Ireland

 Cork,  IRELAND :

 I have just received this most wonderful card. !! I saw this card o my :"Surprise cards" site and mentioned how much I loved it ..and WOW  here it is .!!.  Thank you so much dear Paula for sending me this card . This is one of the most heart warming  cards showing this amazing monument to  Ireland and its people  that I have  seen. !
  This card shows the  Large outdoor Stainless Steel  "Feathers" sculptured monument to the Peoples of Ireland that suffered from the great Famine  and was donated by the Native American "Choctaw Tribe " in  1847  of "The great Hunger" despite The Choctaw peoples themselves suffering great hardships ..and poverty on their reservation.. it is estimated that this donation would be  around $20.thousand  dollars in todays valaue.This Monument can be found in Ballick Patk in Middleton County  Cork...
  Thank you so much Paula for this lovely card .. 

 On my last vist to The USA  I vited Oklahoma and also The Choctaw and Chickishaw Native People s Reservation.. This was a most interesting place tovisit and witness the peoples amazing culture  and history of their  hardships and their life today where they are.. Thank you Stafford for making this visit possible..  also the rest of what we did and where we went in Oklahoma.

Posted Cork . 15 April.: Arrived Sydney 26 April. Traveled 11 days..  fast in todays mail. 

England (UK)

 London : ENGLAND : 

  Hey Andy .!! Thanks mate .. you know I like this card .. Thanks mate of this card of this Volkswagen  (KOMBI ) Micro bus. ..  They were called Micro busses here as they had all the windows as The Kombi's didn't and were called a transporter..  What great waggons they were and were still  made up until recently still in Brazil..  A lot of people hd a lot of fun in these vans..
Posted London  (no cancellation )  !! Arrived Sydney 26 April.  Thanks Andy Love it !

Belgium.

 Antwerp.: BELGIUM.:

 What a great card !!  Thank you SEibe   always good to get a funny card .  This card is from a fellow Postcrosser from Antwerp in Belgium.  Great card  I love it !
POsted Antwerp : 06 March :  Arrived Sydney 26 April : Traveled 16,725 Kilometers in 51 days.

Germany

 Berlin Germany:
  A lovely card of this little tiger cub..   such magnificent looking animals.  Thank you Gaby this card will go well with my postcard collection of Wildlife ( big Cats ) thank you you for this card and your kind message ..Trust all is well there for you inBerlin..take care .  This is  a "Surprise card". 
Posted Berlin :05 April Arrived Sydney 27 April .: Traveled 22 days 

China

Dalian CHINA.: 
 This card is from a Postcard United swapper that has just arrived  . This train card has no information on it .. Thhank you for this nice train card Xie Xie..
Posted Dalian :11 March : Arrived Sydney :28 April.: traveled 48 days ..
 

United States of America

 Boston. MAS  USA.

 This is a card that I recently came across amongst some souvenir cards that I had gotten during my vist to the The Boston National Historical Park   with a great mate who tok me there on a day out  to originally see the USS Constitution..  also this is a wonderful Naval and Nautical Museum at this same location.  This particular  ship is the USS Cassin Young ( DD 793 ).a World War II Destroyer and a survivor of many fierce battles in the western Pacific.. She is typical of the modern warships built at The  Charleston Navy Yard .. Thank you again Vinnie for this great day out . This was also a great visit to also go aboard The USS Constitution The Oldest fighting vessel in The US Navy.
   These are some pics of my visit to The USS Constitution  Naval Museum.

Indonesia

 Java : INDONESIA.: 
  
 A Card has arrived for Java in Indonesia after Travelling for 112 days..  long time from not far away !!  Thank you Sutan for this card showing the City and statistics of Bogor in West Java..  Thank you for this Postcard United card swap.  Salamat.!!
Posted  Java December 30 2020.. Arrived Sydney :22 April 2021 :Traveled 112 days..(long time)!

 

Switzerland

 Switzerland.

  A surprise card  from Switzerland..  and Thank you Grace for this lovely card of The Bernina Express .. I certainly would love to do this train journey as I beleive the scenery would be wonderful.. I bet you enjoyed your trip.. Thank you for this card ! 

France

 FRANCE : 
 I have just received this card from a Postcrosser from France,,  Thank you ( Merci ! ) Lucille for this fine "art" card showing two image,,of the flowers of lily and Idris by Muchal .  Thank you .

