Asian Golden Cat

The Asian golden cat , also called the Asiatic golden cat and Temminck's cat, is a medium-sized wild cat of Southeastern Asia. In 2008, the IUCN classified Asian golden cats as Near Threatened, stating that the species comes close to qualifying as Vulnerable due to hunting pressure and habitat loss, since Southeast Asian forests are undergoing the world's fastest regional deforestation.

The Asian golden cat was named in honor of the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck, who first described the African golden cat in 1827.
The Asian golden cat is heavily built, with a typical cat-like appearance. It has a head-body length of 66 to 105 cm (26 to 41 in), with a tail 40 to 57 cm (16 to 22 in) long, and is 56 cm (22 in) tall at the shoulder. The weight ranges from 9 to 16 kg (20 to 35 lb), which is about two or three times that of a domestic cat.

The pelage is uniform in color, but highly variable, ranging from red to golden-brown, dark brown to pale cinnamon, and gray to black. Transitional forms among the different colorations also exist. It may be marked with spots and stripes. White and black lines run across the cheeks and up to the top of the head, while the ears are black with a central gray area. Golden cats with leopard-like spots have been found in China, resembling large leopard cats. This spotted fur is a recessive characteristic.
Source: Wikipedia

Wow incredible card from India!

Thanks to Dayanand via Postcrossing for this beautiful cat!

Sent: 12 April 2016   Received: 4 May 2016   Travelled: 22 days

Mahatma Gandhi

4th December 1931, Mahatma Gandhi outside 10 Downing Street. London

while attending a conference on Indian Constitutionla Reform. His long,

non violent struggle played a big part in paving the way for Indian Independence

in 1947.

Thanks to Destiny via Postcrossing for this of Mahatma Gandhi!

Sent: 21 November 2015   Received: 6 January 2016   Travelled: 46 days

Pushkar Fair

The Pushkar Fair (or locally Pushkar ka Mela is an annual five-day camel and livestock fair held in the town of Pushkar in the state of Rajasthan, India. It is one of the world's largest camel fairs. Apart from the buying and selling of livestock, it has become an important tourist attraction. Competitions such as the "matka phod", "longest moustache", and "bridal competition" are the main draws for this fair which attracts thousands of tourists. In recent years the fair has also included an exhibition cricket match between the local Pushkar club and a team of random foreign tourists. The Imperial Gazetteer of India mentions an attendance of 100,000 pilgrims in early 1900s.

Thousands of people go to the banks of the Pushkar Lake where the fair takes place. Men buy and sell their livestock, which includes camels, cows, sheep and goats. The women go to the stalls, full of bracelets, clothes, textiles and fabrics. A camel race starts off the festival, with music, songs and exhibitions to follow. Between these events, the most waited for is the test of how the camel is able to bring the items. In order to demonstrate, the men go up on the group of camels one after another.

It is celebrated for five days from the Kartik ekadashi to Kartik Poornima, the full moon day (the 15th) of Kartik (October–November) in Hindu calendar. The full moon day is the main day and the day, according to legend, when the Hindu god Brahma sprung up the Pushkar Lake, thus numerous people swim in its sacred waters.
Source: Wikipedia

Wow amazing colourful card from Neil. 

Another lovely decorated camel :D 

Sent: 23 Oct   Received: 4 November 2015   Travelled: 12 days

Goa- taverna

Excerpt on back

At sundown,those who are tired or merely thirsty share a bit of gossip

over a glass of "fenim" at their favourite tavern. Every tavern has its own

distinct atmosphere. Copyright - Mario de Miranda

I so enjoy this card, makes me feel like joining the guys in here to

kick back and relax with a  cool drink after a long and hot day.

Thanks to Aslesh via postcrossing.

Sent: 2 August 2015   Received: 19 August 2015   Travelled: 17 days

Elephant procession

An elephant procession- a legacy of the royal past. 

Thanks to Bhaskar for this swap. 

Sent: 21 July 2015   Received: 7 August 2015   Travelled: 17 days

Indian village home

A beautiful card of a village home with cakes of cow dung on this mud house

Thanks to Kanishkha for this beautiful people card.

