Ipiranga Museum

Constança sent me this pretty card. The Museu Paulista of the University of São Paulo (commonly known in São Paulo and all Brazil as Museu do Ipiranga) is a Brazilian history museum located near where Emperor D. Pedro I proclaimed the Brazilian independence on the banks of Ipiranga brook in the Southeast region of the city of São Paulo, then the "Caminho do Mar," or road to the seashore. It contains a huge collection of furniture, documents and historically relevant artwork, especially relating to the Brazilian Empire era.
The most famous work of art in the collection is the 1888 painting Independência ou Morte (Independence or Death) by Pedro Américo.
A few months after the Brazilian Declaration of Independence, people started to suggest a monument on the site where the declaration took place, although they were not sure about what sort of memorial construction to build. In 1884, Italian architect Tommaso Gaudenzio Bezzi, who was hired to develop the project, chose to build an eclectic-styled construction similar to the French Palace of Versailles with impressive and perfectly manicured gardens and fountain.

Lapland – The Land of the Midnight Sun

The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months at places north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. Around the solstice (June 21 in the north and December 21 in the south) and given fair weather the sun is visible for the full 24 hours. The number of days per year with potential midnight sun increases the farther towards either pole one goes. Although approximately defined by the polar circles, in practice midnight sun can be seen as much as 90 km outside the polar circle, as described below, and the exact latitudes of the farthest reaches of midnight sun depend on topography and vary slightly year-to-year. This pretty card sent to me by Hilkka from Finland shows the different poses of the Sun in Northern Finland, namely in Lapland.

Audrey Hepburn

Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Hepburn was ranked as the third greatest female screen legend in the history of American cinema and a place in the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame. Born in Ixelles, a district of Brussels, Hepburn spent her childhood between Belgium, England and the Netherlands, including German-occupied Arnhem during the Second World War, where she studied ballet with Sonia Gaskell in Amsterdam before moving to London in 1948 to continue ballet training with Marie Rambert and perform as a chorus girl in West End musical theatre productions.  Pia sent me this card.
After appearing in several British films and starring in the 1951 Broadway play Gigi, Hepburn played the Academy Award-winning lead role in Roman Holiday (1953). Later performing in successful films like Sabrina (1954), The Nun's Story (1959), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Charade (1963), My Fair Lady (1964) and Wait Until Dark (1967), Hepburn received Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations and accrued a Tony Award for her theatrical performance in the 1954 Broadway play Ondine. Hepburn remains one of few people who have won Academy, Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Awards.  One film of note was Robin and Marian (1976), with Sean Connery in 1976. In 1988, Audrey became a special ambassador to the United Nations UNICEF fund helping children in Latin America and Africa, a position she retained until 1993. She was named to People's magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world. Her last film was Always (1989) in 1989. She had made a total of 31 high quality movies. Her elegance and style will always be remembered in film history as evidenced by her being named in Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time."
She appeared in fewer films as her life went on, devoting much of her later life to UNICEF. Although contributing to the organisation since 1954, she worked in some of the most profoundly disadvantaged communities of Africa, South America and Asia between 1988 and 1992. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in recognition of her work as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in late 1992, but a month later, aged 63, Hepburn died of appendiceal cancer at her home in Switzerland in early 1993. 

US SSBN

A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles (SLBMs). Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident. Although some early models had to surface to launch their missiles, modern vessels typically launch while submerged at keel depths of usually less than 50 meters (164 feet).

Ballistic missile submarines differ in purpose from attack submarines and cruise missile submarines; while attack submarines specialise in combat with other naval vessels (including enemy submarines and merchant shipping), and cruise missile submarines are designed to attack large warships and tactical targets on land, the primary mission of the ballistic missile is nuclear deterrence. Accordingly, the mission profile of a ballistic missile submarine concentrates on remaining undetected, rather than aggressively pursuing other vessels. Ballistic missile submarines are designed for stealth, to avoid detection at all costs. They use many sound-reducing design features, such as anechoic tiles on their hull surfaces, carefully designed propulsion systems, and machinery mounted on vibration-damping mounts.
Ballistic missile submarines equipped with nuclear warheads serve as the third leg of the nuclear triad. The invisibility and mobility of submarines offer both a reliable means of deterrence against an attack (by maintaining the threat of a second strike), and a surprise first-strike capability - particularly given the range of the weapons they carry. This card was sent to me by Nancy.

