France: Belfry of Douai

Today I got a postcard from France.

The card shows the Belfry of Douai. Douai is a commune in the Nord Department. During World War I it was partly burned and the aerodrome was first used by the Imperial German Army Air Service and later by the Royal Air Force. The bells of the Belfry were melted by the Germans to make weapons. Since 2005 is the Belfry as one of the Belfries of Belgium and France an UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

With a nice stamp:
New Marianne 0,01€, 0,05€ and 0,10€
European capitals-Vienna (from set of four) (issued 22-04-2014)
The stamp shows the Hofburg.

Thank You very much William!

China: Lake Lugu

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

The card from China shows a view of Lake Lugu in the Yunnan province. 

Stamps:
Little Tadpoles looking for their mother (whole set) (issued 01-06-2013)
Little Tadpoles looking for their mother is a fairy tale written by Fang Huizhen and Sheng Lude and tells about the scientific law for tadpoles' development by metamorphosis. In 1960 it was filmed as China's first colour ink painting cartoon by Shanghai Animation Film Studio. The paintings are originally by Qi Baishi. The stamps shows the tadpoles with Grandpa Shrimp, the goldfish, the crab, the tortoise and their mother, the frog. 

Thank You very much Mo!

Japan: Ishite-ji Temple

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

The card from Japan shows the Ishite-ji Temple in the Ehime prefecture on the island Shikoku. The Ishite-ji Temple is a Shingon temple and one of the 88 temples of the Shikoku Pilgrimage. 

Stamp:
Flower (from set of ten) (issued 07-06-2012)
Definitive (from set of three) (issued 28-11-1997)

Thank You very much Nana!

Iraq: different scenes

Today I got six postcards: my first card from Iraq, one from Germany, one from France, one from Finland and two from Brazil.

Iraq is a country in Western Asia bordering Turkey, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria. The capital of Iraq is Baghdad. 

The card shows different scenes. 

Until now I was not able to identify any of the places. Can someone? I will try it again later.

Stamp:
World Arabic Language Day (from set of two) (issued 09-01-2014)

Thank You very much David!

Brazil: Iguaçu Falls

Today I got six postcards: two from Brazil, my first card from Iraq, one from Germany, one from France and one from Finland.

One of the cards from Brazil shows the Iguaçu Falls. The Iguaçu Falls are located on the border to Argentina in the Iguaçu National Park (Brazil) and the Iguazú National Park (Argentina). They belong to the most impressive waterfalls in the World. The National Parks house many rare and endangered species of flora and fauna such as the giant otter and the giant anteater. The animal on the card is a coati. The Iguaçu National Park is since 1986 an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Definitive
Diplomatic Relations with the Philippines (from set of two) (issued 10-06-2014)

Thank You very much Silvia!

Brazil: Diamantina

Today I got six postcards: two from Brazil, my first card from Iraq, one from Germany, one from France and one from Finland.

One of the cards from Brazil shows the Catedral de Santo Antônio in Diamantina. The Catedral de Santo Antônio was built between 1930 and 1940 by José Rodrigues Wasth. As part of the Historic Centre of the Town of Diamantina it is since 1999 an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Definitive
Diplomatic Relations with the Philippines (from set of two) (issued 10-06-2014)

Thank You very much Silvia!

Finland: Aurora Borealis in Lapland

Today I got six postcards: one from Finland, two from Brazil, my first card from Iraq, one from Germany and one from France.

The card from Finland shows Aurora Borealis in Lapland. The Aurora Borealis is caused by the collision of solar wind and magnetospheric charged particles with the high altitude atmosphere and can be seen in the high latitude regions in Antarctica and Arctica.

Stamps:
EUROPA (whole set) (issued 05-05-2014)

Thank You very much Liisa!

France: Boulogne-sur-Mer

Today I got six postcards: one from France, one from Finland, two from Brazil, my first card from Iraq and one from Germany.

The card from France shows some impressions of Boulogne-sur-Mer.

Stamps:
New Marianne 0,01€, 0,05€ and 0,10€
Coaraze (issued 23-06-2014)

Thank You very much William!

Germany: Herford

Today I got six postcards: one from Germany, one from France, one from Finland, two from Brazil and my first card from Iraq.

The card from Germany is a multi-view of Herford. Herford is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia.

I got this card a few weeks ago in a cover.

Stamp:
Hansel and Gretel (from set of three) (issued 06-02-2014)
with a matching postmark of the Children's Day

Thank You very much Jens for sending me the card in an envelope!

