New Zealand: Tuatara

Yesterday I got two postcards: one from New Zealand and one from Japan.

The card from New Zealand shows a Tuatara. The Tuatara are the last genus of the order of the Rhychocephalia having lived in abundance some 200000000 years ago. They grow extremely slowly to approximately 62cm in length and mature sexually at about 20 years. They can become 100 years old.

With nice stamps:
ANZAC (two from set of six) (issued 10-04-2013)
The stamps show peace-support operations of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). The left stamp shows a Royal New Zealand Air Force Iroquois in Timor-Leste. 4000 men and women of the NZDF were deployed in Timor-Leste between 1999 and 2012. It was New Zealand's largest deployment since the Korean War. The right stamp shows members of TG Rata 8 performing a haka to welcome their fellow soldiers on the Solomon Islands. The NZDF is deployed on the Solomon Islands since 2003. The NZDF’s embrace of its Māori tikanga is an effective force on deployment in the Pacific region.

Thank You very much Sharon!

Japan: Niigata Prefecture

Yesterday I got two postcards: one from Japan and one from New Zealand.

The card from Japan comes from the Niigata Prefecture and shows a snowy forest. The Niigata Prefecture is located on Honshu and is famous for its rice.

Stamp:
Constellation (from set of ten) (issued 04-12-2013)
The stamp sparkles.
with a special postmark showing a firework over a bridge

Thank You very much Keiko!

Macao: Giant Panda

Today I got a postcard from Macao.

The card shows a Giant Panda. The Seac Pai Van Park in Macao hosts two Giant Pandas. They are called Xin Xin (female) and Kai Kai (male).

Stamp:
Year of the Horse-label (issued 14-02-2014)

Thank You very much Anthia!

Germany: Limesmuseum

On Thursday I got five postcards: three from Germany, one from Singapore and one from Belgium.

One of the cards from Germany shows the Limesmuseum in Aalen in Baden-Württemberg. The museum thematises the Roman Limes and was built on the location of the biggest Castra north of the Alps. The Roman Limes was the border line of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent in the 2nd century AD and is since 1987 a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamp:
Glücksburg Castle (from set of two) (issued 02-01-2013)

Thank You very much Remo!

Germany: Wismar

Today I got a postcard from Germany.

The card is a multiview from Wismar in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Wismar is a Hanseatic city on the Baltic Sea and was once a part of Sweden. Since 2002 is the Historic Centre of Wismar together with the Historic Centre of Stralsund a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamp:
Glücksburg Castle (from set of two) (issued 02-01-2013)

Thank You very much Sine!

UAE: Burj Khalifa

I posted the first post of this blog exactly one year ago. During this first year I uploaded 250 cards, covers and stamps and more than 6000 people visited it. 

The second year of this blog I want to start with a great card I got today. The card is my first card from the United Arab Emirates.

The United Arab Emirates is a country on the Arabian peninsula bordering on Oman and Saudi Arabia. The United Arab Emirates is formed by seven constituent emirates called Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm al-Quwain. The oil reserves of the United Arab Emirates are ranked as the seventh-largest in the world. The capital of the United Arab Emirates is Abu Dhabi. 

The card shows the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Dubai is one of the seven Emirates forming the United Arab Emirates and also the main city of this Emirate. Dubai is the most populous city of the United Arab Emirates and also a global city.

The Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai and at 829,9m the highest building in the World. It was built between 2004 and 2010.

With nice stamps:
Falconry (issued 2011)
The Falconry is since 2012 an UNESCO Intangible Heritage.
UAE Gazelles-Arabian oryx (from set of four) (issued 29-11-2006)

Thank You very much Amna!

Hong Kong: Avenue of Stars

This is the 250th post on my blog! Thank You all of you for sending me all this nice postcards and covers with so many nice stamps!

Today I got three postcards: one from Hong Kong, three from Germany and one from Indonesia.

The card from Hong Kong shows the Avenue of Stars. The Avenue of Stars along the Tsim Sha Tsui promenade pays tribute to celebrities of the Hong Kong film industry and was modelled by the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

With great stamps:
Chinese Dinosaurs-Daxiatitan binglingi (from set of six) (issued 20-02-2014)
The stamp glows in the dark.
Heartwarming-Birthday (from set of six) (issued 23-01-2014)
The flame on the cake sparkles.
Definitive (issued 31-12-2006)
with special postmark from the General Post Office showing a ferry

Thank You very much Joe!

