Georgian Bay, Ontario - Canada

I got this postcard from a swap with "Willa". It shows the Georgian Bay at Bruce Peninsula National Park, in Ontario.

"In the heart of a World Biosphere Reserve, the 'Bruce' is a place of global significance. The massive, rugged cliffs of the park are inhabited by thousand year old cedar trees, overhanging the crystal clear waters of Georgian Bay. The park is comprised of an incredible array of habitats from rare alvars to dense forests and clean lakes. Together these form a greater ecosystem - the largest remaining chunk of natural habitat in southern Ontario." In: Parks Canada

"Bruce Peninsula National Park is a national park on the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario, Canada. Located on a part of the Niagara Escarpment, the park comprises 156 square kilometres and is one of the largest protected areas in southern Ontario, forming the core of UNESCO's Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve. The park offers opportunities for many outdoor activities, including hiking, camping, and bird watching. The park has trails ranging in difficulty from easy to expert, and connects to the Bruce Trail.

Bruce Peninsula National Park also offers visitors vistas to view either the sunrise or sunset, the rocks of the Niagara Escarpment, and the wildlife, which includes black bear, many species of birds, wild orchids, massassauga rattlesnake, and much more." In: Wikipedia

Algarve - Portugal

Algarve region is a popular place for vacations, and from there arrived some great postcards!

Ludovico sent this multiview of Alte, a village in Loulé. The card shows the culture and the nature qualities of that area.

"Leninha" sent from Faro a postcard with a White Stork making a pose to the photographer.

Penguin

"Alexie" surprised me with another beautiful postcard with penguins! The postcard says "What I always wanted to tell you"

Millaa Millaa Falls - Australia

"Shinta" from Indonesia sent this amazing waterfall! As she says on the card, "the view reminds me of Eden", and I agree!

"The Millaa Millaa Falls are adjacent to the town of Millaa Millaa, on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia. Millaa Millaa is an Aboriginal word meaning plenty of water or waterfall. A popular destination of international tour operators, the falls are 18.3 metres high with a pool suitable for swimming at their base. The Millaa Millaa Falls are accessed by sealed road off the Palmerston Highway about 5 minutes from the township of Millaa Millaa." In: Wikipedia

Postcrossing Meeting in Lisbon and Sintra 05-06 August (Part II)

From the meeting with "kazinhabueno" in Sintra I received these great postcards:

"SusanaPortugal" sent this view not from the Nacional Palace of Sintra, as the postcard says, but from Regaleira Palace. "Quinta da Regaleira is an estate located near the historic center of Sintra, Portugal. It is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO within the "Cultural Landscape of Sintra". Along with other palaces in this area (such as the Pena, Monserrate and Seteais palaces), it is one of the principal tourist attractions of Sintra. It consists of a romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park featuring lakes, grottoes, wells, benches, fountains, and a vast array of exquisite constructions. The palace is also known as "Palace of Monteiro the Millionaire", from the nickname of its first owner, António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro." In: Wikipedia

"Martinha" sent this great natural waterfall from one of the many gardens in Sintra. One more card for my waterfalls collection!

Postcrossing Meeting in Lisbon and Sintra 05-06 August (Part I)

The postcroser "kazinhabueno" visited Portugal in August and a meeting was arranged in Lisboa and other in Sintra.

From the Lisboa meeting I received:

"PilotOne" sent this postcard with the Hieronymite Monastery, from the XVI century, a manueline gothic style.  It's an UNESCO heritage site.

"Gracinha" sent this multiview postcard, a resumé of the must see places of Lisboa.

CN-407240 - Giant Panda

CN-407240 sen by "denghui1971"

"The giant panda, or panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca, literally meaning "black and white cat-foot") is a bear native to central-western and south western China. It is easily recognized by its large, distinctive black patches around the eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. Though it belongs to the order Carnivora, the panda's diet is 99% bamboo. Pandas in the wild will occasionally eat other grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents or carrion. In captivity they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams, shrub leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially prepared feed.

