Poznań Old Town, Poland

                   Woźna Street - view of the old market and tenement houses, XVI c

Poznań is a city on the Warta River in west-central Poland, best known for its renaissance Old Town; today it is an important cultural and business centre. The Old Town is called Stare Miasto in Polish, and is centred on Stary Rynek, the Old Market Square where the historic Poznań Town Hall (Ratusz) stands. It represents the glory of Poznań, from its foundation in 1253.

What I find most inviting is the mention of  traditional Saint Martin's croissants, which are produced specially for the patron's day, which is also National Independence Day. Many thanks to Eunice for one of my favourite postcards (and stamps) from Poland :)

The Fauna Of The Pyrenees

Cute creatures of the beautiful Pyrenees, thanks to Sébastien - he wrote that the native brown bear was almost extinct in this area, but its population was revived in the 90's with the introduction of brown bears from Slovenia.

European Hare

A lovely maxi-card from Heidi showing the European hare, which seems apt be posted while the spring is raging outside (though is it really? Part of spring is rain, and is not in sight for ages).

Generally nocturnal and shy in nature, hares change their behaviour in the spring, when they can be seen in broad daylight chasing one another around in fields. During this spring frenzy, they sometimes strike one another with their paws ("boxing"). This is usually not competition between males, but a female hitting a male, either to show she is not yet ready to mate or as a test of his determination. 

You go girl lol

UNESCO - Lushan National Park, China

Mount Lushan, in Jiangxi, is one of the spiritual centres of Chinese civilization. Buddhist and Taoist temples, along with landmarks of Confucianism, where the most eminent masters taught, blend effortlessly into a strikingly beautiful landscape which has inspired countless artists who developed the aesthetic approach to nature found in Chinese culture. Thanks to LeiYing :)

UNESCO - Independence Hall, USA

The Declaration of Independence (1776) and the Constitution of the United States (1787) were both signed in this building in Philadelphia. The universal principles of freedom and democracy set forth in these documents are of fundamental importance to American history and have also had a profound impact on law-makers around the world.

It was an interesting place to visit during my trip to the NE US some years ago. I remember taking some really nice photos but...then I also remember losing my camera on the very last day of the trip...how frustrating is that, right?  I found it pretty awesome that the visit was free, plus a very interesting presentation by the guide who leads you through the chambers.

Official - NI - Olives

A quintessential olive postcard heh; I actually bought one of these some time ago, but am much happier having one sent to me by Daniela (who had this postcard for a while and wondered who'd ever want an olive card, and here I am!). 

Funny how both 'good' cards received officially are about olives or olive trees. 

Official - Countryside Of Midi (Southern France)

As I have come back to exchanging postcards, I've also sent some officials - and have received this lovely countryside with olive tree and lavender from Anne :) Who would like to be in the place of this painter on the photo right now? I know I would..!

Alas out of five official cards received so far, three are showing a different country to the one it was sent from...I wonder how many other postcrossers would mind this. I guess I am a bit of a perfectionist..I have updated my profile rephrasing my preference, I hope it works..! In any case, we'll send some more, and see if the ratio gets better.

Mónsul Beach In Cabo De Gata-Níjar NP, Spain

One of the first swaps I had on FB was with Angela from Almería, who sent me this summery view of the nearby Playa de Mónsul (we are having a sort of a heatwave here (30 DegC), much like most of Europe, so a beach view seemed appropriate). This beach is situated in the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, which is Andalucia's largest coastal protected area, a wild and isolated landscape with some of Europe's most original geological features. Spain's southeast coast, where the park is situated, is the only region in mainland Europe with a true hot desert climate.

The name Cabo de Gata relates to the mineral agate that used to be mined in this area. In 1997 it was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. 

Bumper Crop In Vietnam

Sometimes the back of the card gives you a title for the postcard that you're not entirely sure about; however, this girl looks really content with the crop she's carrying, beautiful smile. I'd guess it a paddy field she's working in. 