Japan: Kumano Nachi Taisha and Nachi Falls

Today I got six postcards: two from Japan, two from Germany, one from France and one from South Korea.

One of the cards from Japan shows the Kumano Nachi Taisha and the Nachi Falls in the Wakayama prefecture. The Kumano Nachi Taisha is as one of the Sacred Sites in the Kii Mountain Range since 2004 an UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Nachi Falls are one of the three most beautiful waterfalls in Japan.

Stamps:
Fairy Tale (from set of three) (issued 20-02-1974)
Sanrio characters-My Melody (from set of twenty) (issued 23-06-2014)

Thank You very much Momoko!

South Korea: Seoul

Today I got six postcards: one from South Korea, two from Japan, two from Germany and one from France.

The card from South Korea shows the Han River flowing through Seoul. Seoul is the capital of South Korea and also its biggest city. In 1988 Seoul hosted the Olympic Summer Games. The Han River is the main river in Seoul and various cafes and restaurants are located there.

Stamps:
Great Tit (issued 05-06-2006)
Year of the Horse (from set of four) (issued 02-12-2013)
Flag of South Korea (issued 06-03-2003)

Thank You very much Soeun!

France: Cathedral and Belfry of Boulogne-sur-Mer

Today I got six postcards: one from France, one from South Korea, two from Japan and two from Germany.

The card from France shows the Cathedral and the Belfry of Boulogne-sur-Mer. The Belfry is as one of the Belfries of Belgium and France since 2005 an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
New Marianne 0,01€, 0,05€ and 0,10€
Locmariaquer - Morbihan (issued 23-06-2014)

Thank You very much William!

Germany: St Elizabeth's Church in Wiesbaden

Today I got six postcards: two from Germany, one from France, one from South Korea and two from Japan.

One of the cards from Germany shows the Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Elizabeth in Wiesbaden. The St Elizabeth's Church is the only Russian Orthodox church in Wiesbaden and is located on the Neroberg. The Russian cemetery located near the church is the largest one in Europe outside of Russia.

Stamp:
125 years Drachenfels Railway (issued 03-07-2008)

Thank You very much Maren!

Germany: Wiesbaden City Palace

Today I got six postcards: two from Germany, one from France, one from South Korea and two from Japan.

One of the cards from Germany shows the Wiesbaden City Palace. The Wiesbaden City Palace is a neo-classical building and was completed in 1841 as the principal city residence of the Dukes of Nassau. Since 1946 it houses the State Parliament of Hesse.

Stamp:
Christmas (from set of two) (issued 10-11-2011)

Thank You very much Maren!

Japan: a painting of Yumeji Takehisa

Today I got six postcards: two from Japan, two from Germany, one from France and one from South Korea.

One of the cards from Japan shows a painting of Yumeji Takehisa. Yumeji Takehisa was born in 1884 in the Okayama prefecture and is buried in Tokyo. He never studied art, but anyway his pictures became very famous.

Stamps:
Letter Writing Day (from set of twenty) (issued 23-07-2014)
Hisoka Maeshima (issued 11-08-1952)
Swan (issued 10-11-1971)
Definitive (from set of three) (issued 28-11-1997)

Thank You very much Kimie!

Japan: Hiroshima

Today I got four postcards: one from Japan, one from Italy, one from Singapore and one from Hungary.

The card from Japan shows the Genbaku Dome and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima in the Hiroshima prefecture. Hiroshima is the largest city of the Chugoku region and the eleventh largest city of Japan. On 6th August 1945 Hiroshima was the first city targeted by a nuclear weapon dropped by the United States Army Air Forces. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum opened in 1955 and is one of Hiroshima's most important destinations. It was recently voted as one of the World's top 50 museums by The Times. The Genbaku Dome was the only standing structure after the dropping of the nuclear bomb and is still preserved in the same state. Since 1996 is the Hiroshima Peace Memorial an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

With great teddy shaped stamp:
Autumn Greeting (from set of twenty) (issued 05-09-2014)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Keiko!

Hungary: Hollókő

Today I got four postcards: one from Hungary, one from Japan, one from Italy and one from Singapore.

The card from Hungary shows a traditional hostel in Hollókő. Hollókő is a living example of the rural life before the agricultural revolution of the 20th century. The Old Village of Hollókő with its Surroundings is since 1987 an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Furniture (three from set of four) (issued 09-10-2001)
Year of the Horse (from set of four) (issued 06-01-2014)

Thank You very much Karr!