Opera House of Graz

Graz is the second-largest city in Austria after Vienna and the capital of the federal state of Styria (Steiermark). On 1 April 2010 it had a population of 291,890 (of which 258,605 had principal residence status). Graz has a long tradition as a student city: its six universities have more than 44,000 students. Its "Old Town" is one of the best-preserved city centres in Central Europe. Politically and culturally, Graz was for centuries more important for Slovenes than Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, and still remains influential. In 1999, Graz was added to the UNESCO list of World Cultural Heritage Sites, and Schloss Eggenberg extended the site in 2010. Graz was sole Cultural Capital of Europe for 2003 and got the title of a City of Culinary Delights in 2008.

The Opera House seen on the card is the Second largest opera house in Austria. Springboard for music careers. "Opera House of the Year" in 2001. Remarkable attributes for the theatre on the ring road. The architects Fellner and Helmer, who planned buildings all over Europe, erected it in 1899. A fascinating contrast to the neo-Baroque building is the steel sculpture "light sword" by Hartmut Skerbisch (1992). In the Human Rights City of Graz it is a symbol of open-mindedness and tolerance. Initially, today's opera house was the municipal theatre and did not exclusively serve music. So it was opened with Schiller's drama "Wilhelm Tell" on 16 September 1899. Anita from Graz sent me this pretty card.

Among the great musicians who have worked at the opera house, especially composer Robert Stolz (director of music at the age of 20) and conductor Karl Böhm rose to fame. Both were also born in Graz.

Holland or The Netherlands?

Before we start talking about this country we should know what we are talking about! It is absolutely necessary to be aware of the fact that Holland and the Netherlands are not two names for the same country, but rather that Holland is the former name for part of it. Holland these days constitutes two out of a total of twelve provinces that make this country. Much of the northern part was originally Frisian and came under the rule of the counts of Holland (who called their territory 'Holland and West-Frisia' after that) in the middle ages, while to the south Holland once had some territory in the present province of Noord-Brabant. More recently the province of Zuid-Holland exchanged some territory with the province of Utrecht. In this area are such cities as Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Haarlem, as well as the national airport, Schiphol. As a tourist you're likely to visit it, but be aware that Holland is just two parts of this country, and there are many more different faces to The Netherlands as a whole.
But don't 'Hol' and 'Nether' mean the same? No, although it's often claimed that they do. 'Nether' means 'low', and although 'Hol' nowadays translates to 'hollow', the terms do have different meanings. 'Hol' originally referred to 'holt', an old word for 'wood'. The region around Dordrecht, Holland's oldest town, was known as Holtland, after its many forests.
But, this issue has never bothered me, because when you talk to people in any part of the Netherlands or even when they are overseas, they only talk about Holland to refer to the country as a whole (and even some Dutch people use it e.g. on football scarf’s, flags etc). And even though stamps of that country has “Nederland” printed on them, for the Dutch it is Holland, and I am quite willing to go along with them and with “Joke” who sent me this card that proclaims it is all about Holland. I think most Dutch refer to the Netherlands as 'Holland' simply because it's easier for them to pronounce it. I’ll leave the obvious question of why people from the Netherlands, or Holland if you please, are called “Dutch” for another day, when another Hollander sends me another card ;-))

