Speicherstadt Hamburg | Germany

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Speicherstadt in Hamburg, Germany is the largest warehouse district in the world. The complex was built in 1883. The warehouses are built on oak piles and the district is crossed by what are known as fleets - canals that are flooded depending on the tides and can then also be travelled by ship. One of the fleets on this postcard is Hollandfleet.

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Atlantic herring, part of a set of three fish-stamps, issued August 2016. Loveley postmark also: first day of issue stamp!

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Bridge over the Bosphorus, Istanbul | Turkey

Everything is getting ‘back to normal’ in Turkey.

- more than 6,000 people arrested 

- 265 killed in night of chaos

- 2,839 soldiers held in prison

- 2,745 judges facing arrest

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The Bosphorus is the 32 km long north-south strait that joins the Sea of Marmara with the Black Sea in Istanbul, and separates the continents ofEurope and Asia. Two bridges connect the European and the Asian continents.

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Florence | Italy

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Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany. The historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1982.

The Ponte Vecchio, meaning Old Bridge, is a Medieval stone closed-spandrel-segmental-arch bridge (thank you wiki!) over the Arno River.

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San Juan de Gaztelugatxe | Spain

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Gaztelugatxe, meaning castle rock in Basque language, is a small island on the coast of Biscay. The island is connected to the mainland by a man-made bridge.

On top of the island stands a small monastery named San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, dedicated to John the Baptist, that dates from the 10th century.

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The stamp is marking the 75th anniversary of the burning of the city of Santander in 1941. The old city centre was almost completely destroyed by the fire, 10,000 people were made homeless.

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The Semmering Railway | Austria

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The Semmeringbahn is a mountain railway crossing the Semmering, a mountain pass in Austria. Built over 41 km of high mountains between 1848 and 1854, it is one of the greatest achievements of civil engineering from this pioneering phase of railway building.

The Semmering Railway is UNESCO World Heritage site.

Stamp

The postcard was actually send from Germany. Normally I only show cards sent from the country of origin. But I guess the exception proves the rule.  

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The Forth Rail Bridge | United Kingdom - Scotland

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The Forth bridge was opened in 1890 after eight years of construction. It was the first major structure in Britain to be made of steel and at the time the world's longest multi-span cantilever bridge. Its construction resulted in a continuous East Coast railway route from London to Aberdeen.

 

The Forth Bridge is a UNESCO World Heritage site since July 2015. 

Stamp

Part of a set of six stamps to commemorate 200 years Battle of Waterloo. The battle ended Napoleon’s aspirations to conquer large parts of Europe. After being exiled to the Island of St Helena he died in 1821 at the age of 51.  

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Traphont Ddŵr Pontcysyllte | United Kingdom

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Traphont Ddŵr Pontcysyllte is Welsh for the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. With a length of 18 kilometres and height of 30 metres, the longest and highest aqueduct in Britain. Over 200 years old, engineering at its best! The aquaduct is a World Heritage Site.

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Si-o-Se Pol Bridge in Isfahan | Iran

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The Allah-Verdi Khan Bridge is one of of Isfahan's most famous bridges. It is made up of a series of 33 arches, built in 1602 and has a total length of almost 300 metres. The bridge is also known as the Si-o-Se Pol which means 33 Bridge. 

 

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In 2014 Iran issued a series of alphabet stamps. In 2013 Iran issued 7 stamps depicting bridges. The Veresk Bridge in Iran connects the railway between Tehran and the Caspian Sea region. 

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17-Arch Bridge | China

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The Seventeen-arch Bridge connects the eastern shore of Kunming Lake and Nanhu Island. It is 150 metres in length and 8 metres in width, and is composed of seventeen arches, hence its name. It is the largest stone bridge in the China. The bridge was built during the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799). 

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Khartoum, capital of the Republic of Sudan

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Khartoum is the capital and second largest city of the Republic of Sudan. This card pictures the five star luxury Corinthia Hotel Khartoum, situated at the meeting point of the Blue and White Nile rivers and in the centre of the city's commercial district.

 

The building has an oval curved facade; like the Burj Al Arab, it was designed to resemble a ship's sail. It is known as "Gaddafi's Egg" because it is funded by Libya.

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A Sudan 2003 definitive.

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Wulingyuan Scenic Area | China

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Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Hunan Province, China. It is noted for more than 3,000 quartzite sandstone pillars and peaks across most of the site, many over 200 metres in height, along with many ravines and gorges with attractive streams, pools and waterfalls.

