Croatia - Samobor

I received this beautiful card from Rumiko in the Slavic countries RR :) I haven't heard of Samobor before, but it seems to be a nice and cosy town, although it's very close to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. According to the sender, Samobor is famous for Croatian cakes called kremšnite, made of custard and flaky pastry - that's where they come from :)
And I have one more reason to like this card... You want to guess what it is? ;) Of course, I love the old train that they have in Samobor! :)

Thank you very much, Rumiko, for sending me this card:)


To the east of Zagreb is the town of Samobor, established in the 13th century. The narrow cobble stone streets and the beautiful Trg Kralja Tomislava main square are great places to stroll and sightsee. Although the town has a long history, a fire in 1797 destroyed large sections and many buildings. Consequently most of the architecture is from the 1800s. The fortress ruins on Tepic Hill known as Stari Grad, date to the late 13th century. Samobor grew up at the base of the fortress. Today Samobor is a popular getaway destination for locals and travelers who enjoy hiking and good food. It is regarded as one of the best centers for Croatian gastronomy.

Czech Republic - Prague

This card, received in the Slavic countries RR, shows one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been to. I've visited Prague for 3 or 4 times (I'm not sure now) and I hope to go there again soon. I'd like to show this wonderful city to my Ukrainian friend, who is going to come here for several days next week. Actually, it's much closer to Prague than to Warsaw from my city. I live only 216 kms away from the Czech capital (I know it exactly thanks to postcrossing - I've sent an official to Prague once) ;)

This city has a really unique atmosphere and it's even hard to describe it. I just love it's narrow streets, hills, old churches, houses, bridges... Sometimes, especially during the summer, there are way too many tourists, many of them coming from Japan, but it's not strange - Prague is definitely one of those cities you really should visit, if you decide to go to Europe. It's much more beautiful than many famous West European cities, at least in my opinion. I hope this card, showing the Prague Castle, will encourage you to visit this city, if you ever have such opportunity :)


Prague Castle (Czech: Pražský hrad) is a castle in Prague where the Czech kings, Holy Roman Emperors and presidents of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic have had their offices. The Czech Crown Jewels are kept here. Prague Castle is one of the biggest castles in the world (according to Guinness Book of Records the biggest ancient castle) at about 570 meters in length and an average of about 130 meters wide.

The castle buildings represent virtually every architectural style of the last millennium. The Prague Castle includes gothic St Vitus Cathedral, Romanesque Basilica of St. George, a monastery and several palaces, gardens and defense towers. Most of the castle areas are open to tourists. Nowadays, the castle houses several museums, including the National Gallery collection of Bohemian baroque and mannerism art, exhibition dedicated to Czech history, Toy Museum and the picture gallery of Prague Castle.

China - Fragrant Hills in Beijing

This card is one more proof that participating in the postcrosing forum activities is a good way to receive wonderful card :) Actually, I really love the idea of official postcrossing, the surprise factor, the thrill each time I request a new address... But I've noticed that the cards tht I receive in unofficial exchange (froum & private swaps) are often of much better quality and that people put more effort to choose a card fitting my wishlist and to write a nice message. Of course, I've received many wonderful officials too and I like the huge majority of them, but some are a bit disappointing. I wonder, what's the reason... Maybe it's beacause unofficial exchange isn't so anonymous and people would be ashamed to send some trash to someone that they've agreed on swap with? Or maybe because people participating in the unofficial exchange are more serious about collecting cards? Anyway, I'm not going to give up sending officials, because that's what's actually postcrossing about, the forum is just a nice addition. And just because I love being surprised :)

I love this card, because I generally find mountains and hills in autumn time very beautiful. And the elements of traditional Chinese architecture hidden between the trees give some Asian feeling to this view :)


The stamps are also very interesting :) I still don't know, if it's just normal in China that you always get many huge stamps with a whole variety of pictures or if Chinese postcrossers are so kind to look for nice stamps, when they send cards abroad :) But I've already received quite a lot of Chinese cards sent by different people, so I think that getting nice stamps on China Post must be much easier than here :)

Fragrant Hills Park (Xiangshan Park; simplified Chinese: 香山公园; pinyin: Xiāngshān Gōngyuán) is a public park at the foot of the Western Mountains in the Haidian District, in the northwestern part of Beijing, China. It covers 1.6 km² (395 acres) and consists of a natural pine-cypress forest, hills with maple trees, smoke trees and persimmon trees, as well as landscaped areas with traditional architecture and cultural relics.

