Croatia: Plitvice Lakes National Park

The waters flowing over the limestone and chalk have, over thousands of years, deposited travertine barriers, creating natural dams which in turn have created a series of beautiful lakes, caves and waterfalls. These geological processes continue today. The forests in the park are home to bears, wolves and many rare bird species. Source UNESCO WHS

This is the largest park in Croatia. There are about 16 lakes here.

Thanks to Ms Blanka for the nice card. Of the two stamps, one features entnographic heritage ( 1 of  4)  and second one what looks like a definitive depicting a house.

Thailand: Historic City of Ayutthaya

Founded c. 1350, Ayutthaya became the second Siamese capital after Sukhothai. It was destroyed by the Burmese in the 18th century. Its remains, characterized by the prang (reliquary towers) and gigantic monasteries, give an idea of its past splendour.

The card shows temple of Buddha, Wat Chai Wattanaram,  in water during the worst floods in November, 2011. It lies on banks of river Cho Pharaya river.

Thanks to Nina who has used two se tenants from 2011 both featuring diplomatic relation with Portugal.

Italy: City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto

Founded in the 2nd century B.C. in northern Italy, Vicenza prospered under Venetian rule from the early 15th to the end of the 18th century. The work of Andrea Palladio (1508–80), based on a detailed study of classical Roman architecture, gives the city its unique appearance. Palladio's urban buildings, as well as his villas, scattered throughout the Veneto region, had a decisive influence on the development of architecture. His work inspired a distinct architectural style known as Palladian, which spread to England and other European countries, and also to North America. Source UNESCO WHS

 The Basilica Palladiana is a reniassance buliding in Vicenza, north east Italy. The windows was designed by Andrea Palladio which later came to be known as Palladian window

The Post card featuring Basilica Palladiana was sent by Ms Gosia on 15.05.12 and arrived on 28.05.12. There seems to be colour shift in the stamp featuring 150th anniversary of Reggimento di cavelleria. Thanks Ms Gosia.

China: Lushan National Park

Mount Lushan, in Jiangxi, is one of the spiritual centres of Chinese civilization. Buddhist and Taoist temples, along with landmarks of Confucianism, where the most eminent masters taught, blend effortlessly into a strikingly beautiful landscape which has inspired countless artists who developed the aesthetic approach to nature found in Chinese culture. Source UNESCO WHS

Postcard 1- Three level Waterfall

 Thanks to Ms Yining who has sent me this long card. She has sent me a prepaid card with 2 additional stamps. Mount Lu is the mountain found here which is 25kms long and 10 kms wide. The heigest peak is called Dahanyang peak which is 1474m above sea level.

Postcard- 2 

Thanks to Mr Fengueenyi who has affixed 5 great stamps. The stamp on extreme right is of one of four featuring Magao Caves, one of three from double festival, one of four from Tibet art objects and two stamps which I have no clue about.

China: Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu

The temple, cemetery and family mansion of Confucius, the great philosopher, politician and educator of the 6th–5th centuries B.C., are located at Qufu, in Shandong Province. Built to commemorate him in 478 B.C., the temple has been destroyed and reconstructed over the centuries; today it comprises more than 100 buildings. The cemetery contains Confucius' tomb and the remains of more than 100,000 of his descendants. The small house of the Kong family developed into a gigantic aristocratic residence, of which 152 buildings remain. The Qufu complex of monuments has retained its outstanding artistic and historic character due to the devotion of successive Chinese emperors over more than 2,000 years. Source UNESCO WHS

 Post card shows The Confucius Family Mansion. Confucius ( 551-449BC) was a Chinese politician, teacher, editor and a social philosopher. He was born near Qufu.

This is a prestamped card posted from Hongkong using a Hongkong-France joint issue stamp featuring a crab. Thanks to Johnson.

Chile: Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valpariso

The colonial city of Valparaíso presents an excellent example of late 19th-century urban and architectural development in Latin America. In its natural amphitheatre-like setting, the city is characterized by a vernacular urban fabric adapted to the hillsides that are dotted with a great variety of church spires. It contrasts with the geometrical layout utilized in the plain. The city has well preserved its interesting early industrial infrastructures, such as the numerous ‘elevators’ on the steep hillsides. Source UNESCO

Thanks to Mr Hernan who has sent me this lovely card . The stamps I have no clue about.

