experience a nuclear attack. As a remembrance of this, in April 1996 was completed Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum, replacing the deteriorating International Culture Hall. The museum covers the history of the event as a story, focusing on the attack and the history leading up to it.

1980 CANADA (New Brunswick) - Miguasha National Park (UNESCO WHS)


Located on the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec, near Carleton-sur-Mer, Miguasha National Park is a palaeontological site, considered to be the world's most outstanding illustration of the Devonian Period known as the 'Age of Fishes'. Its significance stems from the discovery there of the highest number and best-preserved fossil specimens of the lobe-finned fishes that gave rise to the first four-legged, air-breathing terrestrial vertebrates - the tetrapods, a crucial time of the evolution of life on Earth.

October 21, 2015

1979 FRANCE - Chou-Chou, Lolo, Simone and Genevieve at the Lucette's baptism, on June 5, 1932


Since the invention of photography, people have wanted to immortalize the events more or less important of their lives, either to relive them later, or to share them with their loved ones. For the second case, in the first half of the 20th century, the photographic workshops delivered the photos directly in the form of postcards, to be sent to relatives and friends. Not the other, but it was cheaper to send a postcard than a letter.

1978 ROMANIA (Prahova) - Cheia

1978 Cheia: 1. Cheia Motel; 2. The town;
3. The Red Mountain; 4. Cheia Monastery


Located at 60km north of Ploieşti, in the Teleajen Valley, Cheia is a mountain resort, surrounded by Ciucaş Mountains and Zăganu Mountain. At the end of the 19th century it was a small settlement named Teleajenul, with 82 inhabitants, situated near Bratocea customs, between Romania and Austria-Hungary. Subsequently, the village took the name from the nearby monastery.

October 20, 2015

1977 GREECE (Crete) - Arkadi Monastery


The Arkadi Monastery is an Eastern Orthodox monastery built like a fortress, situated on a fertile plateau 23km to the southeast of Rethymno. The exact date of its founding is not precisely known, but according to tradition, the foundation is attributed to the Byzantine emperor Heraclius or to the emperor Arcadius in the 5th century. The current church dates back to the 16th century and is marked by the influence of the Renaissance, visible in the architecture, which mixes both Roman and Baroque elements.

1976 NETHERLANDS (Sint Maarten) - Pointe Blanche


Pointe Blanche is located at the Southeastern tip of Sint Maarten, next to Philipsburg and Great Bay. There is a tiny beach there, and some Pointe Blanche residents go there for a walk, for collecting shells or for surfing. From the top of the hill, there are spectacular views of the cruise ships coming into Great Bay, and leaving the pier, and also to the neighboring islands, such as St. Barths. On the postcard are also the statues of Peter Stuyvesant and Albert Claudiud Wathey.