USA: Golden Gate Bridge

On Wednesday I got three nice postcards from three continents: one from the USA, one from Japan and my first card from Belgium.

The card from the USA shows the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

San Francisco is a city at the West Coast of the United States in California. In 1945 the United Nations were founded in San Francisco.

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge and connects San Francisco and the Marin County and is located in the San Francisco Bay. The bridge can be used by cars, bicycles and pedestrians. The Bridge is 2737m long and 27m wide and was opened in 1937. The Golden Gate Bridge is the most famous landmark of San Francisco and one of the most famous of the USA.

With nice stamps:
Great Film Directors-John Ford (from set of four) (issued 23-05-2012)
John Ford (1894-1973) is one of the most significant directors of western and won four Academy Awards as Best Director. The stamp shows a scene from the movie "The Searchers".
Harry Potter-Harry and Ron (from set of twenty) (issued 19-11-2013)
The seven books of Harry Potter were published between 1997 and 2007 and are written by J.K. Rowling. Between 2001 and 2011 eight movies were filmed.
Christmas (from set of four) (issued 13-10-2011)
unfortunately without postmark.

Thank You very much Brenda!

Mauritius: 150 years Red Cross

A friend of mine were on Mauritius where he bought many Mauritian stamps for me.

One of them is this:

Events-150th Anniversary of Red Cross (from set of four) (issued 30-05-2013)

Thank You very much Roger!

France: Versailles

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from France and one from Thailand.

The card from France shows many sights of Versailles.
A sight on the card is the Palace of Versailles. The Palace of Versailles was the principal residence of the French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. It provided Europe with a model of the ideal royal residence for over a century. In 1871 the German Emperor William I was crowned in the Hall of Mirrors and in 1919 the Treaty of Versailles was contracted in the Palace. Since 1979 the Palace and the Park of Versailles are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
UNESCO-Japanese Cranes (from set of two) (issued 12-11-2013)
Fashion (from set of four) (issued 12-11-2013)
(It is a joint issue with Singapore)

Thank You very much Fabienne!

Thailand: Koh Pha Ngan

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from Thailand and one from France.

The card from Thailand shows a beach on Koh Pha Ngan.

Stamps:
New Year (five from set of ten) (issued 15-11-2013)

Thank You very much Ta!

Thailand: James Bond Island

On Wednesday I got two postcards from Thailand.

One card shows the island Khao Phing Kan or James-Bond-Island. The Island was featured in the James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun.

Stamps:
New Year (five from set of ten) (issued 15-11-2013)

Thank You very much Ta!

Thailand: Wat Pho

On Wednesday I got two postcards from Thailand.

One card shows the Wat Pho in the Old Town of Bangkok.

Stamps:
Bhumibol with rice (issued 2010)
(On the stamp was a real rice seed, but unfortunately it get lost so only the paring left.)
National Children's Day (two from set of three) (issued 09-01-2010)

Thank You very much Ta!

USA: Times Square in New York

On Monday I got a postcard from the USA which a friend of mine bought when she visited New York and sent it from the airport.

New York is a city at the East Coast of the United States in the State of New York and with more than 8000000 inhabitants the most populous city of the United States. New York consists of the five Boroughs Manhattan, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. New York is a important financial centre, a global city and the seat of many international concerns and organisations such as the United Nations.

The card shows many impressions of the Times Square. The Times Square is located at the crossroads of the Broadway and the Seventh Avenue and is named after the New York Times located at the Times Square. The Times Square is the centre of the theatre district Broadway. The Times Square is famous for the many illuminated advertising.

Stamp:
Global Forever Christmas (issued 24-10-2013)
with nice special "Happy Holidays from U.S. Postal Service"-postmark showing the The Cat in the Hat of Dr. Seuss

Thank You very much Lena!

Liechtenstein: Year of the Horse

On Tuesday I got the nice maximum card of the Year of the Horse stamp of Liechtenstein as Christmas present.
Stamp:
Year of the Horse 2014 (issued 11-11-2013)

The stamp is made with modernest laser technology and looks like a traditional Chinese paper-cut.
I also got a mint sheet.

Japan: UNESCO World Heritage Sites

On Monday I got two postcards: a really great card from Japan and one from Germany.

The card from Japan shows different UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Japan.

The Himeji-jo Castle (left up) in the Hyogo Prefecture is the finest surviving example of early 17th-century Japanese castle architecture. Since 1993 it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The picture shows also blooming cherry trees.