The Tianqiashengkong (the bridge across the sky) rises 357m above the valley, making it one of the highest natural bridges in the world.

Stamps

(left) The Brown Eared Pheasant. Part of a set of ten stamps about Protected wildlife (issued in 2000). Three of the stamps depicts birds. Here you see the other two bird stamps. 

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Fehmarn, the Sunny Island in the Baltic Sea

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With 185 km2, Fehmarn is the second largest island in Germany. It is situated in the south-western part of the Baltic sea. The island has a population of 12,500.

Thanks to favorable air-streams, this island is the sunniest and driest island in Germany, and therefore a popular holiday destination. The island is linked to the continent via the Fehmarn Sound Bridge.

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The Island of Courage and Sorrow | Belarus

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The (artificial) island of Courage and Sorrow is a memorial, dedicated to the fallen Belarusians who took part in the Afghan war. About 30,000 Belarusians fought in Afghanistan, 771 of them died. In the center of the monument there are figures of mourning women. They symbolize the Belarusian mothers mourning over their sons who did not return from the war.

 

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Slutsk sashes are articles of Belarus manufactory weaving of the second half of 18th — the beginning of 19th centuries. They were called according to the place of origin — Slutsk town.

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Podgorica, capital of Montenegro

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Podgorica is the capital and, with a population of about 160,000, largest city of Montenegro. The 140 metres long Millennium bridge spans the Morača River.

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A stamp to commemorate the ‘Joy of Europe 2013’ children festival that was held in Belgrade. 

Thank you very much Chris!

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Coimbra | Portugal

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Coimbra is a city in Portugal. The historical university buildings have been classified as World Heritage by UNESCO in 2013. The buildings can be seen on this postcard (upper part with the tower).

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(left) Sé Nova Catedral, the New Cathedral of Coimbra is the current bishopric seat of the city of Coimbra.

(right) Sé Velha, the Old Cathedral of Coimbra, one of the most important Romanesque Roman Catholic buildings in Portugal.

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Tower Bridge, London

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London is the capital city of the United Kingdom. With over 8,5 million inhabitants it is one of the largest cities in Europe.

Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London which crosses the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name.

London Bridge was originally the only crossing for the Thames. But as London grew there was need for another major crossing over the Thames. So in 1876 it was decided to build a new bridge. Finally building started in 1886 and it took 8 years to complete it.

Thx Francis!

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Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados

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Bridgetown is the capital and largest city of the nation of Barbados. Bridgetown is the only city on Barbados and well over half the island's residents live there. Barbados gained full independence from Britain in 1966 but retained its status as a Commonwealth country.

This historic city and its nearby Garrison are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stamps

East Point Lighthouse. One of a set of four lighthouse stamps, issued 2013.

Golden Apple. In 2011 Barbados issued a set of 16 definitives picturing local fruits.  

Thx for sending Olga!

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JK Bridge, a postcard from Brasilia, the capital of Brazil

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JK Bridge crosses Lake Paranoá in Brasília. It is named after Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, former president of Brazil, who in the late 1950s decided to build Brasília as the new capital of the country.

Located in the central area of Brazil, the area that makes up Brasilia today resembled, a desert before 1960, with no people, scarce water, few animals and plants. This story made me think of another designed Capital: Astana.

Brasilia is one of the Host Cities for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

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Die Sonneninsel: the Isle of Usedom | Uznam

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The island of Usedom is Germany’s second largest island, located on the border between Germany and Poland. The island is divided in a German part (Usedom) and a Polish part (Uznam).

With an annual average of 1906 sunshine hours, the island of Usedom is the sunniest region of Germany: Sonneninsel. A popular tourist destination.

 

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The Fehmarnsundbrücke connects the German island of Fehmarn in the Baltic Sea with the German mainland. In April 2013 its 50th birthday was celebrated.

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Bridges over the River Liffey, Dublin

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The River Liffey flows through the center of Dublin. The River has many bridges, but some are more famous than others.

In the front you see Ha’penny Bridge. Probably the most famous bridge in Ireland, the Ha’penny Bridge was the first pedestrian bridge built to cross the Liffey. It is so called because of the toll of a half penny to cross the bridge. The name of the bridge changed to Liffey Bridge, which remains the bridge's official name to this day.

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A Pike.

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