World on my postcards

Brest Fortress is a 19th-century Russian fortress in Brest, Belarus. It is one of the most important Soviet World War II war monuments commemorating the Soviet resistance against the German invasion on June 22, 1941 (Operation Barbarossa).  Following the war, in 1965 the title Hero-Fortress was given to the Fortress to commemorate the defence of the frontier stronghold during the first weeks of the German-Soviet War. It was then part of the Byelorussian SSR. The title Hero-Fortress corresponds to the title Hero City, that was awarded to an eventual total of twelve Soviet cities. Brest Fortress is situated at an height of 135 meters.

 My favorite animals are pandas! They are so cute. I wish one day to see them in real life and maybe even cuddle with them :D  Giant pandas are solitary. They have a highly developed sense of smell that males use to avoid each other and to find females for mating in the spring. After a five-month pregnancy, females give birth to a cub or two, though they cannot care for both twins. The blind infants weigh only 5 ounces (142 grams) at birth and cannot crawl until they reach three months of age. They are born white, and develop their much loved coloring later. There are only about 1,000 giant pandas left in the wild. Perhaps 100 pandas live in zoos, where they are always among the most popular attractions. Much of what we know about pandas comes from study of these zoo animals, because their wild cousins are so rare and elusive. And the back of the card is also very beautiful!

The most kids know of St. Patrick 's Day is that you must wear green or you'll get a pinch from your friends. Interesting facts:  March 17th is when Patrick died.  St. Patrick wasn't Irish.   Patrick's color is blue.  The original color associated with St. Patrick is blue, not green as commonly believed. In several artworks depicting the saint, he is shown wearing blue vestments. King Henry VIII used the Irish harp in gold on a blue flag to represent the country. Since that time, and possibly before, blue has been a popular color to represent the country on flags, coats-of-arms, and even sports jerseys. Green was associated with the country later, presumably because of the greenness of the countryside, which is so because Ireland receives plentiful rainfall. Today, the country is also referred to as the "Emerald Isle."  St. Patrick's was a dry holiday in Ireland until 1970.  Aside from the color green, the activity most associated w...

 The year was 1809 and the setting was the city of Nis, in the southeast of Serbia. At this point in history, the city was controlled by the Ottoman Empire but patriotic Serbians wanted their land back and there was a strong resistance movement. One fateful day they attacked but were no match for the Ottoman forces. When the leader of the Serbian insurgency realised the battle would be lost, he fired at his gunpowder depot, blowing it up and killing himself, his men and the advancing Turks.   It was an honourable sacrifice on the field of battle but what followed showed the morbid side of war at the time. The Turkish commander of Nis ordered that the heads of the killed Serbs be collected. Each head was then skinned and the skulls were built into a tower at the entrance of the city as a warning to anyone else who dared contemplate an attack. As a final insult, the scalps were stuffed and sent back to Constantinople to impress the Sultan.    952 skull...

  Rickshaw began as a 5 or 6-wheeled passenger cart, called a pulled rickshaw, generally pulled by one man with one passenger. The first known use of the term was in 1887.Pulled rickshaws created a popular form of transportation, and a source of employment for male laborers, within Asian cities in the 19th century.  Auto rickshaws are becoming more popular in some cities in the 21st century as an alternative to taxis because of their low cost.

The amazing scenery of the city of Smolensk is spilled over the picturesque hills of the Dnieper Valley . Over the city stands the Assumption Cathedral, surrounding by medieval walls and towers of the Smolensk fortress. Both structures are not only architectural, but also historical monuments-symbols of the heroic 20-month defense of the city in 1609-1611 against the 30 thousand-strong army of the Polish King Sigismund III. This defense played an important role on the future liberation of Moscow from the Polish conquerors in 1612 and in the formation of the Russian state.   Smolensk city wall is the longest fortified structure in Europe. Built in 1596-1602 . Beneath the walls was created a system of galleries which were used as listening outposts to detect attempts of mining and building of underground passages by the enemy. In the modern times, there are 17 towers still standing out of the original 38, and the total length of the city walls ...

 Built from 848 to 852, this sandstone tower is part of one of the biggest mosque in the world. The tower used to be connected to the actual prayer building by a bridge that no longer exists. The name Malwiya actually pertains to the shape of the structure. It means "snail shell" and is clearly obvious as to why the structure has been dubbed so.The structure is often times assumed to be a tower used for the call to prayer, but due to its extreme height it was actually impractical for such a use. Instead, it was just a statement piece, speaking to the presence of Islam in that area. There is a room at the top of this tower with eight arch windows though, that is used as a lookout point. In fact, in recent years, it has been used by American troops as a lookout point. That is a contributing factor to its current damaged state. Knowing that US Troops used this tower for such a purpose, it has been bombed by opposing forces often and so the top room and spiral stai...