Great Southern Land, Australia, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Interesting–a postcard with the stamp pre-printed on the front! This rugged view of Australia comes from a mountain tag on the Postcrossing Forums.

Old Town, Portland, Oregon, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Another card from the same country-hopping relative, this time giving a glimpse of Portland’s Historic Old Town District during Saturday market. Smaller, inset images show the MAX Light Rail, New Market Theater, and Skidmore Fountain.

Harwich Old Books, Essex, UK, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This card and the two that follow come from my long-time penfriend across the pond, Kerstin. This advertising card comes from her favorite place to visit–an antiquarian bookshop. Reading the back of the card, you learn that, beyond stated operating hours, the shop is also open “extra days in summer and bank holiday afternoons, and at any time by chance or appointment.” 🙂

Harwich, Kerstin says, in the county of Essex, can be accessed easily by regular summer ferry services, across the River Stour estuary. An old maritime town, Harwich is very popular on hot summer days, when you can sit on the pier, have a crab sandwich and a drink, and watch the world and boats go by … which is precisely what Kerstin did 😉
 

Greetings from Holland, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Lovely tulips from Holland — an official postcrossing card!

Row Chapel, Hadleigh, Suffolk, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

The Row Chapel, with its exposed timber framing, dates back to the 15th century. Kerstin says that Hadleigh is a beautiful little market town just 12 miles from her home in Ipswich. it is typical for many former wool towns in the region: in the Middle Ages, when the wool trade was at its height, the town was extremely prosperous and built impressive churches and timber-framed halls and residences. When the trade collapsed in the 17th-18th centuries, Hadleigh and other towns like it became impoverished, unable to replace the old buildings with newer, more fashionable ones. And that’s why these places still look medieval today, full of 15th-16th century half-timbered buildings and massive churches far too big for the communities they serve. But modern tourists love them, of course! 🙂

In my Internet searches, I also discovered this wonderful tidbit, which I thought that you might enjoy as well:

HOW TO TALK SUFFOLK
I saw a notice on a board about a coicle roide,
Oi thought oi’ll hev a goo at that
Thass suffin oi int troid
So oi went hoom an’ oiled me boike
An oi got a form as well,
Oi picked a quid up ‘ere ‘n’ theer,
From the folks oi hed ter tell,
So orf oi went on Satd’y morn
The sun was shoinin’ broiht,
Oi met a decent crowd a folks,
An’ oi troid with all me moight,
Theyput me name down on a board,
Oi thought wa’ll thass o’roight
The day thet went boy whooly quick
But theer were churches oi coin’t foind
Still oi come hoom wholly happy
But oi got a sore behoind.

J.R. King, Hadleigh

St. Mary’s Church, Hadleigh, Suffolk, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

From the Internets, I learned that “Hadleigh is one of those pleasant, if rather self-important, Suffolk towns, whose remoteness from other places of any size makes it a microcosm of bigger towns – the factories, shops and housing estates all to scale. … If Hadleigh is small, however, St Mary is not. This is one of the grand Suffolk churches, the only big one with a medieval spire; indeed, the only proper wood and lead spire in the county. It was built in the 14th century, and the exterior bell, a 1280 clock bell doubling as a sanctus bell, is Suffolk’s oldest. It is one of the longest churches in Suffolk. The Catholics who built it are now banished to the suburbs, and the surprising modern church of St Joseph.”

Photograph by Leon Supraner, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This came in a swap-bot trade. I’m not entirely thrilled with it — looks like a photograph of windows onto which other buildings have been painted? I suppose this is an example of cards I don’t really like–it’s from one of those Pomegranate Publications packs of postcards that people buy to join postcard swaps. I suppose someone, somewhere, would like it, but it’s not really for me.

P.S. I am just noticing now that it appears there is something wrong with the scan? If you are looking at a blackened image, you are looking at my blog before I’ve had a chance to rescan the card! Please check back soon for an updated image.
 