Fragrant Hills Park is recognized as one of the major tourist attractions in Beijing. When autumn arrives, the natural scenery in the park turns spectacular, with fiery red smoke tree leaves covering the mountain side. Every year, thousands of tourists ride the cable cars through the park in order see the hills in autumn colors. The grand opening of the annual Red Leaf Festival of Beijing takes place there.

Macedonia - Ohrid

I received this wonderful card in the Slavic countries RR from Anja (So there are already 2 active postcrossers in Macedonia!) :) It's partially written in Macedonian language, which makes me even more happy, because I realize that I understand it :D Of course, there are some words that I don't know, but I understand the general meaning of all sentences and even the grammar isn't as complicated as it might seem to be (probably that's because I have some very basic knowledge of Bulgarian, which is a bit similar to Macedonian).

According to Anja, there are around 365 churches in Ohrid - one for each day in the year. I didn't know that! This card shows 2 of those - Church of St. Zaum and Church of St. Naum.


Ohrid (Macedonian: Охрид) is a city on the eastern shore of Lake Ohrid in the Republic of Macedonia. It has about 42,000 inhabitants, making it the seventh largest city in the country. The city is the seat of Ohrid Municipality. Ohrid is notable for having once had 365 churches, one for each day of the year, and is referred to as the Macedonian Jerusalem. The city is rich in picturesque houses and monuments, and tourism is predominant. It is located southwest of Skopje, west of Resen and Bitola, and east of Elbasan and Tirana in Albania.

In 1980, Ohrid and Lake Ohrid were accepted as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

France - Children from Lorraine in traditional costumes

I received this card some time ago in the World Languages RR, written in Ukrainian :) It's always a great pleasure to receive a card written in Polish or Ukrainian from people that live in some other countries. I doubt if any Slavic language might become an international one, because their grammar is just too complicated, but still it's so nice to see people trying to learn them :)
This card shows children from Lorraine region in traditional costumes.


Lorraine is one of the regions (another one is Alsace) that used to be a contested territory between Germany and France. I haven't been to Lorraine, but I've spent several days in Alsace and I've noticed a huge influence of German culture there. Even the names of streets in Strasbourg have double names: in French and some dialect of German. So I guess that the culture of Lorraine may also be some mix of French and German influences :)

South Africa - Robben Island

Tomorrow morning I'm going to write my geography exam (just 3 exams left!), so I think it's a good reason to make a short trip to a country, which is far away and is very interesting for many reasons, including it's geography, but also history, cultural and linguistic variety... Yes, it's South Africa :) Of coruse, I'm not able to go there now and in the foreseable future, but having a postcard I can use my imagination to travel :) I think that compared to the other African countries, South Africa isn't so "hard to get" when it comes to the postcards, but I still don't have many cards from there and I was extremely happy to receive 2 South African UNESCO cards in an envelope this week :)
This one shows the Robben Island, which now looks very beautiful, but it used to be a prison island, where many political prisoners spent many hard years during the era of apartheid.


Robben Island (Afrikaans Robbeneiland) or Penguin Island is an island in Table Bay, some seven kilometres off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa. The name is Dutch for "seal island". Robben Island is roughly oval in shape, 3.3 km long north-south, and 1.9 km wide, with an area of 5.07 km² . It is flat and only a few metres above sea level, as a result of an ancient erosion event. The island is composed of Precambrian metamorphic rocks belonging to the Malmesbury Group. It is of particular note as it was here that former South African President and Nobel Laureate Nelson Mandela and incumbent South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, alongside many other political prisoners, spent decades imprisoned during the apartheid era.

