3256 - Paris, France

This card is from a Ukrainian refugee who is now living in Paris. She even mentions she has friends who have settled in my own home province of Alberta.

Her card is a painting of Pont Alexandre III, with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Pont Alexandre III is a deck arch bridge that spans the Seine. It is considered the most ornate, extravagant bridge in Paris. In 1975, it was declared as a French monument historique.

The bridge itself was built between 1896 and 1900. It was named after Tsar Alexander III, who had concluded the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1892. Tsar Nicholas II laid the foundation stone in 1896. It is 160 meters long, and 40 meters wide. The architects of the bridge designed it in a way as to not obscure the view of the Champs-Élysées or the
Invalides.

There are several sculptures featured prominently on the bridge.

The Fames are four gilt-bronze statues, supported on 17 meter masonry socles that provide stabilizing counterweight for the arch.

The Nymphs are at the centre of the bridge and are memorials to the Franco-Russian Alliance.

The bridge is just as famous at the Eiffel Tower and has been featured in numerous movies and television shows.

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3227 - Mölln, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

Mölln is a small city of about 20 000 located in northern Germany. The Elbe-Lübeck Canal flows through the town, and there are eight small lakes that surround the city. It was founded in the 12th century and was a part of the Old Salt Route. Salt that was produced in the salt mines of Lower-Saxony was shipped to the Baltic Sea. Till Eulenspiegel, a legendary trickster known for exposing vices and provoking thought, is said to have lived in Mölln the last year of his life. He apparently died of the plague in 1350, but his existence has never been proven. Mölln has several monuments dedicated to him.

3322 - Hamburg, Germany

Happy birthday to me! What a lovely handmade card from the sender. Beautiful penmanship. Am Rothenbaum is the site of the main court of the German Open Tennis Championships. The International German Open has been played at the Rothernbaum since 1892, making it Germany's longest running tennis tournament. The current stadium was built in 1999 and can hold 13 200 people.

3232 - Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States of America

The Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal North Pierhead Light was built in 1882. There were nine keepers of the light until 1897. It was redesigned in 1903 and is 12 meters high. The Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal was started in 1872 and wasn't opened for large-scale watercraft until 1890. The canal is 2.1 kilometers long that goes from Sturgeon Bay in Lake Michigan to Green Bay. There are no locks on this canal. The canal was sold to the United States government in 1893 and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers maintains the canal.

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