The World in Postcards

**Disclaimer: all caption descriptions were taken from Wikipedia unless otherwise stated**

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Sharyn Canyon is an 80 km canyon in Kazakhstan on the Sharyn River, 200 kilometres (120 mi) east of Almaty, close to the Chinese border. It is part of the Sharyn National Park, which was established 23 February 2004 and located within the territory of the Uyghur and Kegen Districts of Almaty Province.

It stretches 154 kilometres (96 mi) along the Sharyn River in the northern Tien Shan mountain range. In parts, it attains a depth of 150 to 300 metres (490–980 ft).

One part of it is known as Valley of Castles for its unusual rock formations. The width of it ranges from 20 to 80 metres (66–262 ft) and the length is 2 kilometres (1.2 mi).

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Manitou Beach and Devils Lake are two unincorporated communities in the Irish Hills region of Lenawee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. In order to provide statistical information, the United States Census Bureau has defined Manitou Beach-Devils Lake as a census-designated place (CDP) that includes both communities. Devil's Lake was said to have been named by the Potawatomi leader Meteau (or Mitteau) after his daughter, who was an able swimmer, drowned in the lake and her body was never recovered. Meteau believed her to have been taken by evil spirits.

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Copenhagen is the capital and most populated city of Denmark. Founded as a fishing village in the 10th century, Copenhagen became the capital of Denmark in the early 15th century. The city is the cultural, economic and governmental centre of Denmark; it is one of the major financial centres of Northern Europe with the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. In 2012, Copenhagen was third in the ranking of the richest cities in the world in terms of gross earnings. With a number of bridges connecting the various districts, the cityscape is characterized by parks, promenades and waterfronts. Copenhagen's landmarks such as Tivoli Gardens, the Little Mermaid Statue, the Amalienborg and Christiansborg palaces, Rosenborg Castle, Frederik's Church, and many museums, restaurants and nightclubs are significant tourist attractions. In addition to recent developments in the city service sector and the pharmaceutical industry, there have been a number of initiatives in clean technology, supporting the city's goal to be carbon-neutral by 2025. Copenhagen is one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world.

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Tampere is a city in Pirkanmaa, southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. Since the two lakes differ in level by 18 metres (59 ft), the rapids linking them, Tammerkoski, have been an important power source throughout history, most recently for generating electricity. Tampere is dubbed the "Manchester of Finland" for its industrial past as the former center of Finnish industry, and this has given rise to its Finnish nickname "Manse" and terms such as "Manserock". Tampere is known for its active cultural life. Some of the most popular writers in Finland, such as Väinö Linna, Kalle Päätalo, and Hannu Salama, hail from Tampere. These are all known as writers depicting the lives of working-class people. The main tourist attraction is the Särkänniemi amusement park, which includes a dolphinarium and the landmark Näsinneula tower, topped by a revolving restaurant. Other sites of interest are Tampere Cathedral, Tampere City Hall, Tampere City Library Metso ("wood grouse"), Kaleva Church (both designed by Reima Pietilä), the Tampere Hall for conferences and concerts, and the Tampere Market Hall.

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Santorini, classically Thera, and officially Thira, is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast of Greece's mainland. It is the largest island of a small, circular archipelago which bears the same name and is the remnant of a volcanic caldera. It forms the southernmost member of the Cyclades group of islands. The island is the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history: the Minoan eruption. The eruption left a large caldera surrounded by volcanic ash deposits hundreds of metres deep and may have led indirectly to the collapse of the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete, 110 km (68 mi) to the south, through a gigantic tsunami. Another popular theory holds that the Thera eruption is the source of the legend of Atlantis. The traditional architecture of Santorini is similar to that of the other Cyclades, with low-lying cubical houses, made of local stone and whitewashed or limewashed with various volcanic ashes used as colours. The unique characteristic is the common utilisation of the hypóskapha: extensions of houses dug sideways or downwards into the surrounding pumice. These rooms are prized because of the high insulation provided by the air-filled pumice, and are used as living quarters of unique coolness in the summer and warmth in the winter. These are premium storage space for produce, especially for wine cellaring: the Kánava wineries of Santorini. ***Thanks to my friends Yanna and Max who send this postcard to me while on their vacation***

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Puerto Princesa, officially City of Puerto Princesa is a city located in the western provincial island of Palawan, Philippines. Today, Puerto Princesa is a popular tourist city with many beach resorts and seafood restaurants. It has been acclaimed several times as the cleanest and greenest city in the Philippines. The most famous landmark of Puerto Princesa, this subterranean river is the longest navigable underground river in the world. It features a limestone karst mountain landscape and many stalactites and stalagmites formations.

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Aveiro is a city and a municipality in Portugal. Located on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, Aveiro is an industrial city with an important seaport. The University of Aveiro is considered as one of the best of Portugal and 354th best university in the World. Aveiro is also known as "The Portuguese Venice", due to its system of canals and boats similar to the Italian city of Venice. The people's quality of life is very high. There are several attractions in the city of Aveiro, including cathedrals, canals and the beaches of the Peninsula de São Jacinto. Attractions near Aveiro include the Ílhavo ceramica de Vista Alegre and the beaches of Barra, Costa Nova do Prado, and Gafanha da Nazaré. The city is also famous for its production of salt and for its seaweed harvest, which is used for fertilizer in the area. ***Thanks to my friend Marlenka who is from there, gave me the postcard***

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Croatia is a sovereign state at the crossroads of Central Europe, Southeast Europe, and the Mediterranean. Its capital city is Zagreb, which forms one of the country's primary subdivisions, along with its twenty counties. The service sector dominates Croatia's economy, followed by the industrial sector and agriculture. Tourism is a significant source of revenue during the summer, with Croatia ranked the 18th most popular tourist destination in the world. Croatia provides a universal health care system and free primary and secondary education, while supporting culture through numerous public institutions and through corporate investments in media and publishing.