Brazil - Curitiba

I've been receiving many cards from Brazil recently and it gives me a chance to learn more about this country :) I've noticed that most of Brazilian postcrossers live in São Paulo or Rio de Janeiro, so I receive cards from these cities quite often, but sometimes I also have a chance to see less known Brazilian cities, like Curitiba that I really haven't heard of before :)

This postcard shows the Federal University of Paraná, Botanic Garden, Tanguá Park and Oscar Niemeyer Museum. Many thanks to Karina for showing me another part of your country! :)

By the way, I've learned that the State of Paraná (Curitiba is it's capital) has the largest Ukrainian community in Brazil! :) So, if I ever have a change to visit Brazil, I'll go to Paraná State for sure :D



Curitiba is the capital city of the Brazilian state of Paraná. The city has the largest population and also the largest economy in Southern Brazil. The population of Curitiba numbers approximately 1.8 million people (7th largest nationwide).

The first ten years of the 16th century marked the beginning of a war of conquest of Europeans (Portuguese colonists) against the indigenous peoples who inhabited the area of the city. Waves of European immigrants started arriving after 1850, mainly Germans, Italians, Poles and Ukrainians. In 1853, the south and southwest of the province of São Paulo were separated, forming the new province of Paraná, and Curitiba became its capital.

During the 20th century, especially after 1950, the city rapidly increased in population and consolidated its position as regional hub for trade and services, becoming one of the richest cities in Brazil and a pioneer in urban solutions.

Philippines - Boracay island

I received 2 wonderful cards from Philippines from Jane in just 2 days and therefore I already have cards from 67 different countries and territories in my collection :) Actually, the first card was sent in March and another one in April, but the one sent later arrived here one day earlier. The next day, I found this card on top of mailboxes in my block of flat. I guess it was delivered to a wrong address, so someone decided to leave it in a visible place, so that the real receiver could take it. Fortunately, I found this postcard and brought it home safely, before anyone else could take it (I guess that some people would like to have a card from Philippines, even if they're not real collectors) :) It would be a pity to lose such card. It shows Boracay, a small, but very beautiful island.



Boracay is a tropical island located approximately 315km (200 miles) south of Manila and 2km off the northwest tip of the island of Panay in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. It is one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.

It was only in the 70s when, it is said, a foreign movie crew accidentally "discovered" this island paradise. Others maintain that it was the German traveler, 'Jens Peters' book, which included rave reviews of Boracay that changed the island’s pace from that of being a quiet secret to eventually being voted as having the best beach in the world.

In a span of a mere 10 years, the whole world, it seemed, discovered Boracay and the once, nearly deserted stretch of beach became a teeming vacation and leisure spot for upscale tourists from all parts of the world.

Ukraine - Chernihiv

I received this wonderful card from Helen in the Slavic countries RR :) It shows the Transfiguration cathedral (which is called "The Saviour Cathedral" on the English Wikipedia. I just wonder, which version is correct?) in Chernihiv, which is on my list of Ukrainian cities that I certainly have to visit :) Actually, this list is very long (perhaps it's limited only by the total number of cities and towns in Ukraine) but Chernihiv has been on top of this list for quite a long time. The problem is that I don't know anyone from Chernihiv and that it's too close to Kyiv :) It may sound strange, but I find it much easier to travel between Ukrainian cities, if the distance is something between 400 and 700 kms. Then it's possible to take a night train and to sleep well on the way to another city :) But I'm sure I'll find a good way to go to Chernihiv, as this city is definitely worth visiting :)



Chernihiv, (Ukrainian: Чернігів), is a historic city in northern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chernihiv Oblast (province). The estimated population of the city is around 299,000 (as of 2006).

