犬山城

First, just let me say, coolest stamp EVER - thank you so much to conejo. So! This is Inuyama Castle, one of only twelve castles still standing in Japan predating the Edo period and sometimes said to be the oldest castle in Japan, period. Construction was completed in 1440. It has changed hands many times throughout its long history, and it is the only castle to ever be privately owned and still have national treasure status. It overlooks the Kiso River.

Cotton Castle

Pamukkale means "Cotton Castle" in Turkish. This UNESCO World Heritage Site has been known to man since antiquity. The hot springs are caused by a fault line that runs along the Menderes river basin. The springs produce 250 liters of hot water every second. The water is rife with calcium bicarbonate, or chalk, and as the springs shift due to tectonic activity or dry up, a deposit of chalk is left behind, leaving this remarkable formation. In the late 20th century this site was threatened by real estate developers, and part of the site was destroyed by hotels. Fortunately UNESCO rescued the site, demolished the hotels, and keeps it preserved and in pristine condition today.

Erfurt, Germany

For a city (of 200,000 people!) that I've never heard of, Erfurt, Germany is a pretty interesting place. It has been mentioned in texts as far back as 742 as Erphesfurt. Quite a few famous people hail from this town, including the family of Johann Sebastian Bach and Max Weber. Pachelbel served as an organist at a church in Erfurt, and Martin Luther earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees here. The symbols of the city are considered to be the Mariendom and Severikirche cathedrals, which stand right next to each other on a high hill in the city. The historic city center is well-preserved, and what is considered to be the oldest standing synagogue in Europe is located here too.

Norway Constitution

This building, Eidsvoll Manor, is where the Norwegian Constitution was signed in 1814. In Norwegian it is called Eidsvollbygningen. The building now houses a museum. It is located in the municipality of Eidsvoll, which has a population of 18,000 and is located in southeastern Norway. Parts of Eidsvoll were included in the site of a minor gold rush in 1758 - this area is still called Gullverket (the gold works). Until recently, the main industry in town was agriculture. This postcard comes from user Millafish after 5 days.

Dutch Tulips

This is a thrilling card from the Netherlands! It has every lovely little image that everyone associates with Holland - cheese-making, tulips, windmills, children in wooden clogs...a peeing cow? Anyway, I thought I'd look into Dutch tulips a little bit for this card, since there's a nice picture of them here, and I discovered Keukenhof in my travels. Both the name of the well-known tulip festival and the beautiful gardens that host the festival, this place is beyond your wildest imagination, if you like gardens.

The Beautiful Land of Bulgaria

Here I am, blogging about another private swap. But this is another special one. Not only a card from an unusual country from a really, super-nice Postcrosser, but a really lovely card at that. The scanner washes it out, but all of the blues in the card are really brilliant and gorgeous. Many, many thanks to stefka for agreeing to swap with me! Bulgaria has had an interesting history, variously falling under the influence of the Byzantine, Ottoman, and Soviet empires. It is historically a Slavic country. The capital is Sofia, and the nation has about 7.6 million people.

Special Guest Ganesha

I don't normally do this, but I just had to share one of my private swaps with you here on the blog. I usually reserve this blog for my official Postcrossing postcards, but I thought it'd be nice to share this one. This is an image of the Hindu god Ganesh. The sender of the card describes him nicely and succinctly: "Ganesha is one of the best known and most worshipped deities in Hindu mythology [I think it's interesting that she refers to it as 'mythology']. He is revered as the Lord of beginnings and remover of obstacles. He is a glutton and enjoys food, especially modale, a sweet. His vahana or mount is a mouse." This card comes from India, as you may have guessed, and it's one of my favorites so far.