Indonesia: Komodo National Park

Today I got five postcards: one from Indonesia, one from Hong Kong and three from Germany.

The card from Indonesia shows Komodo dragons tearing apart a goat. The Komodo dragon is the World's largest lizard and is called "dragon" because of his appearance and aggressive behaviour. The Komodo National Park being the only place in the World where Komodo dragons live is since 1991 a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Year of the Horse (whole set) (issued 15-01-2014)

Thank You very much Surfia!

Germany: Court Gardens in Würzburg

Today I got five postcards: three from Germany, one from Indonesia and one from Hong Kong.

One of the cards from Germany shows the Court Gardens in Würzburg in Bavaria. The Court Gardens are together with the Würzburg Residence and the Residence Square since 1981 a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Würzburg Residence is the largest and most beautiful Baroque palace in Germany and was built in the 18th century at the behest of the prince-bishops Lothar Franz and Friedrich Carl von Schönborn by an international team of architects, painters, sculptors and stucco-workers.

Stamp:
Easter (from set of two) (issued 01-03-2014)

Thank You very much Siggi!

Germany: Lübeck's Old Town

Today I got five postcards: three from Germany, one from Indonesia and one from Hong Kong.

One of the cards from Germany is a aerial view of Lübeck's Old Town. The Hanseatic city of Lübeck is located Schleswig-Holstein. Lübeck was once the major trading centre for northern Europe. The town gate in the fore ground is the famous Holstentor. Since 1987 is the Hanseatic City of Lübeck a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamp:
Easter (from set of two) (issued 01-03-2014)

Thank You very much Katja!

Germany: Rostock

Today I got five postcards: three from Germany, one from Indonesia and one from Hong Kong.

One of the cards from Germany is my first card from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It is a multiview of Rostock. Rostock is a Hanseatic city at the Baltic Sea and the largest city of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In Rostock is also a important port.

Stamp:
Glücksburg Castle (from set of two) (issued 02-01-2013)

Thank You very much Katja!

New Zealand: Kakapo

 Today I got two postcards: one from New Zealand and one from Spain.

The card from New Zealand shows a Kakapo. The Kakapo is a flightless and nocturnal parrot endemic to New Zealand. The Kakapo is also the heaviest parrot of the World. The Kakapo is endangered. The Kakapo on the card is called Sirocco. He is world-famous because of his cheeky antics. He is the ambassador for his species and New Zealand's official Spokesbird for Conversation.

Stamps:

New Zealand Coastlines-Castlepoint (from set of five) (issued 04-09-2013)

Construction of a Nation-Villa (from set of five) (issued 05-03-2014)

Thank You very much Sharon!

Spain: Park Güell

Today I got two postcards: one from Spain and one from New Zealand.

The card from Spain shows the Park Güell in Barcelona. The Park Güell is a garden complex with architectural elements created by Antoni Gaudí. It was built between 1900 and 1914 and is 17,18 ha big. Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926) was a Spanish architect. His Works in or near Barcelona are since 1984 a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamp:
Tourism (issued 02-01-2013)

Thank You very much Anja!

Singapore: Clarke Quay

Today I got two postcards: one from Singapore and one from Japan.

The card from Singapore shows the Clarke Quay. The Clarke Quay is a historical riverside quay in Singapore. Clarke Quay was named after Sir Andrew Clarke, Singapore's second Governor played a key role in positioning Singapore as the main port for the Malay states of Perak, Selangor and Sungei Ujong. Today five blocks of restored warehouses house various restaurants and nightclubs.

Stamps:
Ferns (whole set) (issued 26-02-2014)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Jeremy!

Japan: Anpanman

Today I got two postcards: one from Japan and one from Singapore.

The card from Japan shows Anpanman. Anpanman is a Japanese picture book series written by Takashi Yanase (1919-2013). The series runs from 1973 until the death of Takashi Yanase. There is also a anime adaptation called "Soreike! Anpanman" ("Let's Go! Anpanman"). The anime adaption started in 1988. The head of Anpanman is made of anpan (a bean-jam filled pastry) baked by Uncle Jam. The main-antagonist of Anpanman is Baikinman. In the anime there were 1,768 characters appearing in the first 980 episodes. Thus Anpanman is since 2009 a Guinness World Record Holder for the highest number of characters in an animated franchise.

Stamps:
Beetle (issued 28-11-1997)
Duck (issued 2010)

Thank You very much "lovelysunflower"!