بشرّي

Thanks to Zaher

Bsharri- Lebanese town located just under the Cedar forest. The birthplace of famous poet, pinter and sculptor- Khalil Gilbran. Name of the city comes from Phoenician language and it means "the house of Ishtar"- one of the phoenician goddess. People from this town are known for their courage, hospitality and patriotism. Very characteristical for them is very strong accent that canno't be mistaken with any other. Postcard sent to me by Zaher- my Lebanese friend.

'I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers.'

Khalil Gibran

Philippines

Have I already said that I love private swaps? ;) I've got this postcard (and two others) from the Philippines for helping Anna with her University Postcards Collection. I'm really happy and I hope my postcards will get there soon too. Tonight the first of the postcards.

That postcard makes me think about the possibilities that lies in human hands... Banaue Rice Terraces (Hagdan-hagdang Palayan ng Banawe in Tagalog) are the tarracess that were carved into the mountains of Ifugao over 2000 years ago by ancestors of the indigenous people. The Terracess are being called the 8th Wonder of the World. The most amazing fact about them it's that they cover over 10 000 square kilometers and there were built mainly by hand! The back of the postcard claims that steps put end to end would encircle half of the globe. According to Wikipedia traditional farming is still practiced there (rice and vegetables)
The Terraces require a lot of constant care especially because of the climate changes, especially droughts. 
Banaue Rice Terraces are a part of the Philippine Cordilleras Rice Terraces but they are not listed on UNESCO World Heritage Site due to  the presence of many modern structures. They are however considered as the National Cultural Treasure
More information here 

Golden Gate

I love direct swaps! That way I can recieve postcards that I really want. This time I only said I'd like the Golden Gate postcard as it's the most recognizable bridge in the world. I didn't expect much- this is the first direct swap I've recieved. I got really beautiful postcard and I just love it!

Scan of the postcard is not amazing. It is printed on a satin-like paper and it's really beautiful. The only thing that I don't like are those bleached stains... But I like to believe that it gives the postcard character ;)


Golden Gate Bridge is a sunspention bridge connecting San Francisco to Marin Country in California, the USA. It's located on Golden Gate-the opening of San Francisco Bay into the Pacific. It was being built from 1933 to 1937. A lot of experts claimed that there are no technical possibilities of building it across over 2000m. Joseph Strauss was an engeenier responsible for the project but very important influence on the construction and design had also Irving Morrow, Leon Moissieff (constructor of the Manhattan Bridge in NY) and Charles Ellis.


Each of the lines used has a diameter of almost 1 meter and can handle 95 tons. Total lenght is 2,788m and it's 27 m wide. Total weight of Bridge, anchorages, and approaches: 887,000 tons. The towers are 227 high.

The characteristical orange colour (international orange) was orginally the colour of the sealant.The Us Navy wanted to paint the bridge with black and yellow stripes! It was an ensurrance of visibility for passing ships. Can you imagine it like that? It would be a crime! Choosing orange was definietly better idea-The Golden Gate Bridge was ranked 5th on the List of America's Favourite Architecture.


The Bridge was closed only 3 times since it was opened due to strong winds and it survived many strong earthquakes. The dark side of the bridge is the number of suicides commited there which is the hightes number among all of the bridges. There are many methods used to defcrease that number such as hotlines, staff patrols, closing the bridge at night and special barriers.

On the 27th of May Golden Gate Bridge will have 74th anniversary of creation!

Cable car

Today one of my favourite postcards showing a cable car in Wellington, New Zealand. I like it for few reasons. One of the them is the person who sent it to me- my boyfriend. That train is a part of his daily life. I love the colour of it and the train itself. It is widely recognized as a symbol of Wellington.

Cable Car is Wellington's most popular tourist attractions. The cars run from Lambton Quay in the commercial heart of the city, tunnel under the corporate towers of The Terrace and emerges in Kelburn.

The ride continues past Kelburn Park and the Victoria University to the top of Upland Road, where the Lookout, Carter Observatory, Planetarium and Cable Car Museum are located. The view from the lookout takes in the city's central business district and out across the harbour to the Hutt Valley, Eastbourne and Mt. Victoria

Cable Cars history takes us back to the end of 19th centaury when Wellington was expending rapidly and there was a need for a new transportation. In 1898 the City Council granted permission for the investition of building a tramway connecting Kelburn and the city. The designer of the system was James Fulton and he was responsible for both selecting the route and deciding the method of operation, a hybrid between a cable car and a funicular. Like a cable car, the line had a continuous loop haulage cable that the cars gripped using a cable car gripper, but it also had a funicular-style balance cable permanently attached to both cars over an undriven pulley at the top of the line. It was opened to the public on 22 February 1902. Since 1947 the Cable Car is owned and operated by Wellington Cable Car Ltd, owned by Wellington City Council.

The normal operating speed is 18 km/h (5 m/s), with a maximum passenger load of around 100 (30 seated, 70 standing). Each car weighs approximately 13.5 t when empty and 21 t when full.

