Abhishek's PostCrossing Journey

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Kalyan Mosque, Bukhara, Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan-1, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Bukhara, also spelled as Bukhoro and Bokhara, from the Soghdian ßuxarak ("lucky place"), is the capital of the Bukhara Province (viloyat) of Uzbekistan. The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia and the city itself has existed for half that time. Located on the Silk Road, the city has long been a center of trade, scholarship, culture, and religion.
In picture one can see, The Kalyan Mosque (Masjid-i kalyan), arguably completed in 1514, is equal with Bibi-Khanym Mosque in Samarkand in size. Although they are of the same type of building, they are absolutely different in terms of art of building.

Sher-Dor Madrasah, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan-4, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Samarkand, is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province.The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study.
The Registan was the heart of the ancient Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The name Registan means "Sandy place" in Persian. Three madrasahs of the Registan are: Ulugbek Madrasah (1417-1420), the Sher-Dor Madrasah (1619-1636) and the Tilya-Kori Madrasah (1646-1660). Madrasah is a medieval Moslem clergy academy.

Uzbekistan Bank Association Building, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan-3, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Ancient Village of Likeng, China

China-27, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Located in Wuyuan County, Jiangxi province, the village is situated adjacent to a mountain and facing a river, the residences are characterized as Hui type beside streets along a river with white colored walls and black tiles and flying brims and outstanding ridges, forming a beautiful view of the river and streets at the river bay. The roads in Likeng extend in all directions with more than 40 streets and alleys constructed with flagstones, 9 bridges constructed with stone arcades and flagstones. There exists above ground channels, underdrains, ponds and other drainages and fire fighting facilities with 2 sets of ancient fire-fighting Shuirong well-kept in 2 temples.
The cultural value characteristics of the legacy in Likeng match with the architecture craftworks and technics of Hui prefecture in Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). The ancient villages maintained well the original and authentic style and features of Ming and Qing dynasties in the fields of whole layout, environment, and architecture style, building materials, decorative craftworks, construction techniques and so on.There are physical materials and written literatures for the authenticity of the legacy. Likeng and Wangkou kept well many inscription monuments of Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911).
Likeng village was founded in 1150 with a history of 850 years and a population of more than 1130 surnamed Yu. There exists 130 ancient buildings mainly of mansions and commercial houses with a total construction area of 68 km², among which 24 buildings were constructed in Ming Dynasty, and 106 constructed in Qing Dynasty. In history, there were 16 people who were successful candidates in the highest imperial examination, 36 people who were officials above seventh level and 333 pieces of books authored by some of the villagers. So the village was praised as "Famous Scholars Village".

Source : Welcome to Likeng Village

Central Station, Luxembourg

Luxembourg-1, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Luxembourg railway station is the main railway station serving Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg. It is operated by Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois, the state-owned railway company.The station's main building is built in the traditional Moselle neo-baroque style.

Monastery of Saint John the Theologian, Greece

Greece-11, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

The Monastery of Saint John the Theologian (also called Monastery of Saint John the Divine) is a Greek Orthodox monastery founded in 1088 in Chora on the island of Patmos.

Patmos is a small Greek island in the Aegean Sea. One of the northernmost islands of the Dodecanese complex. Patmos' main communities are Chora (the capital city), and Skala, the only commercial port. Other settlements are Grikou and Kampos. The churches and communities on Patmos are of the Eastern Orthodox tradition. In 1999, the island's historic center Chora, along with the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian and the Cave of the Apocalypse, were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The monastery was founded by Saint Christodulos.

Athenes, Greece

Greece-12, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Athens, the capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the world's oldest cities, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years.
On the Top Right hand corner, you may see the western side of the Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens.

Daphni Monastery, Greece

Greece-10, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Dafni or Daphni is a monastery 11 km north-west of downtown Athens in Chaidari, south of Athinon Avenue. It is situated near the forest of the same name, on the Sacred Way that led to Eleusis. The forest covers about 15 to 20 km².
The Daphnion was founded about the turn of the 6th century, Christianizing the site of the Sanctuary of Apollo Daphnaios that had been desecrated by the Goths in 395, and reusing the Ionic columns of the ancient temple of Apollo in its portico; only one remains, the others having been removed to London by Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin.
The principal church (catholikon), a fine monument of the 11th-century Byzantine art, is a crossin-square church of the octagonal type surmounted by a broad and high dome. The church houses the best preserved complex of mosaics from the early Comnenan period (ca. 1100) when an austere and hieratic manner typical for the Macedonian epoch and represented by the famous Christ Pantocrator image inside the dome, was metamorphosing into a more intimate and delicate style, of which The Angel before St Joachim — with its pastoral backdrop, harmonious gestures and pensive lyricism — is considered a superb example.

Olympia, Greece

Greece-12, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

Olympia, a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, comparable in importance to the Pythian Games held in Delphi. Both games were held every Olympiad (i.e. every four years), the Olympic Games dating back possibly further than 776 BC. In addition to temples, there are the remains of all the sports structures erected for the Olympic Games. In the 10th century B.C., Olympia became a centre for the worship of Zeus

Mir Castle, Belarus

Belarus-2, originally uploaded by Abhishek's Received Postcards.

The Mirsky Castle Complex, is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Belarus located in the town of Mir in the Karelichy District of the Hrodna voblast.
The construction of the castle began at the end of the 15th century, in the Gothic architecture style. Building of the castle was completed by Duke Ilinich in early 16th century near the village Mir (formerly of Minsk guberniya). Around 1568 the Mir Castle passed into the hands of Mikolaj Krzysztof "the Orphan" Radziwill, who finished building the castle in the Renaissance style. A three-storey palace was built along the eastern and northern walls of the castle. After being abandoned for nearly a century and suffering severe damage during the Napoleonic period, the castle was restored at the end of the 19th century.