In The Wheat Field

One of the older postcards, sent as a birthday card. Back in the day non-view cards were easier to obtain, now its a proper challenge. I find it interesting that it was printed in Zagreb but it says: um Brugge, Belgium (on the back). In any case these kind of postcards make me feel rather nostalgic...Even if I'm not an overly romantic individual ;)

Kiyomizu-dera In Autumn, Japan

Kiyomizu-dera is an independent buddhist temple in eastern Kyoto, a part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto UNESCO whs. The temple was founded in 788, and its present buildings were constructed in 1633 - there is not a single nail used in the entire structure. It was one of 21 finalists for the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007.

I notice with perplexity that it has been over three years now that I have posted about Japan. Today I've chosen this card because of the Sunday Stamps theme: letter 'i'. Many Japanese stamps could be posted in relation as many are fabulous illustrations - but more specifically the top stamp was issued for the 61st Inter-Parliamentary Conference which was held in Tokyo in 1974 (I have to admit I'd never guess this stamp is that old). I don't really follow but the most prominent of the world's political issues, maybe I have heard of IPU (Inter-Parliamentary Union) before but I certainly didn't make a note of it. IPU was founded in 1889 and was the first permanent forum for political multilateral negotiations.

I love the fact that the stamp matches the view's autumn colours (thank you Yuko), as does one of the cancellations (I do wonder why there are two). The artwork is Passion (1934) by Kawabata Ryushi. More interesting (!) ideas for the letter 'i' hide behind the link for Sunday Stamps :)

Frank Sinatra Show On ABC TV - Sponsored By Chesterfield

As I have succumbed and bought a packet of cigarettes again today (after a week of resilience) here is an apt blog post - a Chesterfield ad, from the times (50's) when smoking was cool. It is actually an ad for Frank Sinatra's show on ABC TV, with Chesterfield as a sponsor. What you probably can't see written in small letters beneath pictures is a unique way of phrasing things - my favourite is the caption for the penultimate picture, stating: This is satisfaction - man-size satisfaction! Chesterfield! :D Thanks goes to Michaela :)

A Beach House In Terengganu, Malaysia

This is not mentioned in the previous post, but how about a walk between the palm trees? I am sure not many would mind :) Thanks goes to Shane.

(The 100-Walks post was a quick reaction to saving a list I stumbled upon while looking for some info online. A few walks I have done, a few have been on my to-do list since forever, and plenty can serve as further inspiration. Hmm its not like I need more trouble to choose my next travel destination, humph.)

Random - Top 100 Walks (By Walkopedia)

