185 ROMANIA - Churches of Moldavia (UNESCO)

In the European art of the period, the exterior mural painting of the northern Moldavian churches is a unique phenomenon in Byzantine art and a masterpiece of mural art. In terms of the art of Romania, this group of churches constitutes a specific phenomenon, from the point of view of architecture as well as painting. Their exterior painted walls constitute an exceptional aesthetic value, forming a perfect symbiosis between colour, architecture, and surrounding landscape. Moldavia became an independent state in the 14th century, achieving its apogee during the anti-Ottoman crusades of princes Stephen the Great and Peter Rares. This also produced a cultural flowering, and the most remarkable series of churches. A general Christian tradition of decorating the exteriors of churches was adopted and extended in Moldavia. This had its own specific iconography, dominated by certain obligatory themes: the Church Hierarchy, the Last Judgement, and the Tree of Jesse. These monuments form a compact and coherent group in chronological terms, all being built in the 1530s and 1540s, during the reign of Peter Rares. They are all within a 60 km radius of Suceava, the residence of the Moldavian princes. The Church of the Holy Rood, Patrauti, built in 1487 by Stephen the Great, was pillaged in 1653 and 1684 and restored by Prince Nicolas Mavrocordat in the early 18th century. It is a small three-apsed building consisting of a sanctuary, a naos crowned with a high drum, and a narthex. The monumental interior mural painting represents the Passion Cycle. At the Church of St George of the former Voronet Monastery, also founded by Stephen the Great, the naos and sanctuary were painted between 1488 and 1496 and the narthex in 1552. It is a three-apse structure, with an exonarthex added in 1546. The interior murals represent the Passion Cycle. The walls and the vault of the exonarthex are covered by the 365 scenes of the Calendar of Saints. The exterior murals depict traditional scenes, and the famous Last Judgement, on the western wall.

The Church of the Beheading of St John the Baptist was built as the residence of the Governor of Suceava, Luca Arbore. It was decorated at the order of his granddaughter in 1541 and became the village church when the family died out. The Arbore family is represented in a votive tablet on the wall of the naos and by funerary portraits in the narthex. The high quality of the interior paintings continues on the exterior. The three-apsed Church of St George, formerly the Metropolitan Church of Moldavia until the late 17th century, is now the catholicon of the Monastery of St John of Suceava. The interior paintings, although somewhat darkened, have exceptional plastic qualities. The exterior paintings of 1534 only survive on the west and south facades, and depict the four traditional themes. They are exceptional by virtue of their monumental composition, elegant silhouettes, harmonious colours and perfect Cyrillic inscriptions. The Church of St Nicholas and the Catholicon of the Monastery of Probota was built by Prince Peter Rares in 1531 as a family mausoleum. All the paintings are contemporary with the church with the exception of those in the sanctuary, repainted in the 19th century. The exterior mural paintings, in poor condition, show evidence of the hand of a master in their outstanding composition and remarkable use of colours. The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of the former Monastery of Humor dates back to before 1415, but the present structure was built in 1530 by the great Logothete Theodore Bulberg and the wife, Anastasia, of Peter Rares. It exhibits certain architectural variations from the traditional three-apsed monastery church, such as the lack of a drum over the narthex. The Church of the Annunciation of the Monastery of Moldovita was rebuilt by Alexander the Good, but the present structure is earlier. It is very similar in form and decoration to the Humor church, and is believed that the same master may have been responsible for both churches.

