Colourful HDB Flats, Singapore

Friendship Gift Postcard, Sender: My twin (bestfriend)
Sent: 4 Nov 2013 from Singapore
Received: 11 Nov 2013, traveled 2,391 km in 8 days

One-week shy of the anniversary when this card was sent to me. That was also the period when I seriously considered making Singapore, my second home.

Few words to share for this post, in response to Wordless Wednesday, also hosted @ image-in-ing.

~maria

Typical Houses in Aveiro

Friendship Gift Postcard, Sender: Anacrobat
Sent: 8 June 2013 from Tabua, Portugal
Received: 25 June 2013, Traveled 11,947 km in 17 days

While enjoying the long weekend (just this most recent one!) in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam -- I had an interesting discussion about the adventures of traveling brought by differences in languages. My bestfriend / travel buddy and I have agreed to travel around South-east Asia first before going somewhere else farther.

For Europe though, I mentioned that Portugal and Spain are on the top of my list. Considering that I came from a country that was a Spanish colony for 300 plus years, I'm keen to see what cultural similarities we have with them. I am interested with Portugal because during my visit in Macau in 2009 -- the country being a former Portuguese colony, I saw a lot of striking similarities between Macau and my home country. 

I was digging for a postcard from Spain in my collection but couldn't get my hand on one right away ... so here's one from Portugal, instead. The label at the back of the card says that these are typical houses in Aveiro. I can't really pinpoint any similarity with the houses that we have back home and in Macau with these ones but the one in the middle is perfect for Sally's Blue Monday link-up. 

I hope at least you enjoyed the postcard ;-)

~maria

R is for Riverside Shophouses, Singapore

It's a bit amusing that I am posting about Singapore when I am not there. 

For letter "R" --

Friendship Postcard, Sender: Princess Rin
Sent: 30 Aug 2013 from Singapore
Received: 6 Sep 2013, Traveled 2,392 km in 7 days

Riverside shophouses are of pre-colonial design. They have been restored and now are restaurants and entertainment spots along the Robertson, River, and Clarke quays. The shophouses create an interestingly good contrast between the taller and newly-designed skyscrapers behind them. Tourists and locals alike can enjoy sightseeing from Singapore River aboard a wooden boat similar to those two on the postcard, operated by the SRC. I've taken the river sightseeing tour twice and wouldn't hesitate to do it again to accompany a friend who will visit SG.

Have you taken a river tour before? On which river was it? The other two river tours I've had besides from Singapore River were: (1) Thailand's Chao Phraya River Tour which offered view of majestic golden temples at night, and the (2) Cambodia's Mekong Delta / River Tour on which I had a breakfast aboard a wooden boat while watching the sunrise. It's quite difficult to choose a favorite from these 3, as each river tour was a unique experience by itself.

~maria

K is for Klodzko's Architecture, Poland

I've always dreamed of visiting Poland. A dream that is yet to come true. In my postcards collection, Poland is in the top 5 country from where I have the most nicest cards from.

Coming from another country that was badly damaged during WW2, I am curious how Poland was able to retain its culture and rehabilitate from the war.

For letter "K" --

Direct Swap, Sender: Joanna Hellman
Sent: 27 Aug 2012 from Katowice, Poland
Received: 10 Sep 2012, Traveled 9,583 km in 11 days

Klodzko, stare miasto. Old Town. These are the descriptions at the back of the card. The sender wrote:

Klodzko, due to the unusual architecture is called "small Prague.". It is one of the most picturesque Polish towns.

Did you notice it looks like there's a cat coming out from the window of the pink house on the right? Is it just me and my imagination?

~maria

H is for Hathaway's Cottage, England

For letter "H" -- 

Sent: 31 May 2012 from Southampton, UK
Received: 19 Jun 2012, Traveled 10,880.8 km in 20 days

It is a bit of a stretch for me. It's actually Anne Hathaway's cottage. I used the maiden name of Anne to distinguish the cottage and gardens to be of Anne's family and not of her famous spouse, William Shakespeare.

A place I visited back in 2012, this is my favorite from the "Visit the Houses" tour. It is one of the touristic highlights in Stratsford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace. For this specific site itself, the highlight for me was the garden.

I have another post with two more postcards of the Shaspeare houses, here.

~maria

Shakespeare Houses

Right at this moment, if someone would ask me if I wanna relocate somewhere -- it's gonna be Stratford-upon-Avon in the United Kingdom. Being in that place is like being inside a fairy tale story (or perhaps I'm just really a big Shakespeare fan! He didn't write fairy tales but that's the feeling I got for being in his hometown.)

The best thing that I love in Stratford is the Shakespeare Houses. I had the chance to visit 4 of 5. I was the happiest when I found postcards for the two houses in one of the gift shops at the town center.

The first postcard is the Anne Hathaway Cottage. Anne was the wife of William Shakespeare. The cottage has a lovely garden, full of different flowering plants. I wouldn't mind working as a gardener there. I felt like there's a fairy hiding somewhere, wishing to play with me (if only there were fewer tourists). Oh well, a lady can still dream of girly things. :D

The second postcard is the Shakespeare's birthplace. This one is right in the town center, just a few steps away from where I got these postcards. Oh, some explaining here, Anne's place is not called Anne Shakespeare's Cottage cause she was still unwed to William while living there. Anne's place is where the courting happened (perhaps it's the reason why it's the most romantic of all the Shakespeare houses, sans the garden.) When she got pregnant and William married her in a rushed ceremony, she transferred to William's birthplace house to spend the early 5 years of married life with him there.

I highly recommend this town for tourists who want to visit the UK. Aside from the Shakespeare houses, there's also the Royal Shakespeare Theater for watching a play or two.

I am sharing this with the Postcard Friendship Friday blogroll, check out Beth's page by clicking the photo below. Have a great weekend, everyone!

~ maria

Monsanto, Portugal

Olá! Here's a postcard of a village picture from Monsanto, Portugal. The net says it's the most authentic Portuguese village. The place with its granite houses is considered a living museum, thanks to the strict building regulations.

I can't really figure out if I got this from a private swap, because I can't remember mailing a card for someone with an address there...


Oh my unreliable memory! A sign of aging? Ugh. Kinda scary for a 20-something like me. :p

Trivia: During the Festival of The Holy Cross every 3rd of May, 'marafonas' - the typical ragdolls are carried by women to the top of the castle and clay jars full of flowers are thrown from the walls. This is to commemorate their victory over the Moors.

I am trying to verify whether the tall building in this postcard is the Torre do Relógio...someone help me please. Gracias!

Happy weekend everyone...kindly visit Beth at The Best Hearts Are Crunchy for more wonderful postcards. :)