USA - Team work

Thanks to Steph for the card.

SOUTH DAKOTA - Badlands National Park

Thanks to Wendy for the card.

"Badlands National Park is in South Dakota. Its dramatic landscapes span layered rock formations, steep canyons and towering spires. Bison, bighorn sheep and prairie dogs inhabit its sprawling grasslands. The Badlands Loop Road (Highway 240) winds past scenic lookouts. Several trails begin near the Ben Reifel Visitor Center. The Fossil Exhibit Trail is a boardwalk with displays on fossils uncovered in the park."

WASHINGTON - San Juan Islands

Thanks to Richard for the card.

"The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state. In the archipelago, four islands are accessible to vehicular and foot traffic via the Washington State Ferries system."

TAIWAN - Face Tattooing

Atayal people believe that face tattoo is an ultimate glory.  Thanks to Brandon for great card.

"The Atayal (Chinese: 泰雅; pinyin: Tàiyǎ), also known as the Tayal and the Tayan, are a Taiwanese indigenous people. In 2014, the Atayal people numbered 85,888. This was approximately 15.9% of Taiwan's total indigenous population, making them the third-largest indigenous group.

The Atayal word for Atayal is tayal, meaning "human" or "man."

RUSSIA - Wooden houses on Sviyazhsk Island

Thanks to Elvira for the great card

"Sviyazhsk is a rural locality (a selo) in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, located at the confluence of the Volga and Sviyaga Rivers. It is often referred to as an island since the construction of the Kuybyshev Reservoir downstream at Tolyatti, in 1955, but it is in fact connected to the mainland by a causeway."

RUSSIA - Russian girl

Thanks to Elena for the card.

GERMANY - Sanssouci Castle/Flower Island Mainau

Thanks to Regina for the cards.

Flower Island Mainau

"Mainau is an island in Lake Constance (also called "Flower Island Mainau"). The island is owned by the Swedish born noble family Bernadotte. It is maintained as a garden island and one of the main tourist attractions of Lake Constance (Bodensee). A special highlight is a greenhouse with tropical climate and thousands of butterflies. Depending on the season, 700 to 1000 colorful butterflies fly free between the visitors through the tropical landscape. The butterfly house is the the largest of its kind in Germany (area of about 1000 square meters)."

Sanssouci castle, view over basin and terrace

"Sanssouci was the summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam, near Berlin. It is often counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in the more intimate Rococo style and is far smaller than its French Baroque counterpart, it too is notable for the numerous temples and follies in the park. The palace was designed/built by Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff between 1745 and 1747 to fulfill King Frederick's need for a private residence where he could relax away from the pomp and ceremony of the Berlin court. The palace's name emphasises this; it is a French phrase (sans souci), which translates as "without concerns", meaning "without worries" or "carefree", symbolising that the palace was a place for relaxation rather than a seat of power."

RUSSIA - Illustration

Thanks to Dasha for the card.

UNITED KINGDOM - Nottinghamshire

Thansk to Nickie for the card.

RUSSIA - Moscow Kremlin

Thanks to Anna for the card.

FINLAND - Wooden Summer House

Wooden summer house, in old style.  Thanks to Sade for the card.

CHINA - Warring States period

Bronze wide vessel, zun and companion water vessel, pan Warring States period.

Overall height: 41.6cm, height of Zun: 30.1cm, rim diameter: 25cm.

The whoel set was casting with a total of eight-four ling-dragons and eighty chi-dragons. Each vessel is cast witha seven-character Zenghouyi inscription. Made by the lost-wax method, these two companion vessels have the finest and most complex detail of all the brozes from the tomb of Zenghouyi and of any bronze vessel prior to the Qin Dynasty. 

Unearthed from the tomb of Zenghouyi, Syixian, Hubei Provence, 1978.

Thanks to Dongwei for the great card!

"The Warring States Period (475–221 BC) was an era of division in ancient China. After the relatively peaceful and philosophical Spring and Autumn Period, various states were at war before the Qin state conquered them all, and China was reunited under the Qin Dynasty."  Read more here.

ARIZONA - Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix

Thanks to Patrick for the card.

"Desert Botanical Garden in Papago Park in Central Phoenix is not only a botanical garden, but it is also classified as a museum by the American Association of Museums. The garden covers about 50 acres, and in addition to the vast array of native plants on display, the garden is home to over 21,000 plants representing 3,931 plant classifications in 139 plant families." Source

LITHUANIA - The State Tretyakov Gallery

"The State Tretyakov Gallery (Russian: Государственная Третьяковская Галерея,) is an art gallery in Moscow, Russia, the foremost depository of Russian fine art in the world. The gallery's history starts in 1856 when the Moscow merchant Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov acquired works by Russian artists of his day with the aim of creating a collection, which might later grow into a museum of national art. In 1892, Tretyakov presented his already famous collection of approximately 2,000 works (1,362 paintings, 526 drawings, and 9 sculptures) to the Russian nation."

RUSSIA - View of Moscow

Thanks to Svetlana for the card with beautiful newpaper cutting,  I like it!.

SWITZERLAND - A mother's Love

Thanks to Lorene for the card.

HUNGARY - Geetings form Bdapest

Budapest (Hungarian)  Parliament overlooking Danube River is a beautiful Gothic structure, thanks to Agnes for the card and coins.

"The Hungarian Parliament Building (which translates to House of the Country or House of the Nation), also known as the Parliament of Budapest after its location, is the seat of the National Assembly of Hungary, a notable landmark of Hungary and a popular tourist destination in Budapest. It is situated in Kossuth Square, in the Pest side of the city and on the banks of the Danube. It is currently the largest building in Hungary. It was designed by Hungarian architect Imre Steindl in neo-Gothic style and opened in 1902."

FRANCE - La Côte d'Opale

Thanks to Rose for the card.

Opal Coast (fr: Côte d'Opale) is a coast in northern France, on the English Channel, popular with tourists. 

The Côte d'Opale is a French coastal region bordering Belgium, situated opposite the cliffs of the south-east of England, facing the English Channel and the North Sea. 

The Côte d'Opale extends over 120 kilometres of coast between the Belgian border and the border with Picardy. 

The Côte d'Opale contains varied landscapes like beaches, dunes, swamps, estuaries or cliffs.

GERMANY - Children in Costume

Thamls to Marita for the card.

GERMANY - Nordseeheilbad Norderney

Thanks to Sonnen for the card.

"Norderney is one of the East Frisian Islands in the North Sea , which are upstream of the mainland of Lower Saxony between the Ems and Weser estuaries in the German Bight . With an area of ​​26.29 square kilometers, Norderney is the second largest island of this archipelago after Borkum."