Blue Ridge Parkway 75th Anniversary, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

We took a ride up onto the Blue Ridge Parkway recently, stopping at several of the many wonderful visitor’s centers along the way. Each one sells those passports to America’s national parks, and offers passport holders a stamp with which to mark their visit. I don’t have a passport, but I really liked the stamp, noting the park’s 75th anniversary, so I stamped a piece of paper instead 🙂

For those who’d like to learn more, I nipped this text from Wikipedia: “The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. It runs for 469 miles (755 km), mostly along the famous Blue Ridge, a major mountain chain that is part of the Appalachian Mountains. Its southern terminus is on the boundary between Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Cherokee Indian Reservation in North Carolina, from which it travels north to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia and becomes Shenandoah’s Skyline Drive. Land on either side of the road is maintained by the National Park Service. The Parkway is not a National Park, but is a National Scenic Byway and All-American Road, and is the most visited unit in the United States National Park System.”
 

Yellow-bellied Macaw: Arara Caninde, Brazil, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

An official postcrossing card from Brazil, this sender was kind enough to tell me that the bird on the photo faces extinction, which makes an otherwise boring animal card worth talking about 🙂 From the Internets I learned that the bird is docile, quiet, able to speak, and that it mates for life. Very pretty!

Portrait of a Prince, Artist Unknown, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

I would not normally like this card, another obviously Pomegranate selection, but it represents India, a country I’m learning about now through the audiobook Shantaram (a story I highly recommend, by the way).

The back says, “Portraiture was virtually unknown in Indian art until the Mughal emperors brought Persian art to the imperial court. The colors, costume details, and stylization of clouds seen in this careful study of a young prince are typical of Aurangzeb Period paintings, c. 1675.”

The original is opaque watercolor on paper, kept at the Brooklyn Museum.

Dijon, Burgandy, France, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Another official postcrossing card showing views from Dijon, which Mapquest tells me lies about 320 km southeast of Paris–about a three-hour drive. Sounds like a lovely city worth visiting: “Dijon [known for its mustard!] has one of the best preserved medieval centers in France. It is easy to walk and see the sites, with lots of pedestrian walking streets. You’ll sample some of France’s finest cuisine and drink great Burgundy wines at dinner or at one of the many wine bars in town. Dijon offers many cultural activities, including a wealth of museums and annual festivals to keep the tourist busy, including the L’Été Musical (Musical Summer), a classical music festival in June.”

Maybe I can stop when I visit Chartres someday…. 🙂
 

Japanese Maple, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

I received this wonderful card as a surprise “thank you” in response to an official postcrossing card I sent to Japan! If I am fortunate enough to visit Tokyo someday, the sender has offered to show me around 🙂 Better watch out … because I just may take you up on that! 🙂 Love the color of the Japanese maple in the photo!

Handmade Easter Card by Kirkkonummi Artist, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Sigh … here it is July, 2010 and I am just now posting a lovely scan of a handmade Easter card sent to me in 2008 by my penpal in Finland, Satu. That shows you how LONG it has been since I have been writing to penpals and enjoying my postcard collection! In any case, Satu tells me that this card was handmade by an artist famous for her quiltworks in their local area. The egg, if you can’t tell, is made from fabric! It is really very delicate and lovely 🙂 Thank you, Satu! I am so sorry it took this long to share!

Chocolate and strawberry pavlova, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Also from Kerstin … YUM! Recipe is on the back; if you’re interested, let me know 🙂

Red currant and strawberry cheesecake tart, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

From my old pal Kerstin in England — “food as it should taste, direct from the producer to you at farmers’ markets, farm shops, pick-your-own farms and through farmers’ box schemes.” If you’d like the recipe, which is also on the back, send me a note and I’ll send it along 🙂 YUM!

St. Anna church, Sweden, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This was sent to me by my penpal Aila in Finland. She picked the card up during her trip to Sweden, driving toward the Northland with her sister 🙂 Very pretty. The card says (according to Google Translate!) that it is a medieval gray stone church completed as the century turned from 1400 to 1500. Or something like that 🙂

The Gipping Valley River Path, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Kerstin says that the River Path starts by the bridge and goes all the way to Ipswich (where she lives — 21 miles away), by Needham Market and Claydon. She also says that the old “maltings” on the right have been converted to a bar and restaurant.

