3454 BELARUS (Vitebsk) - The Assumpton Cathedral in Vitebsk

3454 The Assumpton Cathedral in Vitebsk

Built in a picturesque place, on the high bank of the Western Dvina River, the Assumption Cathedral is one of the outstanding monuments of the architecture of Vitebsk. It is also the only cathedral in Vitebsk, the lower active layer of which is located underground. The Assumption mountain, where now the cathedral stands, has been used for construction of religious buildings during thousands of years. Initially, there was a pagan shrine, and with the birth of Christianity a church was built at this place, which burned more than once in fires.

3317 MOLDOVA - Postcrossing Meetup, Chișinău, 23 June 2018

3317 The eighth postcard of the series
"100 years since the Great Union of Romania" (8/12)
- Old Orhei landscape.

The previous postcard of the series "100 years since the Great Union of Romania" (7/12)

Another meeting of the Romanian postcrossers in the year of the Centenary of the Great Union took place on June 23, 2018, in Chișinău. Actually it was the second Postcrossing meeting between members from Moldova and Romania, which took place on the occasion of the launch of a stamp dedicated to the Postcrossing project. Mihnea Răducu chose for the postcard a landscape from Orheiul Vechi Archaeological Landscape (about which I wrote here), submitted by Moldova to UNESCO for inclusion among the World Heritage Sites.

3286 INDONESIA - Gibran Rakabuming Raka and Selvi Ananda at their wedding

Mayor of Surakarta from 2005 to 2012, and the Governor of Jakarta from 2012 to 2014, Joko Widodo (born Mulyono, 21 June 1961) became in July 2014 the first president of Indonesia not to come from an elite political or military background. He has 3 children, the eldest being Gibran Rakabuming Raka (born in Surakarta at 1 October 1987), a successful businessman and politician. Gibran married Selvi Ananda on 11 June 2015, and the couple had their first child, Jan Ethes Srinarendra, on 10 March 2016.

0614, 2308, 2357, 3219 AUSTRIA (Salzburg) - Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg (UNESCO WHS)

3219 Salzburg - View to the Old Town from Mönchsberg (507m)

As many other cities from Central Europe, Salzburg (Salt Fortress), located on the banks of the Salzach River, at the northern boundary of the Alps, was founded as a Celtic settlement, later developed by the Romans, under the name Juvavum. By the late 7th century it had become a "near ruin", but it began to rebirth in the 8th-century primarily due to trade on the river. Independence from Bavaria was secured in the late 14th century and lasted five centuries, till in the 19th century, when the city was annexed by the Austrian Empire (later Austria-Hungary).

2308 Salzburg - The Old Town with the fortress

Anyway, Salzburg has emerged intact from history, a Baroque town which owes much of its appearance to the architects Vincenzo Scamozzi and Santino Solari. Being considered the point where the Italian and German cultures met, influencing each other,  the Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg become an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996. Salzburg’s most famous son was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose name is closely associated with the city. The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920, which takes place each summer.

0614 Salzburg: 1. Friedhof zu St. Peter (St. Peter's Cemetery);
2. Hofstallgasse (Hofstall Alley); 3. Mozartplatz (Mozart Square);
4. Residenzbrunnen; 5. Pferdeschwemme (Horse Well);
6. Getreidegasse (Grain Lane); 7. Mozarts Geburtshaus
(Mozart's Birthplace); 8. Makartsteg (Makart Bridge);
9. Mirabellgarten (Mirabel Gardens); 10. Dom (Cathedral).

Friedhof zu St. Peter (St. Peter's Cemetery) - the oldest cemetery in the city. Its origins date back to about 700, when was established St. Peter's Abbey, and was closed down in 1878. Into the rock of the Festungsberg were carved catacombs, that may date from the Early Christian days. Hofstallgasse (Hofstall Alley) - a street in Old Town, in the festival area, which connects the Max Reinhardt Square with the Herbert von Karajan Platz. Since the Mozart year 2006, it has a "golden" pavement. Mozartplatz (Mozart Square) - a square placed in the heart of the Old Town, known for the Mozart memorial by Ludwig Schwanthaler, opened in 1842.

2357 Salzburg - Mozart's birthplace

Residenzbrunnen - a grand baroque fountain, placed in the midle of the Residenzplatz (Residenz Square) and executed by Tomasso di Garona between 1656 to 1661. It's made of marble, and it's considered the largest baroque fountain of Middle Europe. Pferdeschwemme (Horse Well) - a well designed and built in 1693 by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach in the course of building the facade for the royal stables. The "Horse Tamer" by Michael Bernhard Mandl once stood in an oval basin axial to the portal of the royal stables. Getreidegasse (Grain Lane) - a busy shopping street in Old Town. The house at no. 9 is the place where Mozart was born and where he lived until the age of 17.

