Belarus

Received from: Belarus
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: March 2012
Distance: 474 km
Time of travelling: 10 days

The Common Crane (Grus grus), also known as the Eurasian Crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes. It is a large, stately bird and a medium-sized crane at 100–130 cm (40–52 in) long, with a 180–240 cm (71–96 in) wingspan and a weight of 4.5–6 kg (10–13.2 lbs). It is grey with a white facial streak and a bunch of black wing plumes. Adults have a red crown patch. It has a loud trumpeting call, given in flight and display. It has a dancing display, leaping with wings uplifted.

St Petersburg

Received from: Russia
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: March 2012
Distance: 1030 km
Time of travelling: 21 days

Palace Bridge is a road traffic and foot bascule bridge spanning the Neva River in Saint Petersburg between Palace Square and Vasilievsky Island. Like every other Neva bridge (except for Big Obukhovsky Bridge), it is drawn by night, making foot travel between various parts of the city virtually impossible. It was built by the French firm Société de Construction des Batignolles. The total length of Palace Bridge is 260.1 metres, width is 27.8 metres. It is actually composed of five spans, the southernmost joining Palace Embankment between Winter Palace and Admiralty and leading to Palace Square.

Ukraine

Received from: Ukraine
Category: Choose a country RR
Date: March 2012
Time of travelling: 8 days

Ukraine is a country in Central and Eastern Europe. Ukraine borders the Russian Federation to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast, respectively. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after the Russian Federation.

South Carolina

Received from: the USA
Category: Choose a country RR
Date: March 2012
Time of travelling: 7 days

The flag of the state of South Carolina has, in some form, existed since 1775, being based on one of the first Revolutionary War flags. South Carolina's flag was ranked as the 10th best designed state or provincial flag in North America by the North American Vexillological Association in 2001.

Pas-de-Calais

Received from: France
Category: Choose a country RR
Date: March 2012
Time of travelling: 3 days

Pas-de-Calais is a department in northern France. Its name is the French equivalent of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. Pas-de-Calais is in the current region of Nord-Pas de Calais and is surrounded by the departments of Nord and Somme, the English Channel, and the North Sea. Its principal towns are, on the coast, Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer, and in Artois, Lens, Liévin, Arras, and Saint-Omer.

Prague

Received from: Czech Republic
Category: private swap
Date: February 2012

Prague is home to a number of famous cultural attractions, many of which survived the violence and destruction of twentieth century Europe. Main attractions include the following: Prague Castle, the Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, the Jewish Quarter, the Lennon Wall, and Petřín hill. Since 1992, the extensive historic centre of Prague has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

Bremen

Received from: Germany
Category: Choose a country RR
Date: February 2012
Time of travelling: 3 days

The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area (2.4 million people). Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany. Bremen is some 60 km (37 mi) south from the Weser mouth on the North Sea. With Bremerhaven right on the mouth the two comprise the state of Bremen (official name: Freie Hansestadt Bremen - Free Hanseatic City of Bremen).

Taiwan

Received from: Taiwan
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 8534 km
Time of travelling: 13 days

Taiwan's train system is excellent, with stops in all major cities. Train stations are often located in the centers of most cities and towns and serve as a convenient hub for most types of transportation. In addition, the train system allows you to bypass the highways, which can become extremely crowded on weekends and national holidays.

Wrocław

Received from: Poland
Category: private swap
Date: February 2012

Ostrów Tumski is the oldest part of the city of Wrocław in south-western Poland. It was formerly an island (ostrów in old Polish) between branches of the Oder River. Archaeological excavations have shown that the western part of Ostrów Tumski, between the Church of St. Martin and the Holy Cross, was the first to be inhabited. The first, wooden church (St. Martin), dating from the 9th century, was surrounded by defensive walls built on the banks of the river. The island had approximately 1,500 inhabitants at that time.

Turku

Received from: Finland
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 916 km
Time of travelling: 5 days

Turku is a city on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed to have been first settled around the end of the 13th century, making it the oldest city in Finland. It quickly became the most important city in Finland, a status it retained for hundreds of years. After Finland became part of the Russian Empire (1809), and the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland was moved to Helsinki (1812), Turku continued to be the most populous city in Finland, until the end of the 1840s. Today it remains a regional capital and an important business and cultural center.

Mount Bromo

Received from: Indonesia
Category: private swap
Date: February 2012

Mount Bromo (Indonesian: Gunung Bromo), is an active volcano and part of the Tengger massif, in East Java, Indonesia. At 2,329 metres (7,641 ft) it is not the highest peak of the massif, but is the most well known. The massif area is one of the most visited tourist attractions in East Java, Indonesia. The volcano belongs to the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park. The name of Bromo derived from Javanese pronunciation of Brahma, the Hindu creator god.

Den Helder

Received from: the Netherlands
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 1102 km
Time of travelling: 3 days

Den Helder is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Den Helder occupies the northernmost point of the North Holland peninsula. It is home to the country's main naval base. The Royal TESO ferryboat service operates the transportation link between Den Helder and the nearby Dutch Wadden island of Texel to the north.

Podgorica

Received from: Montenegro
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 1096 km
Time of travelling: 10 days

Podgorica is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement. The city is close to winter ski centres in the north and seaside resorts on the Adriatic Sea. A census in 2011 put the city's population at 150,977. The Podgorica municipality contains 10.4% of Montenegro's territory and 29.9% of its population. It is the administrative centre of Montenegro and its economic, cultural and educational focus.

The Netherlands

Received from: the Netherlands
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 1067 km
Time of travelling: 8 days

Ukraine

Received from: Ukraine
Category: Postcrossing - official card
Date: February 2012
Distance: 691 km
Time of travelling: 12 days

Ivan Honchar: Romantic conversation.
[Ukrainians in local folk costume of the village of Berezotocha, Lubny District, Poltava Province]
1979. Canvas on cardboard, tempera. National Centre of Folk Culture 'Ivan Honchar Museum'.