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Detmold is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Today it is the administrative center of the district of Lippe and of the Regierungsbezirk Detmold. The Church of Lippe has its central administration located in Detmold. The town supports the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie for regular symphony concerts.

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Novi Sad is the second largest city in Serbia and the administrative seat of both the province of Vojvodina and the South Bačka District. The name Novi Sad means "New Garden" (noun) in Serbian. The city was founded in 1694, when Serb merchants formed a colony across the Danube from the Petrovaradin fortress, a Habsburg strategic military post. In the 18th and 19th centuries, it became an important trading and manufacturing centre, as well as a centre of Serbian culture of that period, earning the nickname of the Serbian Athens. Today, Novi Sad is an industrial and financial centre of the Serbian economy, as well as a major cultural center. Today, Novi Sad is the second cultural centre in Serbia (besides Belgrade) and city's officials try to make the city more attractive to numerous cultural events and music concerts. Football and basketball are the most popular participation team sports in Novi Sad. Cycling is also a very popular in Novi Sad. The building in this card depicts the City Hall.

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Blackpool is a major seaside resort and borough of Lancashire, North West England. The Blackpool Tower is a tourist attraction in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which was opened to the public on 14 May 1894. Inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris, it rises to 158 metres (518 feet). The tower is a Grade I listed building. Unlike the Eiffel Tower, Blackpool Tower is not free-standing. Its base is hidden by the building which houses Blackpool Tower Circus. At the summit of the tower there is a flagpole. A time capsule is buried beneath the foundation.

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Dublin is the capital and largest city of Ireland, in the province of Leinster. Founded as a Viking settlement, the Kingdom of Dublin became Ireland's principal city following the Norman invasion. Dublin has many landmarks and monuments dating back hundreds of years. One of the oldest is Dublin Castle, which was first founded as a major defensive work on the orders of King John of England in 1204. One of Dublin's newest monuments is the Spire of Dublin, or officially titled "Monument of Light". Many people visit Trinity College, Dublin to see the Book of Kells in the library there. The Book of Kells is an illustrated manuscript created by Irish monks circa. 800 AD. Dublin has more green spaces per square kilometre than any other European capital city, with 97% of city residents living within 300 metres of a park area. Dublin has a vibrant nightlife and is reputedly one of Europe's most youthful cities, with an estimate of 50% of citizens being younger than 25.

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Connemara is a district in the west of Ireland. The main town of Connemara is Clifden. The area around the town is rich with megalithic tombs. The famous "Connemara Green marble" is found outcropping along a line between Streamstown and Lissoughter.

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Gjøvik is a town and a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. The town is named after the old Gjøvik farm (Old Norse: Djúpvík) since the town is built on its ground. The first element is djúpr which means "deep" and the last element is vík which means "inlet". Gjøvik owes much of its early growth to a glassworks, which was established there by Caspar Kauffeldt in 1807. The world’s largest arena excavated in rock, called Gjøvik Olympic Hall (Norwegian: Fjellhallen), is located in Gjøvik.

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The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago, part of the larger Antilles island grouping. They are known primarily for tourism and as an offshore financial centre. The resident population is about 31,500, of whom 23,769 live on Providenciales in the Caicos Islands. The total population on the islands including foreigners is 49,000.

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San Juan del Sur is a municipality and coastal town on the Pacific Ocean, in the Rivas department in south-west Nicaragua. It is located 140 kilometers (87 miles) south of Managua. San Juan del Sur is popular among surfers and is a vacation spot for many Nicaraguan families and foreign tourists.

Its population is approximately 15,553, consisting largely of families engaged in fishing or the tourism industry and foreigners from the United States, Canada and Europe. While the local economy was, for many years, based on fishing and shipping, it has shifted towards tourism in the last 20 years. In October 2002, to mark the city's 150th anniversary, it was formally designated the "Port of San Juan del Sur" and a "Tourism City of Nicaragua."

San Juan del Sur, set beside a crescent-shaped bay, was a popular resting place for gold prospectors headed to California in the 1850s. Correspondingly, San Juan del Sur served as a hub for Cornelius Vanderbilt Lines.

A statue of the Christ of the Mercy sits above town on the northern end of the bay.

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Minsk is the capital and largest city of Belarus, situated on the Svislach and Nyamiha rivers. It is the administrative centre of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). As the national capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administrative centre of Minsk Region (voblast) and Minsk raion (district). In 2013, it had a population of 2,002,600.

The earliest historical references to Minsk date to the 11th century (1067), when it was noted as a provincial city within the principality of Polotsk. The settlement developed on the rivers. In 1242, Minsk became a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It received town privileges in 1499.

From 1569, it was a capital of the Minsk Voivodship in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It was part of a region annexed by the Russian Empire in 1793, as a consequence of the Second Partition of Poland. From 1919 to 1991, after the Russian Revolution, Minsk was the capital of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic within the Soviet Union.