Mongolia: Mongol Altai

On Friday I got three postcards: my first card from Mongolia, one from the Netherlands and one from Indonesia.

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia bordering on China and Russia. Historically the country is best known for Genghis Khan's Mongol Empire, which was the largest contiguous land empire in history. Today it is the most sparsely populated sovereign state in the World. Nearly half of the country's population live in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia's capital city. 

The card shows a view of the Mongol Altai. The Highlands of Mongol Altai seek for the inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List as mixed site.

Stamps:
Owls of Mongolia (from set of four) (issued 06-07-2017)

Thank You very much Tristan!

Indonesia: Borobudur

On Friday I got three postcards: one from Indonesia, my first card from Mongolia and one from the Netherlands

The card from Indonesia shows Borobudur. Borobudur is the largest Buddhist monument in the World. It was built in the 9th century and originally there where 504 Buddhas, but today many of them are damaged and some are lost. Borobudur is since 1991 on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Stamp:
Year of the Pig (souvenir sheet) (issued 28-01-2019)

Thank You very much Karunya!

Netherlands: Windmills of Kinderdijk-Elshout

On Friday I got three postcards: one from the Netherlands, one from Indonesia and my first card from Mongolia.

The card from the Netherlands shows the windmills of Kinderdijk-Elshout. The 19 windmills of Kinderdijk-Elshout are one of the most famous sights in the Netherlands. The construction of windmills began in the Middle Ages and they are still used for the drainage of land for agriculture and settlement. The Mill Network at Kinderdijk-Elshout is since 1997 on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The card was sent from Germany with a Dutch and a German stamp.

Thank You very much Marcel!

Brazil: Capybaras

On Thursday I got a postcard from Brazil. 

It shows Capybaras at the Pantanal. The Capybara is a mammal native to South America. It is the largest living rodent and is closely related to the Guinea Pig. The Pantanal Conservation Area is since 2000 on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Stamps:
Professions (from set of three) (issued 30-12-2005)
Post Office Marketing (issued 26-09-2011)

Thank You very much Paulo!

covers from the Netherlands

On Thursday I got not only a postcard but also two covers from the Netherlands.

Stamps:

EUROPA (whole set) (issued 23-04-2019)

Thank You very much Jessica!

Switzerland: Allschwill and EUROPA Stamps

On Monday I got my order from the Swiss Post. Among the things I ordered was also a prepaid postcard which was issued last year for Stamp Day (issued 15-11-2018).

The card shows an old view of Allschwil. Allschwil is a municipality in the Swiss Canton of Basel-Country. 

The main reason to order something from the Swiss Post were the new EUROPA (issued 02-05-2019), as they are something special this year: they can be scanned to listen to the depicted birds. Switzerland is one of the more than twenty countries taking part in this so-called Europa Stamps Bird Project. As I really like this idea, I will try to collect all of these stamps. The ones I already got you can see on my stamp blog. The two Swiss stamps show a Golden Eagle and a Sanderling.

Japan: Kyushu National Museum

On Friday I got four postcards: one from Japan, one from Austria, one from Germany and one from Italy.

The card from Japan shows the Kyushu National Museum in Dazaifu. The Kyushu National Museum was opened in 2005 as first new national museum in Japan in over 100 years. It houses important collections of Japanese artifacts related to the history of Kyushu and uses technological innovations to bring close the history to its visitors.

Stamp:
Philately Week (from set of ten) (issued 19-04-2019)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Keiko!

Italy: Mantua

On Friday I got four postcards: one from Italy, one from Japan, one from Austria and one from Germany.

The card from Italy shows an aerial view of Mantua. Mantua is a city in Lombardy. Under the Gonzaga family in the Renaissance era the city became a centre of art, culture and music. Since 2008 is Mantua together with Sabbioneta on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Stamps:
Italian Mail (from set of three) (issued 01-07-2010)
90 years Lateran Treaties (issued 11-02-2019)
It is a joint issue with the Vatican. 

Thank You very much Irene!

Germany: Naturmuseum Senckenberg in Frankfurt am Main

On Friday I got four postcards: one from Germany, one from Italy, one from Japan and one from Austria.

The card from Germany shows the Naturmuseum Senckenberg in Frankfurt am Main. The Naturmuseum Senckenberg is the second largest natural history museum in Germany. It houses one of the largest collections of dinosaurs in Europa and also a large collection of animal exhibits from every epoch of Earth's history including many originals from the Messel Pit.

Stamp:
Emoji (issued 04-04-2019)

Thank You very much Svea!

Austria: Post Boxes from around the World

On Friday I got four postcards: one from Austria, one from Germany, one from Italy and one from Japan.

The card from Austria shows shows a World Map with post boxes from different countries.

With nice matching stamps:
The Letter's Way (whole set) (issued 24-04-2019)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Anita!

China: National Museum of China

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from China and one from Italy.

The card from China shows the National Museum of China. The National Museum of China is a museum about Chinese art and history located on Beijing's Tiananmen Square. It was established in 2003 and opened to the public in 2011. The museum is housed in one of the Ten Great Buildings built in 1959 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the People's Republic of China, which earlier housed two other museums which were merged to form this new museum. The National Museum of China is today one of the largest museums in the World, the second-most visited art museum in the World and a symbol of the Chinese museum boom in the 21st century.

Stamps:
Chinese Flowering Crabapple (from set of four) (issued 25-03-2018)
Special-use stamp for Greeting Card (issued 08-08-2013)

Thank You very much LiDi!

Italy: Museo Egizio in Turin

On Thursday I got two postcards: one from Italy and one from China.

The card from Italy is from the Museo Egizio in Turin. The Museo Egizio is one of the ten largest Egyptian museums in the World. Its collection dates back to 1824, when King Charles Felix of Sardinia bought over 5000 pieces of Egyptian art including statues, papyri, stelae and mummies.

Stamp:
Matera - European Capital of Culture (issued 04-03-2019)

Thank You very much Federico!

Germany: Westphalian Romans Museum in Haltern am See

Last Wednesday I got two postcards: one from Germany and one from the USA.

The card from Germany shows the Westphalian Romans Museum in Haltern am See. The Westphalian Romans Museum was opened in 1993. It shows the most important Roman findings from along the River Lippe.

Stamp:
Rose Show in Forst (issued 06-06-2013)

Thank You very much Marcel!

USA: Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta

Last Wednesday I got two postcards: one from the USA and one from Germany.

The card from the USA shows a puppet from the collection of the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta. The Center for Puppetry Arts combines puppet performances, education and a puppet museum. It was opened in 1978.

Stamp:
Poinsettia (issued 26-08-2018)

Thank You very much Cassandra!

Germany: Goethe House in Frankfurt am Main

Last Tuesday I got a postcard from Germany.

It shows the Goethe House in Frankfurt am Main. The Goethe House was bought by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's grandmother in 1733. In 1749 Goethe himself was born in the house and apart from two interruptions during his studies he lived there until 1775. Already since the 1860s it houses a memorial for Goethe. During World War II the house was destroyed, but already between 1947 and 1951 it was reconstructed. Today it is used as museum.

Stamp:
Endangered German Whale Species - Porpoise (issued 02-01-2019)

Thank You very much Edith!