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.

FDC from Hong Kong: Fujian Tulou

Fujian Tulou is "the most extraordinary type of Chinese rural dwellings" of the Hakka and others in the mountainous areas in southwestern Fujian, China. They were mostly built between the 12th and the 20th centuries.

A tulou is usually a large, enclosed and fortified earth building, rectangular or circular in configuration, with very thick load-bearing rammed earth walls between three and five stories high and housing up to 80 families. Smaller interior buildings are often enclosed by these huge peripheral walls which can contain halls, storehouses, wells and living areas, the whole structure resembling a small fortified city.

The fortified outer structures are formed by compacting earth, mixed with stone, bamboo, wood and other readily-available materials, to form walls up to six feet (≈2m) thick. Branches, strips of wood and bamboo chips are often laid in the wall as additional reinforcement. The end result is a well lit, well-ventilated, windproof and earthquake-proof building that is warm in winter and cool in summer. Tulous usually have only one main gate, guarded by 4-5 inch thick wooden doors reinforced with an outer shell of iron plate. The top level of these earth buildings has gun holes for defensive purposes.

National flag of Cuba

The flag of Cuba was adopted on May 20, 1902, containing a field with three blue stripes and two white stripes, and a red equilateral triangle at the hoist with a white 5-pointed star. The flag of Cuba was designed in 1848 for the liberation movement, which sought independence from Spain. The flag was briefly hoisted in 1850 at Cardenas but was not officially adopted until 1902, when independence was granted by the United States.

The Cuban flag was created by Narciso López in 1849, and put together by Emilia Teurbe Tolón. The Cuban flag's origins date from 1849, when various movements to liberate Cuba from Spanish rule emerged, mainly among Cuban exiles in the United States. Anti-Spanish Cuban exiles under the leadership of Narciso López adopted a flag suggested by the poet Miguel Teurbe Tolón. His design incorporates three blue stripes, representing the three parts that the country was divided during the independence wars, central, occidental, and oriental areas of the country, and two white stripes symbolizing the purity of the patriotic cause. The red triangle (triangle of masonic significance) stands for the blood shed to free the nation, which is placed where the star is, symbolizing the sky turned red from the blood shed in battle. The white star in the triangle stands for independence. López carried this flag in battle at Cárdenas (1850) and Playitas (1851). Although Lopez was not victorious, this was the first instance of the flag being raised in Cuba. At the first independence war, the Ten Years' War, there was another flag in use, the "flag of Yara" also called "flag of La Demajagua"; while the one with the triangle and the stripes became the official Cuban flag, the Yara one is hoisted "wherever the legislators of the Cuban people meet"; in particular it is displayed, along with the national flag, in the National Assembly

Is Helsinki crowded?

Is Helsinki, the capital city of Finland, crowded? I don't think so, because I live in Shanghai, a city with a population of 20,000,000.