Sunset At Borobudur Temple, Indonesia

And more of SE Asia sunsets, didn't realise this connection before the actual posting heh. This time the sender is dewi, many thanks :)

I have posted a Borobudur Temple card before as part of my UNESCO collection, but have failed to mentioned there it is indeed the world's largest Buddhist temple. This is an absolutely amazing view. I really hope to visit Indonesia one day...The way things are going now, this may be in a farther future only.

Sunset In Bangkok, Thailand

Another sunset card from the same corner of the earth, and again its Nat :) Interesting self-adhesive stamp with cute elephants!

This view inevitably makes me feet itch...

Sunset In Taipei, Taiwan

Today, a short time after a real-time sunset, I've decided to dedicate to sunset views :) This one thanks to my busy-bee friend Nat.

The most prominent building on this picture is the Taipei 101, formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, a landmark supertall skyscraper in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. The building was officially classified as the world's tallest in 2004 (509,2 m), and remained such until the completion of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (829,8 m) in 2010. In 2011, the building was awarded the LEED platinum certification, the highest award according to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system, and became the tallest and largest green building in the world.

Fishermen On Sri Lanka

This is such an iconic image isn't it? A wonderful view from a dear friend on holiday :)) What can I add, except that I so wish that I was there with her. And look, it is NOT a zodiac stamp..!

Sunset Of Liberty

Pun not intended! I have already posted about this iconic statue, now I am showing off the awesome stamps with Janis and Jimmy :)) Tnx Arnold!

UNESCO - Historic Centre Of Florence, Italy

Firenze is the symbol of the Renaissance, a city that rose to economic and cultural pre-eminence under the Medici in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its 600 years of extraordinary artistic activity can be seen in the work of great masters such as Giotto, Brunelleschi, Botticelli and Michelangelo.

 

The spiritual focus of the city is the Cathedral Piazza of Santa Maria del Fiore, begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi.

 

Dhow In A Harbour, Qatar

This little but powerful country has been hiding from me for a long while...I have Selim to thank for this Qatar view with a traditional boat. Continuing with the sunset theme :)

 

Bagan, Myanmar

Bagan  is an ancient city located in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar; from the 9th to 13th centuries, the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Pagan, the first kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern Myanmar. During the kingdom's height between the 11th and 13th centuries, over 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were constructed in the Bagan plains alone, of which the remains of over 2200 temples and pagodas still survive to the present day.

 

I was surprised to learn that this awesome site is only on UNESCO tentative list - the explanation lies in  restorations conducted in the 1990s by the military government, which drew widespread condemnation from art historians and preservationists worldwide. Critics are aghast that the restorations paid little attention to original architectural styles, and used modern materials.

 

Sadly, Croatia has some experience in breaching the UNESCO restoration guidelines...I will probably have an opportunity to say more about that some other time. I was really lucky to get my first w&s postcard from Myanmar via an RR, and thanks to azzi who has chosen a wonderful view :))

 

Another Round From Åland

My first two postcards from Åland arrived at the same time, and so did these two :) Love the matching stamp with the flag, and the stamp on the second postcard is kind of sandy to the touch on the part depicting the earthy road. There is a 'Viking Line' postmark too because it was sent from the ferry that traverses between Åland and Sweden. Great postcards, really happy to have them! thank you Maxim and Leila :))

UNESCO - Mosi-oa-Tunya / Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

These are among the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. The Zambezi River, which is more than 2 km wide at this point, plunges noisily down a series of basalt gorges and raises an iridescent mist that can be seen more than 20 km away.

It was great to receive this romantic sunset view of the Victoria Falls, thanks so much Luke :)

Sunset At Cayman Islands

Beautiful Cayman Islands from Pat, thank you so much :) The stamps are looovely!

The Cayman Islands are a British Overseas Territory located in the western Caribbean Sea - the territory is a major world offshore financial centre (which is familiar from Hollywood movies..!). The islands continued were governed as part of the Colony of Jamaica until 1962, when they became a separate Crown colony while Jamaica became an independent Commonwealth realm.

São Jorge Island, Açores

PT-194839

This is a very nice viewcard showing a small civil parish Velas on the Azorean island of São Jorge. As much as i'm happy with it i also am a bit disappointed that there was not a word written by the sender - just a printed information about the island glued to it. There werent even stamps to make up for it...oh well, who can tick all the boxes?! xD