About the sender

Danut Ivanescu (direct swap) sent from Ploiesti (Romania) on 16.02.2014

184 BRAZIL - The City of Cianorte

Cianorte is a city in northwest Paraná, Brazil, with a population of 68,629, as measured by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics in 2009. The city was planned and founded by the Companhia Melhoramentos Norte do Paraná (Company for the Improvement of the North of Paraná), a British company for which it was also named. In the beginning of the 20th century the region was dominated by a subtropical forest and totally wild, except for the Road of Peabiru, used by the Portuguese to connect the Guaira region, further west, to the coast. That road was there since the 17th century, but reports registered that the first contact with the natives of the region, the Xetas, was in the 1930s. The Xetas, a group of three or four hundred, had their own language, and were early Iron Age in culture. The group vanished after they were contacted by the British in controversial and unexplained circumstances. In the 1940s the English company draw the city plan and split the region into very small farms. At this time, the city was redivided and part of the city and the areas around were sold to immigrants, mainly Italian-Brazilians and Japanese-Brazilians of second or third generation from São Paulo. Those immigrants were primarily poor ordinary workers in the huge coffee farms of São Paulo, and perceived the inexpensive land in Cianorte as their big opportunity in life. They built houses and schools, temples and business. The city become a municipality, which, under Brazilian laws, allows the area to extend its political structure.

The Municipio of Cianorte was created through the State Law no. 2.412 of July 26, 1955. Cianorte then had around 11.000 inhabitants, mostly in the country areas. The economy was based on coffee. A disastrous freeze in the winter of 1975, in which temperatures dropped below zero for the first time in recorded weather, destroyed the coffee plantations. Coffee trees take five years to begin producing, so the economy went through a terrible crisis. Population fell and businesses closed. The disaster transformed the city. People opened clothing factories and shops in their garages and back yards. By the time agriculture began to recover, some of the mini-factories had grown to medium sized companies, and the work force was already devoted to that. During the next decades some of those garage enterprises turned into huge factories that today sell clothes to the entire country, and export a significant portion to several countries. The shop owners from several states of Brazil visit Cianorte in the beginning of every season to buy, so hotels and restaurants were opened specially for them. Local agriculture is now significantly diversified—coffee is only 5% of the cropland now—and other farmers plant soy, sugar cane and corn. Beef and chicken are also produced in fairly big scale. With the factories and the agriculture doing very well, the city in the new millennium has attracted more and more immigrants from all over the country, and today the city population, business and infrastructure is increasing fast, turning Cianorte into the regional hub of that part of Ivai River Valley, which includes ten smaller cities.

About the sender

Davi Cesar Correia Jr (direct swap) sent from Cianorte (Brazil) on 30.12.2014

183 NETHETHERLANDS - Plane landing at night

I received this postcard without any information on the card, so I don't know where this is and what kind of plane this is.

About the sender
Kaatje Kaart (direct swap) sent from ? (Netherlands) on 13.07.2014

182 CHINA - Historic Ensemble of the Potala Palace, Lhasa (UNESCO)

The Potala Palace symbolizes Tibetan Buddhism and its central role in the traditional administration of Tibet. Also founded in the 7th century, the Jokhang Temple Monastery is an exceptional Buddhist religious complex. Norbulingka, the Dalai Lama's former summer palace, constructed in the 18th century, is a masterpiece of Tibetan art. The beauty and originality of the architecture of these three sites, their rich ornamentation and harmonious integration in a striking landscape, add to their historic and religious interest. Construction of the Potala Palace began at the time of Songtsen of the Thubet (Tubo) dynasty in the 7th century AD. It was rebuilt in the mid-17th century by the 5th Dalai Lama in a campaign that lasted 30 years, reaching its present size in the years that followed, as a result of repeated renovation and expansion. The Potala is located on Red Mountain, 3,700 m above sea level, in the centre of the Lhasa valley. It covers an area of over 130,000 m2 and stands more than 110 m high. The White palace is approached by a winding road leading to an open square in front of the palace. Its central section is the East Main Hall, where all the main ceremonies take place. The throne of the Dalai Lama is on the north side of the hall, the walls of which are covered with paintings depicting religious and historical themes. At the top of the White Palace is the personal suite of the Dalai Lama. The Red Palace lies to the west of the White Palace. Its purpose is to house the stupas holding the remains of the Dalai Lamas. It also contains many Buddha and sutra halls. To the west of the Red Palace is the Namgyel Dratshang, the private monastery of the Dalai Lama. Other important components of the Potala complex are the squares to the north and south and the massive palace walls, built from rammed earth and stone and pierced by gates on the east, south and west sides. Building of the Jokhang Temple Monastery began in the 7th century CE, during the Tang dynasty in China. The Tibetan imperial court eagerly espoused Buddhism when it was introduced,