Chernihiv was first mentioned in the Rus'-Byzantine Treaty (907) (as Черниговъ), but is considered to have existed at least in the ninth century, as uncovered by archaeological excavations of a settlement which included the artifacts from the Khazar Khaganate. Towards the end of the 10th century, the city probably had its own rulers.

Chernihiv's architectural monuments chronicle two most flourishing periods in the city's history - those of Kievan Rus (11th and 12th centuries) and of the Cossack Hetmanate (late 17th and early 18th centuries.)

The oldest church in the city and in the whole of Ukraine is the 5-domed Saviour Cathedral, commissioned in the early 1030s by Mstislav the Bold and completed several decades later by his brother, Yaroslav the Wise.

China - Wu Hill

This wonderful card was sent from Hangzhou city, the capital of Zhejiang province and shows the sunset over Wu Hill. It seems to be a beautiful place itself (I saw some other pictures on the internet), but the rays of setting sun make this view even more breathtaking.
I've noticed that I usually receive Chinese postcards with many different and interesting stamps. I wonder if you always get such variety of stamps without asking on Chinese post or I'm just lucky with Chinese postcrossers, who care to choose nice ones for me :) Anyway, I find one of these stamps really unusual: it's a Chinese olympics stamp showing... another olympics stamp from Portugal :) I wish Polish postage stamps designers had so great ideas too :)

Wu Hill situates at the end of hills around the lake, is made up of 10 or more peaks. It stretches for several miles and extends into the downtown. Besides, it is locally called Chenghuang Hill. There are a lot of odd-shaped rocks and inscriptions on the hill. A strange cluster of rocks which is known as the “Twelve Animal Stones” appears like the twelve animals in the Chinese lunar calendar. On the hill, there are many camphor trees . One of them, the oldest one, “Song Camphor”, is more than 800 years old.

On the top of Wu Hill, there is a pavilion where you can have a view of both Qiantang River and West Lake as the hill locates between Qiantang River and West Lake. Recently, Panoramic View Pavilion and Tea Aroma Tower were built on the Wu Hill. Furthermore ginkgo, Chinese sweet gum, pine tree and evergreen camphor were planted all over the hill to accompany the “Song Camphor”. All these create a more attractive appearance of Wu Hill because the new scene blends perfectly with the old.

Brazil - Rio de Janeiro

I received this wonderful card from Renato in the Slavic countries RR :) It shows the cable car of Sugarloaf Mountain in Rio de Janeiro, together with the Guanabara Bay and Copacabana beach, which is probably the best known beach of Rio, because even I've heard it's name for many times, even though I've never been to Brazil :) Sometimes I really regret this country is fo far away. And I love the places, where mountains are so close to the sea.


Sugarloaf Mountain (in Portuguese, Pão de Açúcar), is a peak situated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from the mouth of Guanabara Bay on a peninsula that sticks out into the Atlantic Ocean. Rising 396 metres (1,299 ft) above sea-level, its name is said to refer to its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined loaf sugar. However, it is believed by some that the name actually derives from Pau-nh-acuqua (“high hill”) in the Tupi-Guarani language, as used by the indigenous Tamoios.

The mountain is only one of several monolithic morros of granite and quartz that rise straight from the water's edge around Rio de Janeiro. A glass-paneled cable car (in popular Portuguese, bondinho - more properly called teleférico), capable of holding 75 passengers, runs along a 1400-metre route between the peaks of Pão de Açúcar and Cara de Cão every 20 minutes. The original cable car line was built in 1912 and rebuilt around 1972/1973 in its current form. The cable car goes from the base, not the peak of the Babilônia mountain, to the Urca mountain and then to the Pão de Açúcar mountain.

