City views from Turkmenistan!

And the next country is Turkmenistan! A wonderful lady Valeriya sent me 2 wonderful cards from her exotic sunny country! So, let's find out some facts about Turkmenistan!

Location: Central Asia

Capital: Ashgabat

Population: 4,940,916

Official language: Turkmen

National anthem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrFq_4wV31w

The name Turkmenistan was derived from the Persian language, it means “Land of the Turkmen.” First of all, Turkmenistan is famous for its autocratic government and large gas reserves. It also has a reputation as an island of stability in restless Central Asia.

Despite its gas wealth, much of Turkmenistan's population is still poor. After receiving independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 the country lived in isolation that has only recently begun to end. The Karakum Desert covers almost 80% of the country. The Karakum Canal is one of the world’s longest irrigation canals.

Postcards depict the modern Ashgabat and evening time in Ashgabat. Ashgabat is the capital of Turkmenistan with population of about 1,031,992.

Both stamps depict Törebeg Hanym. It is a mausoleum named after Turabek-Khanum, the wife of Kutlug-Timur (ruled between 1321 and 1336). It is located at the northern part of ancient Gurgench. It is a highly sophisticated work of architecture, both in its conceptualisation of spaces and in its engineering.

Thanks a lot for the postcards, Valeriya!

Comeback!

Hello, world! I'm very sorry for my long absence, I was too busy and I had no time to share my postcards with you. During 2 months I received a lot of wonderful postcards from wonderful people all over the world. I decided to make my blog more, so to say, personal. I will write less bare facts, but more my emotions. I hope you will enjoy reading my stories again!

P.S. In the photo you can see my beloved wonderful pet. It is a girl-degus named Gesundheit (which means "health" in German). She is going to help me in writing my posts:) 

Five postcards from China!

People’s Republic of China (PRC) is a country in East Asia. The capital is Beijing. The population is about 1,330,044,000. Official language is Standard Chinese. China's geography is highly diverse, with hills, plains and river deltas in the east and deserts, high plateaus and mountains in the west. The Chinese name is "Zhong Guo", which means the "Middle Kingdom". Since ancient times people believed that China was at the center of the universe. China is home to one of the world’s first human civilizations (alongside with the ancient Egypt, the Babylon and the ancient India). For more than 40 centuries Chinese people created a culture with strong philosophies, traditions and values. It is so old that its true age has yet to be determined. The oldest written records date back roughly 4,000 years, but it is likely that there were even earlier societies. What we now call China became a unified state in 221 B.C. under the so-called First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, who started the system of dynastic rule that would last until the twentieth century. Nowadays the PRC is a single-party state governed by the Chinese Communist Party.

National anthem is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UctriMuXYS0

All postcards show people in Anhui, a province in China, the part of the East China region.

Thanks  a lot for the postcards, Wang Gang!

2 wonderful postcards from Botswana!

Botswana is a country in Southern Africa. The capital is Gaborone. The population is about 2,029,307 habitants. Official languages are English and Setswana. Botswana is the world's biggest diamond producer. Botswana's major tourist attractions are its game reserves, with hunting and photographic safaris. Other attractions include the Okavango Delta region, which during the rainy season is a maze of waterways, islands, and lakes. Botswana protects some of Africa's largest areas of wilderness. Kalahari Game Reserve is an extensive national park in the Kalahari desert of Botswana. It is the second largest game reserve in the world. The Kalahari desert makes up much of the territory (about 70 %). Bostwana's national parks contain wildlife such as as giraffe, brown hyena, warthog, cheetah, wild dog, leopard, lion, blue wildebeest, eland, gemsbok, kudu and red hartebeest. The Tsodilo Hills are a UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS), consisting of rock art, rock shelters, depressions, and caves. It is unique record of human settlement over many millennia.

Enjoy a hymn:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxlhfFIUB3o

Thanks a lot, Brenda!