Namibia

Postcard of Etosha National Park, one of the oldest protected places in Namibia, established in 1907. The park is 22,270 square kilometres and is centred around the Etosha Pan, a large endorheic salt pan in the Kalahari Basin. It is home to hundreds of species, including several threatened and endangered species such as the black rhinoceros.

Many thanks to friend Casimiro, who was in Namibia for work.

Stamp from 2010 depicts a black-bellied bustard, an common African ground-dwelling bird that lives in grassland areas.

Namibian air mail label.

Canada – Nova Scotia

Postcard from the East Coast fishing town of Lunenburg. The town is the best surviving example of a planned British colonial settlement in North America and, as such, is a World Heritage site, Old Town Lunenburg. Established in 1753, it has retained its original layout and overall appearance, with preserved wooden architecture dating, in some cases, from the eighteenth century. The town is also known for its flat-bottomed wooden boats, seen here in the foreground.

 Previously featured definitive stamp series featuring baby animal.

A not often seen Canadian air mail label.

Finland II

A card showing the lightship Helsinki in the foreground, which celebrated its 100th anniversary last year. A "lightship" is a ship whose function was to serve as a lighthouse in places were it would be impractical to build a conventional lighthouse, in this case outside Helsinki Harbour. It was in active service until 1959 when modern technology made it obsolete. Having survived a German attack in World War Two, it now serves as a maritime museum. In the background is the Finnish Presidential Palace, which was previously the Imperial Palace of the Tsar, back when Finland was a grand duchy of the Russian Empire. 

This card is something of a rarity: a non-Postcrossing card from Finland! ;-) Many thanks and merci to my friend, Étienne, who was on holiday in Helsinki.

Stamp from a set of three issued this year featuring popular Finnish berries, in this case redcurrants, Ribes rubrum.

United Arab Emirates

Long skinny postcard showing Dubai's famous Burj Al Arab Hotel. The hotel is renowned for being highly luxurious and is sometimes billed as the world's only "seven star" hotel. The Royal Suite, billed at US$18,776 per night, is one of the most expensive hotel rooms in the world.

Many thanks to Salah for swapping cards. You can check out Salah's postcard blog, ASDF Postcrossing.

Joint stamp set commemorating Arab Postal Day 2008, which highlights cooperation and communication among Arab States in the field of postal services.

Guernsey II

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Certainly the motto, I think, of all "every country" collectors. After many attempts and a card bought in Guernsey but sent from England, I'm finally able to cross this Channel Island off my list, with my deepest thanks to Monica, who helped make it happen.

Card shows the Sarnian (as things from Guernsey are called) Little Chapel in Vauxbelets in the centre of the island. Originally built in 1914 and then reconstructed several times, it is thought to be the smallest chapel in the world, with room for just one priest and two parishioners!

Left stamp commemorating the naval alliance between England and Sweden against Napoleon's forces. Right stamp features the European hedgehog, Erinaceus europaeus.

Yugoslavia

A special blast-from-the-past postcard that I dug out of my archives from the no longer extant country of Yugoslavia. It was sent to me by a Serbian friend I met when I lived in China. The card features some of the Belle Époque windows gracing the buildings of the capital, Belgrade. Many thanks to Vesna for this slice of history in my collection!

Left and centre stamps are from a 1996 series on monasteries, thirteenth century Sopoćani Monastery and fourteenth century Bogorodica Ljeviška Monastary, respectively. Stamps on the right featuring manuscript illustration are from 1997.   

Albania

Postcard showing Albania beach resort of Vlorë on the Adriatic Coast. It was founded as an ancient Greek colony in the 6th century BC and, as such, is one of the oldest settlements in the country. It is also the place where Albania's independence from the Ottoman Empire was declared in 1912.

Stamp shows Osum Canyon in the centre of the country, a deep canyon with many waterfall that is a popular place for whitewater rafting.