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state, behind Alaska, with an area of 268,820 square miles (696,200 km2). It is located in the south-central part of the United States of America and it has the most farms and the highest acreage in the country.Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the United States, while San Antonio is the second largest in the state and seventh largest in the United States. Dallas–Fort Worth and Greater Houston are the fourth and sixth largest United States metropolitan areas, respectively. Other major cities include El Paso and Austin—the state capital. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify Texas as an independent republic and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico. The "Lone Star" can be found on the Texas State Flag and on the Texas State Seal today.

Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, Texas contains diverse landscapes that resemble both the AmericanSouth and Southwest. Although Texas is popularly associated with the Southwestern deserts, less than 10% of the land area is desert.Most of the population centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests, and the coastline. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, and finally thedesert and mountains of the Big Bend.

The term "six flags over Texas" came from the several nations that had ruled over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas. France held a short-lived colony in Texas. Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845 it joined the United States as the 28th state. The state's annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. A slave state, Texas declared its secession from the United States in early 1861, joining the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. After the war and its restoration to the Union, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. (wikipedia)

The postcard is from Austin and it shows the Capitol Building. It was designed originally during 1881 by architect Elijah E. Myers, and was constructed beginning 1882–88 by direction of civil engineer Reuben Lindsay Walker. The Texas State Capitol was ranked ninety-second in the "America's Favorite Architecture" poll commissioned by the American Institute of Architects, that ranked the top hundred-and-fifty favorite architectural projects in America as of 2007. In a 2008 poll by the AIA, it was also ranked the number-one state capitol.

The only problem with the postcard is the white paper with a code. My friend who sent it to me forgot to leave empty space under the adress bar. I'm afraid of removing it because it could destroy the postcrad.  But even that doesn't change the fact that I really like that postcard! Thank you  Chris!


EDIT:I finally removed that stripe! I was afraid of  damaging the postcard but I was able to manage it ;)

The U.S. project

The U.S project is about collection of the postcrads from all of the US states. The idea showed up in my mind after recieving postcards from my friends living in Arizona, Texas and Ohio. My knowleage of the states was very limited so I thought that getting a postcard from each state will improve my knowleage ;) 

The list of american states: 

(I've already got the postcards from states written in white/red font)

Alabama     Alaska     Arizona     Arkansas      California     Colorado     Connecticut      Delaware     Florida        Georgia      Hawaii     Idaho     Illinois     Indiana     Iowa      Kansas      Kentucky    Louisiana     Maine Maryland      Massachusetts      Michigan      Minnesota       Mississippi       Missouri      Montana       Nebraska      Nevada     
 New Hampshire       New Jersey      

  New Mexico       New York                      North Carolina         North Dakota         Ohio        Oklahoma          Oregon        Pennsylvania             Rhode Island           South Carolina         South Dakota        Tennessee        Texas       Utah

 Vermont     Virginia      Washington      West  Virginia      Wisconsin        Wyoming

Brigadeiro de Brasil

It was a great suprise for me to see this in my mailbox:

That's the postcrossing official postcard from Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. It shows Guanabara Bay and the Sugar Loaf - the hill/island that can be seen there. I think the photo was taken from the statue of  Christ the Redeemer.

Girl who sent it was really nice and instead of "happy postcrossing" she decided to write the recipe for the most famous and traditional dessert- Brigadeiro which looks like this:

I will try the recipe soon and I hope it will look at least partially as amazing as it looks at the photo. 

I was complaining recently that my official postcards are taking long time to arrive to me. If they are all as nice as this one I think it's worth waiting for!

Obrigado Eliana!

Orkney Islands

Very beautiful postcard sent by a friend living in one of the Orkney Islands. I never found map cards interesting untill I got this one. Now I can't wait for more!

Description from the back of the postcards:

The seventy plus Orkney Islands lie at a latitude of 59º N and cover an area of 9,7000 ha, with coastline of 920 km, and a population of about 21,000. The mild climate is due to the Atlantic Slope Current and Atlantic weather systems, while mixing of Atlantic and North Sea waters produces an enviroment rich in food for flora and fauna for the abundant fish, shellfish, crustacea and birds which live and breed here. The shallow sounds between the islands are good places to see many species of birds as well as seals and occasional cetaceans

New York City Baby!

'Magic, simply magic' as my friend said it on the postcard or dangerous metropoly where 'storing your car is safer than entering it in a demolition derby. But not much.'
I'm not sure. I have never been to NY yet. Waiting till I don't need visa for visiting the US but taking into consideration our diplomacy powers it will take some time... 
Anyway that postcard is wonderful and I'm closer to agree with my friend that there is something magical in it.


Manhattan Bridge is suspension bridge connecting Lower Manhattan with Brooklyn. Build in 1909 it was the third of the suspension bridges across the lower East River ( what a terribe name for the river!)
The designer, Leon Moisseiff later on designed Tacoma Narrows Bridge that collapsed in 1940 (the year it was built in)

I live in the city of bridges and probably that's the reason why I like them. I want to learn more about types, construction and history of the bridges over the world. I guess the learning will start with more bridges postcards being sent to me :)

Let's start!

Postcards will be the main subject of this blog. They've started showing in my mailbox and I don't want them to be forgotten somewhere in the box. That's the plan and how it goes we will see...


Enjoy,
Amoura