Saturday, December 26, 2015

Luxembourg

Received from: the USA
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date:  December 2015
Distance: 6596 km
Time of travelling: 10 days

St John`s Church is built on the site of an old Benedictine Abbey, which was established in the early 1600s, around the same time as the more famous Neumunster Abbey was built. The abbey wasn’t around for long however, being demolished to make way for the present church in the late 1700s. Now known as St Johns Church, the present building is a fantastic example of baroque/Renaissance architecture. Inside, St Johns Church is home to one of Luxembourg’s greatest religious treasures, the Black Madonna, which was created in the 14th Century and is said to have miracle powers.

Monday, December 14, 2015

Baikal

Received from: Russia
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date:  December 2015
Distance: 5058 km
Time of travelling: 15 days

Lake Baikal was formed as an ancient rift valley, having the typical long crescent shape with a surface area of 31,722 km2. Baikal is home to thousands of species of plants and animals, many of which exist nowhere else in the world. The lake was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996. It is also home to Buryat tribes who reside on the eastern side of Lake Baikal, rearing goats, camels, cattle, and sheep, where the mean temperature varies from a winter minimum of −19 °C to a summer maximum of 14 °C.

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Louisiana

Received from: the USA
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date:  November 2015
Distance: 8125 km
Time of travelling: 10 days

Louisiana was named after Louis XIV, King of France from 1643 to 1715. When René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle claimed the territory drained by the Mississippi River for France, he named it La Louisiane. The suffix -ana (or -ane) is a Latin suffix that can refer to "information relating to a particular individual, subject, or place." Thus, roughly, Louis + ana carries the idea of "related to Louis." Once part of the French Colonial Empire, the Louisiana Territory stretched from present-day Mobile Bay to just north of the present-day Canadian border, and included a small part of what is now southwestern Canada.

Friday, December 4, 2015

Lokeren

Received from: Belgium
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date:  November 2015
Distance: 1273 km
Time of travelling: 17 days

Lokeren is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Lokeren proper and the towns of Daknam and Eksaarde. It is located on the Durme (nl), a tributary of the Scheldt, and is the second most important city of the Waasland after Sint-Niklaas. Mayor Filip Anthuenis (VLD) was elected for a third mandate during the elections on 14 October 2012. Horse sausages are officially recognized as a regional specialty of Lokeren.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Aggstein

Received from: Austria
Category: Klub Polki na Obczyźnie
Date: December 2015

Aggstein Castle (German: Burgruine Aggstein, lit. "castle ruins of Aggstein") is a ruined castle on the right bank of the Danube in Wachau, Austria. The castle dates back to the 12th century. Aggstein Castle is situated at an altitude of 480 m.