The site of the Temple Monastery was selected, according to legend, when the cart in which Wen Cheng was bringing the statue of Sakyamuni sank into the mud by Wotang Lake. Divination identified this as the site of the Dragon Palace, the malign influence of which could only be counteracted by the building of a monastery. The foundation stone was laid in 647 and the first major reconstruction took place in the early 11th century. During the century following the reunification of the Tibetan kingdom by the Sakya dynasty in the mid-13th century, a number of new developments took place. These included extension of the Hall of Buddha Sakyamuni and construction of a new entrance and the Hall of Buddha Dharmapala. The Temple Monastery is in the centre of the old town of Lhasa. It comprises essentially an entrance porch, a courtyard and a Buddhist hall, surrounded by accommodation for monks and storehouses on all four sides. The buildings are constructed of wood and stone. The 7th Dalai Lama is reported to have had health problems and he used to come here for a cure. The construction of Norbulingka started in 1751 with the Uya Palace. Successive Dalai Lamas continued building pavilions, palaces and halls, making it their summer residence, and soon the site became another religious, political, and cultural centre of Tibet, after the Potala Palace. Norbulingka (treasure garden) is located at the bank of the Lhasa River about 2 km west of the Potala Palace. The site consists of a large garden with several palaces, halls, and pavilions, amounting to some 36 ha. The area is composed of five sections.

About the sender

? (UNESCO Forum) sent from ? (China) on 14.01.2014

181 BELARUS - Architectural, Residential and Cultural Complex of the Radziwill family at Nesvizh

180 THAILAND - Doi Ang Khang Mountain

Doi Ang Khang is a mountain in Fang District, Chiang Mai Province, Thailand. It is part of the Daen Lao Range that straddles both sides of the Burmese-Thai border. It is the site of an agriculture station, which was the first research station set up by King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 1969. The peak of Doi Ang Khang is 1,928 metres (6,325 ft) above sea level, and the agriculture station covers an area of 16,577rai. The temperature average is 17.7°C, the highest temperature is 32°C On April, the lowest temperature is -3°C on January and the rainfall average is 2,075 mm per year.

The agriculture station researches and cultivates of winter fruits, winter flowers and winter vegetables. At present, the agriculture station of Doi Ang Khang has more than 12 species of winter fruits such as raspberries, peaches, plums and strawberries, and more than 60 species of vegetables such as carrots, Brussels sprouts, and peas, and more than 20 species of winter flowers such as carnations and roses.

About the sender
sweetiepatt (postcrossing) sent from Chiang Mai (Thailand) on 12.01.2014

179 SAMOA - The Island of Upolu

Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is 75 kilometres (47 mi) long, 1,125 km² (434 sq mi) in area, and is the second largest in geographic area as well as with 135,000 people the most populated of the Samoan Islands. Upolu is situated to the southeast of the "big island", Savai'i. The capital Apia is in the middle of the north coast with Faleolo International Airport at the western end of the island. The island has not had any historically recorded eruptions, although three lava flows date back only a few hundred to a few thousand years. In the Samoan branch of Polynesian mythology, Upolu was the first woman on the island of the same name.

In 1841, the island was the site of the Bombardment of Upolu, an incident during the United States Exploring Expedition. In the late 19th century, the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson owned a 400-acre (160 ha) estate at Vailima village and died there in 1894. He is buried at the top of Mount Vaea above his former home. The Vailima estate was purchased in 1900 as the official residence for the German governor and, after British/Dominion confiscation, served successively as residence for the New Zealand administrator and for the Samoan head of state after independence. An extremely small species of spider lives on Upolu. According to the Guinness Book of World Records 2005, the spider is the size of a period on a printed page.