The Top 100

Rank	Walk Name	Country	Region	Beauty	Natural Interest	Human Interest	Charisma	Negative Points	Total
1	Mount Kailash Kora	China	Tibet	35	16	18	38	(7)	100
2	Inca Trails *	Peru	Cuzco/Inca Heartlands Area	34	15	18	35	(3)	99
3	Mustang	Nepal	Annapurna & Mustang	32.5	17	16.5	34	(2)	98
4=	Petra Area	Jordan	Petra	32	16	19	36	(7)	96
4=	The Dolomites	Italy	Dolomites	37	17	8	36	(2)	96
6=	Manaslu Circuit *	Nepal		34	17	14	34	(4)	95
6=	Zion National Park	USA	SW: Zion	37	18	4	38	(2)	95
8=	Drakensberg Escarpment	South Africa	Drakensberg	35	17	6	36	(0)	94
8=	Garwhal, Kumaon Himalaya *	India	NW: Uttaranchal/Garwhal	36	17	12	34	(5)	94
8=	Mt Everest Region *	Nepal	Everest Region	38	19	6	38	(7)	94
8=	Source of the Ganges and Above	India	NW: Uttaranchal	36	17	12	34	(5)	94
12	Hajar Mountains	Oman		31	16	14	32.5	(0)	93.5
13=	Annapurna Region *	Nepal	Annapurna & Mustang Region	36	17	10	37	(7)	93
13=	Grand Canyon	USA	SW: Grand Canyon	34	20	2	38	(1)	93
13=	Torajaland	Indonesia	Sulawesi	31	14	17	31	(0)	93
16=	Cappadocia	Turkey	Cappadocia	31	17.5	15	33	(4)	92.5
16=	Q'adisha Valley *	Lebanon		31	14.5	16	33	(2)	92.5
18=	Around Malancrav	Romania	Transylvania	30	15	16	31	(0)	92
18=	Copsa Mare	Romania	Transylvania	30	15	16	31	(0)	92
18=	Gemmi Pass *	Switzerland		34	15	10	33	(0)	92
18=	Great Wall	China		31	13	18	34	(4)	92
18=	Hadrian's Wall Path	UK	England	31	14	18	34	(5)	92
18=	Himalayan Far North *	Myanmar		32	16	12	32	(0)	92
18=	Lofoten Islands	Norway		35	17	7	33	(0)	92
18=	Mount Kenya	Kenya	Mount Kenya	35	19	5	36	(3)	92
18=	Mt Meru	Tanzania		35	20	3	36	(2)	92
18=	Retezat National Park *	Romania	Transylvania	30	15	16	31	(0)	92
18=	The Saxon South	Romania	Transylvania	30	15	16	31	(0)	92
18=	Torres del Paine / Fitz Roy Massif *	Chile/Argentina	Patagonia	37	18	2	36	(1)	92
18=	Wollo Highlands *	Ethiopia		31	14.5	15	31.5	(0)	92
31=	Mount Athos	Greece		31	13.5	15	32	(0)	91.5
31=	South East Asian Hill Tribe Walks	Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam		30	14.5	16	31	(0)	91.5
31=	Taygetus and the Mani	Greece	Peloponnese: Taygetus range and the Mani	31	14.5	14	32	(0)	91.5
34=	Above Roades	Romania	Transylvania	30	15	15	31	(0)	91
34=	Eastern Hajar Mountains *	Oman	Eastern Hajar Mountains	32	17	10	32	(0)	91
34=	French Pyrenees	France	Pyrenees	34	17	5	35	(0)	91
34=	Jebel Toubkal Area	Morocco	High Atlas	33	16	10	32	(0)	91
34=	Julian Alps	Slovenia	Julian Alps	34	17	8	32	(0)	91
34=	Picos de Europa	Spain	Picos de Europa	34	17	6	34	(0)	91
34=	The Caucasus *	Georgia	Caucasus Mts	34	15	10	32	(0)	91
34=	Tibet's Monastery Koras	China	Tibet	30	15	18	32	(4)	91
42=	Accursed Mountains (Albanian Alps) *	Albania		32.5	14	12	32	(0)	90.5
42=	Huangshan	China	Eastern	36	17	12.5	35	(10)	90.5
42=	Japan's Pilgrimage Routes	Japan		30.5	13	18	31	(2)	90.5
42=	Lake District	UK	England, Lake District	33	15.5	9	33	(0)	90.5
42=	MacGillycuddy's Reeks*	Ireland	Kerry, Iveragh Peninsula	34	15.5	8	33	(0)	90.5
42=	Piatra Craiulai National Park *	Romania	Carpathian Mountains	32	16	12.5	30	(0)	90.5
42=	The Amalfi Coast *	Italy	Amalfi Coast	32	14.5	15	32	(3)	90.5
49=	Arches National Park *	USA	SW: Arches NP	33	18	3	38	(2)	90
49=	Avenue of the Volcanoes	Ecuador	Central Andes	35	19	3	34	(1)	90
49=	Copper Canyon *	Mexico		33	18	5	34	(0)	90
49=	Corsica (GR20 and others) *	France	Corsica	33	17	8	32	(0)	90
49=	Cotahuasi and Colca Canyons *	Peru		34	17	8	34	(3)	90