Munich

Munich or München as the Germans prefer to call it. And actually the name sounds better that way, is the capital and the largest city of the German state of Bavaria. It is located on the River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps. Munich is the third largest city in Germany, behind Berlin and Hamburg. About 1.42 million people live within the city limits. Munich was the host city of the 1972 Summer Olympics.
The city's motto is "München mag Dich" (Munich likes you). And I thouroughly endorse that. I loved this city after my visit there when I was just 16 years old. Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" (Cosmopolitan city with a heart). Its native name, München, is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat of arms. Black and gold—the colours of the Holy Roman Empire—have been the city's official colours since the time of Ludwig the Bavarian.
Modern Munich is a financial and publishing hub, and a frequently top-ranked destination for migration and expatriate location in livability rankings. Munich achieved 4th place in frequently quoted Mercer livability rankings in 2011. For economic and social innovation, the city was ranked 15th globally out of 289 cities in 2010, and 5th in Germany by the 2thinknow Innovation Cities Index based on analysis of 162 indicators. In 2010, Monocle ranked Munich as the world's most livable city (in 2012, Munich was ranked fifth in Monocle's ranking, yet remained the highest ranked city in Germany). This nice card was sent to me by Irene.

Yves Montand & Marilyn Monroe

This card has a rare photograph of Marilyn Monroe and the French actor Yves Montand during the shooting of the movie “Let's Make Love”, which was the next to last film of Marilyn Monroe and was a harmless piece of fluff, rather lazily directed by George Cukor. Marilyn was her usual temperamental self during the filming and I think Cukor decided to just let it slide. Thank you Pia for sharing this photo-card with me.

Think mega-rich, a 1960s Donald Trump who speaks French and you have the character Yves Montand plays. Publicity agent Tony Randall calls it to Montand's attention that an off Broadway theater review is going to be satirizing him among other celebrities in the review. Montand decides to check things out for himself. And the star of the review is none other than Marilyn Monroe whom Montand starts raising his blood pressure over. Who wouldn't?

Montand is cool and unflappable. I can believe he wants Marilyn, but I can't believe that this is how he would meet her. Unless one is an egomaniac like Donald Trump, I don't think most people would care about what some off Broadway show that few will ever see, says in some satirical sketch. A lot of talented people were involved in the making of this and it seems a colossal waste of time. Marilyn and Montand and British pop star Frankie Vaughan had some nice numbers to sing.

And we can't forget the three unbilled cameos of Milton Berle, Bing Crosby, and Gene Kelly who Montand enlists in his quest to win Marilyn. Their scenes with Montand are the best things about the film. One other thing though. I can believe Berle and Kelly would come if summoned by Montand. But Crosby, you're talking about a guy who was as rich as the character Montand played.

Naantali

Thank you Pia for this lovely card giving a few views of Naantali which is a city in south-western Finland, known as one of the most important tourist centres of the country. The municipality has a population of 18,858 (31 January 2012), and is located in the region of Finland Proper, 14 kilometres west of Turku. The town encompasses a land area of 311.50 square kilometres. Most of this area is located on the islands, but the majority of the population lives on the mainland. In fact, most of the island is beautiful forest and farmland, while the mainland consists chiefly of residential areas.

One of the oldest towns in Finland, Naantali was founded around the mediaeval Brigittine convent Vallis gratiae, the church of which still dominates its skyline. The charter was signed by King Christopher of Sweden, the then ruler of Finland, in 1443. The convent got trading rights and other privileges, and the town around it began to grow. It also became an important destination for pilgrimage.

Statsraad Lehmkuhl

This pretty vessel is The Statsraad Lehmkuhl is a three-masted barque rigged sail-training vessel owned and operated by the Statsraad Lehmkuhl Foundation. It is based in Bergen, Norway and contracted out for various purposes, including serving as a school ship for the Royal Norwegian Navy (using RNoN's prefix "KNM", English: "HNoMS").
She was built in 1914 as a school training ship for the German merchant marine under the name Grossherzog Friedrich August. After the First World War the ship was taken as a prize by the United Kingdom, and in 1921 the ship was bought by former cabinet minister Kristoffer Lehmkuhl (hence the name, which means "Cabinet Minister Lehmkuhl"). With the exception of the Second World War, when she was captured by German troops and called Westwärts, the ship has belonged to Bergens Skoleskib until it was donated to the Foundation in 1978. In 2000, it was chartered by the German Navy while their Gorch Fock was overhauled. This card was sent to me by Merja.

Ship in a Bottle

Well, what is a ship in a bottle, or SIB as it is refered to these days. An SIB has always intrigued people through the ages. So, lets go a little deeper into this.

Unfortunately nothing is known about the first maker of a ship in a bottle. The oldest ship in a bottle (SIB), as far as we know, was made in 1784 in Italy by Gioni Biondo and this SIB was donated by' Captain Kruger of Lubeck to the 'Museum fiir Kunst und Kulturgeschichte der Hansestadt Lubeck' in Germany. It is said that this SIB is a so-called ship-owner's model, which was made by a professional model builder. The SIB is numbered 7357 in the museum list. It is probably a Turkish or a Portuguese three-masted warship. It is put in an egg­-shaped bottle, which is placed upside down over a wooden stand.

There are several ways to put a ship inside a bottle. The simplest way is to rig the masts of the ship and raise it up when the ship is inside the bottle. Masts, spars, and sails are built separately and then attached to the hull of the ship with strings and hinges so the masts can lie flat against the deck. The ship is then placed inside the bottle and the masts are pulled up using the strings attached to the masts. The hull of the ship must still be able to fit through the opening. Bottles with minor distortions and soft tints are often chosen to hide the small details of the ship such as hinges on the masts.
Alternatively, with specialized long-handled tools, it is possible to build the ship inside the bottle. This interesting card was sent to me by Marian.

Sochi

Further to my post on 13th July 2012, here is another card from Sochi sent to me by Sveta. A little information about this Russian city can be got from the post mentioned by me.

Kołobrzeg, Poland

Kołobrzeg is a city in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland with some 50,000 inhabitants (as of 2000). Kołobrzeg is located on the Parsęta River on the south coast of the Baltic Sea (in the middle of the section divided by the Oder and Vistula Rivers). It has been the capital of Kołobrzeg County in West Pomeranian Voivodship since 1999, and previously was in Koszalin Voivodship (1950–1998).
During the Early Middle Ages, Slavic Pomeranians founded a settlement at the site of modern Budzistowo. Thietmar of Merseburg first mentioned the site as Salsa Cholbergiensis. Around the year 1000, when the area was under Polish rule, the stronghold became seat of the Diocese of Kołobrzeg. During High Middle Ages, the town was expanded with additional settlement was founded a few kilometers north of the stronghold in the course of the Ostsiedlung and chartered with Lübeck law. The city later joined the Hanseatic League. Within the Duchy of Pomerania, Kolberg was the urban center of the secular reign of the Cammin bishops and their residence throughout the High and Late Middle Ages. When Kolberg was part of Brandenburgian Pomerania during the Early Modern Age, it withstood Polish and Napoleon's troops in the Siege of Kolberg. From 1815, it was part of the Prussian province of Pomerania. During the 19th century a Polish community started to organize itself. As the Nazis took power in Germany, Poles and Jews were discriminated, determined to be subhuman and eventually subjected to genocide. In 1945 Polish and Soviet troops seized the town and it was subsequently attached to Poland, while the remaining German population, which had not fled the advancing Red Army was expelled. The town, devastated in the preceding Battle of Kolberg, was rebuilt but lost its status as the regional center to the nearby Koszalin. This lovely card was sent to me by Krystyna.

HNLMS Karel Doorman (R81)

Hr.Ms. Karel Doorman (R81) was a Colossus-class aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy of the Netherlands. Formerly the British ship HMS Venerable, she was sold to the Netherlands in 1948 as a light attack carrier. In 1960, she was involved in the decolonisation conflict in Western New Guinea with Indonesia. In the mid 60's the role was changed to anti-submarine warfare carrier and only ASW aircraft and helicopters were carried. An engine room fire took her out of service in 1968. She was sold to Argentina in 1969 and renamed ARA Veinticinco de Mayo. Zwollywood from Zwolle sent me this card.
The people of Zwolle are nicknamed Bluefingers. During the middle Ages the cities of Zwolle and nearby Kampen made life as difficult as possible for each other. The inhabitants of the latter city were named Kampen Sturgeons. The nickname Bluefinger was given to the Zwolle people because they supposedly committed perjury against the Duke of Gelre.
Some time later, another explanation was given. When Zwolle offered its glockenspiel from the Grote Kerk (St Michael’s Church) for sale, Kampen agreed to buy it and arrived with a wagon full of pennies. The citizens of Zwolle had to count a huge amount of copper coins and so earned their blue fingers. In 2007 the name Bluefinger surfaced across the Atlantic, as the title of a CD by Black Francis, a former member of the American band The Pixies. The source of inspiration for this CD is the late well-known musician and painter Herman Brood, who was born and lived in Zwolle.

The Gateway to Finland

This card was sponsored by the Finland State Railways. And, was first published in 1930. It was sent to me by Koo.

Pori

Pori is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some 15 kilometres (9 mi) from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäenjoki River, which is the largest in Finland. John III established it in 1558.   Pori is the most important town in the Satakunta region. Pia sent me this card from Pori.
The municipality has a population of 83,192 (31 January 2012) and covers an area of 1,704.07 square kilometres (657.95 sq mi) of which 870.01 km² (335.91 sq mi) is water.^[1] The population density is 99.74 /km² (258.3 /sq mi). The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Pori is the 11th largest city in Finland, and the 7th largest urban area. The Neo-Gothic Juselius Mausoleum, located in the Käppärä cemetery in central Pori, was built in 1903 by the wealthy industrialist F.A. Juselius for his daughter Sigrid, who died when she was only 11 years old. The mausoleum was designed by the architect Josef Stenbäck. The mausoleum originally had frescoes painted by artist Akseli Gallen-Kallela, but these decayed after a short time. Akseli’s son Jorma Gallen-Kallela using his father’s sketches restored the frescoes.
Pori is known, among other things, for the sandy beaches of Yyteri and for hosting Pori Jazz, an annual international jazz festival. Performers at the jazz festival have included Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, The Brand New Heavies and Steely Dan. B.B King is an honorary mayor of the city.

Warehouses in Hudiksvall Harbour, Halsingland

Hudiksvall was founded by King John III of Sweden in 1582. He had the inhabitants moved from the town Hudik, where his father Gustav Vasa had collected the trade- and craftsmen of Hälsingland in order to more easily collect taxes, to Hudiksvall by the shores of the bay. At the time, fishing and the trading of furs, skins, iron, copper and wood products were the main sources of income, and the city flourished. But the city lost its privileges for foreign trading in 1636, and its development was somewhat stalled for the next two centuries. This card showing the famous warehouses of Hudiksvall, was sent to me by Inge of Germany.

Search and rescue

This nice card sent to me by Silke from Bremen shows a boat of the German Maritime Rescue Service GMRS on station. Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search is conducted over. These include Mountain rescue; ground search and rescue, including the use of search and rescue dogs; urban search and rescue in cities; combat search and rescue on the battlefield and air-sea rescue over water.

Search and Rescue in German waters is conducted by the Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Rettung Schiffbrüchiger DGzRS (literally translated: German Association for the Saving of Shipwrecked, more common: German Maritime Rescue Service GMRS) with air support by the German Navy and the German Air Force. All incoming requests are coordinated by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Center in Bremen. The DGzRS is a non-governmental organization entirely supported by donations.
Besides the offshore Search And Rescue services, the German Air Force provides 8 SAR Command Posts on a 24/7 basis with the Bell UH-1D Huey. Further, the Technisches Hilfswerk is a key component of the German disaster relief framework. It is, among other things, regularly involved in urban search and rescue efforts abroad.