The Itsukushima Shinto Shrine (left down) is in front of the island of Itsukushima in the Seto inland sea in the Hiroshima Prefecture. The Island of Itsukushima has been a holy place of Shintoism since the earliest times and is one of the Three Views of Japan. The Itsukushima Shinto Shrine illustrates the Japanese concept of scenic beauty and is since 1996 a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Aoi-matsuri Festival (centre up) is one of the three main annual festivals held in Kyoto. It is held on 15th May of each year.

The Tō-ji pagoda (centre down) and Kinkaku-ji Golden Pavilion (right up) are Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto in the Kyoto prefecture. Kyoto was built in A.D. 794 and was the imperial capital of Japan from its foundation until the middle of the 19th century.
Tō-ji pagoda is the highest wooden pagoda in Japan.
The upper floors of the Kinkaku-ji Golden Pavilion are covered with gold foil.
The Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto are since 1994 a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Mount Fuji (right down) is a sacred place and source of artistic inspiration. The top of Mount Fuji is often snowcapped and Mount Fuji is an internationally recognised icon of Japan. Since 2013 is the Mount Fuji a UNESCO World Heritage Site. On the picture it is seen from the Shizuoka prefecture.

The picture shows also a Shinkansen train. Shinkansen is the name of the route network of Japanese high-speed train and also of the trains. The Shinkansen connect the Japanese big towns with a top speed of 300 km/h.

Stamps:
Year of the Horse 2014 (issued 25-11-2013)
Year of the Horse 1978 (issued 01-12-1977)
with a special postmark of the stamp for the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Japan and Kenya

They are a nice start for my collection of Year of the Horse stamps!

Thank You very much Ai!

Germany: St. Nikolaus

On Monday I got two postcards: one from Germany and a really great card from Japan.

The card from Germany is a Christmas card I sent to Weiden to get a special Christmas postmark. The location of the postmark is St. Nikolaus. St.Nikolaus is a district of Großrosseln in the Saarland. The special post office exists since 1966. The special postmark of this year celebrates not only Christmas but also the 50th anniversary of the Élysée Treaty.

Stamp:
Winter Holidays (issued 02-01-2012)
with the nice special postmark

Indonesia: Jakarta's Major Road

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from Indonesia and one from Slovenia.

The card from Indonesia shows a fountain at the major road of Jakarta. The major road is called Jalan Thamrin and runs through the Central Business District. The street closes every Sunday from 6:00 to 11:00 because of the Car Free Days held in Jakarta. At the street are many buildings, for example the Deutsche Bank and the Bank Indonesia.

Jakarta is located at the northwest coast of Java. Jakarta has more the 10 million inhabitants and thus it is the largest city in Indonesia and Southeast Asia and the thirteenth largest city in the world. Jakarta is a Global City and the seat of the ASEAN Secretariat. Jakarta was de facto the capital of the Dutch East Indies and is still the capital of Indonesia.

With nice stamps:
40 years Diplomatic Relations with South Korea (whole set) (issued 17-09-2013)
(It is a joint issue with South Korea)

Thank You very much Shinta!

Slovenia: Ljubljana

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from Slovenia and one from Indonesia.

The card from Slovenia shows Ljubljana. Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia.

Stamp:
Christmas (from set of two) (issued 16-11-2009)

Thank You very much Mateja!

Russia: Virgin Komi Forests

On Wednesday I got a postcard from Russia.

The card shows the Virgin Komi Forests. The Virgin Komi Forests are located in the north-western region of the Komi Republic and cover 3.28 million ha of tundra and mountain tundra in the Urals. European and Asian animals live there, thus there are some 43 mammal, 204 bird and 16 fish species recorded. Some of them are the Beaver, the Wolverine and the Brown Bear. Since 1995 are the Virgin Komi Forests a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Russian Kremlins-Novgorod and Kazan (two from set of twelve) (issued 01-10-2009)
Weapons of the Victory (from set of four) (issued 16-04-2012)

Thank You very much Anastasia!

Austria: Christmas FDC

On Thursday I got a nice First Day Cover from Austria.

Stamps:

Christmas-Silent Night (issued 29-11-2013)

Christmas-Shepherds at the Crib (issued 29-11-2013)

Christmas-St. Georgenberg (issued 15-11-2013)

Thank You very much Marco!

Singapore: Buddha Tooth Temple

On Monday I received a postcard from Singapore.

The card shows the Buddha Tooth (Relic) Temple in Singapore's Chinatown. The ground breaking ceremony was in 2005 and the Temple cost S$62 million. It was opened on Vesak Day 2007. The Temple want to be the best Buddhist cultural complex in the region. If you want to learn more about the Temple, you should visit the website.

Stamps:
50 Years of TV Broadcast (whole set) (issued 22-11-2013)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Jeremy!