Sent: 1 May 2015   Received: 16 June 2015   Travelled: 46 days

Brihadeeswara Temple, Thanjavur

IDN- 276

Excerpt on card:

The temple in the south Indian state of Tamilnadu is the largest

temple in India and one of India's most prized architectural sites. It is a

Unesco World Heritage Site.

Built in 1010AD by Raja Raja Chola I in Thanjavur, the temple popularly known

as the "Big Temple" turned 1000 years olkd in 2010. A commemorative stamp of

RS. 5dn featuring the 216fttall giant Raja Gopuram was released by India Post

on the occasion. Pictured is the 30m high gopuram of the main entrance.

Thanks to Sharaj from PostcardUnited for this great Unesco postcard and 

beautiful stamps! 

Sunset camel riders

Beautiful sunset card of camels in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
Thank you Neil for this lovely card and horse stamps!
Sent: 20 April 2015   Received: 6 May 2015   Travelled: 16 days

Ratha-Yatra - Festival of Chariot

Ratha Yatra or the Chariot Festival is a Hindu festival associated with the god Jagannath held at Puri in the state of Odisha, India. This annual festival is celebrated on Ashad Shukla Dwitiya (second day in bright fortnight of Ashad month).
Three richly decorated chariots, resembling temple structures, are pulled through the streets of Puri called Badadanda. This commemorates the annual journey of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and their sister Subhadra to their aunt's temple, the Gundicha Temple which is situated at a distance of 2 km from their temple. This is the only day when devotees who are not allowed in the temple premises, such as non-Hindus and foreigners, can get their glimpse of the deities. During the festival, devotees from all over the world go to Puri with an earnest desire to help pull the Lords' chariots with the help of other priests pulling the chariots with ropes. They consider this a pious deed and risk their lives in the huge crowd. The huge processions accompanying the chariots play devotional songs with drums, tambourines, trumpets etc. Children line the streets through which the chariot will pass and add to the mass chorus. The Ratha carts themselves are some approximately 45 feet (14 m) high and are pulled by the thousands of pilgrims who turn up for the event; the chariots are built anew each year only from a particular type of tree.

Wow what an amazing postcard that arrived to my mailbox showing the Chariot Festival

Thanks to Anup for this postcard! (Postcard united)

Sent: 24 April 2015   Received: 6 May 2015   Travelled: 12 days

Himalaya mountain

The Himalayas, or Himalaya, Sanskrit word literally meaning "abode of the snow") is a mountain range in South Asia which separates the Indo-Gangetic Plain from the Tibetan Plateau. This range is home to nine of the ten highest peaks on Earth, including the highest, Mount Everest. The Himalayas have profoundly shaped the cultures of South Asia. Many Himalayan peaks are sacred in both Buddhism and Hinduism.

Thanks to Srikhant of India for this postcard (postcrossing)

Sent: 13 February 2015   REceived: 26 February 2015   Travelled: 13 days

Nicobar Megapode

The Nicobar megapode or Nicobar scrubfowl (Megapodius nicobariensis) is a megapode found in some of the Nicobar Islands (India). Like other megapodes relatives, it builds a large mound nest with soil and vegetation, with the eggs hatched by the heat produced by decomposition. Newly hatched chicks climb out of the loose soil of the mound and being fully feathered are capable of flight. The Nicobar Islands are on the edge of the distribution of megapodes, well separated from the nearest ranges of other megapode species. Being restricted to small islands and threatened by hunting, the species is vulnerable to extinction. The 2004 tsunami is believed to have wiped out populations on some islands and reduced populations on several others.

Thank you Neil for this card of a very rare bird from Nicobar.

Sent: 13 November 2014   Received: 9 December 2014   Travelled: 26 days

Kathakali

Kathakali  is a stylized classical Indian dance-drama noted for the attractive make-up of characters, elaborate costumes, detailed gestures and well-defined body movements presented in tune with the anchor playback music and complementary percussion. It originated in the country's present day state of Kerala during the 17th century and has developed over the years with improved looks, refined gestures and added themes besides more ornate singing and precise drumming.

Wow what a superb "people" card showing 

the Kathakali dance. Thanks to Veela from Belgium

for this beautiful card!

