Hungary

That's my first postcard from Hungary and, as I received it in the World Languages RR, it was written in Ukrainian :)) If it was written in Hungarian - I wouldn't understand anything, although I think it's a very interesting language. It's funny that in Hungarian "sz" is pronouned like English "s", and "s" is pronounced like English "sh". In Polish it's absolutely opposite - Polish "sz" = English "sh" and Polish "s" = English "s" :)
I don't have any info about this postcard in English, but I guess it shows Hungarian ladies in very beautiful national costumes and the traditional Hungarian agriculture? Anyway, I like it very much and it makes me want to visit Hungary. Maybe I'd finally learn at least several Hungarian words?

Russia - Kizhi museum

This postcard shows the "live exposition" of traditional crafts of Karelia on Kizhi island. This lady demonstrates the golden eyelet lacing. This kind of art has been known since the 15th century in Russia.
Here's some information about the Kizhi island:

Kizhi (Russian: Кижи) is an island on Lake Onega in the Republic of Karelia (Medvezhyegorsky District), Russia with a beautiful ensemble of wooden churches, chapels and houses. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Russia and an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Kizhi island is about 7 km long and 0.5 km wide. It is surrounded by about 5,000 other islands, most of which are very small—some of them just rock outcroppings (called "skerries"), though some are as big as 35 km long. Access to Kizhi is by hydrofoil across Lake Onega from Petrozavodsk (numerous trips every day in the summer), by snowcat (in the winter), or by cruise ship. There is no lodging on Kizhi for overnight guests.

Germany - Frankfurt (Oder) (DE-248006)

This postcard shows the churches of Frankfurt (Oder) in Germany. There are 2 cities called Frankfurt in Germany. The bigger (and better known) is situated in the Western part of Germany and is called Frankfurt am Main. Frankfurt (Oder) is much smaller and actually half of this city is in Poland and is called Słubice :) The border is on the Oder (or Odra in Polish) river.
There are more cities like that on the German-Polish border, because of the decision that the new border between these countries (after World War 2) should be mainly on 2 rivers - Nysa Łużycka (Lausitzer Neisse) and Odra (Oder). Now, when both Poland and Germany are members of EU, it's quite fun to visit a city, which is in 2 different country and where you can always go abroad for a walk or to cafe :)

DE-248006

Kazakhstan - Singing Dune

It's already my 2nd postcard from Kazakhstan and I find it just as beautiful as the previous one :)
It shows the Aksu Dzhabagly, which is the "singing dune". In dry weather the sand makes a sound like an organ, which can be hears several kilometres away. The sands are over 3m high, stretch for over 3km and it has been standing on the same spot for 1000's of years.
I've never heard of singing dunes before :)

Finland - Iloranta

This wonderful and HUGE :) postcard shows Iloranta, which seems to be a very beautiful place :) Although it's not a Christmas card, it reminds me that the holidays are coming very soon :)
Thanks, Sabrina! :)

USA - Lake Erie lighthouses (US-294925)

I really like it, when there's some information about the card printed on it's backside :) I don't have to use Wikipedia then ;) But, before I copy the info about this card, I must tell you that there's definitely something special about the lighthouses. I've visited some (I can't remember exactly, how many) on the Polish seaside. When I was a child, I enjoyed counting the stairs (there are usually about 200, if I remember well). Later I tried to imagine living in a lighthouse, being alone with your thoughts there during a storm. Would I enjoy it? Probably yes, but not for a long time. I also remember reading a short story by a famous Polish writer Henryk Sienkiewicz, about a Polish man, who worked in a lighthouse somewhere in Central America (was it Panama?). Once he received a famous Polish book, started reading it, then had a dream about Poland (which wasn't independent at that time), fell asleep, forgot to turn on the light and caused and a ship crashed because of him. The man lost his job, but he felt better, because he had a part of his homeland (the book) with himself. That was so sad...
Nowadays navigation is so much easier... But making our lives easier means also losing some symbols, just like the light, which has always been the symbol of hope and the right way.