Posted France 06 April : Arrived Sydney 24 April:  Traveled 16,882 kilometers in 18 days.

United States of America

 Illinois : USA.

 This is the last of four swap cards recently received and thank you Arnold for helping so much in  collecting this series of "State Birds  and Flowers " cards.. I really enjoy this series of cards.  .This card shows the beautiful  "Northern Cardinal"  Being The State Bird of Illinois..  This is such a beautiful bird and one I have especially loved..  also The State Flower for Illinois is The Violet.. Thank you so much Arnold for these cards swap.
    Posted  21 March : Arrived Sydney 22 April : Traveled 30 days. ( No cancellation Postmark )

United States of America.

 Hilo..: HAWAII ..USA.
 A surprise card has arived  from Hawaii and is always so good to get a photo from The Islands as it immmediately conjures up   swaying palm trees  lovely warm breezes on Beaches and surf  and a place we all like to be.. especially in winter time.. Thank you  Heidi B for this card and trust that you are loving it where you are !!  
 Posted  Hilo Hawaii 30 March : Arrived Sydney 22 April.: Traveled 23 days

United States of America

  The swap cards that I love keep coming and this is another in a series that I really like and is the State Birds and Flowers of the Various States of the USA.  This card is from the State of Michigan and shows this lovely State Bird of Michigan "The American Robin" .   what a lovely little bird. also it shows The"State Flower of Michigan" The  Apple Blossom..so nice ..we are so lucky to be able to enjoy such natural beauty.
  Posted 21 March . Arrived Sydney 15 April. : Traveled 25 days  Thanks again Arnold for this swap.

The Netherlands

 The Netherlands :

 A surprise card has just arrived from The Netherlands and shows "Fashion in The Netherlands . but I dont know what period this is .!! it doesnt say . I will add this to my traditional dress theme.
Thank you Brenda for this nice card.
Posted Holland :30 March : Arrived Sydney 16 April : Traveled 17 Days.

Singapore

 SINGAPORE :

  A nice card from Singapore   and another lighthouse for my collection . Thank you so much Adriana for this card  This is a surprise card .  The card shows The Raffles Marina  lighthouse  that was built in 1994 and is one of the new Lighthouses i Singapore and is the only one that is not manned by The Marine Port Authority of Singapore/ Thank you Adriana. 
POsted Singapore 06 April : Arrived Sydney 22 April:  Traveled 16 days.

United States of America

 Rhode Isalnd .: USA.

  I have really gotten to like this series of State Birds and Flowers  Postcards of The USA.. 
   Thank you Arnold for swapping with me for  this card another one in this series. This card shows The State Bird of Rhode Island  and I must say a very familiar bird with everyone..  This is The     Rhode Island Red Rooster.. and a great looking bird he is too.  The State Flower of Rhode Island is the most lovely Violet . Thanks Again Arnold.
 Posted 25 March : Arrived Sydney 22 April.: Traveled28 days.

Germany

 Berlin .: GERMANY : 

 This is a Postcrossing card that came today and is a lovely ornate card showingthe Brandeburg gate  (Brandenburger Tor ) in Berlin .  This view of the gate is from The pariser Platz on the east side.Thank you Pauline and Mimi for this nice card that hasgreat memorise for me.
Posted Berlin 06 March 21 : Arrived Sydney 22 April: Traveled 16,277 kilometers in 46days.

 I must say that I enjoyed my stay in Berlin visiting a friend on my "Around the World" by train journey..and was just so nice to be able to visit many venues i the City with the help of my friend as there is nothing like "local knowledge " when visiting a strange city. So much history and great sites to visit..of course the Reichstag.  theBrandenburg Tor , The olympic Statdium for the 1938 Olymics. of course The Berlin Wall and many others to mention.. Thank you Birgitte for making this possible.