Norfolk Island

Hosting a RR on the postcrossing forum often gives me opportunity to receive cards from very rare countries :) Honestly, I wouldn't believe it if someone told me that I was going to receive a card from Norfolk Island really sent from there. I think I had heard the name of this island before, but I didn't know anything more about it. I've been interested in geography since early childhood, but there are so many small islands on the Pacific Ocean that I just can't remember all of them. I only know the ones that are independent countries, because at age of 7 or 8 I decided to learn names of all independent countries and their capitals... And I still remember them :) But Norfolk Island is an external territory of Australia with population of just 2141 people, so I think it's not very surprising that not everyone knows it :)

This postcard shows the St. Barnabas Chapel, which was consecrated in 1880. According to Jillian, who sent me this postcard, the stained glass windows and the organ were all shipped out from England. It must have been quite a fear to get them onto the island, as there's no harbour!



Norfolk Island (Norfuk: Norfuk Ailen) is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. It and two neighbouring islands form one of Australia's external territories.

The Norfolk Island pine, a symbol of the island pictured in its flag, is an evergreen tree native to the island and is quite popular in Australia, where two related species also grow.

Norfolk Island is located in the South Pacific Ocean, east of the Australian mainland. Norfolk Island is the main island of the island group the territory encompasses. It has an area of 34.6 km² (13.3 mi²), with no large-scale internal bodies of water but 32 km of coastline. The island's highest point is Mt Bates (319 m above sea level), located in the northwest quadrant of the island. The majority of the terrain is suitable for farming and other agricultural uses. Phillip Island, the second largest island of the territory, is located seven kilometres south of the main island.

The climate is subtropical and mild, with little seasonal differentiation. The island is the eroded remnant of a basaltic volcano active around 2.3 to 3 million years ago, with inland areas now consisting mainly of rolling plains. It forms the highest point on the Norfolk Ridge, part of the submerged continent Zealandia.

New Zealand

Believe me or not, it's my first card from New Zealand! :) I think it's just perfect, because it gives me some idea about the country's beauty and variety. I also love this type of multiview cards without borders, so that it seems to be one picture at the first sight :) I find New Zealand really fascinating because of it's maginificent landscapes and also because of the 17 000 kms distance. Maybe there are some small islands farther away from Poland, but New Zealand is definitely the farthest country. Here's the information from the back side of this card:

Beauty of New Zealand: This beautiful land of contrast, from snow clad mountains, fertile plains, magnificent fiords, perfect beaches, lush forest and active volcanoes is a paradise for those who want to visit her shores.

Oh yes, I'd love to visit New Zealand and I know many people who dream of going there even more. I just hope that someday travelling overseas will be easier and cheaper, like it's now between the EU countries. I'm still very young, so I hope this day will come :))


Unfortunately, I don't have any information about the places depicted on this postcard (maybe someone could help me?), but I know that this sweet creature in the down left corner is kiwi - a bird that can be found only in New Zealand :)

A kiwi is any of the species of flightless birds endemic to New Zealand of the genus Apteryx. At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites and lay the largest egg in relation to its body size. All kiwi species are endangered. The kiwi is also a national symbol of New Zealand. Kiwi are shy and usually nocturnal. Their mostly nocturnal habits may be a result of habitat intrusion by predators, including humans. In areas of New Zealand where introduced predators have been removed, such as sanctuaries, kiwi are often seen in daylight. Once bonded, a male and female kiwi tend to live their entire lives as a monogamous couple. During the mating season, June to March, the pair call to each other at night, and meet in the nesting burrow every three days. These relationships may last for up to 20 years

Estonia - Koguva village on the Muhu island

I received this beautiful card from Janek in the World Labguages RR, written in Czech :) Koguva is one of the villages on the Muhu island (called Muhumaa in Estonian), which is the 3rd largest island of Estonia, with area of 198 km².

Together with neighbouring smaller islands of Kesselaid, Viirelaid, Võilaid and Suurlaid it forms Muhu Parish, the rural municipality within Saare County. The municipality has a population of 1,822 and covers an area of 206.12 km². The population density is 8.8 inhabitants per km².



Koguva was first mentioned in 1532 by Wolter von Plettenberg in document to grant freedom for peasant called Hansken and his son and their descendants. Hansken descendants became called by surname Schmuul later.

