Coral Pink Sand Dunes, Utah State Park, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Situated between Mt. Caramel Junction and Kannab. Gorgeous, huh?

Virgin River Gorge, Utah, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Here, I-15 runs 29.5 miles across six rivers through a 500-million-year-old geologic area

“Reached via Hwy 12 from Boulder, Utah. The falls are situated in a beautiful setting of red sandstone formations at the edge of the 1.7 million acres of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.”

Valley of Fire, Nevada, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Just minutes from Las Vegas, the Valley of Fire, a Nevada State Park, offers breathtaking expanses of fire red sandstone buttes, Indian petroglyphs, camping, and a stones throw from Lake Mead.”

Douglas fir in Bryce Canyon, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

In the Wall Street area of the Navajo Trail.

Maid of the Mist, Niagara Falls, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

I’ve never been to Niagara, although we’ve been talking about taking a drive to Niagara and Toronto pretty soon! And after seeing Jim Carrey’s performance as the zany reporter on Bruce Almighty, my kids of course want to visit the Maid of the Midst!

From the back: “Standing at the bow, you feel the mist lightly spray your face. You hear the rumble of the water. You sense the vast power of it all. Face-to-face with one of the natural wonders of the world. It’s the only way to feel the magic in the mist.” (Oh, brother!) 🙂

City of Hope Credo at Golter Gate, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“At the heart of all City of Hope activities is the credo, ‘There is no profit in curing the body if in the process we destroy the soul,’ here pictured on the Golter Gate located at the entrance to the International Garden of Meditation on the campus in Duarte, CA.”

Wow … this place sounds impressive (http://www.cityofhope.org):

“City of Hope is recognized worldwide for its compassionate patient care, innovative science and translational research, which rapidly turns laboratory breakthroughs into promising new therapies.

We are one of only 40 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers nationwide and a founding member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. An independent biomedical research, treatment and education institution, we are a leader in the fight to conquer cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening diseases.

On our park-like campus just northeast of Los Angeles, researchers advance ideas into discoveries, physicians bring emerging therapies to patients, and students learn to transform the landscape of modern medicine – all supported by the generosity of philanthropists from across the country.

Every day we pursue new and better ways to improve the lives of men, women and children here and around the world – and have for almost 100 years.”

Spirit of Life Fountain, City of Hope, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“The Spirit of Life Fountain at the entrance to City of Hope in Duarte, CA, symbolizes the national medical center’s mission of attending to the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the entire family as well as those of the patient.”

Zimbabwean Stone Sculpture by Moses Masaya, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

I love this series of five postcards from the Matombo Gallery’s Major Artists Series — another great find in my box of free cards. This sculpture, called Blind Beggar, is made from serpentine stone.

Two Oceans Aquarium, Cape Town, South Africa, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Love this art card! Beautifully done. The piece is called “The Kelp Forest,” by The Studio of Noel Ashton. From its website (http://www.aquarium.co.za/), looks like a very nice aquarium, too!

Zimbabwean Stone Sculpture by Norbert Shamauyarira, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This poignant sculpture is entitled Twin Sorrows. Matombo Gallery, Major Artist Series, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean Stone Sculpture by Albert Mamvura, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Worried Man.” Matombo Gallery, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean Stone Sculpture by Moses Masaya, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Another serpentine stone piece by Masaya, called Possessed Headman. Matombo Gallery, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean Stone Sculpture by Henry Munyaradzi, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Widower.” Matombo Gallery, Harare, Zimbabwe.

“They have a cheek I’ve never been ask” (Not sure about the grammar on this — shouldn’t it be “They have a cheek; I’ve never been asked”?)

From my previously reference box of free cards (there’s a lot of them, so stay tuned!): “In the 19th century, factory legislation restricting women’s working lives had been passed without any reference to the women themselves. This poster makes the point that Parliament had to be made accountable to the female electorate.” Published by the Museum of London.

Sincere Department Store, China, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Awesome art card showing the Sincere Department Store in Nanjing, China, on Nanjing East Road. This is an offical Postcrossing card — lovely!

You can see the store online, here: http://www.sincere.com.hk/s-index.html.

Don’t you just love the web?!?

Notre Dame Memorial Library, Indiana, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This card is one of a bunch of cards I picked up in a box marked “free cards.” On the back: “Notre Dame’s Memorial Library is one of the largest on any university campus in the world and is noted for its 11-story mural, “The Word of Life.” Christ as teacher is surrounded by his apostles and an assembly of saints and scholars who have contributed to knowledge throughout the ages. The 14-story building was completed in 1964 and contains more than 1.5-million volumes.” Published by Notre Dame Book Store, Notre Dame, Indiana.

There is much for me to like about this card: the artwork, the One the artwork represents, the university, the library! It’s a great card all around!

Early Iron Workers, Zimbabwe, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Another treasure from my “free” box of cards, this one with a black and white drawing showing early iron workers in Zimbabwe. From the back: “From Early Zimbabwe. M. White, B. Strachan and P. Garlake, 1982. Printed by Mambo Press, Gweru, Zimbabwe.”