Hawks Mill, Needham Market, Suffolk, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Another reason why I love collecting postcards is for the EXTRA information many people share about the image on the front! Kerstin writes, “This Victorian mill stands by the Gipping Valley path at Needham Market. It used to be a mustard mill, grinding mustard seeds for the famous Colman’s Mustard Factory, still in business at Norwich. Today it has been converted into desirable living accommodations with a nice view over River Gipping.” And, as she also said, I wouldn’t mind one of those apartments!

John Constable and Flatford, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Flatford is a tiny hamlet whose most impressive building is themill by the River Stour, which belonged to the Constable family. The famous painter John Constable was supposed to carry on with his father’s business, but was very relieved when his younger brother eventually took over — it meant that John could become a painter instead, much to his dad’s displeasure. Many of Constable’s most famous paintings show scenes of Flatford and the local area.

Dedham, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Another Stour Valley town associated with Constable and his paintings. They are all just a few miles apart, some 8-10 miles southwest of Ipswich. There are lots of popular signposted and picturesque countryside walks connecting Dedham with these other towns.” (Kerstin, these publishers ought to hire you to write the backs of their postcards!)

East Berholt Church, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Here you can see the church’s interior — and the bellcage interior. Very interesting!

The Bellcage, East Bergholt Church, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

The cage, standing at the side of the church, was built in 1531 to house the bells originally intended for the church tower. It is unique in that the bells, on of which is dated 1450, are rung by swinging the wooden headstocks. Kerstin adds even more history: “Apparently the tower, which was never finished and is just a stump at the west end of the church, was being paid for by the famous Cardinal Wolsey personally. But when Wolsey died disgraced in November, 1530, Henry VIII confiscated his entire property and fortune for the crown, so no more money was forthcoming and building work stopped. The bells were ‘temporarily’ housed in the wooden bellcage the following year, 1531. But no one every finished the tower, so that’s where they remain to this day. The bells are rung by swinging them in a pit that was dug underneath them, by their headstocks.” Now THAT makes this postcard come alive!

Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Multiviews of the lovely Rio

Lapa Arches and Metropolitan Cathedral, Rio, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This is from an old penpal in Rio de Janeiro. I have not heard from her in a long time and just recently sent a “hello” letter. I hope it reaches her 🙂 And I must say, the cathedral back there looks amazing … so much so that I had to look it up! It is awesome — see for yourself BY CLICKING HERE! If anyone has a card of this cathedral alone, please let me know! 🙂

Ironbridge, Shropshire, England, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

From another long-ago penpal in England

Three amazing Rio views, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

At the top is Copacabana beach. In the middle is the Sugar Loaf cable car. At bottom, you see Rodrigo de Freitas lagoon. Rio looks so lovely — would be a great place to visit someday!

Santa Prisca, Taxco, Mexico, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Very lovely view of Taxco, Mexico

Cuernavaca, Mexico, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

have so few cards from Mexico, which is surprising considering it is so close to the U.S. I should have lots of cards from Mexico! 🙂 This lovely card shows the “panoramic view from the cathedral within the dome of Guadalupita church and the tercera orden parish.” It is written all in CAPS so I cannot tell what should be capitalized or not 🙂

Stamps from Mexcio, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

I know, I know … this is not a postcard. These stamps came on an envelope from a one-time swap with someone in Mexico–and I loved the stamps so much that I kept the envelope as well as the cards, and then scanned them to share them with you, as well 🙂 Very colorful and unique!

Chimney Rock State Park, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Chimney Rock is on the “backside” of the mountain on which we live. My daughter went there recently with a friend and brought me back a few lovely cards. I’ve never been up to the park myself, although I’ve driven around the area “below” several times. The park entry fee is kind of expensive for a family of five 🙂 But I do hear that the views from above are as lovely as they look!