Koguva is a small, very peaceful rural village. There are many buildings that are centuries old, dating back to feudal times under Swedish rule, and are still in use today. The northern shore of Muhu, which is claimed to have the clearest water anywhere in the Baltic Sea, is only a short distance away.

Malaysia - Rubber plantation

I received this interesting card in the Slavic countries RR. I love cards showing something typical for the country, which isn't a typical tourist attraction. According to Lay Hoon, who has sent me this card, Malaysia used to be the No. 1 rubber exporter in the world. I guess that now most of rubber we're using is synthetic, because it must be cheaper and easier to produce it. Working at such plantation is very hard, because the rubber tappers have to remove a thin layer of bark along a downward half spiral on the tree trunk each night or early in the morning, before the temperature rises. If it's done carefully and with skill, this tapping panel will yield latex for up to 5 years.


Rubber tapping is the process by which rubber is gathered. An incision is made in the bark of a rubber tree, which cuts through the latex vessels that flow between the bark and the cambium. The latex then drips into a vessel. This industry is prevalent in areas of tropical rainforest, such as Brazil in the Roraima area or Malaysia and generally grows within a band 10° north or south of the equator, which offers optimum growing conditions. In the rubber tree's native habitats, it is less destructive to the environment and rainforest and provides a renewable source of wood which can be used within the furniture industry. However, in Southeast Asia where it is non-native, it is grown in monoculture plantations created by felling large areas of rainforest.. Large scale plantations operate on a 20 - 25 year planting cycle to optimise the latex yield.

By the way, I've noticed that many Malay cards (from different regions) belong to the same set with white frame and writting "Malaysia" with the country's flag. I wonder, how many cards are there is this set and are they really so popular around the country? Maybe they're some kind of "official" Malay cards? I already have 2 such cards, my mother received other 2, when she was trying postcrossing and I've seen much more of them in other peoples' collections :)

UK - London

I received this wonderful multiview in the World Languages RR, written in Polish :) I really love it, because it's so colorful and it has... *I'm counting*... 30 pictures :) The extreme multiview cards are always on my wishlist, but having received some I can say that making a good multiview card with a lot of pictures must be difficult. A card with 30 pictures must have a good contrast, the pictures must be different (day and night views, showing different types of buildings, people, landscapes). Otherwise, it's nearly impossible to notice all the pictures and even to count them, because they seem to be too similar. Of course, I'm not a designer and I don't know, how do the professionals make postcards, but there's something about this one, which makes me call it a perfect multiview.



I've already posted some cards from London on my blog, so I'm not going to copy any info from Wikipedia :) So I'll just tell you that I regret not visiting the London Eye. It's not my fault, I've been to London just once and it was a school trip (Have I already told you that I've always hated school trips and any organised trips?) but still I think the view from London Eye must be great, even though it's moving so slowly :)

USA - State Flags

This card is something that I absolutely love :)) I haven't received any card with so many flags on it before! Actually, this card is quite inspirating for me, because it makes me want to learn more about some states, about their history and the origin of flags. I read all the names of states and the only one which doesn't sound familiar at all is Delaware. But no, it doesn't mean that I know the geography of United States so well... I know the location of some 15 or 20 states. The other names I know... probably from the American movies. I nearly never go to cinema and I rarely watch TV, but most of movies that I've watched in my life were American, so the names of states just stayed in my memory.
Maybe I should try to collect cards from all the 50 states? I'm not sure if I'd ever reach this goal, but at least I'd learn US geography much better :)




Some offtopic: As it was my birthday yesterday, my granny gave me 2 big photo albums (300 photos each) to store my postcards, at least the ones of standard size :) Can you image, how happy I am about it? :)) I spent several hours putting my cards into the albums (and I haven't finnished yet) and now I can clearly see that these 2 albums won't be enough very soon :) I want to thank everyone who has helped me to fill these albums with postcards and made me smile each time I found cards in my mailbox :)