Awesome!

On the Rocks, Namibia, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Yes, a card from Namibia! This was among the box of “free cards” I was fortunate enough to pick up a while ago. The back says, “Beautiful scenes of NAMIBIA: many a ship stranded at NAMIBIA’S inhospitable coast. Thousands of seals inhabit the shores of the Namib.” Photo and published by H.W. Theiss, Windhoek, Namibia.

From Wiki, I learned that Namibia was under South African control until 1990, when it gained independence. It is located to above and to the northwest of South Africa on a map, with its coast along the Atlantic Ocean.

Acacia Erioloba by Christine Marais, Namibia, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

The card says nothing more than POST CARD and the text on the title, plus published by Gamsberg MacMillam Ltd Windhoek.

A little research shows that Acacia Erioloba is a plant found in Namibia … Christine Marais is a well-known artist from Namibia … and Windhoek is the capital and largest city of Namibia. I think then, that I can say with assurance, that this lovely art card is from Namibia!

This PowerPoint presentation is being passed around the Internets, so I hope the author and photographer don’t mind my sharing these wonderful images here on my blog! These aerial photographs of various European locations are WONDERFUL! Now I want to visit Europe more than ever!

Gorgeous greetings from Germany, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

When it arrived, this very thick and colorful, cheerful card brightened my day — and it has brought smiles to my face many times since!

It is an official postcrossing card from Germany. The sender writes on the back: “First I bought a postcard with my hometown Frankfurt on it, but as you have children, I thought they might like a more colorful postcard.”

She was right! They DID like it–as did I! It is among my absolute favorites 🙂 I liked it so much that I looked up the artist online to see what I could find. The name is Turnowsky–and he (?) seems to be somewhat of a mystery. I am not sure if this is children’s art published by Turnowsky, or if it is actually art by Turnowsky. I did find the website turnowsky.com, but it does not seem updated and provides little information. The most I could find is that Turnowsky is in Israel, and this, on a Turnowsky vendor’s site: “Publishers of exclusive fine paper products, widely acclaimed for the originality and refinement of their designs, and unique printing techniques. The large ranges, all created at Turnowsky’s own studio, include a great variety of art cards in different sizes and styles, gift wrap, gift bags, notebooks and bookmarks. Turnowsky’s lines are seasonal and inspired by prevalent trends and colours. The rich collections are exported to more than 20 countries.”

I know this: I will be looking for more Turnowsky! 🙂 Thank you again, kind sender!

Business card of a 10-year-old, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

My oldest and youngest children recently opened their own (competing) “businesses” to earn money above and beyond allowance: The Silver Foot and The Happy Foot. You can guess what they do 🙂 My middle child, though, does not like “doing feet.” So he created his own business, called New Designs. Here is his business card. Cute, eh?

Lake Louise, Banff National Park, Canada, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

My husband has been scanning albums filled with old family photos–and this card came from one of those albums. We had planned to go to Banff for our honeymoon, but it was not to be; we went to Washington DC instead 🙂 We still talk about going to Banff–maybe for a second honeymoon?

From the back of the card: “Chateau Lake Louise Swimming Pool. The pool available to guests at the Chateau Lake Louise is a boon to the vacationer as the lakes in the Canadian Rockies are universally too cold for bathing. The mountain lakes are fed directly by glacial streams and even in mid-summer they are very close to freezing.”

Handmade card, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This adorable handmade card came in an order of soap from an Etsy vendor.

Souq Waqif, Doha, Qatar, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This oversized card comes from Afendi (thank you!), an Indonesian working in Doha, far from his home. He discovered my blog, commented, and a postcard trade soon followed!

This image comes from a painting by Rosemary Morrell. It shows the Souq Waqif traditional market in Doha. Souq Waqif means “standing water” — it is so named because in days long past, Doha was a small village split by the Wadi river, along whose banks vendors would gather to sell their wares. As the water often ran into the streets, vendors were forced to stand — thus the name “standing water.” The Souq has been recently restored and is, according to Wiki, one of the top tourist attractions in Doha!

Under the Tuscan Sun, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This sunflower–and its postcard, an official Postcrossing card–hail from a little town in the center of Tuscany, another region I would love to visit someday.

Doha, Qatar, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This amazing view of Doha was taken from the Museum of Islamic Art. The city appears so large and contemporary, yet looks as though it sits on the edge of the desert! Exotic and beautiful! Interestingly, my sister recently visited Doha and brought me a card showing the Museum of Islamic Art–what are the chances of that? Thank you again to Afendi for this great card! You can check out other great cards and views from Doha at his blog.

The Oregon Trail, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

A nice map card showing the Oregon Trail, from a distant (geographically!) relative on my husband’s side. She picked this up for me on a recent trip to Portland–thank you!

From the back: “Lewis & Clark [sic] expedition of 1804 paved the way for the westward exodus of an estimated 200,000 pioneers by wagon train along what became known as the Oregon Trail.” Imagine traveling all that way by horse and wagon….