Oslo Opera House

After a long time I got another card from Norway and it shows the Oslo Opera House.

The Oslo Opera House is the seat of The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the national opera theatre in Norway. The building lies in Bjørvika, in the center of Oslo, at the head of the Oslofjord. Its builder was Statsbygg, a government-run property owner. The architects were the Norwegian firm Snøhetta who were also the architects of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (the Library of Alexandria) in Egypt. The theatre designers were Theatre Projects Consultants based in London, the acoustic designers were BrekkeStrandArup, a joint venture between local consultant Brekke Strand Akustikk and international acousticians Arup Acoustics. Norwegian construction company Veidekke was awarded one of the largest building contracts of the project. The structure provides a total area of 38,500 m² and includes 1,100 rooms, one of which has 1,350 seats and another has up to 400 seats. Total expenditures for the building project were planned at 4.4 billion NOK, but finished ahead of schedule, and 300 million NOK under budget. At the 1-years jubilee of the opera 1,3 million people had visited the building.

FDC from USA: Year of the Tiger

Many thanks to Mr. Huang Zhenbang for this nice FDC from USA. This year I received totally nine FDC's on the theme of Year of the Tiger and this is the last one I post here. US Post issues zodiac series in defferent cities each year, this year in Los Angeles.

Just welcome the 10 000th visitor of my blog and thanks for your support!

Countryside of Guilin

Guilin is a prefecture-level city in China, situated in the northeast of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on the west bank of the Li River. Its name means "forest of Sweet Osmanthus", owing to the large number of fragrant Sweet Osmanthus trees located in the city. The city has long been renowned for its unique scenery.

In 1981, this ancient city was listed by the State Council as one of the four cities (the other three being Beijing, Hangzhou and Suzhou) where the protection of historical and cultural heritage, as well as natural scenery, should be treated as a priority project

Saint-Omer

Saint-Omer, a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department 68 km (42 mi) west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais. The town is named after Saint Audomar, who brought Christianity to the area. The canalised portion of the river Aa begins at Saint-Omer, reaching the North Sea at Gravelines. Below its walls, the Aa connects with the Neufossé Canal, which ends at the Lys.

Brandenburg Gate

The Brandenburg Gate is a former city gate and one of the main symbols of Berlin and Germany. It is located west of the city center at the junction of Unter den Linden and Ebertstraße, immediately west of the Pariser Platz. It is the only remaining gate of a series through which one formerly entered Berlin. One block to the north stands the Reichstag building. The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of linden trees which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built by Carl Gotthard Langhans from 1788 to 1791. The Brandenburg Gate was restored from 2000 to 2002 by the Stiftung Denkmalschutz Berlin. Today, it is considered one of Europe's most famous landmarks.

I want to know why there is a label of UK Royal Mail. This card was relly posted from Germany!

FDC from India: Special Protection Group

The Special Protection Group (SPG) is the executive protection agency of the Government of India. It is responsible for the protection of the Prime Minister of India, other top officials, and their immediate families. The force was established in 1985 after the assassination of Indira Gandhi. It is one of many Indian law enforcement agencies.

The work of the Special Protection Group was more organised after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi on May 21, 1991, (who was, at that time, not under SPG cover since his term as Prime Minister had ended). After the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, there have been no successful attempts to attack the Prime Minister or the Prime Minister's family members. The Special Protection Group has about 3,000 personnel. Recruits are drawn from police forces as well as National Security Guards commandos, who undergo training similar to that conducted by the United States Secret Service. The officer cadre is mainly Indian Police Service (IPS) officers from various state/central cadres.

The Special Protection Group provides proximate security to protectees, including protection provided from close quarters, journey on foot, road, rail, aircraft, watercraft or any other means of transport, and includes places of functions, engagements, residence, etc. They comprise ring round teams, isolation cordons, the sterile zone, and the rostrum and access control to the person or members of his immediate family. The Special Protection Group, over a period of time, grew both in size as well as in specialisation.

Image of Amsterdam

Exploring the Expo 2010 in Shanghai (2)

A few photos showing the Part D and E in Puxi, Expo Park.

Pictures of Rio de Janeiro

Although I prefer one-view card, this one from Rio de Janeiro seems also very nice. Which photo do you prefer? I like the bridge in the middle line best!

The Kremlin

The Moscow Kremlin, sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River (to the south), Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square (to the east) and the Alexander Garden (to the west). It is the best known of kremlins (Russian citadels) and includes four palaces, four cathedrals and the enclosing Kremlin Wall with Kremlin towers. The complex serves as the official residence of the President of Russia.

The name The Kremlin is often used as a metonym to refer to the government of the Soviet Union (1922–1991) and its highest members (such as general secretaries, premiers, presidents, ministers, and commissars), in the same way the name Whitehall refers to the British government, or White House refers to the executive branch of the government of the United States. It is still used in reference to the government of the Russian Federation. "Kremlinology" referred to the study of Soviet policies.