Reminiscence of Shantang

A 1500-year old street lining one of Suzhou's many canals, Shan Tang Street connects the ancient Stone Road (Shi Lu), in the old city center, to Tiger Hill (Hu Qiu) and gets trod on from end to end during Suzhou's Ga Shen Xian festival.

Most buildings here, being genuinely really old, had run past their expiry date when the government had them all renovated a few years ago. If you liked Pingjiang Historic Street, you'll probably like this even better.

Boats ply the waters of the canal running alongside the road, adding to the historical atmosphere characteristic of Suzhou back in the days of He Lu, father of ancient Suzhou.

Illustration Card from Japan

Cappella Sistina, Vatican City

(Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel; the work took approximately four years to complete (1508–1512))

Built between 1475 and 1483, in the time of Pope Sixtus IV della Rovere, the Sistine Chapel has originally served as Palatine Chapel. Sistine Chapel (Latin: Sacellum Sixtinum; Italian: Cappella Sistina) is the best-known chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the Pope in Vatican City.

The chapel is rectangular in shape and measures 40.93 meters long by 13.41 meters wide, i.e. the exact dimensions of the Temple of Solomon, as given in the Old Testament. It is 20.70 meters high and is roofed by a flattened barrel vault, with little side vaults over the centered windows.

The wall paintings were executed by Pietro Perugino, Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosselli, Luca Signorelli and their respective workshops, which included Pinturicchio, Piero di Cosimo and Bartolomeo della Gatta.
Michelangelo Buonarroti was commissioned by Pope Julius II della Rovere in 1508 to repaint the ceiling; the work was completed between 1508 and 1512. He painted the Last Judgement over the altar, between 1535 and 1541, being commissioned by Pope Paul III Farnese.

Sapa, Vietnam

Sapa is located in Lao Cai province, 350 km from Hanoi, close to the border with China. The Hoang Lien Son range of mountains dominates the district, which is at the eastern extremity of the Himalayas.This range includes Vietnam’s highest peak, Fansipan, at a high of 3142m above sea level and a vast area covered by thick forest, rich in wildlife.

Sapa is home to a great diversity of ethnic minority people. It is likely that, Sapa was first inhabited by highland minorities of H’mong and Yao group.

From Hanoi to Lao Cai:

* By road: It is 335 Km by road.
* By Train: The French started to build the rail road to Lao Cai from early 20th Century and nowadays this portion has been developing very fast to satisfied great demand especially for tourists to go to Lao Cai. Every day there are many trains depart from Hanoi to Lao Cai .

Thank you to Yeo bought me these postcards.

Cathedral Island, the St. Apostles Peter and Paul Cathedral

Mânăstirea Moldovita, Romania

The Moldoviţa Monastery (Romanian: Mânăstirea Moldoviţa) is a Romanian Orthodox monastery situated in the commune of Vatra Moldoviţei, Suceava County, Moldavia, Romania. 

The Monastery of Moldoviţa was built in 1532 by Petru Rareş, who was Stefan the Great's illegitimate son. It was founded as a protective barrier against the Muslim Ottoman conquerors from the East.

(Wikipedia)

Palac W Antoninie, Poland

Princes Radziwill Hunting Palace in Antonin built in 1824 by Karl Friedrich Schinkel for Prince Radziwill .

The palace is a wooden, timbered, the foundation, built on the plan of a Greek cross - the main body shaped octagonal , to which was added four lower wings. The facade is painted the color of the so-called. imperial yellow ( German Kaisergelb). The entire interior of the main body is great for decorative trójkondygnacyjna hall roof, supported on a pillar located flues of fireplaces, decorated with hunting trophies. Formerly held in her concerts. One wing houses the staircase leading to the interior balconies, living room leading to the other three wings.

Chimei Giant Lion, Penghu

The Chimei islet is located on the southern tip of the Penghu islands. There are quite spectacular views of the islet, where the cylindrical basalt in shape of a giant lion squats on the cliff.

Edinburgh Castle & Ross Fountain

Edinburgh Castle as seen from Princes Street Park

Ross Fountain is an ornate iron fountain from the mid-19th Century located at the west end of Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh. Figures depicted on the fountain include mermaids and four females depicting science, the arts, poetry, and industry. A final female figure stands at the apex of the fountain.

Chaumiere Normande

(Wikipedia)

The cottage is a traditional rural dwelling house in western Europe, taking its name from its roof covered with straw (straw of wheat or rye , rods reeds ). In France, it is present particularly in Normandy and Briere .

The construction of houses in the Normandy countryside the peasants had to use all the common materials of their habitat: water mixed with clay, stone, wood and an abundance of cultivated cereals such as wheat or rye .

The base of the house is often made ​​of flint because of its sealing properties very useful during the autumn and the winter . The walls and roof are made ​​from a blend of oak beams, called studs , between which is a mixture of straw, clay and water, known as cob (local land or coulter).

To be watertight, the thatched roof must have a steep slope. 

Thus, for its height is reasonable, the house must be close, even be very long: this partly explains the characteristic shape of the traditional Normandy cottage, it often consists of a series of rooms communicating with each other and each with a window and a door to the outside.