I'm sorry for writing so much :)
So, here's the information about this card:

Navigation on Lake Erie has been aided since the nineteenth century by lighthouses dotting the Ohio shoreline. The Marblehead Lighthouse, constructed in 1821, is the oldest working lighthouse on the Great Lakes. Left: Marblehead, Top Center: Lorain, Middle Center: Cleveland, Bottom Center: Mentor Headlands, Right: Farport Harbor

Brazil - Porto Alegre (BR-48672)

This postcard shows Porto Alegre, a city in the Southern part of Brazil. On the left you can see a monument of Gaúcho Laçador, who is the typical and folkloric man of that region according to the sender. In the top right corner you can see the bridge on Guaíba river. Finally, in the down right corner you can see the aerial view of Porto Alegre.

BR-48672

Czech Republic - Holešov

I received this postcard in the Slavic countries RR :) It shows the chateau in Holešov.

Holešov is a town in the Zlín Region, Czech Republic. The town is located on the western hillside of the Hostýn Hills - the westernmost part of the Carpathian Mountains.

Holešov is well-known for its mannerist chateau with the garden complex and the unique Jewish synagogue.

The town was inhabited by a large Jewish community before the World War II. Almost whole Jewish community perished in the war.

The Netherlands - Amsterdam

Unfortunately, you can't see it well on the screen, but it's a very beautiful handmade 3D card :) It shows a mailbox in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. I've been there once, it's one of the most beautiful European capitals in my opinion :)

Macedonia

Thanks, Ana, for this wonderful map card of Macedonia! :)
Macedonia is one of the countries that aren't well-known not only around the world, but even in Europe (Some people are just very ignorant, but maybe I shouldn't say this, because I'm even worse ignorant when it comes to chemistry or physics). But this, as well as the fact that Macedonia is a Slavic country, makes it very interesting for me.
In the middle of this card (inside the map) you can see Skopje, the capital of Macedonia. Other two pictures show the Golak mountain near Delčevo in Eastern part of Macedonia and a hotel in Ohrid.

By the way, is the name of country, "Makedonija", written in Serbian, or it's just transliteration?

Croatia - Brač island

This postcard shows the beautiful Brač island in Croatia. It's the largest island in Dalmatia and the 3rd largest in the Adriatic. The island has population of about 13,000 with Supetar being the main town. I haven't visited Croatia yet and I really regret it, as it's not so far away from Poland and it's really worth visiting.

Germany - a map with stadiums (DE-234476)

A map of Germany! :)))
My collection of map cards increases ;)

You can also see the most important football stadiums of Germany on this card :) I'm not a big fan of football, but I like watching it sometimes.

DE-234476

Portugal - Porto

I received this beautiful postcard in the Slavic countries RR :) It shows the old, historical and monumental part of Porto, which is a UNESCO site.

Porto, also Oporto in English, is Portugal's second city and capital of the Norte NUTS II region. The city is located in the estuary of the Douro river in northern Portugal. The largest city in the region, Porto is considered the economic and cultural heart of the entire region. The city, which had an estimated population of about 240,000 (2008), lies at the centre of the political Greater Metropolitan Area of Porto, with a population of slightly more than 2.0 millions (est. 2008), and of a broader metropolitan agglomeration (including the city of Braga) with over 3.2 million inhabitants (2008).

The city of Porto comprises 15 parishes ("Freguesias"). The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996.

One of Portugal's most internationally famous products, Port wine, is named after the city because it is produced in, and shipped from the area. or, more precisely, from Vila Nova de Gaia, a city just across the river which belongs to the same conurbation.

The country was also named after the Latin name of Porto, Portus Cale

Estonia (EE-36115)

This wonderful postcard with 23 pictures (yes, I counted them) shows the most beautiful places of Estonia :) I like especially the castles. It seems to me that Estonia is a small country, but with many interesting sights. And with difficult languages, but as far as I know, many Estonian people can speak Russian, because there's large Russian minority.

EE-36115

Finland (FI-405561)

The google translator isn't inteligent enough to translate, what is written on this postcard :)) But I like it very much anyway, because I love fields of crops and blue sky... OK, I'll tell you the truth ;) As you probably know, my favorite country is Ukraine :) The Ukrainian flag is blue and yellow :) Blue stands for the sky and yellow stands for crops (Ukraine has been known for very good soil and agriculture). But of course, this postcard has nothing to do with Ukraine :) I'm sure Finland is a very beautiful country, too :)

FI-405561