49=	Gran Paradiso *	Italy	Alps: Gran Paradiso	35	17	4	34	(0)	90
49=	Illampu Circuit *	Bolivia		36	17	3	34	(0)	90
49=	Jomolhari trek	Bhutan		36	17	8	34	(5)	90
49=	Kangchenjunga / Singalila	India	Sikkim and nearby	37	17	6	35	(5)	90
49=	Markha Valley *	India	Ladakh	34	15	10	34	(3)	90
49=	Mont Blanc Area	France	Alps	36	16	6	35	(3)	90
49=	Pindos/Vikos Circuit	Greece		32.5	16	8.5	33	(0)	90
49=	Reunion Island *	France	Indian Ocean	32	18	6	34	(0)	90
49=	Royal Trek *	Nepal	Annapurna & Mustang Region	32	14	12	32	(0)	90
49=	The Cotswolds	UK	England, Cotswolds	31	14	14	31	(0)	90
64=	Alpine Pass Route *	Switzerland		36	16.5	4	34	(1)	89.5
64=	Cockpit Country *	Jamaica		30	16.5	12	31	(0)	89.5
64=	Matterhorn Circuit *	Switzerland		34	15	7.5	35	(2)	89.5
67=	Blyde River Canyon *	South Africa		32	18	5	34	(0)	89
67=	Cairngorms	UK	Scotland, Cairngorms	33	16	6	34	(0)	89
67=	Camino de Santiago *	Spain		31	15	16	31	(4)	89
67=	Carrauntoohil	Ireland	Kerry, Iveragh Peninsula	34	15	8	32	(0)	89
67=	Delicate Arch *	USA	SW: Arches NP	35	16	8	34	(4)	89
67=	Dogon Country *	Mali		31	14	14	30	(0)	89
67=	Eiger Trail *	Switzerland		35	16	8	32	(2)	89
67=	Great Blasket Island *	Ireland	Kerry, Dingle Peninsula	32	14	12	31	(0)	89
67=	Monte Rosa Circuit *	Switzerland/Italy	Alps	36	16	6	32	(1)	89
67=	Mount Rinjani *	Indonesia	Lombok	36	19	2	34	(2)	89
67=	Otavalo Area *	Ecuador	Northern Andes: Otavalo Area	34	17	5	33	(0)	89
67=	Simien Mountains *	Ethiopia		34	16	8	33	(2)	89
67=	Skellig Michael	Ireland	Kerry, Iveragh Peninsula	34	15	8	32	(0)	89
67=	The Dachstein *	Austria	The Dachstein	35	17	3	34	(0)	89
67=	Tongariro Alpine Crossing	New Zealand	North Island	34	19	2	36	(2)	89
67=	Upper Humla Valley	Nepal	Western Nepal	33	15	12	31	(2)	89
83=	Altai Mountains	Mongolia		33	14.5	8	33	(0)	88.5
83=	Kunisaki Peninsula *	Japan	Kyushu	31	12	15.5	30	(0)	88.5
83=	Stubai Hohenweg (Glacier Tour) *	Austria	Stubai Alps	35	15.5	4	34	(0)	88.5
83=	Tash Rabat	Kyrgyzstan		33	15	10	31.5	(1)	88.5
83=	Uluru (Ayers Rock)	Australia	Northern Territory	32	16.5	14	34	(8)	88.5
83=	Walkers Haute Route (Chamonix to Zermatt) *	France/Switzerland		35	16.5	5	34	(2)	88.5
89=	Assynt Peninsula	UK	Scotland, Northern Highlands/Assynt	34	18	3	34	(1)	88
89=	Burgess Highline Trail *	Canada	BC/Yoho	34	19	3	32	(0)	88
89=	Canyonlands National Park *	USA	SW: Canyonlands NP	35	17	0	36	(0)	88
89=	Easter Island *	Chile		30	13	12	33	(0)	88
89=	Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming *	USA	Western: Grand Teton NP	35	17	2	34	(0)	88
89=	Great Volcanic Ridge	Spain	Canary Islands: La Palma	32	19	3	34	(0)	88
89=	Haraz Mountains *	Yemen		30	14	12	32	(0)	88
89=	Iceberg/Hooker Glacier Lake *	New Zealand	South Island	35	16	5	32	(0)	88
89=	Las Canadas and El Tiede	Spain	Canary Islands: Tenerife	33	18	3	34	(0)	88
89=	Meteora	Greece		32	15	17	34	(10)	88
89=	Mount Sinai *	Egypt		30	14	15	32	(3)	88
89=	Odessa Lake *	USA	Western/Rocky Mountain NP	36	17	2	33	(0)	88

Near Misses

And here are some superb "near misses" that merit special recognition:

Walk Name	Continent	Country	Beauty	Natural Interest	Human Interest	Charisma	Negative Points	Total
Chemin St Jacques	Europe	France	28	15	15	28	(0)	86
Hua Shan	Asia	China	32	15	14	32	(8)	85
M'goun Massif	Africa	Morocco	32	15	8	30	(0)	85
Atacama Desert	South America	Chile	32	18	0	34	(0)	84
Mount Fuji Ascent	Asia	Japan	30	17	8	34	(5)	84