Singapore: Universal Studios

Today I got four postcards: one from Singapore, one from Hungary, one from Japan and one from Italy.

The card from Singapore shows the Universal Studios. The Universal Studios is a theme park and opened in 2010. 

Stamps:
Sports Hub (whole set) (issued 05-09-2014)
with First Day Special Postmark

Thank You very much Jeremy!

Italy: Porlezza

Today I got four postcards: one from Italy, one from Singapore, one from Hungary and one from Japan.

The card from Italy shows a view of Porlezza in the Province of Como. Porlezza is a municipality on the Lake Lugano.

Stamp:
Italian Mail (from set of two) (issued 10-08-2013)

Thank You very much Lilly!

Argentina: Gentoo Penguins at the Argentine Antarctica

Today I got two postcards: my first card from Argentina and one from the USA.

Argentina is a country in South America bordering on Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil and Uruguay. The capital of Argentina is Buenos Aires.

The card shows Gentoo penguins (although the card says Adélie penguin I think they more look like Gentoo penguins) at the Argentine Antarctica. The Argentine Antarctica is the part of Antarctica claimed by Argentina. The first Argentine in Antarctica was José María Sobral in 1902. In Argentine Antarctica there are six permanent inhabited bases.

With many nice and even matching stamps:
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (two from set of three) (issued 31-03-2012)
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is a British Overseas Territory claimed by Argentina. 
Argentine Antarctica (two from set of eight) (issued 21-04-2007)
The stamps show also Gentoo penguins.
Volcanoes (from set of four) (issued 19-08-2014)
The stamp shows the Lanín at the border to Chile.
Definitives (from set of ten) (issued 26-10-2000)
Pope Francis (two from set of four) (issued 02-05-2013)
It is a joint issue with the Vatican and Italy.
The civic name of Pope Francis is Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 17th December 1936. He is the pope since the 13rd March 2013 after Pope Benedict XVI had abdicated (the first abdication since 1294!). He is the first pope from South America.

Thank You very much Geraldine!

USA: Edmund Dulac's illustration of The Nightingale

Today I got two postcards: one from the USA and my first card from Argentina.

The card from the USA shows Edmund Dulac's illustration of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale The Nightingale. The fairy tale was first published in 1843 and the illustration is from 1911. Edmund Dulac was born in 1882 in Toulouse and naturalised later to Great Britain. He was an illustrator for children's books and magazines and also designed stamps and banknotes for Great Britain, France and Poland. He died in 1953.

Stamps:
George Washington (issued 11-04-2011)
American Clock (issued 24-01-2003)
Glacier National Park (from set of two) (issued 19-01-2012)
with a special postmark from the National Postal Museum Station in Washington D.C.

Thank You very much Jennifer!

Hong Kong: Victoria Harbour

Today I got a great postcard from Hong Kong.

The card shows the Victoria Harbour with a junk and two star ferries in front and the Peak Tower in the background. The Victoria Harbour is a natural harbour between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. 

With nice stamp:
Museums Collection (from set of seven) (issued 17-06-2014)
The stamp shows the painting "Two Swallows" by Wu Guanzhong from the Hong Kong Museum of Art. The Hong Kong Museum of Art is Hong Kong's main art museum and was established in 1962. The painting is a must-see artwork there and fuses western art with oriental aesthetics. The museum will be closed at the end of the year for renovation.
with a special postmark showing a Star Ferry

Thank You very much Mavis!

Vietnam: Hoi An

Today I got three postcards: my first two cards from Vietnam and one from Germany.

One of the cards from Vietnam shows the Japanese Bridge in Hoi An. The Hoi An Ancient City is since 1999 an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamp:
Year of the Horse (whole set) (issued 01-12-2013)

Thank You very much Phan!

Vietnam: Ha Long Bay

Today I got three postcards: my first two cards from Vietnam and one from Germany. 

Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia bordering on China, Laos and Cambodia. The capital of Vietnam is Hanoi. 

One of the cards from Vietnam shows the Ha Long Bay. The Ha Long Bay is located in the Gulf of Tonkin and includes 1600 islands. Since 1994 is the Ha Long Bay an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps:
Year of the Snake (whole set) (issued 01-12-2012)

Thank You very much Phan!

Germany: Little Prince

Today I got three postcards: one from Germany and my first two cards from Vietnam.

The card from Germany shows again an illustration of the Little Prince.

I sent this card to Bonn to get a special postmark.

With matching stamp:
Little Prince (issued 01-09-2014)
with First Day Special Postmark