Sent: 13 June 2014   Received: 3 July 2014   Travelled: 20 days

Thank you Postman

 

Thank you in Indian languages

Hindi or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi is a standardised and Sanskritised register of the Hindustani language. Hindustani is the native language of most people living in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chattisgarh, Himachal pradesh, Chandigarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.Modern Standard Hindi is one of the official languages of India.

Hindi drawing its specialised vocabulary from Sanskrit, whilst Urdu does so from Persian and Arabic. In their colloquial forms, the two varieties are nearly indistinguishable.

Hindi is the fourth-most-widely spoken language in the world, but this includes not only Hindu speakers of Hindustani, but also people who identify as native speakers of related languages who consider their speech to be a dialect of Hindi, the Hindi belt.

Thank you Kanishka for this lovely Hindi alphabet card.

Sent: 28 March 2014   Received: 9 June 2014   Travelled: 73 days!

Jodhpur

 

Jodhpur "Blue City" of India, popular for palaces and forts.

The city is known as the "Sun City" for the bright, sunny weather it enjoys all the year round. It is also referred to as the "Blue City" due to the vivid blue-painted houses around the Mehrangarh Fort. The old city circles the fort and is bounded by a wall with several gates. However, the city has expanded greatly outside the wall over the past several decades. Jodhpur lies near the geographic centre of Rajasthan state, which makes it a convenient base for travel in a region much frequented by tourists. Jodhpur topped the Lonely Planet's list of most extraordinary place to stay in 2014.

Thank you Kanishkar for thi blue city card!! Makes me want to visit Jodhpur now :)

Sent: 25 April 2014   Received: 19 May 2014   Travelled: 24 days

Jaisalmer

  Jaisalmer is named after Maharawal Jaisal Singh, a Rajput king who founded the city in 1156 AD. "Jaisalmer" means "the Hill Fort of Jaisal". Jaisalmer is sometimes called the "Golden City of India" because the yellow sand and the yellow sandstone used in every architecture of the city gives a yellowish-golden tinge to the city and its surrounding area.

 

Once upon a time when I was a college student, I watched a Hindi film called "Yaadein". If you've ever seen a Hindi film you'll know that it's full of colour,song,spectacle and drama. In Yaadein, I saw the vivid beauty of Rajasthan and I've been enamoured since then. Thank you Jinesh for this beautiful card and stamps!

Sent: ??

Received: 5 April 2014

Ladakh, India

Photo by: Hu Hsin Wen

Penzila pass: Gateway to Zanskarvalley

 

Ladakh, "Land of high passes" The last Shangrila, is a region oIndia in the state of Jammu and Kashmir that lies between the Kunlun Mountain range in the north ad the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Jammu and Kashmir.

 

If I ever braved the notion to travel India alone, Ladakh is the place I would visit for it's proximity to Tibet and I'm of course fascinated by the culture and people.

http://www.dlonpotravels.com

Thank you Gelek for this beautiful view card!

Sent: 19 March 2013
Received: 3 April 2013
Travelled: 14 days

Indian man

Thank you Neil for this beautiful postcard from Rajasthan!

It's one of the only places I know about mainly for the beautiful vivid colours and the timelessness of the people living in the desert.

Sent: 6 January 2014

Received: 16 January 2014

Travelled: 10 days

Nataraja wall relief

Badami is famous for its sandstone cave temples. Cave temple 1 may be the oldest in Badami. It is made of red sandstone and has a hall with numerous pillars and a square shaped sanctum hollowed in the control back wall. There are paintings of amorous couples on the ceiling. Other features include Shiva and his consort Parvathi with a coiled serpent and the 18 armed lord Nataraja in 81 dancing poses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badami

Thank you Rizwan for this beautiful card!

Sent: 15 October 2013
Received: 24 October 2013
Travelled: 9 days

Rajasthan

 Rajasthan has always been one of my most vivid impressions of India, especially after watching the movie Yaadein with my neighbor back in my college days. The colours, the desert and the beautiful life made me curious about the different regions in India.

Thank you Rizwan for this beautiful card!

Sent:15 October 2013

Received: 24 October 2013

Travelled: 9 days

Decorated camel

Hey Neil! Thanks for the decorated camel, now I just have to hope for a decorated elephant to pop into my mailbox ;)

Sent: 3 May 2013