Cathedral in Helsinki

Another lovely view of the snow clad Lutheran Cathedral in Helsinki, sent to me by my dear friend Ella.

St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery

St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery is a functioning monastery in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The monastery is located on the right bank of the Dnieper River on the edge of a bluff northeast of the Saint Sophia Cathedral. The site is located in the historic administrative Uppertown and overlooks the city's historical commercial and merchant quarter, the Podil neighbourhood.

Originally built in the Middle Ages by Sviatopolk II Iziaslavych, the monastery comprises the Cathedral itself, the Refectory of St. John the Divine, built in 1713, the Economic Gates, constructed in 1760 and the monastery's bell tower, which was added circa 1716–1719. The exterior of the structure was rebuilt in the Ukrainian Baroque style in the 18th century while the interior remained in its original Byzantine style. The original cathedral was demolished by the Soviet authorities in the 1930s, but was reconstructed and opened in 1999 following Ukrainian independence.

This pretty card was sent to me by Yulia.

Cemetery of Confucius

The Cemetery of Confucius, also known under its Chinese name Kong Lin, is a cemetery of the Kong clan (the descendants of Confucius) in Confucius' hometown Qufu. Confucius himself and some of his disciples are buried there, as well as many thousands of his descendants.

Since 1994, the Cemetery of Confucius has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu". The two other components of the site are the Temple of Confucius dedicated to the memory of the philosopher and the Kong Family Mansion, where his descendants lived. The three sites are collectively known in Qufu as San Kong, i.e. "The Three Confucian [sites]".

In 1331 construction work began on the wall and gate of the cemetery. In total, the cemetery has undergone 13 renovations and extensions. Eventually, by the late 18th century, the perimeter wall reached a length of 7.5 kilometres (4.7 mi), enclosing an area of 3.6 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi). In this space, the tombs of more than 100,000 descendants of Confucius, who have been buried there over a period of about 2,000 years, can be found. The oldest graves date back to the Zhou Dynasty, the most recent of which belong to descendants in the 76th and 78th generation.

The cemetery suffered serious damage in November 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, when it was visited and vandalized by a team of Red Guards from Beijing Normal University, led by Tan Houlan. The corpse of the 76th-generation Duke Yansheng was removed from his grave and hung naked from a tree in front of the palace during the desecration of the cemetery in the Cultural Revolution.

Timmy sent me this nice card.

Helsinki in winter

Another winter's scene from Helsinki. Please note that the ice mounds at the bottom of the picture are actually cars parked near the sidewalk. Yes Ella these are interesting pictures.

Winter in Finland

Thank you Dear Ella for these two lovely winter scenes in FinlaND. the 'Grannies' of course are universally famous, and avery popular on postcrossing.

Helsinki in Winter

Ella send me this lovely card with the pretty picture of Helsinki Cathedral in winter.

ASDA NATIONAL POSTAGE STAMP SHOW 2011

ASDA NATIONAL POSTAGE STAMP SHOW is a Gifts & Crafts trade show and event, was held in New York, The New Yorker Hotel from the 13^th  to the 16^th October 2011. ASDA NATIONAL POSTAGE STAMP SHOW is organized by American Stamp Dealers Association. Thank you Hemant for this nice MaxiCard.