Gibraltar: South Port Gates

 My first card from Gibraltar. From a new country after a gap of 2 months. Phew. On the postcard is South Port gate built by Spanish Charles V when Gibraltar was ceded to British. Thanks to Ms Rachel for the lovely card.

She has used two stamps one featuring Birds of the rock from 2008 collection and second one on International Chess festival from 2012 series. Thanks Rachel

Indonesia: Komodo National Park

These volcanic islands are inhabited by a population of around 5,700 giant lizards, whose appearance and aggressive behaviour have led to them being called 'Komodo dragons'. They exist nowhere else in the world and are of great interest to scientists studying the theory of evolution. The rugged hillsides of dry savannah and pockets of thorny green vegetation contrast starkly with the brilliant white sandy beaches and the blue waters surging over coral. Source UNESCO WHS

These dragons grow upto 3 meters in length and can weigh 75 kilos. Thanks Ms Shinta for lovely card. She has used one of twelve stamps from 2003 flora and fauna collection featuring Bear, and two of four from 2012 traditional textile series.

Ukraine: Residence of Bukovinian and Dalmatians Metropolitans

The Residence of Bukovinian and Dalmatian Metropolitans represents a masterful synergy of architectural styles built by Czech architect Josef Hlavka from 1864 to 1882. The property, an outstanding example of 19th-century historicist architecture, also includes a seminary and monastery and is dominated by the domed, cruciform Seminary Church with a garden and park. The complex expresses architectural and cultural influences from the Byzantine period onward and embodies the powerful presence of the Orthodox Church during Habsburg rule, reflecting the Austro-Hungarian Empire policy of religious tolerance. Source UNESCO WHS

Thanks to Ms Olesya who has used 5 lovely stamps which I have no clue about. 

Spain: Historic City of Toledo.

Successively a Roman municipium, the capital of the Visigothic Kingdom, a fortress of the Emirate of Cordoba, an outpost of the Christian kingdoms fighting the Moors and, in the 16th century, the temporary seat of supreme power under Charles V, Toledo is the repository of more than 2,000 years of history. Its masterpieces are the product of heterogeneous civilizations in an environment where the existence of three major religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – was a major factor. Source UNESCO WHS

Toledo was declared world heritage in 1986. Thanks Ms Fabiene who has used one of three from Civil values 2012 collection and second one I have no clue about.

USA: Chaco Culture

For over 2,000 years, Pueblo peoples occupied a vast region of the south-western United States. Chaco Canyon, a major centre of ancestral Pueblo culture between 850 and 1250, was a focus for ceremonials, trade and political activity for the prehistoric Four Corners area. Chaco is remarkable for its monumental public and ceremonial buildings and its distinctive architecture – it has an ancient urban ceremonial centre that is unlike anything constructed before or since. In addition to the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, the World Heritage property includes the Aztec Ruins National Monument and several smaller Chaco sites managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Source UNESCO WHS

It was major center of culture for the ancient Pubelo people between AD 900 to 1150. Thanks to Mr Mike who has used one stamp depicting Special Olympics , Pueblo Art and a definitive. Pueblo means Village in Spanish.

Malaysia: Gunung Mulu National Park

Important both for its high biodiversity and for its karst features, Gunung Mulu National Park, on the island of Borneo in the State of Sarawak, is the most studied tropical karst area in the world. The 52,864-ha park contains seventeen vegetation zones, exhibiting some 3,500 species of vascular plants. Its palm species are exceptionally rich, with 109 species in twenty genera noted. The park is dominated by Gunung Mulu, a 2,377 m-high sandstone pinnacle. At least 295 km of explored caves provide a spectacular sight and are home to millions of cave swiftlets and bats. The Sarawak Chamber, 600 m by 415 m and 80 m high, is the largest known cave chamber in the world. Source UNESCO WHS

Postcard1- Boating at Mulu National Park

 Thanks to Mr Liew Who has used a matching stamp from 2009 World Heritage Collection.

Postcard 2- Borneo

Interestingly Island of Borneo is shared by 3 countries Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. It is 130 million years old making it one of the oldest rain forest in the world. Thanks to Ms Caroline Chia . She has used bird stamps from 2009 collection. 

Spain: Palau de la Musica Catalana and Hospital De Sant Pau, Barcelona

These are two of the finest contributions to Barcelona's architecture by the Catalan art nouveau architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner. The Palau de la Música Catalana is an exuberant steel-framed structure full of light and space, and decorated by many of the leading designers of the day. The Hospital de Sant Pau is equally bold in its design and decoration, while at the same time perfectly adapted to the needs of the sick. Source UNESCO WHS

Ms Fabine has sent me this card Showing Paula de la Musica Catalana.

Malaysia: Kinabalu Park

Kinabalu Park, in the State of Sabah on the northern end of the island of Borneo, is dominated by Mount Kinabalu (4,095 m), the highest mountain between the Himalayas and New Guinea. It has a very wide range of habitats, from rich tropical lowland and hill rainforest to tropical mountain forest, sub-alpine forest and scrub on the higher elevations. It has been designated as a Centre of Plant Diversity for Southeast Asia and is exceptionally rich in species with examples of flora from the Himalayas, China, Australia, Malaysia, as well as pan-tropical flora.

Thanks to Mr Liew for sending this nice card with matching stamps.

China: Classical Gardens of Sozhou

Classical Chinese garden design, which seeks to recreate natural landscapes in miniature, is nowhere better illustrated than in the nine gardens in the historic city of Suzhou. They are generally acknowledged to be masterpieces of the genre. Dating from the 11th-19th century, the gardens reflect the profound metaphysical importance of natural beauty in Chinese culture in their meticulous design.

Thanks to Mr Johnson from Hongkong for the lovely card who has used a stamp featuring HongKong- France joint issue and a definitive depicting Kingfisher.

Spain: Aranjuez Cultural Landscapes

The Aranjuez cultural landscape is an entity of complex relationships: between nature and human activity, between sinuous watercourses and geometric landscape design, between the rural and the urban, between forest landscape and the delicately modulated architecture of its palatial buildings. Three hundred years of royal attention to the development and care of this landscape have seen it express an evolution of concepts from humanism and political centralization, to characteristics such as those found in its 18th century French-style Baroque garden, to the urban lifestyle which developed alongside the sciences of plant acclimatization and stock-breeding during the Age of Enlightenment. Source UNESCO WHS

Shown on the card in Royal Palace which is the residence of King of Spain.Thanks Ms Fabienne for the lovey card. 

England : Map

Thanks Costanza from Manchester for the lovely card.

Ukraine: Saint- Sophia Cathedral and related Monastic Buildings, Kiev- Pechersca Lavra

Designed to rival Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, Kiev's Saint-Sophia Cathedral symbolizes the 'new Constantinople', capital of the Christian principality of Kiev, which was created in the 11th century in a region evangelized after the baptism of St Vladimir in 988. The spiritual and intellectual influence of Kiev-Pechersk Lavra contributed to the spread of Orthodox thought and the Orthodox faith in the Russian world from the 17th to the 19th century. Source: UNESCO WHS

Postcard 1: Cathedral's Bell Tower

 Thanks to Ms Galyna. A nice Ukraine flag stamp used.

Postcard 2: Cathedral by Day

Thanks to Ms Olesya. She has used 2011 Ukraine 20 yrs of Independence stamp.

Italy: Costiera Amalfitana

The Amalfi coast is an area of great physical beauty and natural diversity. It has been intensively settled by human communities since the early Middle Ages. There are a number of towns such as Amalfi and Ravello with architectural and artistic works of great significance. The rural areas show the versatility of the inhabitants in adapting their use of the land to the diverse nature of the terrain, which ranges from terraced vineyards and orchards on the lower slopes to wide upland pastures. Source UNESCO WHS

Thanks to Luve. He has used a stamp featuring Pope John Paul II.

Poland: Wieliczka Salt Mine

This deposit of rock salt in Wieliczka-Bochnia has been mined since the 13th century. Spread over nine levels, it has 300 km of galleries with works of art, altars, and statues sculpted in the salt, making a fascinating pilgrimage into the past of a major industrial undertaking. Source UNESCO WHS

Seen on the multiview card is
1. The Weimar Chamber 2. The Warden sculptures in rock salt. 3. The Casimir the great chamber. 4. St Kinga's  Chapel.  Thanks Ania who has used one stamp from 1997 definitive and second one from 2011, depicting farm.