Berlin, Germany

Unfortunately the awesomeness of this card doesn't come across in a photo... I LOVE metro maps. This one is of Berlin. It actually looks kind of similar to Tokyo, but not as complex.

Stamps. Right we have a nice commemorative stamp celebrating 175 years of railroads in Germany. The image shows the first run of the steam engine "Adler" ("eagle") in 1835. This stamp was issued in November 2010 and is still available. I wasn't able to find the one on the left on the Deutsch Post website, but it appears to be a flower definitive. The flower is an oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare).

Xi'an, China

This is the world heritage site near Xi'an that I didn't visit on my trip there. My friend told me it wasn't as awesome as visiting Hua-shan mountain, so I went there instead. But I received a postcrossing official card from there, and here it is.

The armies are found at the tomb of China's first emperor, Qin Shihuang, buried with him and meant to protect him in the afterlife. They date to the year 209 BCE. Buried under 5 meters of soil over the ages since they were created, the figures were discovered by farmers digging a well in 1974. The figures are life-size and include warriors, horses, chariots, officials, musicians and acrobats. They are arranged in military formation according to rank and duty. Wikipedia doesn't say how the musicians and acrobats figure in the military formation...

Just a meter mark, no stamp, so I won't bother to post it.

Symbols of Holland

An official from the Netherlands, showing tulips, clogs, and a windmill.

Tulips, first wildflowers from central Asia, were cultivated in Turkey, then brought to the Netherlands in the 17th century. "Tulip" comes from the Turkish word for "turban."

Clogs are called klompen in Dutch. Heehee. Apparently the traditional wooden ones can be accredited for safety standards, impermeable to sharp objects and even concentrated acid. Perhaps I should get some for work, as they recently instated a change to the dress code so now we have to wear close-toed shoes.

I didn't put in the stamp as it is the normal world-heart one.

Grand Mosque, Bahrain

I am rather annoyed today by someone special flaking out on me. Twice. Last night and this morning. A couple of months ago I was really upset at a different someone saying they would send me postcards from certain rare countries, and flaking out. I really do not like it when people do this to me. So I am posting this card from someone who didn't flake. (yay!) So now I have a card from Bahrain, which is a comparatively rare country I must say, after all. Thank you Christina!!

The Grand Mosque, more properly Al Fateh Grand Mosque, located in the capital city of Manama, is one of the largest in the world, and the largest in this small country. The dome is made of 60 tons of fiberglass, and 7,000+ worshippers can fit in at once.

Maybe it is easier to get a card from here if you are American and know people in the military, as there seems to be a fairly large base there. This card was sent through military mail, so no stamps.

Sheepworld

Sheepworld is a German creation, but this card is actually from Poland. I love Sheepworld - it's one of my top wishes - and when I received this card, I cried. I was really missing someone.

The sender writes, "The sentence on the front means 'Close to you is my favorite place'. Well, I couldn't agree more :) These sheeps always seem to know what's best not only for them, but for us as well."

Yeah.

We have seen both of these stamps before. On the left a house in the village of Lopuszna from the 1997 series of Polish Manor Houses. On the right a Europa 2010 stamp celebrating children's books.