3190 SLOVENIA (Slovene Littoral) - The town crier in Piran

In nowadays, the town crier is only heard at ceremonials, fetes and local events, but in medieval Europe have been common on the streets of the towns. Often he would announce his presence with a a large hand bell or a drum. His job was to inform the townspeople of the latest news, proclamations, bylaws and any other important information, as at this time most folk were illiterate and could not read.

2486, 2967 POLAND (Pomerania) - Kashubian people

2486 Kashubian traditional dress

Posted on 23.04.201, 24.02.2017
Kashubians (Kashubian: Kaszëbi; Polish: Kaszubi; German: Kaschuben) are a West Slavic ethnic group in  Pomerelia, a historical region in northern Poland, located on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and west of the Vistula river. They speak the Kashubian language, classified either as a separate language closely related to Polish, or a Polish dialect. Gdynia contains the largest proportion of people declaring Kashubian origin, but the biggest city and the traditional capital of Kashubia is Gdańsk.

2967 A Kashubian dance

Kashubians descend from the Slavic Pomeranian tribes, who had settled between the Oder and Vistula Rivers after the Migration Period, prior to the arrival of the Poles, and were at various times Polish and Danish vassals. Despite strong Germanization, Kashubian think about themselves as Poles, and the motto is "There is no Kashubia without Poles and Poland without Kaszubians". Today, in some towns and villages in Pomeralia, Kashubian is the second language spoken after Polish, and it is taught in regional schools.

2965, 2966 ROMANIA - Romanian Postcrossing Meet-up, Bucharest, February 24, 2017

2965 Romanian Postcrossing Meet-up, Bucharest, February 24, 2017

The postcard 2965 is one of the three "official" models edited for the Romanian Postcrossing Meet-up, which held in Bucharest on February 24, 2017. It depicts motifs embroidered usually on Romanian traditional dress, and especially on ie, a type of shirt with a typical gathered form of the collar. The underarm embroidery characterizes the entire costume; it is traditionally seen as the culmination of embroidery and decoration. Each blouse tells a compelling story about the region it comes from through the symbols and colors used.

2966 The launch of the Romanian Postcrossing stamp

This meet-up was very special, because at this date Romania joined the ranks of the countries which have issued a Postcrossing stamp, even if we are only 1364 Postcrossers registered until now. The stamp was issued of course by Romfilatelia, but this would not have happened without the persistence and commitment of Mihnea Răducu. 2966 is an "unofficial" postcard designed and issued also for this occasion by Radu Tusan.

2925 RUSSIA (Pskov Oblast) - The Old Mill in Mikhailovskoye

Located in the heart of the Pskov Oblast, on the spurs of the Valdai Hills, not far from Pskov and the border of Latvia, the State museum-reserve of Alexander Pushkin «Mikhailovskoye» is a unique monument of Russian culture of national significance. In Russian history Mikhailovskoye, Trigorskoye, Petrovskoye, Pushkinskie Gory (or Holy Hills) are connected with life and creative activity of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (1799-1837), probably the greatest Russian poet and the founder of modern Russian literature.

2840 NETHERLAND (Netherland / South Holland) - Van Nelle Factory (UNESCO WHS)

Designed and built between 1925 and 1931 on the banks of a canal in the Spaanse Polder industrial zone north-west of Rotterdam, Van Nelle Factory is considered a prime example of the International Style, and an example of Nieuwe Bouwen, modern architecture in the Netherlands, influenced by Russian Constructivism. Prominent architects described it as "the most beautiful spectacle of the modern age" (Le Corbusier in 1932) and "a poem in steel and glass" (Robertson and Yerbury in 1930).

2230 CZECH REPUBLIC (South Moravia) - Lysice Castle

Located at 29km north of Brno, Lysice is a small town known for a wonderful castle and its gardens. Currently Baroque in appearance, it was built on the site of a water fortress of the Lords of Kunštát, of which the first mention dates from the early 14th century. A Renaissance reconstruction took place in the late 16th century, when were laid also the foundations of the garden. The Baroque construction phase probably made in 1705-1711, during the rule of Graf Antonína Amata Serényiho.

1772 GUERNSEY - Lé Viaer Marchi

Lé Viaer Marchi (The Old Market) is an annual festival held in Guernsey of more than 30 years on the first Monday of July. Organised by the National Trust of Guernsey (an association which aims to preserve and enhance the heritage of the Bailiwick of Guernsey), it showcases local craftsmanship's history and displays the way in which men and women used to live in this islands. Around the stallholders’ hub radiate many activities including demonstrations of traditional skills such as butter making, weaving of crabpots, lace and rope making, with stall holders in traditional Guernsey costume to add to the authentic atmosphere.