3392 - Taiyuan, Shanxi, China

The Shanxi Loongs play in Taiyuan太原. They play in the Northern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association 中国男子篮球职业联赛. They were founded in 2001 and play at the Taiyuan Riverside Sports Centre Gymnasium 太原市滨河体育中心体育馆 in front of 8000 spectators.

The team played in the International Basketball League in 2008, which is a spring/summer league based in Portland, Oregon.

The team's roster consists of an all-Chinese teams except for three international players - two from the United States, and one from Russia. The American players are Isaiah Taylor, who played in the NCCA (American College) Big 12 with the Texas Longhorns. He went
undrafted, but signed with the Houston Rockets, first playing in their NBA Development League. He did make it in the NBA and has played 71 career games - four with Houston and 67 with Atlanta. He did sign with the Toronto Raptors in 2019, but was waived a month after signing his contract. He spent some time in the NBA Developmental League for the rest of the 2019-2020 season.

Taylor then went overseas playing in the Israeli Premier League, the Spanish Liga ACB, the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi, and finally with the Chinese Basketball Association in 2023.

Their second American player is Frank Jackson. Jackson played with Duke University for 2016-17. He only played one NCAA season. He was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, but was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. After two seasons in New Orleans, he signed with the Detroit Pistons and played with them for two seasons. He then signed with the Salt Lake City Stars, a development team for the Utah Jazz. He signed a 10 day contract with the Jazz, playing one game.

Jackson NBA options dried up so he played in the French LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague. He joined the Loongs for the 2023-24 season. Jackson played 214 games in the NBA.

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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