Switzerland - Matterhorn

It seems that I've been receiving many cards sent from somewhere else that the country of their origin last weeks. I don't mind it at all, it even enlarges the surprise factor, especially in the unoffical exchange, where I think I know what to expect :)

For example, this card was sent from Germany (I received it in the World Languages RR, written in Polish), but shows Matterhorn, which is probably the most famous mountain of Switzerland. I've been to Alps once and I spent most of time in France (more precisely, in Chamonix) and I also visited Italy (only the Aosta Valley - and it's been my only visit to Italy so far, but I can always say I've been to this country) and Switzerland. Of course, I haven't climbed Matterhorn (I doubt if I could climb any hight mountain) and I haven't even seen it, but the landscape shown on this card reminds me those several days that I spent in Alps :)


The Matterhorn (German), Cervino (Italian) or Cervin (French), is a mountain in the Pennine Alps. With its 4,478 metres (14,692 ft) high summit, lying on the border between Switzerland and Italy, it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps and its 1,200 metres (3,937 ft) north face is one of the Great north faces of the Alps. It is also one of the deadliest peaks in the Alps: from 1865 to 1995, in fact, over 500 alpinists have found their death on its faces. The mountain overlooks the town of Zermatt in the canton of Valais on the north and Cervinia in the Aosta Valley on the south. Although not the highest mountain in Switzerland, the Matterhorn is considered as an iconic emblem of the region of the Swiss Alps.

Czech Republic - Brno

I received this wonderful multivew in the World Languages RR, written in Czech :) I've never been to Brno, although I had an opportunity to go there (and to Vienna) on a school trip several years ago. But as I've always hated the school trips (and organised trips in general), I didn't go and I hope I'll have another opportunity to visit Brno myself :)


Brno is the second-largest city in the Czech Republic. It was founded in 1243, although the area had been settled since the 5th century. Today Brno has 403,304 inhabitants and is the seat of the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic, Supreme Court, Supreme Administrative Court, Supreme Prosecutor's Office and Ombudsman.
Brno is located in the southeast part of the country, at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers. The city is a political and cultural hub of the South Moravian Region (estimated population of 1,130,000 for the whole region). At the same time, it represents the centre of the province of Moravia, one of the historic lands of the Bohemian Crown. It is situated at the crossroads of ancient trade routes which have joined northern and southern European civilizations for centuries. Due to its location between the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands and the Southern Moravian lowlands, Brno has a moderate climate.

Estonia - Kihnu

I received this card from Janek in the World Languages RR, written in Ukrainian :) It shows Kihnu - a small island on the Baltic Sea. UNESCO proclaimed Kihnu's cultural space and traditions as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2003 (it's different than the UNESCO World Heritage Site).

What makes me even more thankful for this wonderful card is that it one of the stamps shows the people from Kihnu in traditional costumes. Thank you very much, Janek! :)

Kihnu is an island in the Baltic Sea. With an area of 16,4 km² it is the largest island in the Gulf of Riga and the seventh largest island of Estonia. The length of the island is 7 km and width 3.3 km, the highest point is at 8.9 m above sea level.

The island belongs to the Pärnu County of Estonia. Together with neighbouring islands it forms the Kihnu Parish, the smallest municipality of the country with an area of 16,8 km².

604 people live on Kihnu as of 2007 that is 69 pupils in the basic school. There are four villages: Lemsi, Linaküla, Rootsiküla and Sääre. To get to Kihnu, it is possible to take a plane or ferry from Pärnu, or over the ice in winter.

The Baltic islands of Manija and Kihnu are home to a small group of traditional people. For many years, the men of Kihnu have been frequently gone to sea while the women ran the island and became the guardians of the island's cultural heritage, which includes handicrafts, dances, games and music. Music is an especially important part of the island's traditions, and accompanies handicrafting, religious feasts and other celebrations. Ancient runo-styled songs are also important, as are traditional clothings adorned with decorations and bright colours that symbolize ancient legends and poems.