The Brandenburger  Gate. Berlin .:
  This The Brandeburger Tor is a neo classical monument in Berlin built on the orders of The Prussian King  Frederick William II  after the temporary restoration of order after the Batavian revolution. This is one of the best know landmarks in Germany and was built on the site of a former city gate that marked the start of the  road from Berlin to Brandenburg an der Havel which used to be the Capital of the Margriviate of Brandenburg.,  and is located in the western part of  the city centre of Berlin at the junction of " Unter den Linden and  Ebertstrasse immediately west of  The Pariser Platz. and one block North stands the Reichstag Building  which houses the German Parliarment ( The Bundestag ).
    The Gate is the Monumental entry int Unter den Linden ..a boulevarde of "Linden" trees  that led diectly to the Royal City Palace of The Prussian Monarchs.
  The Brandenburg Gate was privately refurbished on the 21st December 2000 at a cost of six million Euros and was the main venue for the  20th Anniversary celebrations of the fall of the Berlin Wall or "The Festival of Freedom" on the evening of the  9th of  November 2009.
Thank you ..info coutesy of Wikipedia..

United States of America.

 Pennsylvania . : USA.

 A most welcome State Bird  and State Flower card for my collection has just arrived with three others .. Thank you so much Arnold for these swaps and adding more to my collection which has become quite substantial now with your help. 
This card shows the State Bird of Pennsylvania " The Ruffed Grouse " and also The State Flower The Mountain Laurel..  These are just so nice these cards and always so clourful  Thanks again Arnold. 
Posted 21 March : Arrived Sydney 22 April.: Traveled 30 days.

Russia.

 Moscow : RUUSIA.:

 Oh !  what a great card  very rare to get this card .. This card shows The Pallas's Cat ..  Thank you so much Anastasia for this fine card which I will add to my wildlife section of postcards. Thank you my dear and take care there ..  stay safe in these dangerous times..This is a PostcardUnited card sent from a swapper in Moscow...  love it !
Posted Moscow  15 March : Arrived Sydney 14 April : Traveled 30 days.  Thank you Amastasia.

THE PALLAS CAT :
 The Pallas's  Cat also knows as the  "Manul" is a small grey wild cat with long dense grey fur supposedly the thickest fur of any feline. ,its rounded ears are set low down on the sides of its head and its body length ranges from  46 to 65 cm. ( 18 to 25 1/2 inches ) from (21 to 31) (8-to12 inch ) cm.long bushy tail.
 To date it has been recorded over a large areal extent, albeit large ares in The Caucasus, Iranian Plateau, Hindu Kush, Hiamalayas, Tibetan Plateau amd south Siberian Mountains and in these regions it inhabits "montane grasslands and shrublands and where the snow  cover is below 15 - 20 cns. Due to its  widespread  range and large population The Pallas's Cat  is  not listed as endangered.

Info coutesy of Wilipedia.. thank you.

Russia.

 Moscow : RUSSIA.:
 A lovely colourful card showing this woman very busy making her "Pancake mix" getting ready for the  "Maslomitsa " week celebrations with pancakes. and  when they burn The effigy of winter in the town Square..  Now that sounds fun and I love pancackes  Thank you  also the nice stamps. This is a Postcrossing card .  Thank you Twinky ..
Posted Moscow 09 March : Arrived Sydney 14 April:  Traveled 14,496 kilometers in 36 days.

Turkey

 Istanbul TURKEY : 

A great "Surprise" card sent by a fellow member of the group..  a wonderfully interesting card of ancient site in Turkey..  The  cards shows 'The Mifas Monument"  a "Phrygian"  rock cut Tomb  dedicated  Midas  The Phrygian King.( 700 BCE ).  Thank you Boran for this nice card  and also your kind message.  This is incredibly interesting history !
Posted Istanbul. 17 March : Arrived Sydney 14 April. Taveled  28 days .. Thank you Boran.

The Midas Monument .

In the 8th Century The Phrygians started some of the very earliest "Rock Cut Momuments" such as The Midas Monument  (700 BCE) dedicated to the famous Phrygian King..
 The most prominent part of the Midas Monument is The high rock cut facade with an incised decoration apparently showing a pedimented temple front with " acroteria"  faced with terracootta and  a niche at the bottom centre. The niches walls bear graffitti readin" MATAR  (MOTHER (ie. The Godess of Cybele") and then most likely held a statue of Cybele.
   The Monument carries a dedication in "Old Phrygian" by Ates son of Ark.. to MIDAS  and probably dayes from the 7th or 6th Century ( BCE ). The inscription mentions Midas with his titles MIDAI  LAVAGTAEI  VANAKTEI.  and probably means : Leader of the people and the ruler.
 Info courtesy ofWikipedia.: