Niasvizh Catholic Corpus Christi church

Nesvizh is a city in Belarus. It is the administrative centre of the Nesvizh District (rajon) of Minsk Province and location of the Nesvizh Castle World Heritage Site. Its 2009 population was 14,300.
Niasvizh Catholic Corpus Christi church was built in 1587–1593 according to the design of the Italian architect Jovanni Maria Bernardoni at sponsorship of Mikolai Christopher Radziwill the Orphan. The Jesuit church in Niasvizh was the first construction in Baroque in the whole territory of Rzecz Pospolita. The temple interior is richly decorated with paintings. The frescoes were performed in 1750–60-s with participation of the artist K.D. Gesski (restored in 1900–1902). The frescoes embrace 40 individual compositions depicting Saints, allegorical scenes and biblical stories. The fresco compositions include cartouches with the Bible stanze and references. There is K.D. Gesski’s picture "The Lord's Supper" (1753) in the main shrine. In addition to the paintings, the church interior contains a lot of plastic images, i.e. bás-reliefs and bust gravestones of the 17th – 19th centuries, marble altars and monuments. There is a choir with an organ above the temple entrance. An entrance into the family crypt – a burial vault of the Radziwills – is located next to the bás-relief under the altar of Christ. There are over seventy burials of the mighty dynasty in the semi-basement.
My friend Eugenia sent me this nice postcard.

Branicki Palace, Białystok

Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Located in the North Podlasie Lowland on the banks of the Biała River, Białystok ranks second in terms of population density, eleventh in population, and thirteenth in area, of the cities of Poland. It has historically attracted migrants from elsewhere in Poland and beyond, particularly from Central and Eastern Europe. This is facilitated by the fact that the nearby border with Belarus is also the eastern border of the European Union, as well as the Schengen Area. The city and its adjacent municipalities constitute Metropolitan Białystok. The city has a Warm Summer Continental climate, characterized by warm summers and long frosty winters. Forests are an important part of Białystok's character, and occupy around 1,756 ha (4,340 acres) (17.2% of the administrative area of the city) which places it as the fifth most "wooded" city in Poland.

Branicki Palace is a historical edifice in Białystok, Poland. It was developed on the site of an earlier building in the first half of the 18th century by Jan Klemens Branicki, a wealthy Polish–Lithuanian, into a residence suitable for a man whose ambition was to become king of Poland. The palace complex with gardens, pavillons, sculptures, outbuildings and other structures and the city with churches, city hall and monastery, all built almost at the same time according to French models was the reason why the city was known in the 18th century as Versailles de la Pologne (Versailles of Poland) and subsequently Versailles de la Podlachie (Versailles of Podlachia)
With the first Partition of Poland it went to the Prussian Kingdom and, after 1807, to Russia. In the summer of 1920, briefly, the palace was the headquarters of the Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee. Branicki Palace suffered from bombing and fires caused by the Germans, with damage totalling approximately 70%. It was restored after World War II as a matter of national pride. The Medical University is now housed in the Palace. Justyna a resident sent me this card.

Thoughts for the Day

My friend Merja sent me these two cards. I thought they were very good, and felt like sharing them with you. I agree with both of them, but I liked the Chocolate one better ;-))

World’s Most Modern Car

It was the 1940 Oldsmobile sedan. And they called it the World’s Most Modern Car. And why not! Automatic transmission was based on technology first developed in the early 1900s by German manufacturers of marine engines. However, it was not adapted for automobiles for several decades. In 1938, General Motors developed the first line of cars to sport automatic transmission -- Oldsmobiles that offered "Hydra-Matic drive." The cars were introduced to the public in 1940. In 1941, Chrysler followed suit and introduced three different cars that offered their version of automatic drive, "Vacamatic" (later called "Fluid Drive"). Automatic transmission was a fairly common option on most American cars by 1948. It provided true clutchless driving with four forward speeds. Its fluid coupling between engine and transmission eliminated the clutch and its associated foot work. Olds made the breakthrough Hydra-Matic available on all models for only an extra $57. This lovely card. A vintage one really, was sent to me by Tina from China.

Winter Warfare in Finland

This card shows a picture of a pair of Finnish soldiers at a Winter Training Camp in North Lappland.  Forget about training or actual operations, even living and existing in those sub-zero temperatures must be an extreme ordeal. But, military history books are replete with the glorious exploits of the outnumbered Finnish soldier on skis against heavy odds. And in most cases the soldiers fighting the Finns had a bloody nose. Margaretha sent me this card. The picture on it was taken by her son who is in the Finnish Army.

ASW&C Wedgetail

Four New Stamps to Commemorate 90 Years of RAAF were issued on 22.2.2011. The four Air Force Aviation stamps feature the F-111 (60 cents), the F/A-18F Super Hornet (60 cents), the AEW&C Wedgetail ($1.20) and the C-17 Globemaster III ($3.00). This good maxicard sent to me by Vikki features the Wedgetail.

The Boeing 737 AEW&C is a twin-engine airborne early warning and control aircraft. It is lighter than the 707-based Boeing E-3 Sentry, and mounts a fixed, electronically scanned, rather than a rotating, radar antenna. It was designed for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under "Project Wedgetail". The 737 AEW&C has also been selected by the Turkish Air Force, the Republic of Korea Air Force, and has been proposed to Italy and the United Arab Emirates. The Royal Australian Air Force Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft began entering service in 2009. Six Boeing 737 NGs are currently being modified to accommodate sophisticated mission systems and radars that will increase Australia's surveillance and air combat capability, provide air defence support for our naval fleet, and assist in civil operations such as border protection and search and rescue.

The Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft are operated by No 2 Squadron from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle. The first two Wedgetails are being modified in the United States of America, with the remaining four being modified at RAAF Base Amberley, near Brisbane. The postmark on the stamp on this maxicard is from the PO at Amberly.

A view of Denmark from Northern Germany

This lovely view of Denmark in the background was sent to me by Christina. The view is from North Germany.The island you see is the Danish Island of Okseoerne.