Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina :)

Received in early August 2013 from my Hong Kong friend. Thanks a lot! :)

This place is really of historical importance – it reminds me of my history class at secondary school. :P

 

Sarajevo is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with an estimated population of 291,422 within administrative borders and 369,534 within the settlement. According to the 2013 Census, the Sarajevo metropolitan area, including Sarajevo Canton and East Sarajevo has 515,012 inhabitants.

It is also the capital of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity, as well as the center of the Sarajevo Canton. Nestled within the greater Sarajevo valley of Bosnia, it is surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans.

Sarajevo is the leading political, social and cultural center of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and its region-wide influence in politics, education, entertainment, media, fashion, science, and the arts contribute to its status as Bosnia and Herzegovina’s biggest and most important economic centre.

In 1885, Sarajevo was the first city in Europe and the second city in the world to have a full-time electric tram network running through the city, following San Francisco.

In 1914, it was the site of the assassination of the Archduke of Austria that sparked World War I.

Seventy years later, it hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics.

For nearly four years, from 1992 to 1996, the city suffered the longest siege of a city in the history of modern warfare during the Bosnian War for independence.

(Source: Wikipedia)

 

Stamp:

Lake Bled, Slovenia :)

Received in early August 2013 from my Hong Kong friend. Thanks a lot! :)

Lake Bled (Slovene: Blejsko jezero; German: Bleder See, Veldeser See) is a lake in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, where it adjoins the town of Bled. The area is a popular tourist destination. The lake is 35 km (22 mi) from Ljubljana International Airport and 55 km (34 mi) from the capital city, Ljubljana.

(Source: Wikipedia)

 

Stamp:

 

Dubrovnik, Croatia :)

Received in early August 2013 from my Hong Kong friend. Thanks a lot! :)

Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea, in the region of Dalmatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Its total population is 42,615 (census 2011).

In 1979, the city of Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

The prosperity of the city of Dubrovnik was historically based on maritime trade. As the capital of the Republic of Ragusa, a maritime republic, the city achieved a high level of development, particularly during the 15th and 16th centuries. Dubrovnik became notable for its wealth and skilled diplomacy.

The beginning of tourism in Dubrovnik is often associated with the construction of the late 19th-century luxury hotels in Croatia, such as Grand Hotel (1890) in Opatija and the Hotel Imperial (1897) in Dubrovnik. According to CNNGo, Dubrovnik is among the 10 best medieval walled cities in the world. Although Dubrovnik was demilitarised in the 1970s to protect it from war, in 1991, after the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was besieged by Serb-Montenegrin forces for seven months and received significant shelling damage.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Stamp:

樂山大佛 Leshan Giant Buddha (Sichuan, China)

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing private swap. Thanks Xiya! :)

 

The Leshan Giant Buddha (simplified Chinese: 乐山大佛; traditional Chinese: 樂山大佛; pinyin: Lèshān Dàfó) was built during the Tang Dynasty. It is carved out of a cliff face that lies at the confluence of the Minjiang, Dadu and Qingyi rivers in the southern part of Sichuan province in China, near the city of Leshan. The stone sculpture faces Mount Emei, with the rivers flowing below his feet. It is the largest stone Buddha in the world and it is by far the tallest pre-modern statue in the world.

The Mount Emei Scenic Area, including Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996. It was not damaged by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

(Source: Wikipedia)

 

Stamps & Xiya’s lovely handwriting:

廣西桂林 Guilin, Guangxi :)

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing private swap. Yalun from Jiangsu sent me a lovely postcard of Guilin. Thanks! :)

 

There’s a famous Chinese saying about Guilin:

桂林山水甲天下 (East or west, Guilin landscape is best).

 

About Guilin:

Guilin (Chinese: 桂林; Zhuang: Gveilinz) is a prefecture-level city in the northeast of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, People’s Republic of China, situated on the west bank of the Li River, and bordering Hunan to the north. Its name means “forest of Sweet Osmanthus”, owing to the large number of fragrant Sweet Osmanthus trees located in the city. The city has long been renowned for its unique scenery of karst topography and is one of China’s most popular tourist destinations.

(Source: Wikipedia)

The fact that it’s one of China’s most popular tourist destinations doesn’t sound very attractive to me as it’ll be an ordeal to fight your way through a huge crowd of tourists. :P

 

Lovely stamps:

 

Soligorsk, Belarus

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing official swap. Julia sent me this postcard from Soligorsk. Thanks Julia! :)

 

Salihorsk (Belarusian: Салігорск; Russian: Солигорск, Soligorsk) is a city in Belarus. As of 2010 its population is of 102,335. The city it is one of the country’s newest settlements, with its construction begun in 1958.

By January 1, 1964, the city already had more than 18,000 inhabitants, and in May 1963, Soligorsk gained city status.

(Source: Wikipedia)

 

Stamps:

Post office logos :)

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing official swap. Thanks Ksenia! :)

I found Hong Kong Post! :D

Lovely stamps:

Ohrid, Macedonia :)

Received in early August 2013. Sent by a Hong Kong friend who’s doing a RTW trip. Thanks a lot! :)

 

Ohrid 奧赫里德 (Macedonian: Охрид [ˈɔxrit]) is a city in the Republic of Macedonia and the seat of Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country with over 42,000 inhabitants as of 2002. Ohrid is notable for once having had 365 churches, one for each day of the year, and has been referred to as a “Jerusalem (of the Balkans)”. The city is rich in picturesque houses and monuments, and tourism is predominant. It is located southwest of Skopje, west of Resen and Bitola, close to the border with Albania. In 1979 and in 1980, Ohrid and Lake Ohrid were accepted as Cultural and Natural World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. In fact, Ohrid is one of only 28 sites that are part of UNESCO’s World Heritage that are both Cultural and Natural sites.

(Thanks Wikipedia!)

 

Stamp:

 

A sunrise in the East Sea :)

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing private swap.  Thomas from Shanghai sent me this postcard from Busan, South Korea. Thanks Thomas! :)

 

Korean stamps:

梅蘭芳 (江蘇泰州) Mei Lanfang from Taizhou (Jiangsu, China)

Received in early August 2013 via Postcrossing private swap.  Thanks Liu Jin! :)

 

Mei Lanfang (simplified Chinese: 梅兰芳; traditional Chinese: 梅蘭芳; pinyin: Méi Lánfāng) (October 22, 1894 – August 8, 1961) was one of the most famous Peking opera artists in modern history, exclusively known for his qingyi roles, a type of dan role. Méi Lánfāng is his stage name, and in Chinese it is generally considered a feminine name. His real name was Méi Lán (Chinese: 梅瀾). Mei, Shang Xiaoyun, Cheng Yanqiu and Xun Huisheng were known as Four Great Dan in the golden era of Peking Opera.

(Thanks Wikipedia!)

He’s originally from Taizhou, Jiangsu (江蘇泰州). That’s why Liu sent me this postcard. :)

 

Lovely stamps: