Wonders from Iraq!

Merhaba! These postcards I received from Milad! Milad sends warm greetings from Iraq, the cradle of civilization and knowledge. Milad has kindly written to me some Arabic words with translation:

Merhaba - Hi

Salaam - Hi/Peace

Shukran - Thank you

Hob - Love

The second postcard - Spiral Tower of Samarra'. It is a UNESCO W.H.S. This magnificent structure was once the largest mosque in the Islamic world. It was built by Caliph Al-Mutawakkil in 852 AD using bricks and clay. It is unique among other minarets because of its ascending spiral conical design. 52 metres high and 33 metres wide at the base, the spiral contains stairs reaching to the top. The Malwiya was used for the "call to prayer". It is considered an architectural masterpiece. Unfortunately, it is in danger since 2007.

Thanks a lot, Milad!

The Tokyo Skytree Tower from Japan!

Japan is an island country in East Asia. The capital is Tokyo. The population is about 127,288,000 habitants. There is no official languages in Japan, but there are some recognised regional languages (Aynu itak, Ryukyuan languages, Eastern Japanese, Western Japanese and several other Japanese dialects). Japan is often called the "Land of the Rising Sun". In Japanese the name of this country sounds like Nippon or Nihon. The Japanese archipelago, or chain of islands, consists of 6,852 islands. More than 70% of Japan consists of mountains, including more than 200 volcanoes. On average there are around 1,500 earthquakes every year in Japan. This ancient country has been inhabited since 30,000 B.C. Japan is a mixture of ancient culture and modern civilization.

My wonderful friend Kar from Hong Kong visited Japan. The postcard shows Tokyo, the Tokyo Skytree Tower, a broadcasting, restaurant and observation tower, the highest building in Tokyo. Besides, my friend is a cat-lover, so this postcard shows her love to this building and to cats!

The anthem is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29FFHC2D12Q

The stamp is dedicated to the International Letter-Writing Week.  Letter Writing Week is the one-week period that includes 9 October, the anniversary of the inauguration of the UPU. Nowadays the Week is a yearly event in Thailand and Japan. UPU focuses more on the International letter-writing competition for young people (established 1969) and World Post Day.

Thanks a lot for the postcard, KarKar!