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (born 17 March 1839, in Vaduz, in Liechtenstein – died 25 November 1901, in Munich) was a German organist and composer, born in Liechtenstein. Josef Gabriel Rheinberger, who was the son of the Prince of Liechtenstein's treasurer, showed exceptional musical talent at an early age. At the age of only seven Rheinberger became organist at Vaduz Parish Church, and his first composition was performed the following year. In 1851, his father, who had initially been resistant to his son's desire to pursue a musical career, allowed him to enter the Munich Conservatory, where he later became professor of piano and subsequently professor of composition. When the Munich Conservatorium was dissolved he was appointed répétiteur at the Court Theatre, from which he resigned in 1867. Rheinberger married his former pupil, the poetess and socialite Franziska von Hoffnaass (eight years his senior) in 1867. Though the couple would remain childless, their marriage was happy. Franziska wrote the texts for much of her husband's vocal work.
Rheinberger's influences ranged from contemporaries such as Johannes Brahms to composers from earlier times, such as Franz Schubert and Johann Sebastian Bach. He was also influenced by painting and literature (especially English and German). Rheinberger was a prolific composer. His religious works include twelve masses (one for double chorus, three for four voices a cappella, three for women's voices and organ, two for men's voices and one with orchestra), a requiem, and a Stabat Mater. His other works include several operas, symphonies, chamber music, and choral works. Today he is remembered almost exclusively for his elaborate and challenging organ compositions; these include two concertos, 20 sonatas in 20 different keys (of a projected set of 24 sonatas in all the keys), 22 trios, 12 Meditations, 24 fughettos, and 36 solo pieces. His organ sonatas were once declared to be undoubtedly the most valuable addition to organ music since the time of Mendelssohn. They are characterized by a happy blending of the modern romantic spirit with masterly counterpoint and dignified organ style.
Rheinberger died in 1901, and was buried in the Alter Südfriedhof in Munich. During World War II, his grave was destroyed, and his remains were moved to his hometown of Vaduz in 1950. Thank you Merja for this nice maxicard.

Bluberries or are they Bilberries?

Blueberries are perennial flowering plants with indigo-colored berries (a genus which also includes cranberries and bilberries). They are the most common fruits sold as "blueberries" and are native to North America (commercially cultivated highbush blueberries were not introduced into Europe until the 1930s).

They are usually erect but sometimes prostrate shrubs varying in size from 10 centimeters (3.9 in) to 4 meters (13 ft) tall. In commercial blueberry production, smaller species are known as "lowbush blueberries" (synonymous with "wild"), and the larger species are known as "highbush blueberries". The leaves can be either deciduous or evergreen, ovate to lanceolate, and 1–8 cm (0.39–3.1 in) long and 0.5–3.5 cm (0.20–1.4 in) broad. The flowers are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish. The fruit is a berry 5–16 millimeters (0.20–0.63 in) in diameter with a flared crown at the end; they are pale greenish at first, then reddish-purple, and finally dark blue when ripe. They have a sweet taste when mature, with variable acidity. Blueberry bushes typically bear fruit in the middle of the growing season: fruiting times are affected by local conditions such as altitude and latitude, so the height of the crop can vary from May to August depending upon these conditions.

Blueberry is native to North America and is nowadays cultivated also in Europe. In Finland, blueberries are used much like bilberries. Compared to bilberry, the flavour of blueberry is very sweet but somewhat bland, lacking the complexity of flavour of the former. Blueberries are much larger in size than bilberries and their flesh is almost colourless. Thank you Eeva for this nice card showing the blueberry plant.

 

Republic of China Navy

Not to be confused with People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), the naval forces of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

The Republic of China Navy is the maritime branch of the Armed forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The ROC Navy's primary mission is to defend ROC territories and the sea lanes that surround Taiwan against a blockade, attack, or possible invasion by forces of the People's Republic of China. Operations include maritime patrols in the Taiwan Strait and surrounding waters, as well as counter-strike and counter-invasion operations during wartime. The Republic of China Marine Corps functions as a branch of the Navy. The ship prefix for ROCN combatants is ROCS (Republic of China Ship); an older usage is CNS (Chinese Navy Ship).
This nice card showing three of ROC Navy’s ships alongside was sent to me by YuLing.