The giant panda lives in a few mountain ranges in central China, mainly in Sichuan province, but also in the Shaanxi and Gansu provinces. Due to farming, deforestation and other development, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived.

The panda is a conservation reliant endangered species. A 2007 report shows 239 pandas living in captivity inside China and another 27 outside the country. Wild population estimates vary; one estimate shows that there are about 1,590 individuals living in the wild, while a 2006 study via DNA analysis estimated that this figure could be as high as 2,000 to 3,000. Some reports also show that the number of pandas in the wild is on the rise. However, the IUCN does not believe there is enough certainty yet to reclassify the species from Endangered to Vulnerable.

While the dragon has historically served as China's national emblem, in recent decades the panda has also served as an emblem for the country. Its image appears on a large number of modern Chinese commemorative silver, gold, and platinum coins. Though the panda is often assumed to be docile, it has been known to attack humans, presumably out of irritation rather than predation." In: Wikipedia

LT-138461 - Vilnius

LT-138461 sent by "gizelle". A multiview postcard of Vilnius, Lithuania's capital. It shows St. Casimir Church, St. Anne Church and Benedict Monastery (at Vilnius Historic Center, UNESCO) and the Gedimino Avenue.

"Political centre of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 13th to the end of the 18th century, Vilnius has had a profound influence on the cultural and architectural development of much of eastern Europe. Despite invasions and partial destruction, it has preserved an impressive complex of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and classical buildings as well as its medieval layout and natural setting." In: UNESCO

RU-499705 - Peter and Paul Fortress

RU-499705 sent by "Areoka". An aerial view of Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia.

"The Peter and Paul Fortress (Russian: Петропа́вловская кре́пость, Petropavlovskaya Krepost) is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706-1740.

The fortress was established by Peter the Great on May 16 (by the Julian Calendar, hereafter indicated using "(J)"; May 27 by the Gregorian Calendar) 1703 on small Hare Island by the north bank of the Neva River, the last upstream island of the Neva delta. Built at the height of the Northern War in order to protect the projected capital from a feared Swedish counterattack, the fort never fulfilled its martial purpose. The citadel was completed with six bastions in earth and timber within a year, and it was rebuilt in stone from 1706-1740.

From around 1720, the fort served as a base for the city garrison and also as a prison for high ranking or political prisoners. The Trubetskoy bastion, rebuilt in the 1870s, became the main prison block. The first person to escape from the fortress prison (now an important destination for tourists) was the anarchist Prince Peter Kropotkin in 1876. Other people incarcerated in the "Russian Bastille" include Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Tsarevich Alexis, Artemy Volynsky, Tadeusz Kościuszko, Alexander Radishchev, the Decembrists, Grigory Danilevsky, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Mikhail Bakunin, Nikolai Chernyshevsky and Josip Broz Tito." In: Wikipedia

US-1215156 - Armadillo

US-1215156 sent by "text"

"Armadillos are New World placental mammals, known for having a leathery armor shell. Dasypodidae is the only surviving family in the order Cingulata, part of the superorder Xenarthra along with the anteaters and sloths. The word armadillo is Spanish for "little armored one". The Aztec called them azotochtli, Nahuatl for “turtle-rabbit.”

There are approximately ten extant genera and around 20 extant species of armadillo, some of which are distinguished by the number of bands on their armor. Their average length is about 75 centimetres (30 in), including tail; the Giant Armadillo grows up to 150 centimetres (59 in) and weighs up to 59 kilograms (130 lb), while the Pink Fairy Armadillos are diminutive species with an overall length of 12 to 15 centimetres (5 to 6 in). All species are native to the Americas, where they inhabit a variety of environments.

In the United States, the sole resident armadillo is the Nine-banded Armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus), which is most common in the central southernmost states, particularly Texas. Their range is as far east as South Carolina and Florida and as far north as Nebraska; they have been consistently expanding their range over the last century due to a lack of natural predators and have been found as far north as southern Illinois and Indiana." In: Wikipedia